Lp

[Remolacha]

What are the diagnostics for LP? Fletcher has become increasing more sensitive to heat the last few years, to the point that we don't walk if the temp. is over 80 (which cuts out about 3-4 months in the summer). He has started having panting "episodes" lately that kind of scare me. I am taking him in on Friday, but the more I know ahead of time, the better! His heart was checked last year and was fine, but we'll be checking that, too. He just turned 9 last week.

Edited March 18, 2011 by Remolacha

[Guest MnMDogs]

It can only be definitively diagnosed with a scope while they are under anesthesia. This is what we did for Mork during his dental in November, and bilateral LP was diagnosed.

 

Please PM me for me details if you want. His had become increasingly worse over the past year or so, and we just had the tieback less than 3 weeks ago with complete success. Is Fletcher's panting raspy and very loud? Are his respirations increased and seemingly shallow?

 

ETA we couldn't walk with the temps much about 60 if the sun was out. In fact, we had a terrifying incident during a walk on a 60 degree day... that's what pushed me to the surgery.

Edited March 16, 2011 by MnMDogs

[Remolacha]

Yes, raspy and loud, but those are infrequent (but loud enough to wake me up at night!) The shallow breathing is more frequent

[Guest MnMDogs]

Yes, raspy and loud, but those are infrequent (but loud enough to wake me up at night!) The shallow breathing is more frequent

 

Sounds like Mork... I would say he panted 80% of the time he was awake. The surgeon also mentioned that these dogs tend to not sleep well due to difficulty breathing Mork's surgery was completely uneventful and successful. I was terrified of it (due to aspiration risk). But the surgeon has done this surgery countless times, and he was done in about 30 - 40 minutes. They also make sure there are no other issues contributing (thyroid enlargement, other swallowing issues) before the surgery. Ryan and I both said that we wished we did this months ago.

[sweetdogs]

My Faolin was put under light sedation to check him for LP - enough to relax him so they could get a good look down there but not enough to shut down the reaction they were looking for. He did indeed have it & I was looking into surgery for him. But then he had a good winter breathing-wise before I lost him to a back end issue. He did have a couple of really scary episodes in the fall - if that's what you're seeing, I would start looking into getting him looked at.

 

(So happy to hear Mork is doing so well! )

[brandimom]

OK it is 1996 and I have just adopted my first greyhound, Sarah. Wish I knew then what I know now..............Sarah was panting a lot and it seemed like she was having a hard time catching her breathe after running in the yard and she had a "roar" (which is related to LP). Took her to the vet and they said allergies so she was treated for allegies. She had an ongoing skin problem and I had made an appt in California for her to see a specialist (I live in NV). She was nervous with the long drive, waiting at the vet's office, running some tests, and then more waiting. When the vet examined her she knew it was LP and recommended surgery and recommended a vet in my town. We headed home happy that the skin condition was under control and there were no more mites and we had a dx for the panting, LP. On the way home on the freeway she was struggling trying to breath. I stopped at the first vet when I got into town and they did not have a vet available but called ahead to another vet. Got to the next vet and they packed her in ice and brought her in on a stretcher. The vet said it looked like a heat stroke. Long story story I never got to bring her home. What did I learn......there was a surgery that could improve her life and I would have done it but it was too late for her. Please don't let it be too late for your grey. It was a horrible death and an image I still live with to this day.

[LakeshoreGreys]

The two of mine that had LP developed it when they were older and had other health issues as well, so we did not do the surgery. The roar and raspy deep breathing are definitely clues, though.

 

Hugs to your hound!

[packmom]

Shilo had the tie back surgery last June at age 12 in the middle of his 25 weeks of chemo for lymphoma. He would get so stressed at the hospital that they had to give him some sedation to quiet his breathing. If we hadn't done the surgery he couldn't have continued with chemo and might not have survived the summer. He's did great with it in spite of the chemo and continues to do well even though they had difficulty getting the tie to not pull out during the proceedure. It has stayed put so far and no aspiration problems.

[Remolacha]

He's sleeping at my feet right now, and seems perfectly fine. However, his panting woke me up again last night, and it took him more than 30 minutes to stop panting after our morning walk (the girls recovered in about 5 min.) So, we are going in tomorrow morning, and I hope we can figure out what's going on, LP or whatever.

[Remolacha]

Well, we are back from the vet. He does not have LP, but she took chest x-rays. She said his heart looks large, even for a greyhound, but he is big, weighed 92 lbs this visit (and you can see his ribs, he's not fat), so that's kind of up in the air. What concerned her more were his lungs, they looked cloudy, one side more so than the other. She is sending the pictures to a radiologist to read, and in the meantime he has antibiotics and lasix. She's also testing his thyroid levels. He's already on thyroid meds, but it's been about three years, he may need an adjustment.

 

So, we wait and see My vet is greyhound savvy (ex-track vet), but after we see what the radiologist says, I will still get a second opinion before I start any treatment, especially heart.

[galgrey]

Sending good thoughts to both of you.

[EllenEveBaz]

Adding our good thoughts.