Doxylamine, aka Mersyndol, has many uses in humans, including helping with cases of insomnia, as well as allergic reactions like sneezing and watery eyes. If your cat is experiencing these problems, you may well be thinking that they could benefit from taking it as well.
But this is not one of the medications that you’d want to give your cat, as it’s not something that is often prescribed for cats. It’s an antihistamine that also has a sedative added to it. When you start combining drugs into the same dose you are doubling the chances that your cat will not respond well to it. This can lead to adverse side effects, not only the ones that can effect humans, but additional side effects that are unknown because the drug was not tested on cats.
There’s also the possibility that you will end up masking symptoms that are the signs of something bigger that your cat is suffering from. Buy covering them up you are delaying treatment and can end up causing more pain and expense later because it didn’t cure the problem. Most pet owners didn’t go to veterinary school, and are not equipped with the knowledge and troubleshooting process that a vet or a vet’s assistant will apply to get to the root of the problem and find a real solution.
Can I Give My Cat Mersyndol? Answer: Not Recommended
The main reason why you don’t want to medicate your cat for system that you see is that you don’t know for sure if they’re suffering from what you think they are. You could be giving them something for a condition they don’t even have. At the very least, you’re giving them the wrong thing, and there are better treatments available that your vet can prescribe once they properly diagnose them with what they have.
While it may seem like you’re doing the right thing by helping your cat out with some difficulties, you definitely don’t want it on your conscience that you made them suffer more.
A Cat’s Sleeping Patterns
A lot of owners come to the conclusion that their cat is an insomniac. They can hear them tinkering around at all hours of the night, and they don’t seem to need the straight 8 hours that gets us at our best. But cats function just fine with their “cat naps” as we call them, and they sleep when they get the notion, and wake when it suits them. They may take longer sleeping spells at night, but nothing approaching the 8 hour mark. It’s perfectly natural for them to roam the house during the night. They’ve got the vision for it, and have no trouble entertaining themselves in most cases.
Cats and Allergies
Cats can display allergy symptoms the same as humans, either by sneezing, wheezing, or scratching an allergic itch. If it’s getting to the point where it’s out of hand, you might need to take them into the vet to see what it is they’re allergic to, and if there’s anything you can do to try and remove the allergens from the environment, or give them a temporary medication to try to ease them through it. In either case the vet can recommend a course of action, and if medicine is deemed necessary they can prescribe a solution that is better suited for them than Mersyndol.
Cats and Human Medication
The basic thing you should remember is that human medication is something to avoid giving your cat, as it wasn’t made for feline use, and there aren’t any studies that have ever been conducted on either the short or long term use by it in cats. It doesn’t matter what dose you give them, accounting for their weight, it’s just not formulated for a cat, and has no business being in a cat’s system.
If your cat as accidentally ingested your supply of Mersyndol or Doxylamine, even a portion of it, you’ll want to call the pet poison control line immediately to see what your next steps should be. They can be reached at 877-503-1383 at all hours. Their reaction will vary depending on how much of the drug they consumed, as well as other factors, and the reps on the line will be able to walk you through everything.