Guest dinasorr Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Hi Everyone. Diane here with a 9 year old female greyhound who is a dearly loved member of my family. We live in Scottsdale, Arizona. About three weeks ago, she started a gagging/retching sound and didn't want to eat much. Vet visit turned into a specialist visit where they did a sonogram of her belly (nothing significant), lung xrays (nothing significant), and tested for valley fever (negative). About 9 days ago, the retching turned into a true cough, followed by a gagging reflex. I did some research, looked at a few videos on u-tube of dogs with kennel cough, and saw that she looked exactly like them. Additionally, she developed a runny nose (clear discharge). I called vet back, told her I thought it may be bordatella, and was prescribed doxycycline and theopholine. She finishes the doxy tomorrow after taking it for one week. Although the coughing has decreased, she is still coughing. Should she have stopped coughing by now? How long does bordatella last? Would like to hear of other's experiences before I return to the vet. This first round cost $900 -- and they suggested she may need an endoscopy and lung biopsies at some point. I would greatly appreciate hearing from any of you. Best Regards, Diane and Nosey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GreysAndMoreGreys Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Bordatella normally only last about a week - 10 days/2 weeks max. Very rarely does it last longer. It does sound like her cough is progressing a bit and that might be good. Could be breaking up. I'm a bit shocked that she was on meds for just a week. I would think at least 2 weeks to fully knock whatever issue is going on. Is there any other red flags other then coughing? Swelling anywhere? One other thought is, is she on Heartworm prevention? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HHHounds Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 My 10 year old Candyman has had something similar for the past couple of weeks, but a chest Xray showed that his heart had enlarged some and his vena cava was putting pressure on his larnyx, making him want to cough. He was put on some blood pressure medicine, and the vet added lasix last week. He is still coughing so I will be calling the vet again today. Other than the coughing and his other health issues, he is acting fine... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Bordatella normally only last about a week - 10 days/2 weeks max. Very rarely does it last longer. It does sound like her cough is progressing a bit and that might be good. Could be breaking up. I'm a bit shocked that she was on meds for just a week. I would think at least 2 weeks to fully knock whatever issue is going on. Is there any other red flags other then coughing? Swelling anywhere? One other thought is, is she on Heartworm prevention? +1 We've had kennel cough go through our pack once. It cleared on it's own, with no meds in about 10 days...Antibiotics for a week? Wow, I'd probably find another vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Swifthounds Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 I agree with Heather and Heather. Did the vet/specialist tell you what they found on the tests and why they might suggest a endoscopy and lung biopsies in the future? My feeling is, if you pay a lot of money for tests, copies of the reports should be in your hands (for your records, for other consults, for comparison to later test results). Too often vets (and doctors) think it's a-ok to spend a ton of money and give you the answer that things "look good" or that they didn't find anything that could be causing the current problem and want to do more tests. For the life of me, I don't know why. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mbfilby Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Welcome to Greytalk.. I agree with the others, but I would like to add that if your vet prescribed meds based on your diagnosis over the phone (that's how I read the post) I would be looking for a new vet. Kennel cough should be very easy to diagnose. Has your pup been anywhere he could have been exposed to the virus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dinasorr Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Thanks so much everyone. I'll be on the phone to the vet this morning. I am also concerned about the short duration of the antibiotic. To answer your other questions: 1) Nosey is heartworm negative. Was tested and also takes monthly heartworm preventative. 2) She and I walk every day. She could have been exposed because we walk by (but don't go in) a dog park. She often greets other dogs there. She was not vaccinated this year for bordetalla. That is Mom's fault. I never board her,so I figured it wouldn't matter. 3) Vet probably prescribed over the phone because she had seen Nosey in person one week before my call. The "cough" the vet saw and heard at that vist was not the same cough that developed a week later. But, my concern is why she referred me immediately to the specialist and did not consider bordetella as a possibility. 4) No other issues such as swelling, pain, etc. Her appetite has decreased and she is lackluster about eating. She normally was a very robust eater. 5) I'll ask for the test results of the specialist. That is good advice. I'll let you know what happens from here. Thanks again for the information. I'm very worried for my Nosey. Diane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Wow. Both my yorkies came out of the pound and got Kennel cough. A lot of all breed fosters I've taken in have done hard time in the pound and had kennel cough. At the daycare around Thanksgiving, Christmas and Spring Break we always had (vaccinated) boarding dogs hacking away. The most I've ever done is give Robitussin DM at night on one vets suggestion so we could sleep. Important not to give it all the time as they need to be able to hack up. A week are so was how long it lasted each time. Don't kick youself about not vaccinating. The vaccine covers less than 1/2 the strains so simple odds are vaccinating probably wouldn't have helped you. From what I know about bordetella you can't get it by just walking by a dog park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Bordatella normally only last about a week - 10 days/2 weeks max. Very rarely does it last longer. It does sound like her cough is progressing a bit and that might be good. Could be breaking up. I'm a bit shocked that she was on meds for just a week. I would think at least 2 weeks to fully knock whatever issue is going on. Is there any other red flags other then coughing? Swelling anywhere? One other thought is, is she on Heartworm prevention? +1 We've had kennel cough go through our pack once. It cleared on it's own, with no meds in about 10 days...Antibiotics for a week? Wow, I'd probably find another vet. Not to mention if the hound really does have kennel cough, and the owner had to pay for a sonogram and lung x-rays I'd be very concerned if a vet didn't recognize simple kennel cough. Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brindles Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 (edited) I just went through something similar with my puppy, though he didn't have coughing. My vet gave me a week's worth of antibiotics and he wasn't completely better by the time he was done. Sure enough, he relapsed. Ten more days of Clavamox and he's back to normal. It took almost three weeks for him to get better. We're still not 100% sure what it was. Moral of the story: go get more meds if she's not better by the time you run out of pills. ETA: The vet also prescribed 5mg of hydrocodone. Apparently it's a cough suppressant. I never had to use it, though. There was an outbreak of canine influenza in my area (south Alabama). I'm not sure where you live, but that's something to think about too. Edited October 18, 2010 by Brindles Quote | Rachel | Dewty, Trigger, and Charlotte | Missing Dazzle, Echo, and Julio | Learn what your greyhound's life was like before becoming part of yours!"The only thing better than the cutest kitty in the world is any dog." -Daniel Tosh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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