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Merlin Has Bloody Diarrhea


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Continuing prayers for Merlin. Hoping the handsome boy has an uneventful night. Kerry - hugs to you and hope you can get some rest.

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g240/mtbucket/siggies/Everyday-2.jpgJane - forever servant to the whims and wishes of Maggie (L's Magnolia of JCKC) and Sam the mutt pup.[/b]

She's classy, sassy and a bit smart assy.

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Hi everyone. Thanks again SO MUCH to all of you for all your wonderful get well wishes, support, and good thoughts. I so appreciate them, you have no idea (or maybe you do?) what a difference it makes. I'm sorry I'm only posting now but it's been an utterly exhausting day.

 

I just fed Merlin some I/D and he ate it voraciously. I also gave him a Flagyl. He's resting on the couch.

 

I just had a real freakout because I noticed a soft mass on his side - super soft and wobbly, protruding from his side, and thought of CRAP, what on earth is that??? :ohno DH comes home with groceries and I tell him and he laughs. It was the subcutaneous fluid they "bumped" him up with to help with the rehydration process :rolleyes: I know, I know, DH needs to carry this around his neck: :withstupid

 

Keep in mind that I haven't slept since Wednesday night, with the exception of an hour's nap this afternoon, so I am totally out of it. Hopefully that excuses me...? :blush

 

The vet said it was up to us whether we took him to an e-vet and left him there for the night on fluids to get back to normal or whether we took him home. I wasn't sure at first but when I saw how anxious he was to get into the car, I realized that the wizard wanted to be home more than anything else. And now I think we made the right decision. He is OUT cold on the couch. If he gets worse, we'll head to the e-vet. I have their phone number, address and route on file in my iPhone, so we can just jump in the car if we need to.

 

By the way - someone asked about worms. They tested him for Giardia - that was the first thing they did. It came back negative.

 

An especially big thank you to the wonderful, wonderful Amber :heart:kiss2 Thank you for updating this thread for me, and always being there for me when I call you in a panic.

 

Here's hoping for a peaceful night :goodluck:candle:goodluck

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Kerry with Lupin in beautiful coastal Maine. Missing Pippin, my best friend and sweet little heart-healer :brokenheart 2013-2023 :brokenheart 
Also missing the best wizard in the world, Merlin, and my sweet 80lb limpet, Sagan, every single day. 

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Merlin glad you are home, rest up buddy, take it easy & hope you are on the road to recovery.

 

Kerry I hope this is a boring night for you & he just sleeps.

 

:bighug:bighug:bighug:bighug:bighug to you both, Sabrina & Caroline

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Caroline, Mom to Daphne (49B-50215) and Penny (41D-55779)
Remembering Bridge Angels Margo and Sabrina

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Glad to hear Merlin is home. I hope you all have a restful night.

Cosmo (Fuzz Face Cosmos), Holmes (He's a Dream), Boomer (USS Baby Boomer), Ella and missing our angels Clay (Red Clay), Train (Nite Train), Trip (Bock's Teddy Bear),Larry (Bohemian Frigid) and Jimmy (Bohemian Raw)
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Thank goodness he is well enough to be home! Here's hoping for a restful night for everyone and continuous improvement. Whew! That was scary! Hugs and prayers for everyone!

Linda, Mom to Fuzz, Barkley, and the felines Miss Kitty, Simon and Joseph.Waiting at The Bridge: Alex, Josh, Harley, Nikki, Beemer, Anna, Frank, Rachel, my heart & soul, Suze and the best boy ever, Dalton.<p>

:candle ....for all those hounds that are sick, hurt, lost or waiting for their forever homes. SENIORS ROCK :rivethead

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Guest jcsperson

By the way - someone asked about worms. They tested him for Giardia - that was the first thing they did. It came back negative.

Tests for hooks often come back negative. We almost lost a dog some years back because tests kept coming back "negative." Hookworms can embed themselves in the walls of the intestine and go "dormant"; they're there, but the fecal exam won't find them. The treatment for hookworm is cheap and benign.

Edited by jcsperson
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Guest freightsmom

Have not been on H&M for awhile and had no idea this was going on...the gang sends lots of good wishes to your family and Merlin.

 

As a side note, thanks to those who post what might be causing symptoms. It's good to have points of reference should any of our pups experience the same thing.

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By the way - someone asked about worms. They tested him for Giardia - that was the first thing they did. It came back negative.

Tests for hooks often come back negative. We almost lost a dog some years back because tests kept coming back "negative." Hookworms can embed themselves in the walls of the intestine and go "dormant"; they're there, but the fecal exam won't find them. The treatment for hookworm is cheap and benign.

 

Thanks, I'll ask my vet about it today when I call her with an update.

 

Well, we had an uneventful night, thank GOODNESS. Such a relief. Merlin had the couch all to himself and we pulled a mattress onto the living room floor and slept next to him, so that we could keep an eye on him. I got up several times to offer him some water, but he didn't want any. This morning i took him out to relieve himself, and he peed several times but didn't poo. I was hoping to see what his poo was like before deciding whether to hav the catheter removed this morning, but he seems perky enough (and hungry, hurray) that we have decided to go back to the vet to have it removed. It's clearly bothering him, and they left it in in case we needed to take him to the e-vet last night, so they could simply plug an IV in him right away.

 

He looks more "normal" to me this morning. But the proof is in the pudding, as they say (if you'll excuse the horrible poopy pun), so we'll see when he poops. Amber told me to be prepared to see dark blood in it - the rest of the blood in his colon that's been congealing since he stopped eating and relieving himself. He's had two Flagyl now, so I am keeping my fingers very tightly crossed that no bowel movement (including no blood) so far is good news...

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Kerry with Lupin in beautiful coastal Maine. Missing Pippin, my best friend and sweet little heart-healer :brokenheart 2013-2023 :brokenheart 
Also missing the best wizard in the world, Merlin, and my sweet 80lb limpet, Sagan, every single day. 

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My dog is still on Flagyl (about 3 weeks now) and is still on Panacur. He is the one with IBD that I firmly believe started with hooks. The vet does not agree, however because none of his tests came back negative. What I can tell you is he is a different dog now. Hope you can get to the bottom of this for your pup. Blessings.

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Guest fathermark

Jay has been having the same symptoms - loud, LOUD stomach gurgling and bloody poop. I took him to the vet yesterday, and the results were inconclusive. They took an X-ray and did a rectal exam and there is no blockage. They are sending a stool sample to an outside lab to see if there is a weird parasite that they are missing. The vet, who has special training for treating Greyhounds, said this is likely the result of the diet fed to him at the track (I adopted him in October, and this has been an ongoing problem since day one). She is also going to test him for Salmonella because of his previous raw diet. She told me that the common belief is that Greys cannot get Salmonella, but that is not true. They can get it from eating raw chicken. For now she put him on 500mg Metronidazole (antibiotic) 2X per day, and one Pepcid (antacid) per day. I should know more in a few days and will keep you posted.

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My impression is that "diet at the track" thing is a big myth, but others will chime in. They eat raw beef, not chicken, anyway.

 

Kerry, don't worry if Merlin takes a while to poop; in addition to having been totally cleaned out, the canned I/D produces a very small volume of poo, so it's going to take a while for enough to build up for him to have to go. (Remember too that while a can of I/D looks pretty big, calorie-wise it's only equivalent to one cup of average kibble -- took me a while to wrap my head around this!)

With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)
And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad

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Kerry, sorry but I must have missed how serious this became. I did see your first post but did not know your sweet boy Merlin was hospitalized! I really hope he starts to improve and will keep you and Merlin in our thoughts!!!

Kyle with Stewie ('Super C Ledoux, Super C Sampson x Sing It Blondie) and forever missing my three angels, Jack ('Roy Jack', Greys Flambeau x Miss Cobblepot) and Charlie ('CTR Midas Touch', Leo's Midas x Hallo Argentina) and Shelby ('Shari's Hooty', Flying Viper x Shari Carusi) running free across the bridge.

Gus an coinnich sinn a'rithist my boys and little girl.

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An uneventful night is good, Kerry. So glad the Wizard is home. Keep feeling better, buddy, and please stop worryin' your momma like that. :bighug

Old Dogs are the Best Dogs. :heartThank you, campers. Current enrollees:  Punkin. AnnIE Oooh M

Angels: Pal :heart. Segugio. Sorella (TPGIT). LadyBug. Zeke-aroni. MiMi Sizzle Pants. Gracie. Seamie :heart:brokenheart. (Foster)Sweet. Andy. PaddyALVIN!Mayhem. Bosco. Bruno. Dottie B. Trevor Double-Heart. Bea. Cletus, KLTO. Aiden 1-4.

:paw Upon reflection, our lives are often referenced in parts defined by the all-too-short lives of our dogs.

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So glad everyone got some much needed rest! Continuing prayers for a fast and uneventful recovery. Have to second the motion (or is a third?) about hooks. They are the nastiest of parasites and can wreak such havoc with the digestive system. Been there, done that many, many years ago with a very wise country Vet who's instincts about hooks probably saved a dogs life and a young married couple many hundreds of dollars that they didn't have.

Linda, Mom to Fuzz, Barkley, and the felines Miss Kitty, Simon and Joseph.Waiting at The Bridge: Alex, Josh, Harley, Nikki, Beemer, Anna, Frank, Rachel, my heart & soul, Suze and the best boy ever, Dalton.<p>

:candle ....for all those hounds that are sick, hurt, lost or waiting for their forever homes. SENIORS ROCK :rivethead

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Guest WarmheartedPups

I am so glad he is starting to feel better. This is a really scary infection!!!

 

Hope all can get some well deserved rest!

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Anne, thanks for the advice about I/D. This is my first time using this food, and using wet food as a substitute for kibble, so your comment about I/D versus kibble quantities is very helpful. The vet told me to start with 1/4 can every 3-4 hours and to increase that to 1/2 can if he keeps it down. I gave him 1/4 can this morning and then waited, he's kept everything down since last night so I just gave him a bit more. He gobbled it down - he is very hungry.

 

He didn't seem to do very well during the car ride to the vet's - his eyes looked strange again - but I think it's possibly because he was tired and hungry. He seems very keen to go for a walk. I didn't go too far with him because he bled profusely when they took the catheter out and I didn't want to worsen things.

 

I'm sorry for everyone who has been through this - it definitely sounds as though a lot of us have :(

large.sig-2024.jpg.80c0d3c049975de29abb0

Kerry with Lupin in beautiful coastal Maine. Missing Pippin, my best friend and sweet little heart-healer :brokenheart 2013-2023 :brokenheart 
Also missing the best wizard in the world, Merlin, and my sweet 80lb limpet, Sagan, every single day. 

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Anne, thanks for the advice about I/D. This is my first time using this food, and using wet food as a substitute for kibble, so your comment about I/D versus kibble quantities is very helpful. The vet told me to start with 1/4 can every 3-4 hours and to increase that to 1/2 can if he keeps it down. I gave him 1/4 can this morning and then waited, he's kept everything down since last night so I just gave him a bit more. He gobbled it down - he is very hungry.

 

He didn't seem to do very well during the car ride to the vet's - his eyes looked strange again - but I think it's possibly because he was tired and hungry. He seems very keen to go for a walk. I didn't go too far with him because he bled profusely when they took the catheter out and I didn't want to worsen things.

 

I'm sorry for everyone who has been through this - it definitely sounds as though a lot of us have :(

 

Glad that was helpful. It makes total sense to start with very small amounts to make sure he's OK and can tolerate food, but he IS going to be hungry. Hopefully you can feed small amounts frequently and gradually bump the amount up by tomorrow, or even tonight. They also loooove the I/D it seems! He will pee more than usual on the canned food once he's getting a significant amount (because there's a high moisture percentage in it vs. kibble) but will poop significantly less than you're used to seeing. I/D poop isn't super-firm, but with Beth it's been small and usually quite well-formed.

 

ETA: it's 369 calories per can.

Edited by PrairieProf

With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)
And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad

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Just caught up to this yesterday. Prayers that Merlin's recovery will continue smoothly and that you can become fully rested again. :grouphug

Mary with Jumper Jack (2/17/11) and angels Shane (PA's Busta Rime, 12/10/02 - 10/14/16) and Spencer (Dutch Laser, 11/25/00 - 3/29/13).

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Glad Merlin is feeing a bit better. Continued prayers. We got the same diagnosis on Dustin yesterday after what is now his fourth time with these symptoms in the nine months that I have had him....

 

Give the wizard hugs from all of us here in RI!!

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Robin, EZ (Tribal Track), JJ (What a Story), Dustin (E's Full House) and our beautiful Jack (Mana Black Jack) and Lily (Chip's Little Miss Lily) both at the Bridge
The WFUBCC honors our beautiful friends at the bridge. Godspeed sweet angels.

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