Does anyone have experience with 'doggy prozac'?

My experience was that it was worth a try, but depending on the level/source (in this case overwhelming grief from loss of loved one/mom/pack leader), it didn't work, even when utilized with pheromone diffuser and/or thunder shirt.

I tried anti anxiety medicine and a sedative with my 6lb chihuahua when travelling on a plane. Each dog is different and will respond differently. I recommend talking closely with your Vet and explaining your dogs personality. My dog can be high strung in public so my vet wanted to use anti anxiety medicine so that he would be calm while travelling oppose to knocking him out and fearing that he would wake up and panic. Sadly the anxiety medicine ended up making him strange and anal (sniffing each corner of the house for hours at a time). The sadative medicine worked well. When he woke up on the plane he would panic for a few seconds, feebly attempt to escape and then fall asleep.

Anxiety medications can be very useful for many dogs, especially in conjunction with desensitization and counter-conditioning to whatever is causing the anxiety. It can help bring a dog down to a level where they are able to engage in training, which is important for overcoming anxiety. They usually take 2-4 weeks to reach a therapeutic level, and may be useful either temporarily or indefinitely. Like in humans, there's a weird stigma against treating anxiety medicinally, which is detrimental to recovery. No one would tell you not to get your dog pain medication for an injury. Anxiety can cause a dog to be just as uncomfortable as physical pain, and it's unfortunate that often medication is overlooked as part of a successful treatment plan.

I recommend this article for anyone considering treating anxiety for their pets: https://paws4udogs.wordpress.com/2013...

Like in people, anxiety medications are commonly used in dogs. Personally, one of my dogs is on fluoxetine (aka doggy Prozac). She is fearful of almost everything, has separation anxiety -> which causes her to ingest things when alone, and she obsessively licks the air.

It usually takes 4-6 weeks after starting the medication to take full effect. And it did WONDERS for my dog.

If your vet doesn't suggest blood work (which they should!!), please inquire!! Ideally a bloodwork panel should be run prior to starting the medication - to get a baseline. Then 2-4 weeks after starting the meds you should do another panel to ensure that your dog is handleing the medication alright (organs function is good). After this long term medication monitoring bloodwork should be run every 6 months.

There are a number of different psychiatric medications used in dogs to help with anxiety, as well as depression, OCD, and other severe behavior issues. These medications are usually prescribed along with behavior modification, and are prescribed by a veterinary behaviorist. They can be very helpful with dogs that are so anxious they have difficulty being receptive to training.