Hind-end Problem - Gurgling, Not Able To Lie Down Comfortably

[Guest greyhoundude]

This again concerns my grey, Tom. He seems to having a problem with his rear end. He's now off Deramaxx, his stomach gurgles (may not be the stomach....it's actually closer to his rear end), he spends an inordinate amount of time licking around his anus, his appetite has diminished and he seems to not be able to lie down comfortably for any length of time...he looks at his butt a lot when lying down, as if thre's something going on back there. He ate a fair amount of grass this morning, but none since. He's taking GastriCalm, which seemed to be helping. Today just seems worse for him.

 

Anyone familiar with these symptoms?

[iluvgreys]

Maybe the Big D is on it's way? He may be hungry (gurgling) but not find food appetizing. Have you tried adding in a topper? Like liver, chunks of chicken, some tuna, etc.? Give your sweet boy some gentle 's from us.

[Guest greyhoundude]

Maybe the Big D is on it's way? He may be hungry (gurgling) but not find food appetizing. Have you tried adding in a topper? Like liver, chunks of chicken, some tuna, etc.? Give your sweet boy some gentle 's from us.

 

This time I think it's more than the Big D. He's really miserable, lethargic, uncomfortable.

[iluvgreys]

Oh dear... although it's not common, greyhounds can bloat, which is a twisting/torsion of the stomach. Can you palpate his tummy and along the inside of the ribs without causing him pain? With bloat, you'd see swelling and firmness of the belly, panting, pain response, restlessness, etc. E-vet is critical to save a hound that's bloating.

[Guest greyhoundude]

Oh dear... although it's not common, greyhounds can bloat, which is a twisting/torsion of the stomach. Can you palpate his tummy and along the inside of the ribs without causing him pain? With bloat, you'd see swelling and firmness of the belly, panting, pain response, restlessness, etc. E-vet is critical to save a hound that's bloating.

 

It doesn't appear to be bloating, but earlier, when he was having some *major* gurgling issues, you could see that part of his body (just slightly in front of his butt) palpate as he gurgled.

 

In an earlier thread, I had mentioned another (what I thought was unrelated) problem as possibly being mulcular/skeletal. Now I'm wondering if the problems are related. He'd had pain (again around his rear), causing him to temporarily favor is left rear leg when jumping into my Honda CRV.

 

ARRRRGH! Very frustrating!

[Guest MZH]

If Tom likes to eat grass a lot, that could cause lots of gurgling and pain.

 

We went though this years ago before we starting muzzling the dogs in the yard. I swear, they'd eat the whole yard if given half the chance. By the time it got through their system you'd swear they were going to bloat or have a blockage. It looked like back end troubles other times.

 

Muzzling while outside from now on might be worth a try. It would sure be an easy fix if grass-eating is at the root of the problem.

 

Even the anus licking could mean a grass problem/irritation down there. I dunno. Just speaking from my experience with grass eaters!

[Guest greyhoundude]

Further observations: when outside, he'll take a few steps, squat as though to poop (but doesn't), takes a few more steps, squats...pretty much repeats this activity several times without actually pooping.

 

He's clearly in some discomfort. He had a touch of diarhea this morning, so I wouldn't think he's constipated, though he did eat grass this morning and that was slow coming out of him early this morning (he needed an "assist' - yuck.).

Edited April 13, 2008 by greyhoundude

[Guest lotsagreys4me]

Anal glands. They could be infected, I would see my vet in the morning.

[CaliforniaGreys]

I think it's best to have Tom seen by your vet, tomorrow if possible. Poor guy isin't comfortable and guessing won't help. I hope he feels better and please let us know

[Guest MZH]

Given that his anal sacs checked out OK just a few days ago, I would opt for a vet visit to see if there's grass caught in his bowels. That can cause serious gurgling, cramping and diarrhea and even arching of the lower back. Maybe there is something he can take that would clear that out of his gut.

 

Truly, when we started muzzling our dogs in the yard, all our problems with cramping and digestive troubles due to grass eating stopped. Spring grasses are especially appealing to dogs, too. Yep, this the season for grass eating.

 

Let us know if grass eating or something else is causing this. Poor guy!

[Burpdog]

If he has a UTI he will try to poop if he can't get urine out (sounds bizarre I know but Burp did it).

 

Sounds like he needs an antibiotic and perhaps some carafate.

 

Sending prayers!

[Guest LindsaySF]

I would see the vet, since this behavior is so out of character for him.

 

It could be a number of things from infected anal glands, intestinal obstruction, severe gas, to bloat, heavy worm load, etc.

[Guest MZH]

Bumping for an update; how is Tom doing?

[lukasmom]

I got a call from my Mom about my fox terrier when he was 9 months old. He was staining like he had to poop but nothing was coming out. He was also drooling and panting. i left work and rushed him to the vet. The vet said that dogs can't tell exactly what they need to do so they think they need to poop when they really need to pee. My 9 month old was full of bladder stones and had one stuck in the uretha that could have killed him if not removed. Once the stones were out they were tested and he was put on a prescription diet. It was also discovered that he had too much acid in his body and he doesn't get enough oxygen in his blood. Any strenuous activity could cause him to collapse and die. Eight years and over $22,000 later he is still with us. Never know there is a thing wrong with him except he get winded and pants a lot over the slightest activity.

[NeylasMom]

Update? This sounds like a blockage to me. Hoping everything's okay.

[Guest greyhoundude]

Tom update:

 

Tom had an appt with a physical therapist this past Tuesday. Now this may sound weird...in a good way...but it was determined, via the PT, that Tom's problem may well be totally gastrointestinal, due in large part to his diet.

 

Soooo.....Tom is now on a grain-free, gluten-free diet. He's now eating Orijen Senior food. After the PT did her thing working with Tom (she spent 90 minutes with him, a good part of that time was me being lectured on Tom's diet) he was romping around like a puppy. Particular attention was paid to Tom's kidneys, which was an area of concern to the PT. Also, before physical therapy, he was licking (chronically) the area around his celiac nerves. He hasn't touched that area in 2 days, which is pretty amazing.

 

Going into PT, I'll admit I was a bit skeptical. I'll just say I'm less skeptical now.

[Guest MZH]

Omigosh, that's awesome.

 

Where are the celiac nerves located? I searched for that but didn't find anything. (I bet a lot of us are wondering if their dogs are working on that area but we didn't know what it's called.)

 

Grain and gluten free food is a good thing. May all these things work wonders for Tom!

[Guest paulamariez]

Glad to hear that Tom is improving!! I hope he's now on the right track. Keeping Tom in my prayers for a quick healing!! Doggie kisses coming to Tom from Tiger, Bueller and Domino too!

[Guest greyhoundude]

Omigosh, that's awesome.

 

Where are the celiac nerves located? I searched for that but didn't find anything. (I bet a lot of us are wondering if their dogs are working on that area but we didn't know what it's called.)

 

Grain and gluten free food is a good thing. May all these things work wonders for Tom!

 

It's my understanding that the celiac nerves are located in the area of the anus. Tom's condition may well have been due to irritable bowel syndrome. This makes some sense, as his bloodwork was good, as were the X-Rays of his spine, neck and rear legs.

 

So yes, he's doing better, and I'm watching him closely for any recurrences.

 

Thanks for your concern!

 

[Guest LindsaySF]

Good news.

[Guest greyhoundude]

In previous posts I referred to Tom "celiac nerve," when the *correct* term should have been his SCIATIC nerve. We're now looking at a possible diagnosis of Lumbosacral Stenosis, which has me concerned. None of this changes the fact that altering Tom's diet has had ashtonishing results. At any rate, Tom is doing much better.

[Guest MZH]

Thank you for the clarification, but the weird thing is that there actually is a celiac nerve. Sciatic nerve does seem to be more like it in Tom's case. So glad he's feeling much better on the new diet!

[Guest ss556]

Hoping that Tom continues to improve. Keep us posted.