Rickiesmom

This is good news, and I am sure being home will help Lucky recover!

Jenn, I am so, so sorry. I remember Cleo from the Sunnybrook walks you organized - a lovely, sweet girl. I am so, so sorry. Hugs of comfort to you and Robert.

You are in our thoughts and prayers. I know this has all happened very fast, but do you think it would be worth sending the history and test results to OSU for an independent view on cause? My heart goes out to you.

Ah, the crinkling bag - such an underestimated veterinary diagnostic tool.

Sending many of prayers.

I second the vote for a board certified dental surgeon at a 24h facility. We've never faced the kind of work you are having done, but still, the quality of the work was superb and the recovery went so, so smoothly. Specialized equipment, and a mountain of experience since this is all they do, plus someone monitoring them and able to adjust meds 24h per day was a huge, huge comfort to me, not to mention the hound! Good luck with this - I hope your girl does well and gets the relief she needs once she is all healed up. ETA, given the magnitude of the procedure being considered it wouldn't hurt to have at least a consult with a good dental surgeon as well, if only for your own peace of mind.

If you aren't using one, try a pill splitter. Also, there is reduced dose aspirin for adults who want to take it daily (I think to help ward off Alzheimer's). Depending on how the doses compare, you might have less or easier splitting to do with those. Makes a heart glad to know how well Pinky is doing.

Good you got him in first thing. Hope this leaves as quickly as it arrived!

Great news - looking forward to seeing the "she's home" update!

Checking in, hoping Pinky is continuing to improve, or at least holding her own!

What a good update, in spite of the noise factor. Hope Lucky can be home with you soon.

Poor Frank. Hopefully the fluids will make him feel better, and the vet will find a simple diagnosis quickly. Sending good thoughts and watching for an update!

I just saw and skimmed the earlier thread. Holding you and Lucky close in heart and prayer.

Me too! All fingers and paws crossed here.

Keep doing well Anna - watching for a good update tomorrow!

You probably know this, but another consideration is that roundworms are transmissible to humans. Another reason to be aggressive with treatment.

Some are grain free (Regionals) But the classics contain steel cut oats as a single grain; http://acana.com/products/classics I hadn't realized that since I have always used Ranchlands, thank you for that information. If I were going to go with a grain-inclusive food, oats would be an attractive choice.

Acana and Orijen are made by the same company (Champion) and Acana is lower in protein which is why I like it. As far as I know, Acana is also grain free.

When the XL Foods recall was going on I contacted them to find out if any of their beef was sourced from there. Here is their response, the key part of which describes their quality control process: "We do not purchase any product from XL Foods, so the beef recall from this company does not affect our ingredient supply. Our Quality Assurance department follows protocols for testing from the time ingredients enter our plant, through production, and packaging.Once the food is released to the warehouse it goes into a Quality Assurance Hold area. Our Quality Assurance technicians sample the product and send it to a Government Certified Laboratory for Microbiological testing. Every sample is tested for known pathogens: Salmonella, Listeria, Clostridium, and Enterobacteriaceae which includes E. Coli and other Coliforms. All of our finished kibble is held before shipping in order to have Nutritional testing as well. No product is shipped until all of our tests come back clear." I sure hope whatever happened, they are back on full production soon! Edited to make the font more readable.

Based on an experience I had with my Jaynie I completely support starting the doxy, and, if there is a specialty facility near you, I would seriously consider asking for a referral to the best internal med vet available in your area. What I was told was: - a bone marrow problem (not producing enough), - consumptive (body consuming too many) or - an immune disease. In Jaynie's case he wondered about the marrow because her WBC was also low. He mentioned a bone biopsy, but that was a technical possibility at that point. Apparently the most common cause is auto-immune. That said, do not lose hope - AI may be most common but it wasn't in Jaynie's case and it might not be in yours. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

What a gorgeous, special hound Robin was, cherished and loved for everything that he was down to the last detail by the perfect family for him. My heart goes out to you. No one expects to lose a hound so soon.

Robin, I've been away and am just now seeing this. I am so sorry you lost another beautiful, strong-hearted broodie to this awful disease. You and Rich have been through so much lately, but nothing worse than this. Huge, huge hugs.

Aw Judy, I've been away for a couple of days and am only catching up now. I am heartbroken at this sad, sad news. I will light a candle for your Valentino now. Huge hugs to all of you.

Nancy I am so sorry. A character like Kassie leaves a big, big hole.

LOL Diane. Thank you all for the suggestions. I bought a small bag of Acana Senior (same makers as Orijen) and I like their ingredients but the protein is very high for seniors - 33% and while poop volume is down, it is producing eye-watering gas. I asked the store where I shop to bring in a small bag of Wellness Senior - I don't like the ingredients as well, but the protein is around 20% When I go pick up the Wellness I'll bring a list of some of the other suggestions to see what they have / can get, and depending, may look elsewhere. (This store carries a lot of natural / healthy brands.) Thank you everyone, this is very helpful!