Ibuprofen For Dogs – Is It Safe?

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Can dogs take Ibuprofen?

Q: My dog has a lot of pain in the hip area. Is it safe to give Ibuprofen to dogs? Can I give her the Ibuprofen that I take to help her deal with her pain?

A: Can dogs take Ibuprofen? To be honest, it's not advisable.

Popular brand name drugs that contain Ibuprofen are Advil and Motrin. Ibuprofen is NOT considered safe for dogs and can in some instances be quite toxic to their kidneys, liver and gastrointestinal tract. The medications prescribed by your vet have been proven to be safe for long term use in dogs. Perhaps your veterinarian can find you an alternative medication that is both cheaper and safe for your dog.

Related: What to do if your pet swallows a toxic or dangerous substance

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Dr. Lauren Brickman Dr. Brickman started as a veterinary technician at Garden City Park in 1997 and went on to…

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Comments (12)

Norm Rouch (Unverified)
my question was only half answered ok i shouln't give my dog ibuprofen then what can i give him it say take him to the vet if i could afford the vet i wouln't be giving him ibuprofen in the first place and if i went to the vet we would not have inquired in the first place and would not have bothered with the comment
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Michelle Aguilar (Unverified)
my dog took lot of ibuprof off the table in the moring! what should i do
Jenny (Unverified)
I have worked for a Vet for over 8 years. Some vets are in it for the money, but most are not. For one thing, you do not get rich being a Vet, unless you own several hospitals. So really, it is usually the owners who are out for your money. Vets are notorious for undercharging for their services, or in some cases not charging at all. They go to school for at least 8 years and wind up usually with over $100,000 worth of student loans to pay back. Starting salaries for Vets are around $65,00 a year, good pay, you could make the same in a lot of other professions that don't require as much training and cost. So the next time you want to complain about your Vet "taking" all your money, realize that that is not really the case. They also have an obligation to offer all of those expensive services (bloodwork, ultrasound, advance imaging etc.). Even if a lot of people can't afford it, it is not the Vet's job to assume you don't have the money and not offer you the service. How would you feel if your pet died because the Vet looked at you and assumed you could not afford an expensive surgery that would save your pet so he didn't even tell you about it. Most Vet's will not look down on you if you tell them you cannot afford everything they recommend and will more than happy to help you decide which services are the most important, so just ask. That being said, it is never a good idea to give your dog or cat human medicines without asking your vet. Yes, a lot of human meds can be safely given to your pet. The dose is often different though and not just a smaller dose because your pet weighs less than a human. Benadryl is one example. A human may take 25 to 50 mg. A dog dose though is much higher per pound. 1-2 mg/lb in fact. So your 25 pound dog will take 25-50 mg every 8-12 hours, but if you have a 100 pound dog he will need 100-200 mg every 8-12 hours - way more than you would take. Other medications will be given at much lower doses. Aspirin is not really recommended anymore because compared to newer pain meds, it is much less effective and carries a much greater risk of side effects. Ibuprofen is even worse and should not be given. Tylenol is toxic to dogs and cats in very low doses. If you pet gets into tylenol you need to go to the vet immediately to try to avoid organ failure. Another reason not to give medications without consulting your vet first is because depending what you gave, your vet may not be able to treat your pet in the best way. Aspirin is a great example of this. For one, aspirin is a blood thinner and can cause complications with clotting. This can cause problems if your pet requires surgery. Aspirin use also limits what drugs your vet can give your pet. Giving other NSAID's along with aspirin increase incidence of side effects and often a "wash out" period of several days is needed in between giving these meds. The same goes for steroids. So, for instance, your dog seems painful so you start giving some aspirin because it is the weekend and you don't want to go to the emergency vet. You take your dog to the vet on Monday and the vet determine your dog has sever back pain. She would like to give a steroid injection because it is a potent antiinflammatory and will help your dog be more comfortable. Unfortunately, because you have been giving the aspirin, she cannot give the injection. These are just a few examples of why you should not give human medications to pets without your vet's consent. You just don't know what is safe and what is not. That being said, a lot of medications your vet dispenses can be purchased at human pharmacies for much less. Antibiotics, for example: If you live near a Publix supermarket, they have a list of antibiotics that they dispense for free. Walmart also has a $4 dollar list that is really helpful in getting your pet's medications for less. Tramadol is on that list. (Something to be aware of too: When human Dr. prescribe Tramadol for people, often times it has tylenol in it, which should be noted on the RX bottle, so those of you that are giving your pets your tramadol, just make sure it does not have tylenol in it). Don't ever be afraid to ask your vet for a written prescription. You can also ask if there is a human version of the drug that would be safe to give. For example there is a doggie version of prozac called Reconcile that is quite a bit more than the human generic version of prozac. In that case, the prozac is fine to give, although your vet may say that it might not be as effective. Ask them if you can try it and tell them if it doesn't work you will get the doggie version. A note about online pharmacies: The problem with them is that they aren't very well regulated. The other issue is that the manufactures of many animal drugs - like heartworm and flea preventions especially, have deals with the vets that they will not sell their products to anyone other than vets. They do not sell their products to online pharmacies like 1800 petmeds and therefore they will not uphold their guarantees if you purchase a product from an internet pharmacy. Now I don't agree with this practice because it interferes with competition but nevertheless it is something to consider. You are purchasing drug's through a third party that cannot trace the drug back to the manufacturer. I have seen products purchased through Pet Meds that was opened and repackaged or came in a box with a foreign language on it or in one case, did not even look like the product it was supposed to be. That is scary. The good thing though, is that now a lot of vets will price match to keep your business, so again, just ask. Sorry for going on and on but there is just a lot of misinformation and speculation out there and I just wanted to share my thoughts as someone who works in the field. I hope some of it will be helpful.