Can I give Benadryl to my dog for motion sickness and flying? Benadryl is a popular drug that is usually used in humans for the treatment of allergies and motion sickness. However, it can also used for the treatment of the same conditions in dogs and cats, and although it is always sensible to check with your veterinarian before administering human medication to your pet, in most cases Benadryl can be used safely as long as the correct dosage is applied.
What is Benadryl?
Benadryl is actually a brand name and the active ingredient is Diphenhydramine hydrochloride, a drug that was first developed many decades ago. Diphenhydramine hydrochloride is a first generation antihistamine, but although other drugs have since been developed, Diphenhydramine still remains a popular drug for the treatment of the symptoms of allergic reactions.
Benadryl was primarily developed as an antihistamine, but it was found to have a number of useful side effects, including anti emetic qualities, which is the ability to control nausea and vomiting. As a result, Benadryl is commonly used to treat motion sickness in humans and pets.
Can I give Benadryl to my dog for motion sickness and flying?
Dogs are very like humans in a lot of respects and just like humans some of them are unfortunate enough to suffer the ill effects of motion sickness in cars, buses, boats and airplanes. Motion sickness is a miserable affliction and there is nothing worse than knowing you are destined to look forward to a long journey of nausea and vomiting. So you can imagine how awful it must be for your dog to suffer the same miserable symptoms! Nobody likes to think their dog is going to suffer during a long journey, but since travel is sometimes inevitable, it is sensible to look at ways of alleviating the discomfort of travel sickness.
Benadryl is an ideal over the counter medication that is commonly used to treat travel sickness in dogs. Dosage is normally applied on the basis of weight, so for every pound of body weight, 1mg of Benadryl should be given. Therefore 1 x 25mg tablet of Benadryl would be appropriate for a 25 pound dog, and so on.
One of the side effects of Benadryl is that it causes drowsiness. In humans, this is not always desirable, but for a pet that is destined for a long journey on a plane, sedation can be very useful. The same also applies to long car journeys, but always be aware that the drowsy effects of Benadryl can sometimes take a while to fully wear off.
Although Benadryl is used by many pet owners for the successful control of motion sickness in dogs, you should always ask your veterinarian for advice before trying a dose of Benadryl for the first time. In most cases, Benadryl is fairly safe to use, but as with humans, Benadryl can sometimes cause unwelcome side effects and there are also certain medical conditions whereby Benadryl can cause serious adverse side effects in a dog.
My dog is on Benadryl to help control the inflammation and pain from gum disease. Can not get the teeth extracted until five week from now. He has already been on Benadryl for week already. Is that a safe thing to take the Benadryl that log?