Fenway Is Sick

[Guest SoulsMom]

Since it was New Year's Day the vet was closed and I had to get the meds from a friend. I knew Soul was sick again, he showed all the same symptoms as before. So as soon as I saw the blood he got a pill. But keep in mind that flagyl can be hard on the tummy, so it needs to be given with food. Which is a conundrum, because they need to be fasted during an occurance of intestional bleeding. For the first few days I would give Soul several small meals with his meds.

 

It's not uncommon for pups who have had HGE to relapse, as mentioned Chance relapsed as well. We still don't know for sure what caused Soul's illness, but most likely it was dietary. Today, Soul is still on the I/D diet.

[Guest ChancesMom]

It's not uncommon for pups who have had HGE to relapse, as mentioned Chance relapsed as well. We still don't know for sure what caused Soul's illness, but most likely it was dietary. Today, Soul is still on the I/D diet.

 

I put Chance back on his regular kibble within a few weeks. He has been fine for about 5 or 6 months. Both times that Chance had HGE there was some stress going on. The first time we had a foster that Chance did not get along with and the second time I had back surgery so there was a big upheavel in his schedule. But as Souls Mom said, they usually do not know what causes it. If you research it there are a few different reasons that they give. I now watch for Chance to start eating grass and if he does, I keep a close eye on him.

 

I am glad that Fenway is home and hope that he is doing better today.

[Guest FenwaysDad]

I have the day off to keep an eye on him, and he seems to be doing well. He's definitely tired, and I think he's a bit sore. (He normally does the head-to-tail shake with lots of vigor, and he's doing it gingerly today.) But he wanted his breakfast, he went to the bathroom okay, and he wants his belly rubbed every time I check on him. As you can see, he does not want to get out of his pj's:

 

 

 

 

Did Chance's and Soul's HGE start with diarrhea? Or did they just have the bloody stool with no real warning? I wonder if it would help to give him something for his stomach at the first sign of loose stool or diarrhea? I hate to over-react, but it's going to be hard not to be worried about every little thing.

Edited April 7, 2009 by FenwaysDad

[Guest SoulsMom]

Awww, look at Fenway Soul was also VERY tired after his hospital stay.

 

In hindsight, Soul would show signs a few days before 'The Episode'. Gurgly tummy, gassy, eating grass, not finishing all his food. He never really had the big D though, until the blood was coming out.

Edited April 7, 2009 by SoulsMom

[Guest Che_mar_Cody]

Hope you feel better

[Guest ChancesMom]

Chance also had signs before he started with the bloody diarrhea. Gurgly stomach and eating a lot of grass. When it first started he did have a soft pudding stool that I noticed blood in. It got to the point that it was all blood coming out. When I hear his stomach gurgle, which is not often now, I give him a pepcid and that usually helps

 

Fenway looks tired. But if it was HGE and his stool is ok now it shouldn't be long before he is back to his normal self.

[Guest EMcElfresh]

Ohh Fenny you are so handsome in your PJs! Lots of rest and water for you!

[carronstar]

What a cutie! I'm so happy that he is home and well. Cute PJ's!

[ozgirl2]

Chance also had signs before he started with the bloody diarrhea. Gurgly stomach and eating a lot of grass. When it first started he did have a soft pudding stool that I noticed blood in. It got to the point that it was all blood coming out. When I hear his stomach gurgle, which is not often now, I give him a pepcid and that usually helps

 

Fenway looks tired. But if it was HGE and his stool is ok now it shouldn't be long before he is back to his normal self.

 

 

 

Yep... Cody too - the gurgly stomach was always a sign of worse to come!

Be careful with fat content in his food, at least for awhile...

[Guest SoulsMom]

I also think it might have been the fat content, but I still haven't narrowed down the cause. The E-vet also seemed to think Soul might need more fiber in his diet and suggested metemucil (sp?).

 

Fenway's Dad, feel free to PM me if you want to chat about his illness. I know how scary it can be when you don't know what caused them to get so sick. Having gone through it heself, ChancesMom was a HUGE support to me when Soul ended up in ICU.

Edited April 7, 2009 by SoulsMom

[VinnieAndRexsMom]

Sweet boy resting

[nancy14]

So glad that Fenway is home and feeling better. How cute that the kittie missed him...and, I love his Jammies.

 

Fenway is a beautiful little boy.

[Guest IrskasMom]

 

 

Fenway Honey .... I am so glad you are home and your Daddy spoiles you rotten. You look absolutly adorable in your

Jammies . Lounging around at Home and getting spoiled ..... Life is good

[duncan41]

Oh, that big, beautiful boy and jammies, too! Sweetness, it would be tough not to kiss you all over after rubbing your tummy every time I checked on you! I sure hope you're on the mend! No more scaring Dad, OK?

[Guest FenwaysDad]

Hi everyone, it's me again.

 

I woke up about 3am to Fenway's stomach doing that really loud gurgling. I gave him some pepto and his morning round of meds (Metronidazole and Sucralfate), hoping that would settle his belly. It didn't, so I held off on feeding him this morning and called our vet.

 

Unfortunately, our vet is away until Tuesday. I can't fault him for not telling us ahead of time, because it sounds like it was unexpected. His tech got in touch with him and got back to my wife. His advice was to feed him breakfast, give him some more pepto later this morning, and then start working his normal food back into his diet this afternoon.

 

I am a little concerned. To me, the gurgling sounds like a sick-type gurgling...it's loud and it's constant. Of course...we have been feeding him a lot less than normal. We've been giving 1 can of i/d per day, and he normally gets 4 cups of Nutro...he's about 86 lbs. He was definitely begging for food last night. I can see that his belly might be gurgling due to hunger.

 

Anyway, how soon do I do something, if his belly doesn't stop gurgling after he eats? And, would I be better off feeding him a bigger portion of the i/d (or supplementing the i/d with chicken and rice?) instead of starting his normal food this afternoon?

 

The tech gave us her personal number and said she is available to us at any hour...she can't do a lot, but she can refer us and get us all his records and everything. I just don't want to wait too long.

 

Thanks,

Dave

 

 

[ZoomDoggy]

If he's been doing well on the ID diet, I wouldn't throw anything new at him just yet. I would offer the ID diet in the same quantity you have for the last few days, and wait to see "what comes out" later today. If he is backsliding into diarrhea again, then start from scratch with the fasting 24 hours and then bland diet (rice & boiled chicken or beef), same as before...

Edited April 10, 2009 by ZoomDoggy

[Guest FenwaysDad]

If he's been doing well on the ID diet, I wouldn't throw anything new at him just yet. I would offer the ID diet in the same quantity you have for the last few days, and wait to see "what comes out" later today. If he is backsliding into diarrhea again, then start from scratch with the fasting 24 hours and then bland diet (rice & boiled chicken or beef), same as before...

 

Thank you, that makes more sense to me. My wife just called me and said that Fenway ate his food (1/3 of a can) and then went outside and went potty. It was solid and well-formed, with normal color.

 

I am probably just over-reacting...

[ZoomDoggy]

If his stools are looking good, then he was prolly just really hungry! Maybe time to increase volume and/or *very* gradually start introducing his regular diet back in the mix.

 

Start SLOWLY, literally just a small handful of kibbles thrown in with the ID meal tonight. See how that goes for a day or three, then very gradually over the next week or two, increase the kibble-to ID ratio...

 

If he shows any signs of backsliding, back up and start over.

Edited April 10, 2009 by ZoomDoggy

[Guest ChancesMom]

It does just sound like he was hungry. Personally, I would do as the vet suggested. If he was only getting a can of I/D a day I bet he is starving. I would start introducing his regular food along with the I/D. I would probably give him at least 1/2 cup of his regular food.

 

I am happy to hear that his poop is normal again.

[Guest IrskasMom]

 

 

Yes Dad .... you are slightly overreacting (tiny bit ) . I would like to say , that all our Houndies had this gurgling Stomach ,

one time or other. Pepto Bismol or Pepcid will take care of it and his normal Diet. He will be fine.

[Guest FenwaysDad]

I know I keep saything thanks, but I really appreciate the support.

 

My wife gave him another 1/3 of a can for lunch, and she said the noises from his tummy are very intermittent and much quieter. PHEW!

 

I'll post again after dinner.

[Guest SoulsMom]

Sorry for my late reply, I'm out of town. Sounds like he was hungry. I also fed Soul a lot less while he was recovering. If you had been giving him a new diet other than the I/D then I'd be concerned. That's what caused Soul to relapse, the change in his diet. Keep us informed!

[duncan41]

Those empty tummy gurgles can sound pretty ominous - but as my husband says - that's what it sounds like when the tummy is sucking on the back bone!

 

Overreacting? No. Cautious, yes. With good reason? Absolutely! But when you consider the reduced volume of food that Fenway has been eating, it's a miracle that the poor boy isn't falling over in a faint! Seriously, I would be very, very conservative in reintroducing his kibble, but he certainly should be able to handle an increase in ID. One handful of his kibble for the next day or three isn't unreasonable considering that the last thing you want to do is take any steps backward.

 

[Guest bigbrindlebunny]

Hi FenwaysDad - it sounds like you're on a good path now, I just had an idea that might (?) help some in the future.

 

In an earlier post you said that there isn't access to a Greyhound-experienced Vet near where you live, so I wondered if it might help during times like this if your Vet had someone he could call and consult? I live in Maryland near DC, and am currently taking my boy to a Greyhound guru outside of Baltimore for some paw issues that we can't seem to get under control. He's an advisor to GPA of MD, and I can't even tell you how wonderful it felt to walk into his office and see pictures of Greyhounds decorating the waiting room. He's Chief of Staff for a very big, 24/7 Emergency Vet Clinic, and wrote the anesthesia protocol for Greyhounds that GPA-MD tells us to give our regular Vets. His name is Bill Benson, DVM, the practice is called Advanced Veterinary Complex, and the number is 410-833-0500. I think he's also listed on the Greyhound savvy Vet list pinned in H&M.

 

Maybe other GT'ers, perhaps some a bit closer to where you live, might also have some recommendations for a consulting Vet they'd like to make? After the tough time you've been through, I just thought you might get some peace of mind knowing there's a back up plan for any future curve balls from Monsieur Fenway.

 

 

 

[Guest FenwaysDad]

The dinner feeding went well, and Fenway was able to go potty again. (That went well too.) He was definitely happy to get a bigger portion for dinner tonight. I threw in a handful of his regular food, so we'll see how he does. I may give him a little more i/d this evening, so he won't be so hungry overnight.

 

I feel a little silly for worrying, but I should be able to sleep tonight. Thanks again everyone!

 

That is a really good idea about having the number of another vet with more Greyhound experience. I was planning on talking with our adoption group this weekend, and I will ask who they can recommend. Maybe I can give our vet another name, along with Dr. Benson, to call in an emergency. My parents have two Greyhounds now, and hopefully he'll be seeing more Greyhounds in the future, so it could benefit more than just Fenway.