Librela plus pain meds?

[daisyanne]

Hi, looking for a bit of advice. My vet thinks that Jerry, my 13 year old boy, has arthritis. He has slowed down a lot and doesn't want to walk much over the last few months and recently he has been panting a lot in the evenings and also his appetite has declined. Because he's had mitral valve disease for the last 6 years, it was initially thought that the two were connected and maybe his heart condition had worsened. However, the Cardiologist appointment last week showed no progression (in fact his heart size was slightly smaller) so that was ruled out. He also showed the beginnings of kidney disease a year ago, but his last 2 kidney blood tests showed nothing much that was abnormal. His other blood tests - FBC - were all normal too. He also takes thyroxine daily.

He was started on a pain relief, Traileve, which I believe is a trade name for Tramadol and showed only a very slight improvement with his walking over the past month, but his panting stopped. My vet then suggested he try Librela which he started on yesterday. My question is whether I should continue with the Traileve for a little bit or just wait to see if the Librela works. I'm worried that he might be in pain whilst waiting to see if the Librela works. Also, can these two drugs be taken together? The vet didn't seem to have an opinion on this. Therefore, I would be grateful for your advice.

Bit of background: I'm a British ex-pat living in Cyprus and over here we don't have access to things like acupuncture etc for dogs. In addition to his heart meds, he takes Sofcanis Renal (Lespeza Capitata) for his kidneys, Ubiquitol, a little turmeric golden paste, CBD oil and occasionally Omega 3.

Thank you.

 

[Natalie]

My boy Monty has been on Librela since last spring/ summer, and I made the mistake of stopping his pain relief straight away ( albeit on the vet's advice, which I think at the time was a bit limited due to Librela being so new, we got it really early on in the UK). We didn't get the miracle we hoped for, but I think it helps a bit, so he still takes a daily NSAID, Galliprant alongside the monthly Librela. We swapped over from Meloxicam last year due to Galliprant being better for kidneys / liver.
There doesn't seem to be any issue with taking other painkillers alongside Librela, you could maybe consider paracetamol as a regular option too, though obviously check with your vet.
There are a few other Librela threads here on the forum you may find helpful to read, too.

 

[Jacqui-S]

Welcome to the forum @daisyanne sorry to hear your boy is struggling.
There is quite a lot of chat in this thread here.
I haven't used Librela myself (for Lilly, approaching 12 with long term severe hip dysplasia and more recent elbow/shoulder arthritis) but have used Tramadol. I felt the cons of side effects of Tramadol outweighed the pros of any benefit. She was definitely perkier when I stopped it, but I know others it really helps.
I think from what I have picked up from others here that it is pretty safe to use existing painkillers for several weeks whilst awaiting Librela to kick in, then slowly withdraw them.
I hope Jerry gets some benefit from this.
Jac

 

[daisyanne]

Thank you Natalie and Jacquie-S for the info. Jerry did have a bit of panting last night but it is difficult to tell whether it is because it is too warm with the heating on (he doesn't tolerate heat that well) or he is in pain - luckily he settled after a few minutes. I think I will keep him on his Traileve for at least a week, then wean him off.

If only they could talk!!

 

[Beanwood]

Casper, who is 13 years old, is on Librela and various pain medications. We were told explicitly not to withdraw his pain medications. The main reason being is the way Librela works is very individual for that dog. With Casper it took about 4 weeks to really see a difference.

If your dog is panting, and you are confident that warmer weather is not causing this, then I would contact your vet straightaway. I am sure you know this, panting is often due to some sort of discomfort.

 

[daisyanne]

Casper, who is 13 years old, is on Librela and various pain medications. We were told explicitly not to withdraw his pain medications. The main reason being is the way Librela works is very individual for that dog. With Casper it took about 4 weeks to really see a difference.

If your dog is panting, and you are confident that warmer weather is not causing this, then I would contact your vet straightaway. I am sure you know this, panting is often due to some sort of discomfort.

Yes, keeping him on the pain meds is making more sense to me now. Thanks. Also, I worked out that if I move Jerry to a cooler place when he pants and he doesn't stop then I know he is in discomfort; sometimes difficult to tell though. However, the panting has largely stopped since the pain meds and yes, if I thought he was in discomfort I would go straight to the vet.
Thank you.

 

[David]

My old girl, Lady's, brother is on Librela and it's worked well, but recently he's needed a bit extra so he's now also on gabapentin. I think as they get older they just need more relief. The downside with stuff like gabapentin and tramadol is the poor old dog gets a bit dopey. I think it's a bit of a balancing act to be honest.