Can Cerenia Help with Lar Par Symptoms?

A number of veterinarians have reported that Cerenia (generic name maropitant citrate) could mitigate the severity of breathing episodes in dogs with laryngeal paralysis. This is big news because if the risk of breathing episodes that lead to cyanosis and asphyxiation can be reduced, that translates to increased quality of life for LP dogs and greater peace of mind for people who choose to manage LP symptoms without surgery.

Karen Y., a member of the Laryngeal Paralysis in Dogs Facebook group has confirmed that Cerenia has resulted in a significant decrease in breathing episodes in her dog:

“He has now been on a daily dose, given half in the morning and half in the evening, for 2 1/2 years with his episodes of struggling to breathe decreasing to more like a couple times a week instead of numerous times per day, and they are not as severe when they do occur. As far as I know, the research and anecdotal reports on using Cerenia to control the symptoms of a Lar Par are still not published, but they have worked wonders for our dog.”

Generic Cerenia (maropitant citrate) is now available on Chewy in liquid, capsule, and transdermal at about 1/4 the cost of brand-name Cerenia. If your LP dog has breathing episodes, talk to your vet about Cerenia or generic maropitant citrate.

• The generic equivalent of Cerenia was approved by the FDA in March of 2023.
• The FDA reportedly recently approved Cerenia for long-term use. Prior to that it had been considered for short-term use only.
• Cerenia has known side effects. Make sure you are aware of Precautions before you consider this option for your dog.

Important: There’s no guarantee that any off-label medication will be effective for your individual dog and there is currently no published research demonstrating its efficacy for this purpose. Like other off-label medications often prescribed for laryngeal paralysis such as doxepin, you’ll have to determine based on your own observations whether Cerenia (maropitant citrate) is right for your dog.