3DogNite

I wouldn't use an antibiotic gel. When Rascal broke his tail, and the skin was open with a cut, I just did some water therapy a couple times a day. Basically washcloth soaked in hot water, dribble water over tail injury site, put a couple towels underneath to catch the water. then clean non-stick bandage and wrap with vet wrap. the wound closed really fast! the broken tail healed eventually too! good luck.

if you go to www.Greyhoundgang.org Claudia has a section on the slippery elm and dosages and amounts that are suggested. a small size turkey baster will get it into the dogs mouth and they just have to swallow it. good luck!

I've only seen this done on one girl in our 'group'. she recovered just fine, and has never had any reoccurring problems. The one thing I'd say, is the After look is very different from the Normal vulva look. some girls hound parts are tucked up and away you don't really see it... but If your girl's girl parts are out for display, you could be doing a bit of explaining.

I bought NeoPaws for Rascal. they stay on! no rubbing, mesh on top for breathing and tire tread bottoms so he doesn't feel rocks! They are wonderful!

When my girl had LP Tie back surgery, she didn't really want to eat when we got home, and she had several pills to take as well.. so I used the Fat Ball/Satin Ball recipe. Raw hamburger, eggs (with shells) crushed total cereal, oil, molasses,, anyway,, small enough pieces and she was able to smush them down and eat on her own. pills went inside a FB too, made giving pills easier. she ate them everyday.. she also enjoyed the Ensure ~ good luck with Max!

I'M NOT GIVING UP!!! going to look for different food, ones that were suggested here. apt next week with a specialist. more anit-nausea pills and/or pepcid to help his poor tummy in the mean time,,, keeping my fingers, toes, and eyes crossed that he finds something yummy wants to eat!!! Thanks for all the advise!

Thanks Shelley!!! Now I feel better prepared for our apt with the specialist next week. We (DH and I) will do everything to keep our babies happy. Prolonging his time with us in a proactive way we can and will do. We usually say: letting them go a day early, on a good, happy day, that is better than a day late. I don't see Rascal as being at deaths door yet, for now he is still happy to be here, but know that his time will come. We all face this reality, usually before we are ready to!If I can find the right food, he may just surprise us. He is my miracle boy! Achillies tendon Rupture,, both legs ~ several operations to mend Mis-diagnosis of Osteo. a couple of bad HGE episodes FCE last Aug. completely immobile, within 36 hours not back to normal, but doing a happy awkward jig in the yard! Broken tail, with bone infection now kidney disease.

I don't know about a UPC test (what is a UPC test?). Rascal has been on cephalexin for 6+ weeks, so I don't think he'd still have any infection. I don't think we checked his BP either. ALB: 2.5 I don't see anything about globulin, is there an acronym for this? These are all good points. Rascal has an apt next week and this is exactly what i wanted to find out.. things my first vet might not have gone over with me. THANK YOU!!! I'm going to keep Dr. Remillard's name for future reference. might have to go that route with the food.

I REALLY hate to bother them with a NON Cancer issue. Do you think I should? I know how busy they are, just based on the number of people who contact them from GT, let alone their other "regular" patients. I will try the purina kibble too.. others have said the same thing to me.. Can't hurt to try. Thanks!

well, after 4 hours at the vet, i've learned several things. blood work changes fast. in a good way for us, maybe something was really off at the first vet, but Rascal BUN and CRE last night were much better, still bad, but better. last night his BUN was 47 and CRE 3.2 - this is better from the BUN of 78, 2 weeks ago.. weird how that works. Rascal has HIGH blood pressure, 120 normal, rascal at 175 Rascal in the last day or two has cried out a couple of times when he stretches really big,, my vet felt around his tummy,kidney area. Rascal cried out. so i approved an ultra sound. i wanted to know if this nightmare has turned into something even worse. ultra sound showed very badly misshapen kidneys, he said they were very small and that rascal also had crystalizing in the veins? or tubes? around the (shoot, not the gall bladder, mm.. maybe it was the pancreas.) can't remember. anyway. he called rascals kidney disease Glomerular-Tubular disease. and said he in advanced stages of kidney failure. he said it didn't really matter now what rascals blood values are, the look of the kidneys is giving us the direction of what to do next. i went ahead with the UPC test. don't have that back yet. forgot to ask how long that would take. but this will tell us more clearly how much protein is being dumped into urine. and if rascal takes off eating and feels better with the stuff we will do, i will probably do another UPC test as a comparison.. maybe not,, all i care about is if he'll eat or not,, and is he happy or not. that will be seen soon enough with the following plan. I also learned how to do the SubQ fluids, i'll be giving rascal 1 liter a day, vet says this could be enough to make rascal feel better to eat more. rascal will take enalapril for his blood pressure. baby asprin to help prevent blood clots (i guess the crystals are such that they could break off and do some damage.) i'm giving the SubQ fluids daily he'll be taking pepcid, extra omega 3 fatty acids and tramadol vet also said rascal prognosis is not good. a month or two, maybe a bit more,, considering his eating habits I can see this, don't like it, but i understand it. he explaned that this kind of kidney failure isn't so much about the blood values, but about the amount of protein coming out of the urine - it's the glomerular protein loss that is the really bad part. so, we have a plan, we'll see how rascal feels,,,, i hope he feels much better so he wants to eat,, but if not, then we have to decide how much longer we want to put him thru feeling so crappy all the time. that's all for now, should be enough, don't ya think~ Lorinda Last year Rascal had pre-anesthesia blood work done. Vet said he is starting to show signs of kidney problems: Bun:31 CRE:2.1 spec gravity: 1.014 Pro: 3+ ( i have more, but i think this works for my comparison) let me know if you want more info.... NOW one year later: and 6 lbs lighter: Bun:78 CRE:3.6 spec gravity: 1.025 pro: 4+ right now he is TRYING to eat the KD diet, kibble. and fat balls (the only thing he is eating willingly) i have been pushing food down his throat because he has been refusing to eat Anything at all!!! he is on an Anti nausea pill - hoping to get him interested in eating again. his poop and pee are regular and he seems pretty happy. he is on tramadol for aches and pains, and he gets some supplements, when i can get him to eat. What are High blood/urine levels and a dog still happy with life. I have heard - when the BUN gets over 150 that's when you should worry or think about end of life time... then i hear no my dog's BUN level was at 250 when we really started worrying. I've also heard that dogs are really sick when their levels are about what Rascal's are now. Just trying to find a point of reference. I think i'm realizing that all dogs kidneys behave and progress differently and that maybe I shouldn't worry about the Values as much as just the quality of life - I am waiting for an apt with a specialist for a more complete picture, just thought i'd get more information before i head in there. Thanks for your input.

If I'm not mistaken, it reacts badly with some other medications that are commonly used. My girl was on it the last couple days of her life. Torb made her pain tolerable. I don't know about long term use. Good luck!

it was suggested to me to use kibble (no grain in your case) instead of the oat meal or wheat germ. not sure if they are considered "carbs" or not. just put it in a blender and add the same amount suggested in the recipe. i'm going to do this next time.

sorry for the dissapointment! .... maybe more coffee would be a good idea for me!

Yes, while he was on the antibiotics he got pepcid regular basis. i'll add that back into the mix. just in case. And it is a good idea to crush and add the dog food into the fat balls. I'll do that on this next go around! Thank you ~ good ideas. I am resisting going full on raw food ~ for whatever little reasons, they usually aren't good, but it seems sooooo expensive to me. And Rascal does like the turkey neck, however I have to HOLD onto one end while he eats it, he just doesn't understand the lay-down, use your paws to hold the object, method. He typically trys to eat the neck in one crunch/swallow!

12 yr Rascal, usually an ok eater has REFUSED everything! and recently have resorted to "whatever he wants to eat, he can have!" and he can have as much as he wants, when he wants to eat! kibble, canned, a mix of both, tripe, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, Pizza. he wants non of it! I have resorted to literally forcing can food or the pre packaged raw diet,,,anything down his throat just to have something in his tummy. he has lost quite a bit of weight after being on antibiotics for almost 2 months for a bone infection, I thought once the antibiotics are done he'll go back to eating like a Normal dog..... NOT! he ate some of the "Tuna's meat loaf" recipe,, but his interest in that didn't last. he will only eat Treats (any crunchy commercial dry treat) and FAT BALLS!!! oh and he'll do an occasional Raw Turkey neck Can he live on Fat Balls, or Satin balls? he will gladly take 5-9 meat balls from me every time he comes walking by. so he could easily be eating 20-25 meat balls a day! he is drinking, pee'ing, pooping normally, and the infection seems to be gone! he recently had a dental, and his teeth still look good i don't ' love the idea of making fat balls every week = the recipe is for 10 lbs of meat and all the ingredients, he is eating the whole batch in one week. on the plus side, he has gained back his lost weight, and his coat is shinny and smooth! just am wondering about basic nutrition for the long term. Thanks!

Hi Shelley - Rascal says Hi too! Good to hear about all your babes! I keep trying to get back to Abilene but it just never works out. Rascal is 12 now, I really wish i could get him back to see everyone, and they could see him,,, those who remember the "Fun Run" he had! Lorinda and Rascal Utah

I'll add a few and top it with a don't worry, carob, not chocolate chips!

My best friends dog went thru several months of terrible pain~ injury/healing. and lost more than 20 lbs due to inactivity. The dog ate/drank pee'd and pooped like a champ, but without the everyday activity it lost the muscle tone. Once the pain went away and the healing started and the activity could be brought back into the dogs life, the muscle came back and she actually gained all the weight back and looked completely normal! Good luck with Wilbur ~ I have been following your story, and keep you both in my thoughts and prayers!

This is the last gift of love, which breaks our hearts to give! Spoil Indy and cherish every last moment with him!

Poor little girl - feel better real soon!

I'm sorry you are going thru this! I have in the past had greyhounds go thru this exact pattern. After all other things are ruled out, the metronidizole is what worked for us. It was on day 3 of the Metronidizole that my kids started to eat. so, please try to be patient. after such a sore tummy and intestines, you have to just give them time to heal. You could try Slippery elm. in powder form. add a small amount of HOT water to it. It makes a slippery paste. Get a turkey baster (small one if possible) and give it to your boy 3 times a day... Go to www.greyhoundgang.org ,,, Claudia has more specific instructions on her web site. This slippery elm will help heal the intestines and will help stop the diarrhea . I hope this helps! Good luck to you ~ I know how it goes when you are obsessing over your babies!

for Rory! can I ask, why does Rory have to have her tail amp? I ask because, my boy Rascal might be headed down the same road in a couple weeks, due to a bone infection in his tail - he is also 12

Prayers work,, here's for a speedy recovery!

Just before Christmas, Rascal broke his tail. We don't know how it happened,,,, no trauma, no scream, just a spot that got very swollen and the skin broke so there was some blood. anyway, it got infected: 10+ days of Cephelaxin and hydro therapy, and a nice supportive wrap on his long swishie tail. Yesterday, almost a month later, I took Rascal to our regular vet,,,, because the site on his tail is still Warm to touch (infection I assume) red in color, swollen and sore. X-rays showed along with the break Rascal has a Bone Infection! I have not heard of one doggie who was able to get rid of a bone infection. The ones I know of had to have their leg amputated because the bones would never heal (broken hock dogs) So, My vet went in to the bone and got a sample of the infection, we are sending it in, so the lab can grow a culture and Rascal will take the specific antibiotic for the infection. Right now he is taking a giant pill called Zeniquin (marbofloxacin) 200 mg, once a day. This is a non-specific Antibiotic until we get the result from the lab. I'm trying to stay positive, because in many ways Rascal is my miracle dog who always beats the odds! however the reality that i see for Rascal is that he will probably loose most of his Glorious, Long, white tipped tail!!! still this is better than the terrible "C" word which shall not be said out loud! I would love to hear if anyone was successful in getting rid of a bone infection! I forgot to ask my vet about pain,, is a bone infection Painful? we are only on the 2nd day of antibiotics, and already getting Rascal to eat is a chore. he gets the Antibiotic only when he eats! then usually i give him a pepcid in the afternoon. along with extra food if he'll take it, just to keep his tummy happy! what are your thoughts? wow,, sorry this got so long hoping for another miracle for my Rascal!

My First greyhound would lick her back legs into a mass of bloody Heat-granuloma things,, don't remember what they are called,, but they were from allergies. So, I did a version of what you did with the sweatshirt arm as a leg cover,, but I did for BOTH legs using straps across the top. If you did this, made Wilbur wear both legs coverings, it would hold the one side on that needs to be on and you probably wouldn't have to attach it to the rod on his hip. just make him wear it all the time,, maybe put snaps at the top to undo it to make bandage changes easier. also, feminine pads are great at absorbing ! i used them for bandages all the time. Good luck! It looks like Wilbur is doing really well,, other than messing with his wounds.