Secondary Sucessful use of Vistaril in German Shepherd to treat diarrhea

Good Morning,

I am curious if anyone has a history of using Vistaril (hydroxyzine pamoate) to treat sensitive stomach/chronic diarrhea in dogs (mine specifically german shepherd).

Deacon is now 19 months old and has an unbelieveably sensitive stomach with almost chronic diarrhea since we brought him home. About 2 months ago he was given vistaril to treat a sneezing/cough allergy reaction to pollen and I noticed that his stool became normal and he was not in any intestinal discomfort etc. I checked with my vet, who agreed it could be the antihistimine property of vistaril but had not used it before to treat this condition.

I am wondering if anyone else has had this experience and would like to also know the exact physiological explanation (is there a vet in the house?_)

Deacon currently eats boiled chicken and rice mixed with hypoallergenic dry food - venison and brown rice.

If the dog has had long term problems, I'd look for the culprit rather than medicating. One of the most common food allergies in dogs is chicken. Have you ever taken him totally off chicken to see if the condition improved?? My son's newf had chronic diarrhea and would not gain weight. After many different foods, I realized that every single food I had tried contained barley - I found a good quality food without barley and his condition improved dramatically!

It could also be an intolerance for grains - have you ever tried a totally grain free food?

I just looked up Vistaril - and not only is it an antihistamine, it's also used in the treatment of anxiety. The hydroxizine is basically a sedative. Like any drug, it has side effects. When deciding to medicate, you have to look at the benefits of the drug versus the side effects.