Prozac in kitties?

stewball

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Sep 11, 2013
Messages
11,747
Purraise
809
Location
Tel Aviv
No, it's probably just anxiety. She's always been kinda skittish.
HAs something happened lately to make her anxious? I take it she's an indoor cat. Have strange cats been wandering around that she can see from the window that's scared her. Could somebody have shouted at her or smacked her without you knowinguys, I'm not accusing God forbid but have you had people she doesn't know in? Electrician or somebody like that?

It appears neither of us are very busy. Lol
 

helen725

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 10, 2016
Messages
39
Purraise
30
Location
Canada
I have noooo desire to taste them, lol. They helped at one time in my life but I can't take them anymore. I wish I could! Bad side effects though. Oh well.


I think today might be a week she's been on it. Still not using litter box. :sigh:
It migh take 2 or 3 weeks before the Prozac gets into your cat's system and starts working. Your vet will also see which dose is working for your cat as well.
My cat Monte started on 7mg when he was 19 lbs and then we reduced his dose to 5mg after he stabilized on the Prozac and when he also lost 2 lbs.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #45

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
HAs something happened lately to make her anxious? I take it she's an indoor cat. Have strange cats been wandering around that she can see from the window that's scared her. Could somebody have shouted at her or smacked her without you knowinguys, I'm not accusing God forbid but have you had people she doesn't know in? Electrician or somebody like that?

It appears neither of us are very busy. Lol
Well, it's coffee time, which means TCS time, lol. Will be getting offline shortly. She's been avoiding the litter box since we got a dog, but that was because she refused to leave my room. Long story there, been said somewhere further up I think. But here we are, with her on Prozac. She loves getting a pill pocket at least.


It migh take 2 or 3 weeks before the Prozac gets into your cat's system and starts working. Your vet will also see which dose is working for your cat as well.
My cat Monte started on 7mg when he was 19 lbs and then we reduced his dose to 5mg after he stabilized on the Prozac and when he also lost 2 lbs.
That's good to know. I was starting to think it might not be working for her. Maple's on 5mg and she's 17 lbs, so hoping that's enough for her. 7 mg would be difficult to cut the pill into lol.
 

Kat0121

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Messages
15,036
Purraise
20,362
Location
Sunny Florida
Today is her 14th birthday
Also my Sara's. And she has never ever been a single cat.
I don't know anything about Prozac but

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAPLE AND SARA!!  
  
  


I wish you both many more happy, healthy birthdays 
 

helen725

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 10, 2016
Messages
39
Purraise
30
Location
Canada
That's good to know. I was starting to think it might not be working for her. Maple's on 5mg and she's 17 lbs, so hoping that's enough for her. 7 mg would be difficult to cut the pill into lol.
I remember those days of trying to cut Monte's pills in half! It wasn't easy because sometimes instead of getting cut in half, the pill would get crushed and I would be left with powder to figure out how much to put in his pill pocket. That reminds me- I still have some half pills that I should use up.

I hope that you start seeing improvement in Maple once the Prozac starts to work:)
 
Last edited:
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #49

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
I don't know anything about Prozac but

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAPLE AND SARA!!  :bday:   :party2:   :banana2: :banana2: :banana2:


I wish you both many more happy, healthy birthdays :hugs:
They had LOTS of treats that day - as did the youngin's. Happy kitties all around!


I remember those days of trying to cut Monte's pills in half! It wasn't easy because sometimes instead of getting cut in half, the pill would get crushed and I would be left with powder to figure out how much to put in his pill pocket. That reminds me- I still have some half pills that I should use up.

I hope that you start seeing improvement in Maple once the Prozac starts to work:)
Thankfully these pills are scored so it's not so bad. I've gotten used to cutting Pepcid into almost 1/4-sized pieces that somehow don't crumble apart so everything else seems easy, lol.

I thought perhaps she'd been going in the box for awhile (although I have no solid proof of it) as I'd not seen anything on the towel or anywhere else. But then this morning there was pee on the towel. So when the Prozac starts working, is it a gradual thing, or is it like they have a sudden epiphany and start using the litter box religiously from the get go?

The only thing I've truly noticed different about her is her mood. She's one seriously happy kitty right now! Oh, and her weight. She seemed to be somewhat smaller around the face. I thought it was my imagination, so I weighed her - twice. One time it was ~16.8 and the second time was ~16.9 lbs. Which either way is definitely better than the 17.36 lbs she was the last time I weighed her about a month ago!
 

helen725

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 10, 2016
Messages
39
Purraise
30
Location
Canada
They had LOTS of treats that day - as did the youngin's. Happy kitties all around!
Thankfully these pills are scored so it's not so bad. I've gotten used to cutting Pepcid into almost 1/4-sized pieces that somehow don't crumble apart so everything else seems easy, lol.

I thought perhaps she'd been going in the box for awhile (although I have no solid proof of it) as I'd not seen anything on the towel or anywhere else. But then this morning there was pee on the towel. So when the Prozac starts working, is it a gradual thing, or is it like they have a sudden epiphany and start using the litter box religiously from the get go?

The only thing I've truly noticed different about her is her mood. She's one seriously happy kitty right now! Oh, and her weight. She seemed to be somewhat smaller around the face. I thought it was my imagination, so I weighed her - twice. One time it was ~16.8 and the second time was ~16.9 lbs. Which either way is definitely better than the 17.36 lbs she was the last time I weighed her about a month ago!
I'm glad that Maple is feeling much happier since she's been on Prozac. To answer your question about how the Prozac starts working. With Monte it was more of a gradual thing. I noticed that in a couple of weeks since he first started taking Prozac, he was less jumpy. Before Prozac, anything would set him off. If someone dropped something, he would startle and take it out on my other cat at the time, Shelby. After about a month he was a completely mellow cat. He still had his same quirky personalilty, just more nicer.

That's great that Maple is also losing weight. I have heard that Prozac can reduce a cat's appetite. But with Monte I found that he still had a good appetite but that he wasn't eating as much from being nervous. He also started sleeping better since he was on Prozac, which may have also helped to regulate his weight.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #51

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
Yeah, she is definitely happier. And this cat runs to follow me when I have her food. RUNS! And when an almost-17 lb cat runs, it's a bit like a horse galloping in the house :lol3: She's also much more vocal these days. Not annoyingly vocal, just very chatty.

Time will tell I guess how much it ends up working.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #52

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
Soooo last night, in the middle of the night, I heard Maple get out of her chair (which is in my bedroom) and she took off running all the way into the living room, then I heard her turn around and run all the way back. Remember what I said about the galloping horse? Yeah. And then she did the whole thing a second time. Now, it's not unlike her to run a bit at night. But haven't ever heard her do that before! I was actually sitting there thinking, "Is she trying to get her exercise in or something??"

I'm a bit freaked out that I'm not finding poop all over the place. Or anywhere for that matter. I'm constantly worried she's constipated, yet she keeps eating, she lets me touch her tummy and it's nice and soft. I saw evidence of one little poop in the living room last night and one the night before - that was it though. Towel was dry when I got up this morning though.
 

Kat0121

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Messages
15,036
Purraise
20,362
Location
Sunny Florida
Soooo last night, in the middle of the night, I heard Maple get out of her chair (which is in my bedroom) and she took off running all the way into the living room, then I heard her turn around and run all the way back. Remember what I said about the galloping horse? Yeah. And then she did the whole thing a second time. Now, it's not unlike her to run a bit at night. But haven't ever heard her do that before! I was actually sitting there thinking, "Is she trying to get her exercise in or something??"

I'm a bit freaked out that I'm not finding poop all over the place. Or anywhere for that matter. I'm constantly worried she's constipated, yet she keeps eating, she lets me touch her tummy and it's nice and soft. I saw evidence of one little poop in the living room last night and one the night before - that was it though. Towel was dry when I got up this morning though.
Is the Prozac giving her digestive problems?? I give mine a probiotic and while no one is on Prozac, it definitely helps keep them regular. I use this one

 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #54

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
Is the Prozac giving her digestive problems?? I give mine a probiotic and while no one is on Prozac, it definitely helps keep them regular. I use this one

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005EO5I5E?ref_=sr_1_17&qid=1457198174&sr=8-17&keywords=cat%20probiotics&pldnSite=1
I'm thinking she may have had them already, but it's hard to tell for sure (I have another thread actually about when I thought she might be constipated). She usually does one little poop at a time. Compared to Penelopy, who does a bunch of little poops all at once (that little girl is full of poop!). Today, she was also gassy, which I've not noticed before. A lot of gas before the poop. Not sure if that has to do with the Prozac or not.

She has these moments that appear to be along the lines of "omg, I have to poop right HERE and right NOW". But for the most part, she's thankfully using the litter box. She still pees on the towel occasionally, but in the last six days she only did that twice. And yesterday, I actually caught her using the litter box! I was so happy! I've had an inkling that she did, was literally comparing poop I found outside the box with unburied poop inside the box the other day. I was getting a little paranoid when I couldn't find any of her poop! But that day made me feel better for sure. And yesterday was the best.
 

psychomama

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Feb 4, 2015
Messages
358
Purraise
91
Location
Charlotte , NC
UPDATE on Psycho off Prozac
Hi everyone,
It's been 2 weeks now since he has had any Prozac. His appetite is through the roof and he gained 6/10s of a pound in 3 weeks. He is eating food he refused before like NV rabbit and a few others as well. He is much more engaged and playful and does not seem stressed at all.
However , just this week his litter box habits changed. He used to go 2x a day about 6 oz each time. 6 am and 6 pm and poop daily. Monday he started going 4 x a day at 2.5 to 3 oz each time. Yesterday he peed 2x in 1 /12 hrs and then again overnight & this am. Same amount. Could the withdrawal of the Prozac have any thing to do with this change?He s been on it 6 years. I am going to email the vet but wanted input from everyone. Thank you [emoji]128062[/emoji]
 

helen725

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Feb 10, 2016
Messages
39
Purraise
30
Location
Canada
UPDATE on Psycho off Prozac
Hi everyone,
It's been 2 weeks now since he has had any Prozac. His appetite is through the roof and he gained 6/10s of a pound in 3 weeks. He is eating food he refused before like NV rabbit and a few others as well. He is much more engaged and playful and does not seem stressed at all.
However , just this week his litter box habits changed. He used to go 2x a day about 6 oz each time. 6 am and 6 pm and poop daily. Monday he started going 4 x a day at 2.5 to 3 oz each time. Yesterday he peed 2x in 1 /12 hrs and then again overnight & this am. Same amount. Could the withdrawal of the Prozac have any thing to do with this change?He s been on it 6 years. I am going to email the vet but wanted input from everyone. Thank you [emoji]128062[/emoji]
The change could be because your cat is off the Prozac. Did you stop the Prozac gradually or all at once?
You should consult with your vet to make sure that the symptoms your cat is experiencing are due to his stopping the Prozac.
 

psychomama

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Feb 4, 2015
Messages
358
Purraise
91
Location
Charlotte , NC
He was weaned over 2 weeks per the vet. I just emailed the vet so waiting to hear back. He had a UTI last year while on Prozac and his behavior then was totally different. He acted like he did not feel well at that time. Now he is very energetic. The vet knows how obsessed I am with his health and he goes monthly for a B 12 shot so they see him often.
 

psychomama

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Feb 4, 2015
Messages
358
Purraise
91
Location
Charlotte , NC
Just found a thread on this site that Prozac can cause urine retention. I remember before Prozac he would go 3-4 times a day. On the Prozac he was going 2x per day. Maybe he is just back to normal.
 

psychomama

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Feb 4, 2015
Messages
358
Purraise
91
Location
Charlotte , NC
Psycjo Update
My vet suggested a urine analysis to see if there was infection because of the change in the times per day he goes . Good news no infection and the gravity is normal so no kidney disease '! She said that being off the Prozac his brain could be signaling him to go more often and as he gets used to this it may settle down some.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #60

donutte

Professional cat sitter extraordinaire!
Thread starter
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
5,775
Purraise
2,554
Location
Northern suburbs of Chicago
Psycjo Update
My vet suggested a urine analysis to see if there was infection because of the change in the times per day he goes . Good news no infection and the gravity is normal so no kidney disease '! She said that being off the Prozac his brain could be signaling him to go more often and as he gets used to this it may settle down some.
That is GREAT news. No kidney disease is always a good thing to hear.
 
Top