Page 21 - Chiron Calling Autum 2021/Spring 2022

Anxious Dog Cocktail
by Lt Brett Noden RAVC
Occasionally Military Working Dogs requiring veterinary inspection or treatment
arrival at the clinic. It is especially important to only provide
a small piece
of food when administering the tablets on the morning
of their appointment, as patients often require sedation or general anaesthesia, both of which should be carried out
on as empty
a stomach
as possible.
To achieve this the tablets can be hidden in a small treat, such as a piece of meat or cheese.
Common uses of this cocktail of drugs are for
present in such an anxious state
that it makes it difficult to conduct
a clinical assessment or administer medications in a manner that is safe for handlers, veterinary staff and patient. Causes of this anxiousness can vary but are believed to stem from either separation from their handler or fear of the unknown; which are especially present in
novel veterinary settings. Although it is possible to use only physical restraint in these cases, this can exacerbate their nervousness and contribute to the onset of fear-related aggression (Anastasia C.Stellato et al., 2021 - Risk-factors associated with veterinary-related fear and aggression in owned domestic dogs). To combat this issue, at the Defence Animal Training Regiment we have been using an ‘Anxious Dog Cocktail’ of drugs to provide a chemical restraint. The
combination of
veterinary drugs
administered
functions to
partially sedate
the patient prior
to arrival at the clinic, meaning
less physical restraint is required
by veterinary staff when carrying out inspections or administering injections such as vaccines or further sedatives.
The cocktail of drugs itself consists of: Trazadone (10mg/kg), an antidepressant; Gabapentin (20-30mg/kg), an analgesic used
to treat neuropathic pain; and Acepromazine (2-3mg/kg), a vasodilator. All of which are tablets or capsules and are given orally in
a small amount of food. We aim to give a full dose of Trazadone and Gabapentin 12 hours prior to arrival at the clinic, usually in the animal’s evening feed on the day prior,
and then a full dose of Trazadone, Gabapentin and Acepromazine approximately 1 hour before their
anxious dogs presenting for procedures such as dentals, or diagnostic tests including
radiography and ultrasonography. However, this form of chemical restraint is not always suitable,
as some investigations require
the patients to arrive in a fully
aware state. This is especially true for procedures such as lameness workups where the animal will be required to conduct a walk-up and trot-up, or cardiac scans whereby
the drugs may change the normal functioning of the heart muscles.
As with many veterinary drugs care should also be taken with animals suffering from liver or kidney disease as these organs play a crucial role in removing pharmaceutical agents from the body.
Since initiating the use of this protocol at the Defence Animal Training Regiment in early 2021 we have used this chemical restraint
in approximately 10 patients. The effectiveness of this cocktail has varied from very mild sedation with the patient still able to run and appearing seemingly unaffected,
to a state of deep sedation whereby the animal walks in a very uncoordinated manner and barely takes note of their surroundings.
In cases where the patient has
only been minimally affected by
the drugs we are able to note this
on our clinical platform and then provide a higher dosage at future consultations, ultimately titrating the dose to be the minimum amount of drugs required to carry out the proposed task in a safe manner.
As with all sedation this protocol does come with the potential for adverse events, largely due to the affects of the drugs on various organs including the heart and brain. We therefore reserve the use of this cocktail for patients that are excessively anxious when they visit the vets, are able to receive sedation, and only in scenarios where the drugs will not interfere significantly with the procedures being carried out. In all instances, these must be prescribed by a veterinary surgeon.
The tablets can be hidden in a small treat, such as a piece of meat or cheese
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