Comments on Your Dog Got Cancer Because She Was “Predisposed?” - Vital Animal® § The Natural Path

We had our dog Harlow’s allergies 95% under control with homemade dog food and treats, greens powder, frequent water washes and a tiny dose of prednisone. The vet suggested a miracle pill that would clear out all the remaining issues and has fewer side effects then prednisone. Welcome Apoquel in to our lives. We said yes thinking if it has fewer side effects and the vet is suggesting we should try it for Harlows sake. What harm can it do.

Harlow is a healthy, happy 13 year old Cockapoo who lives for food. He has frequent ear infections and skin issues.

The vet Prescribed two pills a day for first 14 days. On the 6th day, Harlow was uneasy and uncomfortable. The next morning he could not move. Did not get up for a pee or breakfast. His stomach enlarged, his eyes sad. We rushed him to the vet.

Fever 104F, low platelets, tense stomach and something going on with his liver toxicity.

That was yesterday. Today we brought him home, still having a fever and knowing he needs a CT scan tomorrow. We hope and pray he will recover.

This drug is a money grab. IT’S KILLING by accelerating the development of infections and cancer cells (we all have in us). Pet owners should be informed. We are failing our pets (our family members) having this still on the market.

I would not give this to my children, why would I give this to a dog that brings happiness to my family.

Does anyone know if there a class action suit?

I lost my boston terrier of 10 years because of APAQUEL, she was on it for two and half years. the damage sounds just like everyone i have read here in all the comments. cancer and many of the other issues. I have gotten another boston and the same mistakes will not be repeated. My dog is completely holistic and healthy.

My Westie Molly was on Apoquel she started throwing up while on it and we were told to place the Apoquel in the freezer before giving it to her to help stop her from vomiting. Years later she is Now she dealing with many health issues ! Ranging from Tumors, constance ear infections, and now Pulmonary hypertension.

YOU HAVE ONLY TOUCHED THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG ON APOQUEL! My St. Bernard was on this drug for 2 yrs. when she began having seizures at age 6 yrs 4 mos. Under the care of a Neurologist she had an MRI, the MRI looked good, no tumor, no stroke, dx by default of epilepsy. Only dx finding, her bone marrow was suppressing the development of her red blood cells. I discontinued the Apoquel immediately! The vet treated and she began to improve in 6 weeks confirmed by blood work. She remained on Keppra XR, Zonisamide, and Potassium Bromide, and had no more seizures for 24 mos. In addition she had recurrent bladder infections which continued every other month. The only time she was clear were the months she was on antibiotics. Under the care of her regular vet she had a full senior panel of blood work and urinalysis done in July 2019 and I received a call from the vet telling me everything was normal and looked good. She had started having difficulty with her right knee and I was treating that along with another bladder infection so thought this was why she was so quiet and sleeping a lot. I took her to the vet hospital on the 23rd or 24th of September and was given another script for an antibiotic. On October 31, 2019 she could not stand up. I called the vet and she came to my home. She told me she was extremely anemic and needed to be put down. I could not understand as I had thought she only had a knee injury. I called the hospital and requested the lab reports from July 2019 (senior panel) trying to understand what happened. The Hematology Report showed her Reticulocytes (immature red blood cells) were high again. The report was even flagged stating the degree of anemia and reticulocytes needed to be further evaluated. The urinalysis showed the same re-current bladder infection. NEITHER OF THESE CONDITIONS WERE REPORTED TO ME, THE PET PARENT. PRIOR TO TAKING APOQUEL, MY SAINT NEVER HAD A BLADDER INFECTION, NOR SEIZURE, NOR BLOOD PROBLEM! Madison was a professionally trained pet therapy dog, visiting a local hospital and nursing home. She loved everyone and everyone loved her. She was a big, beautiful girl, over 200lbs. of cuddle. PLEASE HELP ME GET THE WORD OUT TO PET PARENTS EVERYWHERE ABOUT THIS DRUG. I AM A NURSE AND IF I HAD REQUESTED MY ANGEL'S LAB REPORT BEFORE SHE WOULD STILL BE HERE WITH ME!!! I will provide copies of lab reports from before she took the Apoquel and after to confirm and prove what I am telling you. IF THIS WILL HELP JUST ONE ANIMAL AND ONE PET PARENT FROM GOING THRU WHAT I AM LIVING WITH IT, IT WILL BE WORTH IT.

I'm compelled to comment here after reading the other comments that have been posted regarding Apoquel. My dog is a boxer mix and 7 years old. I will admit that shortly after being slammed with all those first time vaccinations, it seemed he developed allergies. Some breakouts were so bad his face swelled, and we'd rush him to emergency vet. His first year to year and a half, we did allergy testing and we don't feed him chicken anymore. That was the biggy. He had been given holistic allergy drops by vet during this time frame. Was not working as expected for the other allergens. Benadryl kept him sleepy. Clareton allergy tabs work to a certain degree. We then opted for Apoquel. So he's been on it for roughly 5-1/2 yrs. Also, before going on the apoquel we had surgery to remove a mast cell cyst from his sternum area, about a nickel size in diameter. He's not had any since. He's not had any other side effects that I'm aware of. I have thought about taking him off of it because I feel we have his diet under control. We know his allergies, what causes them and how to deal with them now. So yes, I've wondered about ceasing the apoquel. But I wasn't aware I wouldn't be able to, as someone else stated here. He's in otherwise good health, spunky and energetic with good appetite and passes all his annual and bi annual exams. Suggestions are welcome. Thank you.

I am still trying to help my three year old Spanish Water Dog of the effects of my ignorance and following “professional” veterinary help (not knowing it is one big for profit industry). Misky developed severe itching after she received the Lyme vaccine the same day she passed “with flying colors her three year vet exam”
She was put on steroids, antibiotics, more steroids, medicated shampoos, hidrolizef protein vet prescribed diet and sold at the vet’s office, cytopoint injection and Apoquel! After I read online about last medication. I stopped immediately (few days). I researched for a Holistic Vet. I drive an hour and a half each way... I cook for her (organic ground turkey meat and organic pumpkin/yellow squash or sweet potatoes plus several natural additives and Chinese natural medicines). Misky’s inmune system is compromised. She has globulonefritis, lost most of her beautiful fur, her eyes are close shut and I put compresses and clean them all day long. She has become urine in continent at night. I take her out every 45 minutes during day time. She sleeps most of the time...it is so sad that I pray for God’s wisdom to do what is best for her. Her only pleasure now seems to be car rides... she no longer enjoys walking or playing...

Perfectly said. This is the group i started after my setter Emma met apoquels fate. We are a natural group and focus on diet amd healthy immune system support. We share your articles. Thank you for writing these and giving people awareness.

facebook.com/groups/236562650218268/

We had our pug on Apoquel for over a year when I found out that it could cause cancer. I immediately started reading and researching and found a lady that has helped me transition our girl over to a raw diet and probiotics and a supplement. She is still detoxing some, but getting better. I will admit there have been a couple of times during this detoxing that I was ready to go back on kibble and Apoquel but I know that only leads to an early death and I want my sweet girl around for a long time!

I'm not sure if anyone is aware that the FDA sent a letter to Zoetis, makers of Apoquel, regarding the misinformation on their website regarding the safety of this drug. The FDA list the claims made on the website and follow it with- quote: "These claims misleadingly suggest that APOQUEL is safer than steroids without providing comparative studies to support the claim. Moreover, they misleadingly minimize the risk associated with the use of APOQUEL by citing a short term study to support the claim that the side effects are minimal and were similar to placebo when a higher frequency of adverse reactions in Apoquel treated dogs was seen in a longer-term study." Here is the web address of the 4-page letter:
https://www.fda.gov/media/113909/download
It is listed in the CVM Untitled Letters as "Zoetis, Inc. Misbranding 2018/05/24 CVM Apoquel (oclacitinib tablet)".
Belonging to many dog groups, I have become so discouraged at the number of dog owners who have been told to give their dogs this drug, and also appalled that any Vet would prescribe it to a puppy as young as 4 to 5 months when it clearly states NOT to give to dogs under a year old. Why is this happening? It use to be that Vets would get to the bottom of an illness that was causing a symptom and now it's a case of just hiding the symptom so no one sees there is a illness. Symptoms are a red flag...if we don't see them, we don't know there is a health problem. I try my best to discourage dog owners from using this drug but like the flea/tick products, I always get told that the're sure their vet knows more than me so they will stick to their Vets advice...it's a losing battle!

One of our sanctuary rescues came in at 10 years of age, 4 years ago, on Apoquel. He'd been on it for FOUR years!!! We are an NR rescue and took him off of it immediately. We were able to treat his often hemorrhagic multiple anal fistulas with homeopathy which worked to heal all but the largest one. But it is under control and since being here he's only had 3 hemorrhagic events which were quickly controlled. He is in his 15th year and doing really well.

Your article about apoquel really resonated with me. We adopted a rescue dog from the humane society. She had terrible sores which they assured us would go away after she was done with the antibiotics she was taking. Well that did not happen it got much worse. Our dog was an itchy bloody mess. We had many trips to the vet, daily showers with special shampoo, changing up dog food on a regular basis, and then if course the vet prescribed apoquel. Like a miracle she stopped itching and no more bloody messes. I was not happy about the drug knowing I could never take her off of it. I wasnt a cure just a bandaid for the problem. After doing more research I stumbled across a company promoting a solution by using their recipe for a raw diet along with the nutrient supplement and fish oil. It is amazing. Mo more drugs and she is unbelievably healthy. We've been making her this food for at least two years with no reason to do anything different.

My poor dog was on Apoquel, antibiotics, steroids and then cytopoint for years until it all stopped working. He was so sick he was too ill to have his rabies shot. One month later he was given the shot. That was November 2018. We put him on raw last February and have tried every supplement - shampoo - skin cream imaginable to help. He has lumps which develop, come to a head and then ooze thick, reddish stuff. Once healed there is no hair there. A holistic vet thought it might be sterile Panniculitis. There has been some improvement, but he still lives in his cone 24/7 to prevent scratching his face. We are DESPERATE. please give me some ideas. Thank you.