ahicks51

Loss of appetite + tight stomach can also be the result of finding food other than what you've been feeding. Make sure nobody has heaved a cooked chicken over the fenceline, or that he hasn't broken into human or dog food while you were out.

re: scarring. If the scarring were bad enough, you might expect to see other problems, as Batmom has said: weight loss, either from inability to absorb protein ("leaky gut," protein losing enteropathy, whatever you want to call it), inability to absorb fat, inability to absorb nutrients. Now, that last one is what you're seeing: you have B12 deficiency and folate (vitamin B9). These can be out of whack due to diet, but based on what you're feeding, that's not it. Default value: malabsorption. The question remains- why? Organic damage due to hookworms, or ulceration due to intestinal flora being completely out of whack? If you stayed off the grain train for several months and you're *still* seeing this, I'd lean towards physical damage (although I concede knowing next to nothing about hookworm damage). I'm not finding the Wellness CORE low-fat stuff; any hints as to the exact brand? http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/dog_wellness_dry_index.html The dental thing may be very telling; it is not at all unusual for some types of (human) intestinal disorders to be set off by a dental; I know people with Crohn's who refuse to visit the dentist annually as it causes flares. One thing I've seen mentioned: the B12 patch. I have no idea if it works, or which brands worked. It came across my desk a few days ago, and cannot find the original reference. Here is one brand; I have no further information. http://www.b12patch.com/ On the hound, perhaps application somewhere in the groinular area might work. It is conceivable it could obviate the need for injections of B12. I don't think the firm stool was caused by B12; its primary effect is to help make correctly-formed red blood cells, although it also serves very important purposes in nervous tissues: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_B12 Note the bit about how it is synthesized only by bacteria. Much of what an animal needs is probably formed in its own gut, and absorbed directly. Problems with production or absorption (such as through chronic D) may cause deficiency. Ditto with folate, also produced in the gut.

If not a foreign body- like an acorn- it looks like a gignormous blood blister, except it's smooth, right? No fur, even sparse hairs?

I'm at AlphaGraphics editing my book (ha!), so I'm a bit addled- could you tell me how Spencer has been fed over the past few years, and the general quality of his poop? First instinct is (if the only parameters out of whack are the vitamins) to try an elimination diet- either for allergies or for starch- and see if things resolve. This is to say, in the absence of other symptoms, try getting rid of the wheat- or corn- or starch entirely- and give it a month. Raw feed if needs be. Back to editing!

First poll question. Have mercy on me. So- we have a very good vet clinic, all nice and shiny; they just added a whole new wing. There are five vets there. Last I checked, they can't hold dogs overnight, and they don't take emergency calls; we have a first-class e-vet clinic (almost certainly with a contrail of zeroes on any vet bills) a couple miles further up the street, so if anything goes wrong after surgery, the hounds would have to go there. Is this a totally whacked situation, or is this typical- not to be able to kennel dogs overnight?

Easy enough to get around. Take a digital photo of it, print it out, and FAX that. You can probably obviate the need to print it by just FAXing the image, in fact. Microsoft XP (and other OS'es, I'm sure) have FAX capability built in. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306550 Good luck, and best wishes for your hound.

Would they be receptive to meeting you halfway, and match the price?

What kind of leaves has he been eating? This may be very important. Some types of leaves have considerable levels of (mild) toxins that can cause problems. Unless he's under direct observation, having him wear his muzzle (probably with a stool cup or similar) while outside would be highly recommended.

If they found bacteria in the GI tract- not at all unusual, as the gut is full of bacteria- did they find one in particular that causes harm? In other words, did they culture out a particular organism that is a potential threat?

I was thinking maybe you'd take a shortcut and use neem oil toothpaste, but I don't see any specifically for pets. But they DO make a tea tree oil toothpaste for pets. http://www.sitstay.com/dog/supplies/servle...z._13280_22701_

Lots of morning sneezing here, too. It's a rare morning I don't wake up to the joy of having one of the hounds sneeze on my leg as I first get out of bed. If there seems to be a lot of sneezing, there's a parasite called Capillaria, but that would be unusual. Hair loss is also not unusual in greys; although vets frequently pin it on hypothyroidism- as it is in some other breeds- some greyhounds just... have idiopathic alopecia. Plus, although 5-1/2 months would be unusual, it's common for hounds fresh off the track to blow their "track coat." If the hair is coarse and being replaced with softer stuff, that would be the track coat. The "Zoom Groom" is an inexpensive and useful way to get out some of the hair that's being shed. Supplement with fish oil capsules to help the new fur grow in.

Good point. If the hound spent any time in the southwest, valley fever (coccidiomycosis) may be something a vet in Indiana is not familiar with.

First suspicion: UTI. Second suspicion: anything else. That's... pretty much the flowchart. Sorry.

Where did he race? If he spent no time in the southwest, VF (coccidiomycosis) is not a risk. There are other fungal disorders, however.

It's not. The difference is probably lower than the resolution of the machine, and within norms of samples in all likelihood. Run 5 samples of blood from the same dog taken at the same time, and you might get 110, 108, 112, 115, and 109.

The important bit to eggshells is the calcium they contain; calcium is unaffected without heat WAY higher than what is found in the kitchen. Really anything can be used to mash up the eggshells. A plate and the back of a spoon will do. The idea is to reduce it to a fine powder. If he's eating chicken without it, as Batmom has noted, it's not important at this stage for an adult dog. You don't want to do it for too long (several days), but right now it's calories and protein, not calcium, that's in shortest supply.

Hi Robin--just wanted to make sure that you know not to ever feed cooked bones of any type--chicken bones in particular can splinter and perforate the bowel. If you want to feed bones to help firm up stool, etc. they MUST be raw!! Hope that helps. I believe pressure-cooking reduces the bones to a texture compatible with feeding, but I've never tried this and wouldn't recommend it without a lot of reading. Taking eggshells and crisping them in the oven, then powdering them, would be suitable for calcium. Cut a pocket in the chicken, slide in what you can, and then close it back up.

Just a suggestion: stem cells have proven to be useful for some types of musculosketelal and soft tissue injuries. You might contact a vet who offers these modalities and determine for yourself whether the financial outlay is worth exploring whether this would be a viable option for his condition. http://www.vet-stem.com/smallanimal/

I'm wondering if the eating thing isn't psychogenic. I became ambivalent about food about a month into my illness; I knew whatever I'd eat would just come back out soon, causing me a great deal of pain and discomfort. So why eat in the first place? I no longer fear starvation; it's really not that bad. But! Progress is good, and if the chicken is well-tolerated, then that is an excellent start!

Interesting. If calcium AEP is safe for use with dogs, supplementing with this compound may be advisable. The injectable form is most readily absorbed, but largely unavailable in the United States. The oral form isn't as good, but it's an OTC supplement.

Well-fermented yogurts may be tolerated, as most (probably not all) of the lactose has been fermented to lactic acid. Fage would be the only brand I'd recommend.

1) Is there *anything* you know of for certain that he really, really likes? Anything at all? 2) Is tube-feeding an option with an adult dog?

No argument- I think my dose was 3 mg, 3x/day. For pred it would have been many times that. What I was alluding to is while prednisone has side effects like depression, mania, weight gain, "chipmunk cheeks," ulcers, infections, osteoporosis, avascular necrosis, and cataracts, budesonide's issues run more along the lines of sore throat, mild dizziness, rash, and upset stomach. While certainly either drug can have severe effects, given the choice between the two (with equivalent outcomes, of course), guess which one I'm going to pick. Pred is a wonderful drug, but BOY can those side-effects cause problems.

I wouldn't know about greyhounds specifically, but I'd say that with humans, Entocort (budesonide) has fewer and milder side-effects than prednisone. But it doesn't have the "strength" of pred, either. Budesonide acts primarily on the gut, and if it works, it can be a blessing. In your case, it's a toss-up but I wouldn't go switching around between drugs right now. Try something and give it a chance. Made me dizzy. I was a fussy-baby and stopped taking it after 3 weeks, right after I started my diet.

You might try here: http://www.bulldogbreeds.com/discuss/ I can't seem to find anything peculiar to the breed, but EBDs have loads of cryptic problems.