Is 10 mg of prednisone a day alot for my cat?

Question

My vet prescribed it.I have trouble with keeping her liver values down

Answer 1

Because of differences in the ways different species of animals metabolize different drugs, cats tolerate much higher doses of corticosteroids (and for much longer periods of time) than dogs, humans, and many other species....without the side effects common in other species. (Sorta the opposite of the way humans can tolerate aspirin every 4-6 hrs, but cats can't have more than a small dose every 3 days....and even then, only under close medical supervision.)

But it doesn't matter what anyone's opinion of your cat's medication dose is, UNLESS they have a doctorate degree in veterinary medicine behind their name. I'm not trying to sound pompous....it's just that without that extensive medical education, one can't possibly be able to answer your question properly. Not even an MD.

The proper dose of prednisone in any species varies WIDELY, depending upon which condition is being treated. We often have to give cats a whole lot more than you'd expect, in order to achieve positive results.

If you have an average-sized cat, 10mg per day is not excessive for many feline problems we treat on a regular basis. In fact, we often have to go higher. I can't say, of course, whether it's too high for YOUR cat....because I don't know the history or physical status of your cat, or which condition is being treated.

But if you feel uncertain enough about it to be asking, the person you should be asking is your DVM.....not a bunch of strangers on the Internet who have no verifiable medical training or pharmacologic knowledge. Your DVM will be happy to answer any questions you have and explain anything you don't understand. If after discussing it with your veterinarian, you still don't feel comfortable, however...then the thing to do is to seek a second opinion from another qualified veterinarian who can examine your cat and review his/her medical history and test results in person. You can even ask for a referral to a board-certified feline internal medicine specialist, if you want the absolute best for your cat.

Answer 2

Prednisone Dosage For Cats

Answer 3

I did not see your addendum to your question. Holistic vets use milk thistle to help regenerate the liver and keep those values under control:

"Milk Thistle Protects the Liver - A. Greig Howie, DVM
For any liver condition - hepatitis, fatty liver, chronic liver disease, inflammation of the bile ducts - dont' hestitate to use milk thistle. This herb has amazing healing effects and actually regenerates the liver.

You can add milk thistle to any treatment program, and it may very well be the only thing that will help. I don't know of any drug we veterinarians have that will regenerate the liver, but milk thistle will definitely do it....Your veterinarian will gauge improvement by doing standard liver enzyme tests, and I am sure that he or she will be surprised, as I was in the beginning, at how well this herb improves the status of the liver.....once the enzyme level normalizes you can stop the herb. If an animal has a damaged liver or a history of liver problems, I suggest giving milk thistle daily for a week each month.

Also highly recommended by Pamela Wood-Krzeminski, DVM Maria Glinski, DVM, and Ron Carsten, DVM.

...milk thistle extract from Twin Labs, available in health food stores. One way to get a cat to take it is to empty the contents into a palatable food, such as one of the meaty baby foods(No onion or garlic powder). Dosage: 1 capsule daily." Krzeminski.

"Milk thistle in the form of a liquid, glycerin-based product from Gaia Herbs (800-831-7780), available at health foods stores. Give ten drop a day." Glinski

"Milk thistle: 250 milligrams once a day." Carsten

From my experience with cats the drops would be the easiest to administer. I would never give a steroid to a cat on a long-term basis.

Answer 4

First, I say listen to the vet chick! ;-)
She's totally right about the differences in species; my 7-pound cat is on 5 mg. of predinisolone (for chronic vomiting caused by probable food allergies), yet my neurologist nixed his idea of letting me take only a week's worth of 4-mg. pred because I have a relatively minor liver condition. (I guess it can cause liver damage in humans.)

Second, ask your vet about the milk thistle, or about a feline supplement called S-Adenosyl that contains SAMe and milk thistle (as well as taurine, zinc and B vitamins). My kitty took that for several years, after he started having liver problems. He underwent all sorts of tests, including a liver biopsy, to determine the origin of his skewed liver values (they were inconclusive, though they suspected cholangeal hepatitis), so my vet tried him first on a product called Denosyl (which is, I believe, just SAMe), which he took for a long time, then after his liver values had been normal for about a year, she took him off of it. When she noticed his enzymes creeping back up (probably another year later), she put him on S-Adenosyl, and they leveled out again. He lived to the ripe old age of 18 (the liver biopsy was when he was about 11 or 12).

As a side note, when my own liver "went bad" last year, I started taking SAMe and milk thistle myself supplements, after being so impressed with my kitty's results, and my liver values have held steady for almost a year now.

Please be sure, though, to ask your vet about any medicine or natural supplement before starting your cat on it. It's quite possible that your vet won't think any of this is appropriate for your kitty, or he/she may recommend another product with these same ingredients - or something entirely different. Good luck to you - I hope you can get her liver back in good shape!

Answer 5

Prednisone 10mg Dosage

Answer 6

The usual human dosage for prednisone is 1mg per kilogram of body weight per day. Thus, if a human weighs 100 pounds, 100/2.2 (pounds per kilogram) is about 45 mg daily. If your cat is 9 pounds - a pretty ordinary size for a cat - then that's about 4 kilograms, which would mean 4 mg per day. That being said, however, different issues require different dosages of medication. Since you're concerned, contact your veterinarian.

Answer 7

It sounds like a lot to me. In fact, in humans there are lasting side effects when a person regularly takes 20 mg or more a day. If your cat has only a dose or two it may not be a lot but if the cat is on this much regularly, please talk another vet about it.

Answer 8

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Answer 9

Hi there...Prednisone is used for a wide variety of conditions in both dogs and cats. It may be used in emergency situations including, anaphylactic reactions, spinal chord trauma, and many forms of shock. It is used in the management and treatment of immune mediated disease such as immune mediated hemolytic anemia, or thombocytopenia: many CNS disorders: some neoplasia: dermatologic diseases: allergic reactions such as asthma, hives, and itching: inflammatory orthopedic diseases: endocrine disorders including Addison's: respiratory disease with an inflammatory component, inflammatory bowel diseases and many other conditions.

Cats may require higher doses than dogs in order to achieve clinical response, but they are less likely to develop adverse side effects.

If you are concerned please consider ringing your vet and discuss this with them. They always welcome people's questions to help allay them.

Here's an article about glucocorticoids usage for pets: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?articleid=1422

Answer 10

Is that what your vet prescribed? If yes then its fine.