AboutJessica Expertise I have bred Siamese cats and have years of experience caring for homeless, feral, orphaned, and terminally ill cats. I am knowledgeable in cat behavior, health, history, troubleshooting, breeds, coat patterns and colors, and trivia.
Experience I have extensive experience with cats ranging from breeding to at-home medical care to rescuing homeless cats and placing them in homes. I have assisted cats giving birth and hand-nursed kittens who were neglected by their mother from 2 days old through weaning. I have given supportive care to cats suffering from terminal cancer, feline leukemia, feline infectious peritonits, and kidney, liver, and heart failure. I have been through chemotherapy with one of my cats who had lymphoma and have also been through many cutting edge surgeries with my special needs cats. I'm an avid cat show attendee and can give you info on the ins and outs of showing.
Question I brought a new 5 year old siamese into the house a few months ago. I have both a male and female siamese already. The new male took over the upstairs and was ok for the first couple months. He would then sneak downstairs when my husband was watching tv and spray. He was put on prozac but now a week later he is not the same cat. He was extremely loveable and needy and now he wont even sleep with me. He was only prescribed a half a pill a day but is it too much???
Answer I would definitely call the vet. Though Prozac has no noted side effects in cats, there ARE cats who have negative reactions to it, as can happen with any medication. A sharp change in personality is cause for concern when a cat is put on any medication.
It's possible he may need to be put on a smaller dose to start. Certainly something to discuss with the vet. It may just be a good reason to try another medication, first. I've had cats on Prozac and cats on Elavil, and I can assure you, neither is a "one-size-fits-all" drug. Prozac is generally favored for spraying, but it's not the best choice for all cats. Other medications like Clomicalm (recently became second most preferred for spraying), Elavil, Buspar and even Valium can all work better for certain cats than Prozac does. With these medications, you may notice sleepiness and increased or decreased appetite, which are normal side effects of the medications (not adverse reactions) that generally go away within a couple weeks.
