Trudy
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Posts posted by Trudy
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What antibiotic was he on? 'Course all dogs are different but the one that seems to have least tummy impact here is Clavamox.
cephalexin
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We are stopping the antibiotics. His belly just can't take it. So we are going to stop for a few days and see if he feels better. If not, then it is something else new that he's on that is causing him belly problems. For now, no antibiotics and we'll decide in a couple of days if he gets a different one.
One of his back feet still swells up and his poop is still nasty, so not seeing any improvement with him taking it. As long as he feels better, may ask her to just give him an Rx for Doxy and do another round of that again.
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I offered him the rest of breakfast at lunch. He thought that was pretty cool and scarfed it down.
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Ryan LIVES for food. Even when he would scream in pain when he'd move when he first got sick, he'd still jump up to get breakfast and dinner.
Now, he's still happily getting up for meals, but he's not finishing them. I have to encourage him to eat (first because he thought I was putting the nasty tasting pills in his food still), now I think his belly is just not feeling great - even with the pepcid.
He can't afford to not eat.
He still has the rest of this week with antibiotics. Anything else I can give to him to help him feel better and eat?
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Ryan's barking at me again. He's my talker. He's been talking and had to remind me I closed off the dog door after I dragged us all back inside when the storm got really nasty. He's having a good day
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Walmart, capsule form, used for pain relief, but with the added bonus that it was also a seizure drug which at the time helped to keep the seizures to 1-2 a month since his body wasn't processing the Pb and KBr very well at the time. I don't recall it being cheap, but it wasn't prohibitively expensive either
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Because if he is full of clots like he was, aspirin can break those clots up way too fast and they will go to his lungs and/or brain. Neither place has a good outcome.
We spent 85 mins at the vet's office. We are exactly where I figured we were. No definitive reason for what is going on. Right where we were 3 years ago - lots of results yet no real answers.
He's anemic and peeing out protein faster than the water rushing past my deck. Only the anemia is new.
We are just doing palliative care. The vet doesn't think he'll be here when Jeff gets home either and feels he's not there yet, but will be at some point this summer
Not what I wanted to hear, but I already knew that, it was just confirmed for me.So he has a bag full of goodies to try to help him feel better until he says he's had enough
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It sounds like maybe he has clots in his femorals. Are his femoral pulses there and are they the same both sides? Once of Dr C's suggestions at a semimar was to give aspirin to help with those clots, IIRC.
Ryan can't have asprin.
Giving a dog with clotting issues like Ryan has had in the past is like playing Russian roulette.
vet apt at 1:45 for him today to see if we can figure some of this out.
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Don't jump the gun, do all the diagnostics. Our late whippet was a big drinker. He had hair shaved for a surgery ... didn't grow back for at least 9 months. He didn't have Cushing's, low thyroid, kidney disease, or anything else. He just liked to drink and didn't grow hair very quickly.
Yep, Ryan's half bald, drinks gallons therefore pees gallons.
No Cushings
No thyroid issues
No TBD
and kidney values were still ok a couple of months ago
If she were mine, I'd bring her in for bloodwork again and a urine sample and go from there
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No coughing. His heart was included in the ultrasound 3 years ago, but no real check other than normal listen to it each vet visit since then.
The Enalapril was/is for his kidneys - basically to get what we can to keep him from heading into kidney failure from his other issues. I guess kidney support is the main reason.
I think he really is only panting when he's just plain hot. With all the rain yesterday, it cooled down a bit and the AC didn't even need to kick on during the evening and he was not panting - unless he went outside and he'd be panting when he came back in.
We also went for a stroll, in the rain, to the mail box at the end of the driveway. Jet and Tavarish would have said "that's it?" if I took them with us, but it was just me and Ryan and he was more than content with that 'walk'. Already too hot outside for him to do that again, so we'll try to do that tonight if it cools off a bit.
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gabapentin was for pain when he couldn't move his neck. Once that pain went away, he was off the pain meds.
All he is on now is KBr, Pb, and Enalapril
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We've been watching his kidneys for 3 years and I think that is what some of this is going to come down to again.
Did bloodwork maybe 6 months ago and his values were perfect for everything.
Did more bloodwork 3 months ago and his values were still great, but kidney values were creeping up a bit. I'm guessing we'll see that value higher on Tuesday.
Ryan's back story:
3.5 years ago it took us 20 minutes to walk around the block, something that would normally have taken about 4 minutes at a leisurely pace. The day prior we'd done a nice long walk and had to stop at about 2/3s of the walk so Ryan could lay down and rest. He was dragging. Then it was a very leisurely walk home. He'd also yelped when Jet ran into his chest.
So we brought him to the vet and determined he was having some issues with his neck. Sent home with some pain meds and injected with a steroid before we left for the weekend. Monday came and he was yelping when he was getting up or laying down. Back to the vet and not something he would be able to identify, so sent to the specialist. Consult on Tuesday, she put him on pred and gabapentin. I had to stop at the vet on the way to the specialist for pain med injections just to get him to the hospital. Return Wed for an MRI, she was positive he had cancer. MRI that evening and instant bleeding ulcer from the pred, he had to stay overnight at the hospital. She was still convinced it was cancer even though nobody saw anything indicating it on the MRI. The MRI did show a 8" long clot in his neck that was in a place NOBODY could figure out how a clot would get there. I told Ryan to give me a few days to get his pain under control as we tried to figure out what was causing this. If we couldn't get the pain in control, I'd let him go.
He endured 2x daily trips to the vet for pain med injections for a couple of days as well as tramadol and gabapentin. He was able to finally move without screaming, so we kept on going to find out what was causing his problem so we could fix it. An ultrasound revealed his body was FULL of clots. Veins to his kidney and liver were almost entirely occluded - full of clots. His spleen was looking to be an issue, but there wasn't a vet around willing to try to do any surgery on him for fear of him bleeding out on the table. We were told if he made it the weekend, it wasn't his spleen.
He had several seizures during that time even with being on 3 seizure meds since his body just wasn't able to get and process the meds due to all the clots.
We finally gave up searching and just treated the symptoms as they came and eventually, that clot in his neck broke up on its own and didn't make its way to more dangerous places. He peed out protein faster than his body could make it, and still does, though not nearly as bad... instead of off the charts with his values, he's just at the high end and has been for 3 years.
His body shape changed overnight and he was a perfect picture of a Cushings dog. Yet he isn't. He swelled up big time in the abdomen and was full of fluid which couldn't be removed, it had to go on its own - and did.
Our vet consulted with vets around the country and nobody could figure out what was going on or why and wished us good luck.
We continue to just treat things as they come up and look back each time to see if his issue makes any more since. It hasn't.
He looks like death warmed over
He lost about 3 pounds on our trip down here. Not weight he can afford to lose. I started feeding him more... he just pooped more.He's much more wobbly in the back end - which I attribute to rear end weakness as he's getting older.
So here we are again. Back to more symptoms.
Oddly enough, the swelling in the back feet started when we ran out of Derm Caps - which he's been on since he got sick since it was a ratio of omega 3 and 6 in a ratio our old vet felt was beneficial for him. The manufacturer closed and nobody is making them anymore. Our new vet said she'd find something we can use instead, so hopefully she has an answer for us this week and hopefully that will help at least a little bit.
He swells at his back foot and it will swell up into just before the hock, with the fluid sitting just below it in that little see through spot between foot and hock (see through on Ryan since he has no hair and is white).
If I put him on the couch on his back and ice, the swelling will drain down into his leg, but within an hour or two, it is back down in that thin spot.
His water was restricted during our trip - they got water in the morning, at stops during the day and when we landed and a drink before bed. Until the dog door was complete, he didn't have "all he wanted" access to the water bowl. He got lots still, but not unlimited. For 3 weeks, he's had unlimited water again. He's standing outside at the water bowl as I type. He has been able to drink gallons of water for years.
He gets up to eat, to potty and to drink (potty and drink go hand in hand... must refill after emptying
) He still gets up if you ask if he wants to go somewhere (walk, ride or a stroll around the yard). He even trotted along (he hasn't run in years) at a good clip the other day when I called him while he was outside. He doesn't 'play' like he used to, but if there is a toy near the door, he snags it during his early morning potty trip to squeak on it for a minute before laying back down.He's not in need of an evet. He can wait until Tuesday and I know our vet will be able to get him in.
He's old - my old man got older again in the last week.
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10, will be 11 late this summer. How he's doing now doesn't bode well for him seeing his 11th bday unless there is a treatable underlying cause
He's been old since he was 3 though. Always been my little old man.
I'm not a fan of giving meds without vet OK first but if you read up on Tramadol for any possible counterindications re his clotting/fluid pooling/circulation issues, I can't see that there'd be harm in giving him a small dose.
He was doped up on Tramadol when he got sick 3 years ago. Nothing touched that pain and he didn't seem to have any side effects from the tramadol (or in conjunction with anything else he was on at the time)
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I was going to jump on Heather's thread, but decided for my own.
I'll be taking Ryan to the vet on Tuesday if I can get an apt. He's just not doing well at all. And nothing I can pinpoint. Looking for a cause to his troubles when we go to the vet and fully expect her to send us home with pain meds.
I have no idea if he's in pain. He never shows it. Only time he's ever let us know he was hurting is when he had that huge clot in his neck 3 years ago and screamed bloody murder when he had to move. Stick through is foot - not a peep. So general day to day pain that can come with old age... I have no idea. He pants a lot, but it's hot for him. He likes 50's not 80's. So his panting is explained... he stops when he's cooled down a bit.
For the last 10 days or so, his back feet have been swelling up. One or the other or both. Icing and laying him upside down while icing so his legs are up helps, but then the fluid just drains to a spot closer toward his hip and then slowly goes back to his feet when he's not upsidediddle.
One foot does seem to hurt - I get the evil eye now and again when I touch it. And as a result of fat sore feet, he's having more issues with the dog door. I rescued him a few times during the night, once with pretzel legs, no wonder he couldn't get out on his own.
And now for the last few days he's been squiring up a storm and I haven't seen him eating poop, so his normal pudding poop reason seems to be ruled out.
Need to figure out if any of these things are connected and if any have a cause or if he's just old before old should set in.
But last time we were at the vet a few weeks ago, she'd asked if we have him on anything for pain, so I expect her to send him home with something. And I sort of expect it to be a long term solution.
Is there something we should be looking at for long term use over another. I have tramadol here from when T was neutered, so it is still good. Any point in giving Ryan some of that now until we make it to the vet or just wait until Tuesday?
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Tavarish has a shock collar that I use the tone for as recall if he decides he's done listening to me or I can't whistle or yell loud enough to get to him.
I pulled his collar back out last night as he's decided he doesn't have to listen to me anymore - he comes still, but on his own time and not stop dead in his tracks and come back to me like he used to. His collar is a reminder - just having it on and then the tone is the backup. I used it today when he didn't come back when I called as quickly as he should have.
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When I was in NY we talked to the vet about the Lyme vac. Neither of us thought it useful at the time.
And now, at 11, both J&R are done with anything that isn't absolutely mandatory.
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Nope, but like Judy mentioned, when Ryan first started, it took a while for the side effects to drop down (about a month + for RYan)
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I wish people that DO let them off leash at the beach would chime in! Contract or not, to each is own!
So the masses can yell at us and tell us how horrible we are again? Damned if I do, damned if I don't. I had many people tell me how bad an owner I was for not letting Jet off leash when I first got her. Now I have people telling me I'm a bad owner because I do. Oh well, my dog, my decision. I don't go out telling others they are horrible owners for doing what they are comfortable with.
Mine have been off leash at the beach. I do not photoshop the leash out, too lazy, they have no leash in the pic because it is usually draped over my shoulders. I watch them, constantly. Out of sight, I don't trust Jet further than I can throw her and she is more than willing to prove that. I also signed a contract saying they'd never be off leash.
I had Jet for 7 years before she was off leash without a fence. She stops listening, she goes back on the leash and Ryan and T can continue on their merry way while she is attached 6' away from me.
She knows COME and she decides when she wishes to actually listen now, so her off leash non fence time will be limited here because she doesn't listen anymore.
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Feed stores closer than TS, so I'll check them first and if not, then I'll stop by Tractor Supply.
Guess if the dogs are getting a bath tonight, I should start on that. Figured I'd frontline Ryan on Wednesday since he'll be first in the tub.
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Any suggestions on flea combs and tick removers? I was amazed that I didn't find flea combs in a few places I was at today (and forgot to look while I was at Petsmart).
Dogs will get baths tonight and then I'll try out the Frontline spray Heather brought over for us to try. (Thanks Heather!!)
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T had a dim coat after we used it and he felt dirty.
Jet was less shiny and also felt dirty.
Ryan doesn't have a nice coat to begin with and didn't really notice a change in his coat.
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I'm going with the Adams isn't working here. Tick removal tonight on Jet and Tavarish.
I'll be digging out the frontline this weekend and looking for the spray to give that a try.
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I don't really like frontline - or anything that you goop on between their shoulder blades.
But we are no longer in the land of no fleas/ticks, so back to the flea tick stuff we go.
We picked up a bottle of Adams flea/tick mist and sprayed them down. I kept hunting for info about how long between applications and found none until last night that said every 9 days.
I reapplied yesterday as I saw a flea and flea dirt on Ryan (he's easy to spot stuff on). We were probably around 10 days or so since we first applied it.
What are our flea/tick options, besides frontline, for the dogs that work in heavy flea/tick areas?
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do u have to have a certain number of posts before you can have a siggie?
No
Not what I wanted to hear, but I already knew that, it was just confirmed for me.
He lost about 3 pounds on our trip down here. Not weight he can afford to lose. I started feeding him more... he just pooped more.
) He still gets up if you ask if he wants to go somewhere (walk, ride or a stroll around the yard). He even trotted along (he hasn't run in years) at a good clip the other day when I called him while he was outside. He doesn't 'play' like he used to, but if there is a toy near the door, he snags it during his early morning potty trip to squeak on it for a minute before laying back down.
Squeaker In Stomach
in Health and Medical discussion
Posted
Yep, as Jey mentioned, Ryan ate a ball and got sick and managed to puke it up on his own... about 7-9 months AFTER he ate it.
A friend's lab did the same thing. He ate a football and puked it up a year later.