Osteo Diagnosis

[NeylasMom]

The vet had suggested some pills for Whizzer's edema - they are Lasix. They are water pills of some kind, I believe. They just kind of irritate her stomach. They obviously make her pee more, but haven't helped her swelling. She lets me massage briefly, but she gets annoyed at ice. Time to call the vet again.

Sorry.

 

I hate this **. Such a great morning, then Neyla goes to get on the couch a second time and when she lays down on her bad leg, cries out. At least it was only a single cry this time, not a series of them like last time, but I just keep getting these reminders that her pain is probably worse than she lets on. :(

[Guest jenmm]

These dogs are so emotional, yet they can be so tough if they want to be.

 

Off-topic a bit, but to prove the point, Ross would absolutely scream bloody murder if I'd touch his feet when I first adopted him. Then, about 4 years ago, he was attacked in my yard by another animal (neighbor's cat). Once he came in the house, I found him on the couch covered in wounds. I was almost hysterical and he's laying there just trying to take a nap. He was cool as a cucumber, even at the vet's office where he looked so pitiful.

[NeylasMom]

Neyla has never been a dramatic dog, not a screamer in the least. So I know she's really in pain when she does it.

[joejoesmom]

I am so sorry that so many are having bad times lately. I hope you don't mind if I share some happy news.

 

I have had a support group hound at my house for a week now. He has spindle cell cancer and is undergoing regular treatment at OSU.

 

I went out today to work in the yard some. I looked up and Joe and Chase (support group dog) were doing Zoomies!!! This went on (between rest periods) for 45 minutes. Now they are playing with some stuffies. It is so good to see my 3 legged Joe keep up with 4 legged Chase. He is really enjoying his life and I couldn't be happier.

 

Jane

[Guest 4rooers]

I am just reading this thread,I guess I just didn't have the heart to read about the battle. Now I will be battling to keep my Rippa happy as long as I can. Much love and white light to you all.

Kim

[AndysMom]

Wish us luck. Arathorn is 3 months post diagnosis and maintaining status quo. Tomorrow is our big GPA gathering here in Louisville. DH is the President and I'm the event organizer. We're taking all four of our dogs so I bought a new x-pen just for Arathorn where he can rest and relax without worrying about being bumped or stepped on. The rest of our dogs and the dogs belonging to other folks actively working at the event will be in an adjacent/attached double xpen. I hope all the excitement's not too much for him. He loves being loved on and I know he'll get a lot of attention. I have to remember to take his pain pills with us as it will be a full day.

 

Lois

[Charlies_Dad]

I am so sorry that so many are having bad times lately. I hope you don't mind if I share some happy news.

 

I have had a support group hound at my house for a week now. He has spindle cell cancer and is undergoing regular treatment at OSU.

 

I went out today to work in the yard some. I looked up and Joe and Chase (support group dog) were doing Zoomies!!! This went on (between rest periods) for 45 minutes. Now they are playing with some stuffies. It is so good to see my 3 legged Joe keep up with 4 legged Chase. He is really enjoying his life and I couldn't be happier.

 

Jane

 

Jane, that is awesome to hear about Joe. He sounds like our Charlie and am sure they would both put 4 legged pups through their paces.

 

 

I am just reading this thread,I guess I just didn't have the heart to read about the battle. Now I will be battling to keep my Rippa happy as long as I can. Much love and white light to you all.

Kim

 

Kim, I am sorry about Rippa. I saw your other thread concerning her diagnosis. I hope you are able to control her pain as it sounds like her shoulder is hurting.

 

 

Wish us luck. Arathorn is 3 months post diagnosis and maintaining status quo. Tomorrow is our big GPA gathering here in Louisville. DH is the President and I'm the event organizer. We're taking all four of our dogs so I bought a new x-pen just for Arathorn where he can rest and relax without worrying about being bumped or stepped on. The rest of our dogs and the dogs belonging to other folks actively working at the event will be in an adjacent/attached double xpen. I hope all the excitement's not too much for him. He loves being loved on and I know he'll get a lot of attention. I have to remember to take his pain pills with us as it will be a full day.

 

Lois

 

Lois, good luck! That is great that Arathorn is status quo, those are the words you want to hear. We are going to Greyhound Planet Day up here in Ottawa and it will be Charlie's first outing with other pups since his diagnosis and amp in early July.

[Guest jenmm]

Well, it really seems the bad days are outnumbering the good days. The edema is getting worse. Whizzer cried last night several times for a while. It's hard to take her out to go potty. She did wag her tail at me and try to jump on me.

 

But, I don't want her to suffer anymore. It's just too getting too hard. The choice isn't easy. I hate this.

[Guest racergirl435]

Jen As much as we want to keep our hounds around, it's so tough to let them go. Sending lots of thoughts and prayers to you and Whizzer. I wish she wasn't hurting so much. My heart goes out to you.

[greyhounds1234]

Sorry to have been away for awhile but things with Bay got bad rather quickly and we had to let her go (I did post in Remembrance). I could tell Monday that she was in huge amounts of pain. Bless her heart, she was still trying to follow me around the house with her left foot curled under. I mostly stayed by her side and only left for a bathroom break or two but she still wanted to follow. I just couldn't let her suffer. It was time.

Frankly, I wasn't really up to be emotionally supportive to anyone this past week or so...I was struggling to just make it through myself. I'm better now and at least the tears don't flow constantly...I've just been quite the wreck. I'm sure when we get her ashes back it'll start all over again but for now, I' coping.

 

This is really such a good thread and ya'll helped me a lot with information and just caring. I've learned a lot of stuff I never thought I'd need to know and maybe I can help someone else now.

 

I've been such a zombie this week. When Bay was first diagosed I was in shock and misplaced a $900 check and a prescription for me. I've since found both so life goes on.

 

I am so happy that Charlie had a good xray after all and I am sad that Neyla isn't doing as well as we all had hoped. Such contrasts in emotions.

 

I'll be back more often now and I just wanted to thank all of you for being such a comfort when I needed it.

 

Patti

[Batmom]

{{{{{{{{{{Patti}}}}}}}}}} You loved your girl and did your best by her. I'm just sorry her condition wouldn't let her stay longer.

[Guest greytfulhounds]

Well, it really seems the bad days are outnumbering the good days. The edema is getting worse. Whizzer cried last night several times for a while. It's hard to take her out to go potty. She did wag her tail at me and try to jump on me.

 

But, I don't want her to suffer anymore. It's just too getting too hard. The choice isn't easy. I hate this.

 

I am so very sorry. Having been forced to make this decision myself recently I know what you are going through. Keeping you & Whizzer in my heart & prayers.

 

Sorry to have been away for awhile but things with Bay got bad rather quickly and we had to let her go (I did post in Remembrance). I could tell Monday that she was in huge amounts of pain. Bless her heart, she was still trying to follow me around the house with her left foot curled under. I mostly stayed by her side and only left for a bathroom break or two but she still wanted to follow. I just couldn't let her suffer. It was time.

Frankly, I wasn't really up to be emotionally supportive to anyone this past week or so...I was struggling to just make it through myself. I'm better now and at least the tears don't flow constantly...I've just been quite the wreck. I'm sure when we get her ashes back it'll start all over again but for now, I' coping.

 

This is really such a good thread and ya'll helped me a lot with information and just caring. I've learned a lot of stuff I never thought I'd need to know and maybe I can help someone else now.

 

I've been such a zombie this week. When Bay was first diagosed I was in shock and misplaced a $900 check and a prescription for me. I've since found both so life goes on.

 

I am so happy that Charlie had a good xray after all and I am sad that Neyla isn't doing as well as we all had hoped. Such contrasts in emotions.

 

I'll be back more often now and I just wanted to thank all of you for being such a comfort when I needed it.

 

Patti

 

Patti, I am so very, very sorry for the loss of your beautiful girl. This disease does not fight fair & has taken too many of our sweet babies.

[teri_d]

patti - i am so sorry that you have joined 'the other club' on the thread. bay was so lucky to have been loved by you. just like the others -- tonite a drink a toast to bay. my your many wonderful memories help your hurting heart. just sucks, doesn't it? hugs to you - teri

[Guest goldandgreen182]

Some not so good news. Winston broke his leg today (tib-fib fracture)from slipping and sliding on the floor. The strange part is that it is above the site of his original suspicious spot, and there appears to be nothing wrong with the bone where it broke. He's going to get surgery tomorrow, but we don't know what to do. If he does have osteo at the suspicious site, it won't be worth fixing and plating his broken bone, only to have it amputated if osteo does show up, but the thing is we just don't know if it is osteo or not. The x-ray today showed no real growth at the suspicious site from last week, so that is one good sign. He was sedated so that his leg could be wrapped at the vet, and when he woke up he would intermittently try bolting up and yelping/crying. We gave him Benadryl and then Tremadol to try and calm him down, and now he seems pretty calm and out of it. I don't know if anyone has had experience with this drug or incident, but does it work for a while? He is breathing super fast, and we're all just waiting for the next episode of an outburst (one of us is sitting next to him and trying to hold him down.)

[greyhounds1234]

Some not so good news. Winston broke his leg today (tib-fib fracture)from slipping and sliding on the floor. The strange part is that it is above the site of his original suspicious spot, and there appears to be nothing wrong with the bone where it broke. He's going to get surgery tomorrow, but we don't know what to do. If he does have osteo at the suspicious site, it won't be worth fixing and plating his broken bone, only to have it amputated if osteo does show up, but the thing is we just don't know if it is osteo or not. The x-ray today showed no real growth at the suspicious site from last week, so that is one good sign. He was sedated so that his leg could be wrapped at the vet, and when he woke up he would intermittently try bolting up and yelping/crying. We gave him Benadryl and then Tremadol to try and calm him down, and now he seems pretty calm and out of it. I don't know if anyone has had experience with this drug or incident, but does it work for a while? He is breathing super fast, and we're all just waiting for the next episode of an outburst (one of us is sitting next to him and trying to hold him down.)

 

 

In some dogs, Tramadol can cause anxiety and panting. It might be that the Tramadol is causing Winston's episodes. There are other types of pain meds that can be given in place of the Tramadol such as Deramaxx.

 

As for the surgery, it's a tough call. I'd probably go with the amputation just to be on the safe side since there is a question of whether or not it's osteo. If it turns out to be osteo you'll be ahead of the game. If it wasn't, I would imagine that the recovery time would be a little shorter with the amp than having his leg plated.

Do please check with your vet on what recovery times will be in both situations and go with that.

 

Hoping he settles down and gets some quality rest time while he awaits surgery.

My thoughts are with all of you.

 

Patti

[joejoesmom]

I am so sorry to hear about Winston. Did you see what he did to cause the break? In other words, was the slip severe enough that it makes sense that it broke? If not, that would point to osteo. When they put him out can they do a biopsy of the suspicious place and look at it quickly to help determine the right course? It may not be definitive but they can always try.

 

If it truly isn't osteo and the break has a good chance at healing, I would try to save the leg. This is based on Dr. Couto's recent comments to someone I was helping. Her dog has spindle cell (a soft tissue cancer) in his leg that is not responding as expected to treatment. The decision was whether to remove the leg or try a different treatment. Dr. C's concern was that since almost 1 in 3 greyhounds gets osteo, he wouldn't want to remove a non-osteo leg, only to have osteo show up in one of the other three. Spindle cell tends not to metastasize, so trying a different treatment is what she decided to do.

 

No matter what you decide, I sure hope that it is not osteo. My prayers are with you and Winston.

 

Jane

[NeylasMom]

There are so many things I wanted to comment on and I only hava minute, but to Rippa's mom, I'm so sorry that you're joining our group, but please come here as often as you need to for support.

 

Patti, I'm so sorry for your loss of Bay. Please don't feel taht if you come in here you need to be a cheerleader. Now is the time for you to come and get support, not give it. So come in anytime to vent if you need to.

 

Winston's mom, do you know what theyy used to sedate him? Neyla had something called a pradoxical reaction when she was anesthitized (using Dormitor) - she ws basically just totally freaked. Any noise made her want to jump up. I had to literally hold her down until the last effects wore off, which took several hours. She had bruises all over her body and bit her tongue b/c the vets had to restrain her when ti started.

 

It seems unlikely to me that a dog would break his leg just from slipping on the floor if the bone were not already severely weakened, which points to osteo imo, btu of course I'm not a vet. I ssecond Jane's suggestion of a biopsy. Is there a reason you couldn't do the biopsy before the surgery? Typically people choose not to b/c it can weaken teh bone or lead to a break itself, but in this case you're already dealing with that. Although I suppose that could be a problem if you want to repair teh bone. Have you considered something neurological that may be causing the slipping?

[Guest roselle]

patti - i am so sorry that you have joined 'the other club' on the thread. bay was so lucky to have been loved by you. just like the others -- tonite a drink a toast to bay. my your many wonderful memories help your hurting heart. just sucks, doesn't it? hugs to you - teri

Whizzer I'm so sorry your in more pain.I'm so sorry you're forced to look at making a decision. I'm sending hugs and you are in my thoughts.

[jenn8]

 

In some dogs, Tramadol can cause anxiety and panting. It might be that the Tramadol is causing Winston's episodes. There are other types of pain meds that can be given in place of the Tramadol such as Deramaxx.

 

 

Pain can also cause anxiety and panting. Deramax is for inflammation and Tramadol is for pain. They can be given together if your vet recommends it.

 

Jenn

Edited October 31, 2010 by jenn8

[Guest 4rooers]

Rippa started yelping this morning with change of positions, she's getting Rimadyl and Tramadol 2xdaily, can I stagger the med times , Rimadyl with food and tramadol between feeding or just give her more? I don't want her to hurt.

Kim

[Guest vahoundlover]

Rippa started yelping this morning with change of positions, she's getting Rimadyl and Tramadol 2xdaily, can I stagger the med times , Rimadyl with food and tramadol between feeding or just give her more? I don't want her to hurt.

Kim

 

 

Kim you can add a tramadol mid day . Check with your vet, you may also be able to up the dosage

[Guest greytfulhounds]

Rippa started yelping this morning with change of positions, she's getting Rimadyl and Tramadol 2xdaily, can I stagger the med times , Rimadyl with food and tramadol between feeding or just give her more? I don't want her to hurt.

Kim

 

My vet recommended the following for Danny who was an 82lb male. 150mg (1 1/2 tablets) Rimadyl once a day & 1 to 1 1/2 Tramadol 2-3 times a day. I would give him the Rimadyl & 1 tablet of Tramadol in the morning & 1 Tramadol in the evening. When things progressed I upped the Tramadol to 1 1/2 tablets.

 

I would think it would be fine to give Rippa an additional Tramadol in the middle of the day and/or increase what you are already giving by 1/2 a tablet. Also, check with your vet about the dosage on the Rimadyl.....I can't remember what you originally posted but I think what I remember is a low dose?

 

to you & Rippa.

Edited October 31, 2010 by greytfulhounds

[Guest vahoundlover]

I found this......

 

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Tramadol-prod11064.html

[Charlies_Dad]

I am with Jane and Jen on Winston, have a biopsy done while he is under because I find it suspicious that his leg broke from a slip on the floor. It can happen but these pups put a lot of stress on their legs when they run that for a leg bone to break from a slip, my first inclining would be Osteo unfortunately. Perhaps he was doing something more and got into a strange position to cause the bone to break on it's own. While I also agree with Jane concerning what Dr. C stated about amputating one leg and having it show up in another, you need to try and confirm there isn't Osteo in the bad leg. The cost of either the plating or amp will likely be close to the same and your pup will not notice having only three legs, they get around really well after a few weeks. Whatever you do, we'll keep Winston and you in our thoughts and if you have any questions, please ask as there is a lot of experience about Osteo in this thread.

 

 

Patti, I am sorry to hear Rippa is in pain. Increasing the Tramadol is definitely in order and my initial guess is you have room for this but a call to your vet to confirm would be beneficial. We'll keep you both in our thoughts.

[Guest 4rooers]

Thanks for all the info, will add a another dose mid day. I think mornings are so hard because its worn off . I would give up my right arm to fix this, but I know I can't.

Love to you all.

Kim