MaryJane

Do you have the blood test results? I'm not a vet but, I'm not sure how a low RBC would indicate a need to treat for autoimmune disorder. My first thought would be that maybe iron is lacking in the diet or there may be a bleed .... (but, as noted, I'm not a vet) As to her appetite, have you tried giving cooked meat pieces or maybe some yogurt. Any chance that she could have gotten into something like pieces of wood or branches that might have stuck in her throat ???

Maybe I'm confused as to what you are describing but .... could this be an allergic reaction to "pee" getting on his legs. My greyhound boy rarely lifts his leg to pee, instead he usually "stretches out" and pees and as a result, a little dribbles onto the inside of his legs. as it dries it has a yellowish appearance and if I do not clean it up often it will cause an inflammation to the skin. edited to add .. if it is pee, you don't need antibiotics (although won't hurt but consider giving yogurt to replenish normal gut bacteria), you just need to wash the inside of his legs with mild soap (ivory type) once a day.

I might also add that if your dog has never had his teeth cleaned - then you might want to talk to the vet about the pros and cons of having it done at his age. My last grey had his teeth done at age 11 and everything went fine but, I was a mess worrying about it. It was a hard decision to make but, many vets are now thinking that infections from teeth issues as they get older are more of a problem than the complications that can arise from the anesthesia used for the teeth cleaning.

Based on what you are saying I'm a little confused as to why they are starting with fluids and planning to keep the dog overnight before they have even done blood work and a urinalysis to confirm the "kidney issue". The lab results (along with clinical symptoms) would tell you whether you are dealing with kidney problems and whether it is acute or chronic ....

If you are going to give a bland diet there should not be a reason to fast as that diet is easy to digest. Usually if you are doing kibble which is hard to digest you might want to transition more gently to that food. Antibiotics can kill the "good bacteria" and leave the "bad bacteria" causing diarrhea and other issues. Talk to your vet about giving something to establish the "normal flora" in the GI tract -- yogurt or probiotics are usually used for this.

I used to have Metacam around for that purpose but, not all vets use it and I have not been able to get it refilled. The latest trip to the vet for a cut leg resulted in tramadol being prescribed.

Do you know if they did a "differential" - that's where they make a slide and identify the types of White blood cells along with the percentages in the blood. This would rule out whether "immature" cells are being released from the bone marrow. As your vet suggested, the WBC can run low if the dog is fighting an infection/inflammation but, at the same time .. greyhounds can run lower (which of course adds even more confusion into the mix). Your vet seems to have a logical course of action mapped out which is to repeat test and then discuss further testing with ultrasound if deemed necessary.

I'm so sorry. The beautiful pictures capture her "special character" and are a wonderful tribute ....

This may be off-base but, tramadol causes constipation in people. How have her poops been? Is she having trouble going and how often is she going?

So sorry to hear of this incident -- I know how tough it is when you are single and things like this happen. Hope both your leg and the dogs will be OK

Thanks for sharing (perfect timing too because most people will be doing mulching the next few weeks) ..

I think that it's great that you have the forethought to want your dog to be easy to treat by the vet. I used to work for a vet years ago and it's really tough to deal with difficult dogs and as a result, they can get hurt or not get the treatment that they need. I recently had something similar where a bandage was stuck to my foster girl's leg from a pretty serious gash and I didn't want to take her back to the vet to have it removed because it was probably going to be painful and I didn't want her to have "bad memories" of a vet visit. So I ended up "working" it off over a few days. I might suggest a few things to make sure there are positive associations with the vet. Have the vet (or you) give the dog a vanilla milkshake and give this a few times over the next few visits - the dog might be a little loose for a day or so after but, the result will be worth it. On some of the days that you do not give a milkshake, take the dog for a walk from the vet's office either before and after the visit. And lastly, it might be very helpful to give your dog a massage (some dogs love them, some hate them) or maybe a brushout if you think that either one of these could "calm" the dog down. Some greyhounds don't like being brushed "past" a certain point so this could cause some "bad behavior" -- something to watch out for. One other note, your dog could be picking up "subtle messages" from you and if you are nervous, the dog could start acting up because of that. It sounds like you have a great vet (and staff) that is willing to work with you and that is 1/2 the battle. Good luck

Sorry for your loss. I found that long slow walks can help the healing process both in people and in our 4-legged friends.

A bland diet (rice and meat) is usually used to "calm" the GI tract as it is non-irritating and easy to digest. In some dogs the bland diet may also firm up the poop but usually you'll need to add in some fiber to the diet to see the poop get firmer. Try adding in some cooked green beans (1/4 cup) and see if it makes a difference.

Well, olive oil isn't working as well as I hoped .... I'll try wetting it down with a saline solution next.

Thanks! I'll start with the olive oil and that way Lucy can help and if that doesn't work over the next 24 hours I'll use the WD-40.

My foster "Lucy" managed to get cut badly on her leg when she was chasing a squirrel in the yard. The cut is on a really tough place on the leg to bandage - on the upper thigh ... so, the only way the vet was able to bandage it up is to put gauze over the stitches and then to wrap a sticky bandage around the leg to hold the gauze in place. Needless to say, I've been able to remove where the gauze was and about 3 inches on the inside of the leg but, the 6 or so inches on the fur on the outside of the leg is just not coming off. I left it for a day longer hoping that she would pull it off herself but, totally unlike herself ... she's leaving it alone ... I should also mention that Lucy is a real diva ... she has no hesitation about showing others who is boss and with an advance warning (little snarl), will be quick to make her displeasure known. Because of this, I want to make sure that I get the bandage off as quickly and with as little pain as possible. While I know that I can bring her back to the vet to remove the bandage, they are likely to just pull it off and antagonize her and since she seems to make it a habit of having "emergencies" (bloat, toxic plant) in the year since I have had her, I would like to ensure that she sees vet hospitals as being "good places with friendly people".

I would bring in a "first morning" urine specimen (catch it mid-stream) and have them do the urine tests on that. That will let you know whether protein is being excreted and if so at what levels, and whether the urine is getting concentrated enough. If you have not had a BUN done as part of the blood work, then consider doing that. As mentioned, 1.9 is borderline and as long as everything else is OK then repeat urine and blood work yearly to make sure there have not been "any changes". As a side note, my dog was running slightly high also BUT, his specific gravity in the urine was questionable in that is was not that high which could indicate some issues in the kidneys. In my case, I started him on a lowered protein diet and in his recent tests everything came back within normal ranges.

I'm so sorry .. there are no words that are adequate

From the picture it looks like something happened earlier in the week to precipitate this exchange and hopefully the bruises will not be anything serious. As an aside and please do not take offense, if you are feeding a "home-made" meal you might want to consider adding supplements to his diet (calcium and vitamins, maybe fish oil). The only reason I suggest this is that I have been feeding "home-made" for years and have had diets made up by vet nutritionists and she stresses how very important the supplements are.

In addition to all the other great suggestions about him being in pain and arthritis, I might also suggest that his eyesight be checked although, this is not as likely as the symptoms being caused from pain or arthritis. If a dog is having trouble seeing and it occurred very quickly rather than gradual, then he might not want to leave his "safe area" even to go out. Is the dog limping at all or favoring a particular leg?

I also recommend Dr. Remaillard at Angel. I've used her for various diets and have been quite satisfied.

I may be missing something here but, x-rays are not usually done for skin infections .... cultures are. Do you suspect that there may be an issue with the bone? If so, then an xray might be worth getting but I would probably talk this over with your new vet.

Depending on how powdery the fertilizer is, the wind can carry it into the back yard. I also watch to see when my neighbors are putting fertilizer down and if it is a windy day, I'll keep my dogs inside. As others have mentioned, there are organic options that can do the trick and are healthier for your dogs and people. If you have the room, you can start a compost pile and use that for fertilizer in the spring.

I concur with the suggestion of using a "keyword" so she will associate the word with what she needs to do. But, in the interim, it could be that she is not full enough to go at 10am and if that is the case, try giving her a 1/2 cup or so of liquid like yogurt or apple juice after your 4am walk and see if that creates the "urge" to go at 10am with your husband.