Zitac - Dry Skin?

[Sabby]

Harley has been on Zitac for 2 weeks now and I have noticed that his skin is gone dry and his fur is different. The dry skin seems to irritate him and he is scratching where it is dry. It isn’t SM scratching. In the leaflet for Zitac there are no known side affects listed. I just wonder if anybody had noticed it with their dog.

[Nicki]

Sabby, this is really interesting, as I'd noticed that Lauren's skin is really dry too [she has been on Zitac for a few months, she had an ear flush and had PSOM, we believe that was the cause of her symptoms as she is heaps better now, but are keeping her on Zitac just in case]

I couldn't understand it as she is on a good diet, and I alternate Salmon Oil with Lupoderm [Contains all essential unsaturated fatty acids, e.g. Omega-3, Omega-6 and lecithine.]


Amazingly Ciemtidine is being used as an over the counter remedy for hair loss treatment for women!! Lauren has some hair thinning and among the side effects I found were Alopecia and skin rash ?

Kayleigh has developed some mammary tissue but from my research this is a known side effect, doesn't cause any problems and is usually self limiting.

[Brian M]

Hi Sabby

Got your pm it makes interesting reading .I am still searching trying to find anything
that tells me Cimetidine acts to reduce CFS pressure .

[Karen and Ruby]

Hi Sabby/Nicki

Ruby has been on Zitac for over 2 years, to start with she got occasional bouts of dry sin but not anymore.
I haven't noticed any other side effects though!

Charlie has been on it for nearly 18 months and has had no side effects at all

[Nicki]

Brian, drugs often have effects on other parts of the body, in addition to the effect it is prescribed for - which is why they have side effects. So although one of the actions of Cimetidine is to reduce CSF, this is not the main reason why it is normally prescribed, obviously it's used for gastric issues in dogs and people

It is only in recent years that it was discovered that some of these drugs reduce CSF pressure, that is why there is very little info about it. I don't think there are any studies yet. Many of these drugs will never be licensed for use in SM, as licensing costs a considerable amount of money which would not be recouped as there is only a limited market for the product. Cimetidine is licensed for dogs due to its existing use in gastric issues.

Clare Rusbridge is the foremost specialist in SM/CM, obviously it is effective or she would not be prescribing it or have added it to her treatment algorithm! Be careful researching on the Internet as a lot of the information you can find can be incorrect, unless it is from recognised sites.


Sometimes things appear on one site and are then coped across onto other sites, people see it so many times that they take it as fact, actually no-one has ever checked it out properly, just copied it.

[Karen and Ruby]

Hi Brian,

Just wanted to add that after Charlie was put on Zitac it really releived his symptoms with out a need for a painkiller as well.

To start with he was on a lower dose so have been able to up it to help. One of the reasons I think his CM has developed in to SM is because his symptoms have worsened.

The CSF pressure in his brain was obviously reduced when he first had it as his expression changed, his eyes stopped tearing as much and he stopped clawing at his face all the time.

His symptoms now are mainly the scratching when excited and head rubbing.

So from experience I do beleive it to help- will know by next week just how much it has helped!

[Brian M]

Hi

Tks for replies .Nicki I do realise all that you advised me of and I thank you,but I am in in no way trying to self medicate Daisy I am not that type of person and Daisy is far too precious to me to even contemplate that and I fully understand that people like Clare R and Geoff S are the foremost specialists in this field and that I am just
a poor cavalier pet owner ,but I do like to understand things and why and how they work so that is why I
am asking sometimes very basic questions just to learn things for myself .So reading and learning all these things I
hope makes me able to understand more and in that way helps me do my very, very best for my little Daisy.


Thaks Karen for your kind reply which as you are using Zitac helps me know what to possibly expect and
therefore what to look out for as Daisy and I travel down this road . How long does it take Zitac to have an
effect approximately .

[Karen and Ruby]

Hi

Tks for replies .Nicki I do realise all that you advised me of and I thank you,but I am in in no way trying to self medicate Daisy I am not that type of person and Daisy is far too precious to me to even contemplate that and I fully understand that people like Clare R and Geoff S are the foremost specialists in this field and that I am just
a poor cavalier pet owner ,but I do like to understand things and why and how they work so that is why I
am asking sometimes very basic questions just to learn things for myself .So reading and learning all these things I
hope makes me able to understand more and in that way helps me do my very, very best for my little Daisy.


Thaks Karen for your kind reply which as you are using Zitac helps me know what to possibly expect and
therefore what to look out for as Daisy and I travel down this road . How long does it take Zitac to have an
effect approximately .

Hi Brian,

I noticed with Charlie after a day or so, what I will add though is that maybe its because he has CM and not SM that it made more of a difference. He hasnt needed any extra pain releif untill now (nearly 2 years later)

With Ruby I noticed no difference at all when she was put on it alongside Gabapentin. It want until I switched he to Lyrica that her symptoms completely stopped. BUT as I dont plan to re scan her (more for fear of what I will see than any other reason) I will never know if has slowed the progression down.

As I recall Daisy has Cm and SM? But I also tried Frusomide with Ruby which made her completely incontinent and caused her to drink litres and litres of water a day.

The side effects on Zitac I beleive are minimal which is why it is more my drug or choice. And its fairly cheap and very easy to get (most vets keep it in stock at all times).

[Tania]

Molly and Dougall have been on Zitac for nearly three years. We have not had any problems at all with dry skin. I have always given them Yumega Plus
which is designed for sensitive or itchy skin. Dotty had the most terrible skin when we got her, so I started using this and decided to give it to all of them
because of the dramatic difference to Dotty. This might be the reason we do not have skin problems.

[Sabby]

Molly and Dougall have been on Zitac for nearly three years. We have not had any problems at all with dry skin. I have always given them Yumega Plus
which is designed for sensitive or itchy skin. Dotty had the most terrible skin when we got her, so I started using this and decided to give it to all of them
because of the dramatic difference to Dotty. This might be the reason we do not have skin problems.

Rosie has very dry skin and I tried Yumega and Kronch Salmon Oil on her and it didn’t do a thing, also Burns Food makes her itchy. I know what helps one dog doesn’t necessarily help another dog.
Harley has stopped itching now. I was thinking of getting him Dermacton Spray/Cream if it starts again. Any thought on that anybody?