booge Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Went to a different (more affordable) dog allergy vet today as recommended by another forum user. Whilst the consultation was much cheaper than another specialist place i went, when it came to recommending ongoing treatment for my pooch it's the same old story.....$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Recommended was a drug which would cost me approx $360 per month! Other than that it's pretty much just the anti biotics i had in the past. Th vet was very good and knowledgeable, but I'm still shocked and disappointed at how much pet health costs. Humans don't cost this much. Is there any way to treat a dogs Atopic allergies that doesn't cost the earth?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janba Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Sorry for you dogs problems. I have no suggestions for treatment but you could try an holistic vet. Human medicine does cost as much if not more its just that medicare and the PBS greatly reduce the costs, particularly for the more expensive drugs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staffyluv Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Is there a human equivalent to the drug your dog needs? If so, the vet can give you a prescription and it can be purchased from your local chemist (obviously it won't be as cheap as PBS drugs but it will be cheaper than a vet can supply it for as chemists have larger buying capacity)... My old stafford used a few drugs that had a human equivalent and it saved us a fortune getting them from the chemist.. Our vet was happy to write the script. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booge Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 (edited) Is there a human equivalent to the drug your dog needs? If so, the vet can give you a prescription and it can be purchased from your local chemist (obviously it won't be as cheap as PBS drugs but it will be cheaper than a vet can supply it for as chemists have larger buying capacity)... My old stafford used a few drugs that had a human equivalent and it saved us a fortune getting them from the chemist.. Our vet was happy to write the script. It actually is a human anti rejection drug originally used for transplant patients called Cyclosporine. Its cost is based on weight, so for my 30kg dog it works out to $360 a month. Any good (reasonably priced) Holistic vets recommended in Victoria eastern suburbs? Edited May 21, 2012 by booge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumabaar Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Is there a human equivalent to the drug your dog needs? If so, the vet can give you a prescription and it can be purchased from your local chemist (obviously it won't be as cheap as PBS drugs but it will be cheaper than a vet can supply it for as chemists have larger buying capacity)... My old stafford used a few drugs that had a human equivalent and it saved us a fortune getting them from the chemist.. Our vet was happy to write the script. It actually is a human anti rejection drug originally used for transplant patients called Cyclosporine. Its cost is based on weight, so for my 30kg dog it works out to $360 a month. Any good (reasonably priced) Holistic vets recommended in Victoria eastern suburbs? Most treatments for Atopy are going to be expensive regardless of who you see. It isn't something 'curable' so whatever direction you head in the costs will add up. Good luck in finding something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staffyluv Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Is there a human equivalent to the drug your dog needs? If so, the vet can give you a prescription and it can be purchased from your local chemist (obviously it won't be as cheap as PBS drugs but it will be cheaper than a vet can supply it for as chemists have larger buying capacity)... My old stafford used a few drugs that had a human equivalent and it saved us a fortune getting them from the chemist.. Our vet was happy to write the script. It actually is a human anti rejection drug originally used for transplant patients called Cyclosporine. Its cost is based on weight, so for my 30kg dog it works out to $360 a month. Any good (reasonably priced) Holistic vets recommended in Victoria eastern suburbs? Oh sorry to hear that. I can sympathise with the cost for medication - our old stafford had cancer for 6 years before he passed. We stopped adding it up after about the $15000 mark. Chemo is expensive and he was holistically treated as well. Then on other supplements and drugs because of the chemo.. I hope you find a solution that is cheaper but sometimes there just isn't one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Bruce Syme Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Hi, can I suggest, if you haven't already, look at diet. Dr Bruce Syme has a 70% success rate at controlling atopic allergies just through diet. If your interested in having a phone chat with him just let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrm88 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Allergies are expensive to treat unfortunately. Atopica (cyclosporin) DOES work wonders though when used correctly! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Similar to Vets All Natural's comment, I'm inclined to agree that the cause for your dog being so badly allergic could do with looking at. Diets can help a lot. As can looking at what chemicals you use in the general course of your dog's life. Supporting and de-loading your dog's immune system can also help things. I'd be inclined to have thyroid bloods done (via Dr Jean Dodds in the USA .... testing is more thorough as is the analysis - and not much more expensive than it being done nationally) also - but that's just me. The thyroid is responsible for the proper function of just about every organ in the body, including the immune system and is fairly easily and economically righted with medication if something is out of whack there. Have a chat with Dr Bruce Syme - he's not my 'main' Vet because of the distance between us, but I have seen him on numerous occasions and he's helped and guided me with my dogs' various problems throughout the years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mish13 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 If your vet is prepared to write the script you can do what I did and brought Atopica for my dog from California pet pharmacy. I can get a packet with 15 tablets for $25 compared to $100 here. The vet had to fill out particular information that they wanted on the script but it all went through without a problem. I emailed them the script. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booge Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 The vet seems to think it's not a food allergy as his itches improve slightly over the cooler months and get worse when the weather fines up. I've been feeding him BARF for a few years, with on and off Vets all Natural or just Supercoat dry food. Just saw the new Vets all Natural for sensitive skin and will give it a go and feed just the kangaroo barf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 the supercoat wont help in any way. Itchy dogs need diets that do not change or get rotated. Keep an eye on things like snacks, treats, food scraps etc. A food diary can help as well. Anything that goes into your dog needs to be recorded and keep another column for how itchy the dog is and when symptoms show up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westiemum Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 (edited) Allergies are expensive to treat unfortunately. Atopica (cyclosporin) DOES work wonders though when used correctly! :) Sorry for the long post - but this might help. Yep can vouch for this. Atopica has done wonders for my westie girl and my sleep! ( She doesn't wake me up a couple of times a night with her scratching and her skin quality has improved tremendously - and she is so much happier). Yes it's costly - but the reason is there is no synthetic equivalent to get the the cost down as there is with most other drugs - no-one has ever been able to make it using synthetic chemicals mixed together (excuse my basic explanation) - so what you are paying for is the real McCoy which is very expensive to produce. That said I got my dog on the current Pfizer drug trial for dogs with severe itchies (atopic dermatitis) - she's now finished and I'm thrilled with the results. And lucky for me she was allocated the control drug , Atopica, so I was given three months supply of the drug ( daily dose) for free as part of the trial. So it would be well worth your while enquiring to see if your dog is eligible - I believe the trial is still going on nationally. I think most vets know about it. After the end of the trial, I discussed how to manage her from here on in, in an affordable way without undoing all the good work with the supervising vet (specialist dermatologist). We cut her back to every second day so instead of 152/month it became 76/month which I could manage. And interestingly, she's inadvertently (because of her ridiculously busy mother) missed a couple of doses and it's made no difference to her scratching/itching behavior so it seems she doesn't need three doses a week or she's one of the rare lucky dogs who has gone into remission. So I'm going to discuss this the vet next week and see what he suggests - for example back to two or even one dose a week. I know your dog is bigger and more expensive to treat - but I hope I've given you some options which might make the whole thing more effective and affordable. Good luck - will be very interested to hear how you get on. :) Edited May 21, 2012 by westiemum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormie Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Try having a Great Dane on Cyclosporin :laugh: What about just using Cortisone? I know a lot of people frown upon it due to potential side effects, but it's cheap and it will provide quality of life for your dog. If managed correctly on as low dose as possible on alternate dogs, your dog could still live a normal life. My boy's been on Cortisone for nearly 4 years now (along with Cyclosporin - he's bad and needs both) and while I'm aware he may not live as long, I'd rather he have quality of life now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tara8430 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 The vet seems to think it's not a food allergy as his itches improve slightly over the cooler months and get worse when the weather fines up. I've been feeding him BARF for a few years, with on and off Vets all Natural or just Supercoat dry food. Just saw the new Vets all Natural for sensitive skin and will give it a go and feed just the kangaroo barf. Have you tried a food elimination diet? Thats my next step if Abbey doesnt stop itching, i took her to a new vet last week cause i had jack of my old vet, they just wanted to put her on cortisone tablets and not look any further. I have Abs on antibiotics at the moment cause she had a couple of sores (which looked more like healed mini hot spots) and im just waiting for the lamb based kibble to get out of her system. If she is still itchy in 3 weeks i have to put her on one of the hills prescription diets and the slowly add different types of food back and wait and see what makes her itchy. Im hoping that it was just the lamb based kibble and that she returns to normal soon, its been a week this week and i think (think!) that the itching is becoming less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 What about just using Cortisone? I had a dog with multiple allergies and he was on prednil for most of his 12 yr life .. dose was manipulated ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tara8430 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Try having a Great Dane on Cyclosporin :laugh: What about just using Cortisone? I know a lot of people frown upon it due to potential side effects, but it's cheap and it will provide quality of life for your dog. If managed correctly on as low dose as possible on alternate dogs, your dog could still live a normal life. My boy's been on Cortisone for nearly 4 years now (along with Cyclosporin - he's bad and needs both) and while I'm aware he may not live as long, I'd rather he have quality of life now. Did you work out what was causing the allergy first though? My vet said cortisone is only a bandaid and isnt actually getting down to what is the problem and didnt recommend due to the side effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booge Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 My boy has been on Cortisone on and off for a few years, as said by others, it only masks the problem and doesn't fix it. However I think I could do a better job of managing the itches than my main vet. He just hands out cortisone without even a second thought or asking anything. My theory was each time the itches start I'd just have him on Cortisone for a week and at the same time start a course of anti biotics. I'd prefer that to having him on cortisone permanently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 If you can find out what is causing the allergy you can look at desensitizing the dog to the allergen, usually via injections. This is not going to be cheap though. Apart from that or avoiding the allergen, allergies can't be fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason_Gibbs Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Try having a Great Dane on Cyclosporin :laugh: What about just using Cortisone? I know a lot of people frown upon it due to potential side effects, but it's cheap and it will provide quality of life for your dog. If managed correctly on as low dose as possible on alternate dogs, your dog could still live a normal life. My boy's been on Cortisone for nearly 4 years now (along with Cyclosporin - he's bad and needs both) and while I'm aware he may not live as long, I'd rather he have quality of life now. Yes my allergy dogs takes 2,5mg of cortisone a day, and while I don't like it I have just come to accept it as his life is miserable without it. He is on desensitization shots and they are slowly helping :) looks like my puppy may need bee and wasp desensitization and now that costs a wack!! Over $2000 for the testing and then $150 for 19 weeks and one injection a month. Almost unaffordable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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