Is Aspirin safe for cats & dogs?
Cats are deficient in
the liver enzymes needed to process aspirin. The half-life of aspirin in
cats is prolonged; aspirin should be given no more frequently than every
2-3 days. When used cautiously it is a pretty good pain reliever. The
first signs of toxicity are gastrointestinal ulcers and bleeding—bloody
vomit or black tarry stools (indicating digested blood). Here’s what the
drug handbook has to say about it:
Symptoms of acute over dosage in dogs and cats
include: depression, vomiting (may be blood tinged), anorexia,
hyperthermia, and increased respiratory rate. Initially, a respiratory
alkalosis occurs with a compensatory hyperventilation response. A
profound metabolic acidosis follows. If treatment is not provided,
muscular weakness, pulmonary and cerebral edema, hypernatremia,
hypokalemia, ataxia and seizures, may all develop with eventual coma and
death.