Guest MnMDogs Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 Mara was just diagnosed with megaesophagus She's been at the vet since yesterday morning; they've currently ruled out Addison's, and are looking into Myasthenia Gravis and thyroid issues as a cause. No tumors are showing on the xrays and she's going to have an internal med consult today - I think they may scope her, I cannot remember. We went to visit today, and it sounds like she's breathing through a stretched out elastic, which I guess the poor thing is. She's our little peanut at just 56 pounds and she hasn't eaten in 2 days, since she is still regurgitating little bits of water, and gagging on occasion. She's getting sucralfate to coat the esophagus, IV pepcid and reglan. Has anyone had experience with this? How do you manage water? We have 2 other hounds and never restrict water, but we were told we probably should. Also, I know about Soda and his chair. Knowing Mara, I cannot fathom her tolerated being so constricted to eat. She's very very sensitive, and I just can't see her getting comfortable enough in something like that to eat (she's a picky eater anyway). Has anyone had success just sitting a dog in a regular armchair and feeding? Any input and advice (and encouragement!) would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyPoopon Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 No advice, just Quote Standard Poodle Daisy (12/13) Missing Cora (RL Nevada 5/99-10/09), Piper (Cee Bar Easy 2/99-1/10), Tally (Thunder La La 9/99-3/10), Edie (Daring Reva 9/99-10/12), Dixie (Kiowa Secret Sue 11/01-1/13), Jessie (P's Real Time 11/98-3/13), token boy Graham (Zydeco Dancer 9/00-5/13), Cal (Back Already 12/99-11/13), Betsy (Back Kick Beth 11/98-12/13), Standard Poodles Minnie (1/99-1/14) + Perry (9/98-2/14), Annie (Do Marcia 9/03-10/14), Pink (Miss Pinky Baker 1/02-6/15), Poppy (Cmon Err Not 8/05-1/16), Kat (Jax Candy 5/05-5/17), Ivy (Jax Isis 10/07-7/21), Hildy (Braska Hildy 7/10-12/22), Opal (Jax Opal 7/08-4/23). Toodles (BL Toodles 7/09-4/24) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stripeyfan Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 Sorry, no experience of this (our problems are at the other end!), but really hope your girl is ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MnMDogs Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 Thank you. If nothing else, this has taught me that I can't even *think* something like, "Wow, we haven't been to the vet in a while!". Sigh... poor little Mar Mar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iluvgreys Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 I'm sorry you have to deal with this disorder. I know a couple from SoCal that was able to get their grey to put his paws up on a high counter and eat from a bowl (some greys would be more than happy to do this! ). It was adequate to position him properly for swallowing. Sending prayers and light to you and your baby girl. Quote Jeanne with Remington & Scooter the cat....and Beloved Bridge Angels Sandee, Shari, Wells, Derby, Phoenix, Jerry Lee and Finnian.....If tears could build a stairway, and memories a lane, I'd walk right up to heavenand bring you home again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AGirlNamedMe Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 Sorry about your Mara. I hope she feels better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckylpa Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 I'm so sorry for you and Mara. My bridge boy Mesa was diagnosed with megaesophagus when he was 6 years old. He was also on sucralfate. We fed Mesa several small meals a day on a very high dish. We made him stand for several minutes after he finished eating. These things seemed to help him. I can't remember but I believe we blended his food. He eventually went very hoarse and couldn't bark. I hope others have good suggestions for you. Best wishes for Mara. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinw Posted March 13, 2010 Share Posted March 13, 2010 Oh no I hope you receive many good suggestions. Quote Xavi the galgo and Peter the cat. Missing Iker the galgo ?-Feb.9/19, Treasure (USS Treasure) April 12/01-May 6/13, Phoenix (Hallo Top Son) Dec.14/99-June 4/11 and Loca (Reko Swahili) Oct.9/95 - June 1/09, Allen the boss cat, died late November, 2021, age 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MnMDogs Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 Thanks for the tips and the kind words. She still can't eat and they'll be starting ppn today - and I'm so thankful for that since she needs nutrition. It will be a couple days until she can come home though, and it will definitely be an adjustment to accommodate her new needs. But she's ok, and that's what matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LindsaySF Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 No advice, just Same here. Good luck with everything. Just curious, what symptoms did she show of this before-hand? I'm wondering if Sooner has a similar issue, despite the vet's okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 Wishing you and your sweet girl all the best. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliforniaGreys Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 Just seeing this Carol, I'm so sorry you're up against this, you and your girl. No experience but you both will be tucked in my prayers for a solution that will work well Quote Missing my little Misty who took a huge piece of my heart with her on 5/2/09, and Ekko, on 6/28/12 For the sick, the lost, and the homeless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MnMDogs Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 (edited) No advice, just Same here. Good luck with everything. Just curious, what symptoms did she show of this before-hand? I'm wondering if Sooner has a similar issue, despite the vet's okay. I didn't really notice any obvious symptoms that Mork and Matty hadn't shown themselves - she would occasionally swallow "extra" when she was eating. Does that make sense? She would look like she was taking gulps of air. Ryan said this was going on for a long long time, but we never really paid it any attention. She would occasionally regurgitate food, but not enough to take note of it. Like I said, Mork and Matty have/had the same issues. Macy really doesn't. Anyway, I went away for business on Sunday, and early Thursday am, Ryan called me and told me that Mar woke him making a gagging/choking/retching sound. Unless you've heard it, it's really hard to explain. It's not like any sound that normally emanates from a dog - of course Mork makes this sound sometimes, so now I'm worried about him. At noon that day, Ryan called me (I was still out of town) and I could hear her in the back ground. It was a very distinctive and scary sound. Actually, Rileysmomma posted a video of Riley doing it - I'm not sure if it's related only to ME since I don't think Riley has it. But that is the sound that she was making. Ryan took her to the vet and she was sent home with an Rx for kennel cough which we knew she didn't have. Our primary vet happened to be there (thank god since we took her to the eVet on call) and she checked on her and her test results. Her xray was normal on Thursday - but Mara was not I learned from Ryan that she was having a hard time keeping food and water down and was "horking" everything up. Not a true vomit, but a re-gurg. I talked to our vet from the airport Thursday and she thought it was esophagitis, and I brought her in Friday am. Poor girl was dehydrated and the vet (I love her, btw) wanted to hospitalize her. She re-did the xrays and they showed the ME. What scares me is that it came on seemingly very quickly, but was probably the result of severe GERD that we never knew about. There's no real way to dx it without sedation, and dogs with ME tend to aspirate under anesthesia. If you do feel it's regurg. Ask about daily pepcid to reduce the acid erosion of the esophagus. I'm actually going to start giving it to Mork daily since he shares some of the symptoms that Mara had. I don't know if that makes sense. So please feel free to PM me if it doesn't. I really wish we had understood her seemingly benign symptoms sooner, even though I don't know if it would have helped since we're still trying to r/o the cause. Right now, we're going on the theory it's the result of GERD and esophagitis. ETA: She was perfectly "normal" to us up until Weds evening, and Thursday she couldn't keep food or water down. I know these changes didn't happen suddenly to her, but it was amazingly quick to us. I left a crazy, happy, barky dog who would greet me on my returns with wags, play bows, tail wags and sheer happiness. I came back 4 days later to a completely different dog, who was tired and obviously ill. Edited March 14, 2010 by MnMDogs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greymomcrt Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 We had a little girl in our kennel several years ago that had problems after a spay and teeth cleaning. She keep bringing up her food and was loosing weight. After a series of x-rays our vet diagnosed it as ME. We brought her here to the house. What I found that worked to put weight on was a raised feeding dish. We improvised with a stainlees steel bucket and bowl and hung it from the top of the crate. The hound had to raise her head up to get the food. I ground up all dry kibble in a blender. I added some water and made a pastey type substance. I made several containers and stored it in the refrigerator. Just prior to feeding I would mix in some warm water and some "Ensure" or "Boost" (fortified drinks you get in the supermarket - vanilla flavored). It looked like a gruel type substance. The hound was feed several small meals (4 to 5) where she could slurp up everything easily. The greyhound managed to gain weight and only had an occasional problem with bringing up food. Hope this helps, Claire Tyler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MnMDogs Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 We had a little girl in our kennel several years ago that had problems after a spay and teeth cleaning. She keep bringing up her food and was loosing weight. After a series of x-rays our vet diagnosed it as ME. We brought her here to the house. What I found that worked to put weight on was a raised feeding dish. We improvised with a stainlees steel bucket and bowl and hung it from the top of the crate. The hound had to raise her head up to get the food. I ground up all dry kibble in a blender. I added some water and made a pastey type substance. I made several containers and stored it in the refrigerator. Just prior to feeding I would mix in some warm water and some "Ensure" or "Boost" (fortified drinks you get in the supermarket - vanilla flavored). It looked like a gruel type substance. The hound was feed several small meals (4 to 5) where she could slurp up everything easily. The greyhound managed to gain weight and only had an occasional problem with bringing up food. Hope this helps, Claire Tyler This does help. Thank you. I'm glad to hear that others have had success without feeding in a chair, which I don't think she'd be that into We also plan to blend up her regular food and try to make "meatball" size bites out of them for her. But right now, we just need her to get home - she's still re-gurging foamy water according to the latest update. Does anyone know how long that can last? I only talked to the tech today, and I plan on asking the vet. But I was wondering if this is normal for the re-gurg to last for so long after the last time she ate (thursday night). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 Just sending lots of : Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluefawn Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 No suggestions, just sending and Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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