Poor Bravo!

[Guest krisandzoo]

I've noticed some odd coughing from Bravo for a few weeks now and he had an awful fit the other night. Sometimes he gets gimpy and seems like his chest is sore so I decided a vet trip was definately called for.

Today we went and I'm not crazy. I wish I were. He has some fluid in his lungs. He's breathing about 60 breaths a minute when doing nothing. He's a littly "soft" plus about 4 pounds over his racing weight. I had thought that was why he would sometimes breathe heavy but lately it was worse. The fluid is actually causing him to breathe harder. That's making his heart work harder. This is why at 4 years old he tires out much easier than I thought he should. A 30 min walk just wears him out.

His blood work came back ok. That's some good news at least. Our next step is x-rays. As long as those are ok it sounds like the right medication should clear him up, but it will be for life. As long as he's healthy I don't mind.

My poor baby! I can't wait to get a plan underway to make him feel better.

Has anyone else had this happen? How did it turn out if you did?

[2hounds]

Poor boy! I hope you are able to figure it out and he feels better real soon!

[Guest greydogluvr]

Did the vet check his heart as well? I am assuming this will be done with the x-ray. One of my greys had congestive heart failure which caused a build up of fluid in her lungs. It was diagnosed through the x-ray process. We re-evaluated every couple of years for peace of mind. Her meds kept her very stable and despite frequent urination (from the diuretic) we experienced few side effects. It was highly treatable with medication. She lived to be almost 13 years old. Her passing was unrelated to her heart- it was the awful osteosarcoma I miss her so much.

[Guest krisandzoo]

Based on everything I told him the first thing he told me once everything was out was he suspected heart issues. I had so many questions that I probably only retained half of everything he told me. I was really hoping it was an allergy/out of shape/ sore muscle related thing. Thanks to this site I went in thinking it could be something like a lung/heart issue. I was still a bit numb when I heard things were going that way.

Thanks for the reply. If it is congestive heart failure (and he did mention this as something the xray may show) at least I know he may still live the teen years . That definately gives me a better outlook than I had earlier. It's hard knowing something is definately very wrong but not knowing what it is or what I can do yet.

I'm calling my vet in the AM to see how soon I can get his xrays done.

[Guest lotsagreys4me]

I have a male that was diagnosed with congestive heart failure at 2 years old. He is now four and is really doing good. I can't let him run as I do my others but short sprints up and down the driveway a few times a day keeps him happy. He is on meds and will be for the rest of his life. I do hope it is a long one. Keep us posted on the treatment given. Paws crossed over here

[Guest IrskasMom]

 

 

 

No Advice just Hugs and Prayers

[Guest KennelMom]

No advice, but sending prayers

[Guest vahoundlover]

Sending prayers!

[Burpdog]

Sending lots of prayers. Also do a tick panel.

[Guest krisandzoo]

Bravo has an appointment for xrays this afternoon. Hopefully we'll figure it out today because I hate this not knowing part!

I'm thinking we'll take a trip to the park before the vet to lounge at one of my favorite spots. It hardly seems fair everyone else is going for a nice long walk today, but I know Bravo won't be up for it. I think he'll love this park and special time with mom though.

[Guest greydogluvr]

Positive thoughts and prayers for both of you. He is lucky to have you. Hugs to Bravo

[Guest TBSFlame]

I hope this is worked out and he has a healthy long life ahead of him.

[Guest krisandzoo]

So we got the x-rays. Finally...what a long day.

His diagnosis was chronic bronchitis. I had tons of questions and once again don't feel I have a great understanding of everything I should know. It's not a lack of effort on my vets part. I think it's just a lack of me understanding him and his ability to answer my questions in a direct manner. I love the internet. Reading up on this it sounds like we may be on the right track. The odd part is one side of his heart is bigger than the other. It looked very lopped sided. I have yet to figure out how this ties together. I've found a list possible problems that could be mistaken for chronic bronchitis and will read through those just to feel knowledgable incase his meds don't do the trick and a new diagnosis is made. Sadly my vet did not seem confident in his answer at all. Bravo's been prescbribed some diuretics. I'm going to get some detail online hopefully about exactly how these should work. I understand moving the fluids, but how would they help hardened bronchi soften back up and let all the fluids move freely? I asked these questions but have no clue what my answer was.

My vet also showed me his blood work at the end of our chat. I noted his creatine levels were "high". I mentioned I thought those ran higher in greyhounds. I asked if I'd heard right and if so was this in the normal grey range. His answer was that it was nothing to worry about because all the other levels for kidney function were normal and to look at the big picture. He didn't answer if this was a normal greyhound thing or not.

Then when we discussed nutrition he frowned upon my greys eating Purina Selects. Since this is considered a "premium" dog food and the ingredients are mostly good (yea, there's some corn in the flavor my guys have but they do so well on it that I have ignored that). When I asked what was in it that was so bad he simply said Purina is bad. Well of course the $8.50lb bag is. I want to know exactly why the Selects is bad. There was no solid answer so I asked what he thought would be better. He said Royal Canin. Ok, fair enough. He wrote me a prescription for the early heart Royal Canin. Looking over the lable there's a lot of fat. I know this is good for the heart but wonder if it is too much for a dog he agreed needed to shave a couple of pounds.

The other thing is when I didn't plan no keeping the kitten I found in a bush I put her on Iams kitten. My reasoning was I was going to find her a home and donate all the things I bought her to that home. I didn't want to spend too much $$$ on the little stray I wasn't keeping. I kept her. When I first took her to the vet I had her in Iams and they were so happy I choose a "good food" for her. Ewww. Are you kidding? I shouldn't have even fed it to a temporary kitty. It was a silly move. I highly doubt their knowledge on nutrition now. Sure it's better than some but it's still far from good. Selects is way better than Iams. This much I know.

So I have a weeks worth of meds to try. In the mean time I've managed to get some information on a vet a couple of grey owners frequent. I popped in but they were super busy so I grabbed a business card. I will call tomorrow and make an appointment for sometime in the next week. I'll need to get my x-rays and blood work from the vet I went to today. I really would feel much better knowing a second vet either seconds his opinion or doesn't. This vet has rave reviews from several people I've talked to so if I feel my questions are answered better I think I will hop over to him.

Overall I feel we made some progress but I now have more questions than answers. I just hope these diuretics make breathing easier for my Bravo in the meantime.

Thanks for reading my saga and for all the warm thoughts. It's so nice knowing others have been where I am and knowing I have support when I really need it. I've spent the whole day on the verge of tears fearing the worst. Bravo will be here to see another day so for now we're doing ok.

 

[Guest paulamariez]

Keeping your sweet Bravo in my thoughts and prayers for a quick recuperation! Glad to hear that he's feeling a bit better! Tiger, Bueller and Domino are sending Bravo lots of doggie kisses so that he heals up quick!

[Guest krisandzoo]

Thankfully some good news. Bravo is breathing like a normal dog! No more heavy panting and he isn't tiring out as quickly as he had. He's not coughing nearly as much, and when he does it passes easier. I'm still going to get a second opinion to stay on the safe side. His heart worries me since it was larger on one side and nothing in the diagnosis addressed this. Somehow we're on the right track.

[Guest trevdog]

I'd agree a 2nd opinion would be the way to go, perhaps even a specialist might be in order. Glad to hear he's feeling a bit better already.

[CaliforniaGreys]

Sounds like Bravo is doing better and more comfortable. Reading your posts your love for this boy really comes through.Hang in there, it's a lot to take in but you are doing one heck of a great job taking care of Bravo. We will keep him tucked in our prayers and will look forward to hearing that he is doing great!!

[Guest argolola]

Prayers for your little sweetheart.

[Guest krisandzoo]

Bravo and I went to a vet reccomended by a local greyhound group. The good news is I really like him and feel comfortable with him. I will be taking all of my greys here. The bad news is he didn't agree with the first diagnosis of chronic bronchitis. He did a uranalysis and some levels that deal with the liver were a bit high. We're going to redo this in a week or so to double check. We're also going to redo my first vet's blood test to keep it safe.

He sent Bravo's chest x-rays into a specialist and I'm still waiting to hear back. So far Bravo is doing ok. Our new vet took him off the meds and I've noticed a small cough here and there. If it becomes persistet than we'll head back in asap. Hopefully we'll get a better idea soon of what's going on.