Can I give my cat Zyrtec ?

[castmemberb4]

He's having an allergic reaction to food. We've changed the food but want to give him some relief for now. I know I can give him Benedryl and I know how to figure out the dosage according to his weight. The problem is that the only liquid children's allergy medicine I can find is the store equivalent of Zyrtec, not Benedril.

Any Vets or Vet Techs out there ?
I really need to get my sweet boy some relief, by the time I got home with the meds my vets office was closed. Going to Google it but asked here first.

 

[golfgal]

We give our dog a benadryl tablet for her allergies. We get the generics at wherever. She is really good about taking her pill though-we just stuff it into a treat and she eats the tablet whole with the treat.

Also, benadryl that you need is probably in the adult allergy med section, not the children's.

 

[bicker]

We gave our cat Zyrtec for a few years before she passed away last year. The dosage was doctor-recommended, though; don't skip that step.

 

[castmemberb4]

We gave our cat Zyrtec for a few years before she passed away last year. The dosage was doctor-recommended, though; don't skip that step.

Thanks Bicker guess I should have said in the first post they told me to give him Benadryl but I could only find Zyrtec and they were closed by the time I got home with it. Anyway I found a great PetMD article that says Zyrtec is more effective than Benedryl for a lot of cases. Gave it to him last night, he seems to scratch less but is still licking. Going to call the vet back today just couldn't stand for him to go another day with that itch.

 

[sandramaac]

why not just call you vet and ask--surely if they aren't in they have a 24 hour emergency number to call to ask questions---medication dosages and the type of meds animals differ greatly from those of humans!!---it really should something answered by a medical professional, and not a dis board question---suppose you get the wrong info and it has catastrophic results

 

[bicker]

FWIW, I've never had any success getting any doctor (physician or veterinary) that didn't perform a physical exam to comment on dosage for an OTC medication over the telephone, unless that doctor was a colleague in the same practice as a doctor who had performed an exam. And unlike larger physician practices, vets, at least in this area, refer after-hours calls to one of the two regional emergency clinics, rather than any of the partners in the practice.

 

[Rumpus]

FWIW, I've never had any success getting any doctor (physician or veterinary) that didn't perform a physical exam to comment on dosage for an OTC medication over the telephone, unless that doctor was a colleague in the same practice as a doctor who had performed an exam. And unlike larger physician practices, vets, at least in this area, refer after-hours calls to one of the two regional emergency clinics, rather than any of the partners in the practice.

Years ago my dog swiped a rotiserie chicken off of the counter and ate the WHOLE thing. All that was left was the plastic container. I called the vet and they told me what to do over the phone; Hydrogen peroxide every five minutes until she vomited. We barely got through two doses. If you have a good relationship with the vet they will often tell you.

 

[DizBelle]

We've given our cat chlorphineramine maleate for allergies (chlor-trimeton is the brand name if you are interested). The dosage was one half of one 4 mg pill (a 4 hour pill for humans). He is a 12-13 lb cat.

This was originally prescribed by the vet and the pills were the exact same ones you can buy for people at the drug store.

I should note that his allergy was some environmental thing making him sneeze and not a food allergy.

 

[castmemberb4]

FWIW, I've never had any success getting any doctor (physician or veterinary) that didn't perform a physical exam to comment on dosage for an OTC medication over the telephone, unless that doctor was a colleague in the same practice as a doctor who had performed an exam. And unlike larger physician practices, vets, at least in this area, refer after-hours calls to one of the two regional emergency clinics, rather than any of the partners in the practice.

You're right my Vet had seen him and given me the dosage for childrens Benedryl and all I could find was childrens's Zyrtec. I couldn't get in touch with my vet after hours just an emergency call center.

Years ago my dog swiped a rotiserie chicken off of the counter and ate the WHOLE thing. All that was left was the plastic container. I called the vet and they told me what to do over the phone; Hydrogen peroxide every five minutes until she vomited. We barely got through two doses. If you have a good relationship with the vet they will often tell you.

Poor dog! I feel bad for both of you for having gone through that!

We've given our cat chlorphineramine maleate for allergies (chlor-trimeton is the brand name if you are interested). The dosage was one half of one 4 mg pill (a 4 hour pill for humans). He is a 12-13 lb cat.

This was originally prescribed by the vet and the pills were the exact same ones you can buy for people at the drug store.

I should note that his allergy was some environmental thing making him sneeze and not a food allergy.

We're in the trial and error phase of figuringing out what's causing the problem, when I posted we though it was food now we're not so sure.
I'll keep chlor-trimeton in mind.
We're also exploring the possibility that it is connected to his asthma.

BTW - I have an excellent Vet and now have her cell number for after hours