Playtime Turned Horrific!

[Dawnnziggy]

I don't know if we will ever take our dogs to run again. It was beautiful here on Sunday so we took them to a baseball field to run. They had so much fun, all three of them were running together. It was so sweet. Then my husband yelled, "Oh, no!" Dawson had a big skin tear from a paw the vet thinks. Well, unfortunately we couldn't afford an e-vet bill so we covered it with neosporin and gauze pads. Long story short, he paced all night and wouldn't settle down. It wasn't that bad of a scratch or we would have bitten the bullet and taken him in.

 

My DH took him to the vet Monday morning to get it stitched up. They kept him and called at 1:00 P.M. to tell him he could pick Dawson up at 2:00. They called back around 1:15P.M. and said he could come and get him. He never laid down to rest until I coaxed him to lay down around 6:00P.M. He slept until about 7:15P.M. I took him outside for a walk because when I called the vet around 4:45P.M. he told me to give him a pain pill with his supper between 7 and 8. After he ate, I gave him the pain pill. He slept from 8 until 9:10. Then, he started pacing and panting again.

 

At 9:45, our DS went to bed. Dawson is his dog. All of a sudden the panting changed to sounding like he was gasping for breath. I was afraid he was going to have a heart attack as hard as he was breathing. I tried to take him out for a walk to settle him down but it didn't work this time. I went in and gave him the sedative to help calm him down. I realized then that if I didn't get him to the vet soon, he was going to die. I called the vet and he told me he would meet me at the office.

 

His temperature was 107.1! Oh my goodness! He put him in the tub and we wet him down. The vet gave him an injection to bring down his temperature. I kept wetting him down while the vet did some research on this. He thinks that Dawson had a bad reaction to the anaesthetic. He gave him a bag of fluids. We did not get home until midnight. I was up every 2 hours checking his temperature. He was covered up with many blankets because his temperature then went far down.

 

Today he has gone on 3 walks. He has peed 3 times and pooped once. He ate his breakfast and supper. He has been drinking. Now, he has decided that his incision is very interesting and has been licking it. I am so glad to see him acting more like himself.

 

The moral of this story is be very careful with your babies. They are fragile and sweet. They mean the world to us and would be greatly missed. Love them every day for who they are!

 

Sorry for the long post! I feel better just getting it out.

[krissy]

He thinks that Dawson had a bad reaction to the anaesthetic.

 

The only thing I would say is that this reaction he's talking about is malignant hyperthermia. It is a reaction that susceptible dogs have EVERY time they are under GA (gas anesthetic). Assuming your boy was castrated under general anesthesia using an inhalant anesthetic with no problems, this is not malignant hyperthermia. And if he had a problem when he was neutered it should have gone in his record and he really should never go under GA with an inhalant again if at all possible. It is technically possible for stress to induce MH, but this is more common in pigs than dogs.

 

Greyhound further complicate matters by often becoming hyperthermic following anesthesia/surgery, but it is not MH and is not responsive to drugs (dantrolene is what is given for MH). It also doesn't necessarily occur after every anesthetic event. This increase in temperature is the result of shivering due to low temperature during surgery, but due to our hounds' large muscle mass it often results in over compensation. This is a lot more common than MH, is not hereditary, and is controllable by wetting the dog, or otherwise trying to keep them cool upon recovery from anesthesia.

 

I'm sorry you had such an ordeal. It must have been very scary and I hope he recovers uneventfully from here on. There are definitely risks that we take in allowing our hounds to run, but try not to beat yourselves up. This was an accident and it is a risk we take in order to enrich their lives and allow them to do what they love to do.

Edited November 2, 2011 by krissy

[fourofem]

I feel your pain....it doesn't take much to send one to the vet for stitches/staples. I've never dealt with a reaction to anesthesia like Dawson had but good for you for knowing something wasn't right and getting him to the vet. Hopefully, he'll be fine now and will heal nicely.

[robinw]

What a horrific few days you've had. I'm so glad Dawson, and the rest of you, are doing better.

[Dawnnziggy]

Thank you for all your kind words! I have cried so much over this, usually by myself. Thank you Krissy for your input. That is what he thought it was. He has called us today and we have called him, too. I love my vet!

[Houndtime]

I am so glad to read that he is feeling better.

[Guest madredhare]

I'm so sorry that you had this experience. My Tom did this during his last surgery. He was to have a dental and some questionable spots removed. His temperature spiked to 106 during the surgery and they had to cut out early. It was deemed that he had Malignant Hyperthermia. I have heard that once this happens, it can happen again. Pretty scary stuff.

[Guest greyers]

I am SO SORRY that this happened. It truly is frightening when they have a reaction like that but good for you for calling the vet when you knew that this was really not right.

I'm so glad he is feeling better and you can your husband can rest easier.

[Dawnnziggy]

I GOT A TAIL WAG TONIGHT! I was getting ready to take them out for their last walk of the night. He was the only one that did not come when I got the leashes out. I went in the room and asked him if he was coming with me. He looked at me and wagged his tail. I could have cried.

[nmontgomery48]

Awwww nothing like a tail wag....glad he's doing better

[Xan]

Yeay!! I'm so glad he's feeling better already!! Particularly considering the alternatives.

 

It's true, we can't keep them wrapped in bubble wrap, as much as we sometimes wish we had. It's just like with ourselves or skin-kids. The boo boos just come with enjoying life.

[Guest FullMetalFrank]

I am sorry your baby got hurt. I know how you feel, unfortunately! The tail wag is a step in the right direction. He'll just keep getting better. My Jewels is 2 and a half weeks past her awful injury; to watch her, you'd never know anything happened, even though she still has a small open wound and staples to come out on Thursday. They are resilient! Give a gentle kiss to your sweet Dawson!

[3greytjoys]

He thinks that Dawson had a bad reaction to the anaesthetic.

 

The only thing I would say is that this reaction he's talking about is malignant hyperthermia. It is a reaction that susceptible dogs have EVERY time they are under GA (gas anesthetic). Assuming your boy was castrated under general anesthesia using an inhalant anesthetic with no problems, this is not malignant hyperthermia. And if he had a problem when he was neutered it should have gone in his record and he really should never go under GA with an inhalant again if at all possible. It is technically possible for stress to induce MH, but this is more common in pigs than dogs.

 

Greyhound further complicate matters by often becoming hyperthermic following anesthesia/surgery, but it is not MH and is not responsive to drugs (dantrolene is what is given for MH). It also doesn't necessarily occur after every anesthetic event. This increase in temperature is the result of shivering due to low temperature during surgery, but due to our hounds' large muscle mass it often results in over compensation. This is a lot more common than MH, is not hereditary, and is controllable by wetting the dog, or otherwise trying to keep them cool upon recovery from anesthesia.

 

I'm sorry you had such an ordeal. It must have been very scary and I hope he recovers uneventfully from here on. There are definitely risks that we take in allowing our hounds to run, but try not to beat yourselves up. This was an accident and it is a risk we take in order to enrich their lives and allow them to do what they love to do.

 

Well written, Krissy.

 

Thank goodness your pup survived that horrific ordeal! My heart nearly stopped reading about your poor hound. He is very lucky to be alive today.

 

One thing we can all do is ask our vets to keep an extra close eye monitoring our Greyhounds' temperature before, during, and after surgery. That can sometimes help catch and treat a temperature spike in time. We can take our hound's temperature (or at least feel them often) after they get home from surgery. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but a Greyhound's normal temperature averages 101-102 degrees. This hound's owner was so smart to recognize his discomfort to rush him to the vet in time.

 

"True MH" spikes can happen very quickly, and like Krissy wrote would not respond to traditional cooling methods. (The less commonly used anesthetic called Halothane should NOT be used on Greyhounds.)

 

Your hound may have endured a claw injury, but many Greyhounds are very mouthy when running. Greyhounds' skin is so thin that a minor tooth snag can cause a much larger laceration than one would expect. The safest way for multiple dogs to run together (2 or more) is to muzzle every dog.

 

It's a good idea to remove martingale collars with D-rings when dogs are playing together. Another hound's teeth (or paw) can snag easily on the D-ring. We use flat, reflective ID collars that we leave on the dogs in case one gets out of the fenced enclosure. In this case, a flat breakaway collar is safer. May not be perfect, but certainly safer than leaving martingales with D-rings (and tags hanging down). BTW, tags on martingales should be placed on a side adjuster, not the D-ring. (Tags hanging off the D-ring increases "choking" risk.) Martingale collars should stay attached to leashes when dog is not being walked or held by a human.

 

Thank goodness you got him to the vet in time. I'm relieved your hound is on the mend. Thank you for sharing your story so we can all learn from it.

Edited November 2, 2011 by 3greytjoys

[GeorgeofNE]

I respectfully disagree that had the dog had a bad reaction when he was neutered it would be in his "records." I don't know about anyone else, but George's "records" consisted of a piece of paper indicating he had been given a rabies vaccine. Also a checklist of things the track vet had done. Checked off was "neutered."

 

They didn't even get his tattoos correct on these two pieces of paper.

 

George DID have a bad reaction to anesthesia when he had his dental. While my vet certainly TOLD me about it, unless she has top secret notes somewhere, it is not noted in his records. Should it be? Yes. Is it? No.

[Mike516]

Holy schmoly. I can only imagine the stress you guys had to deal with the last few days, and poor Dawson...yikes!

I'm always glad when there's a happy ending

[Guest KennelMom]

Scary!!! Glad he's doing better now...sending good thoughts for uneventful healing

 

Folks don't always get a lot of paperwork with their dogs regarding previous vet work. Some groups pass a lot on, some don't...maybe because they don't have it or they just keep it for their own records for some reason. If a dog ever had a problem with anesthesia and the group knew about it, I'm sure they'd pass that on even if just by word of mouth.

[krissy]

I respectfully disagree that had the dog had a bad reaction when he was neutered it would be in his "records." I don't know about anyone else, but George's "records" consisted of a piece of paper indicating he had been given a rabies vaccine. Also a checklist of things the track vet had done. Checked off was "neutered."

 

They didn't even get his tattoos correct on these two pieces of paper.

 

George DID have a bad reaction to anesthesia when he had his dental. While my vet certainly TOLD me about it, unless she has top secret notes somewhere, it is not noted in his records. Should it be? Yes. Is it? No.

 

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that it IS in his record. What I was saying is that it SHOULD be in the record.

 

It depends on the vet too. Some vets keep better records than others. Summit's neuter record is as you describe... just says it was done. Of course, I'm fairly sure that what I have is just the certificate and somewhere there should have been an actual surgical report. When I write up a surgical report I say exactly what was done and if there were complications. To me, something like MH would warrant a big red, bold note on the dog's profile (i.e. the first screen the computer brings up when I choose the dog's file) saying "Warning: Malignant hyperthermia". Records and how thorough they are though are entirely up to each clinic and each vet. Some keep great records, some don't. To me, I'd rather keep really good records. Bad records are a great way to get sued successfully. They're also a great way for accidents to happen. We're all human and sometimes the records aren't as great as they could be on a given day, but something like MH really should be in the record. Bolded. Highlighted. Flashing.

 

I could see that a greyhound just spiking non-MH temp might not be particularly noted in a file depending on the clinic. It's an adverse reaction but it's responsive to normal cooling mechanisms. Personally I'd still make a quick note of it somewhere, but probably not bolded and flashing.

[RaineysMom]

Good Lord, how awful!!!! :(

 

so glad he's doing ok now!!!

[DesiRayMom]

Good thoughts & extra and for Dawson.

[KF_in_Georgia]

My Sam's vet records warn--on the first screen of the vet's computer--that Sam reacts badly to Ketamine. I bought a tag for his collar and had it engraved with

 

WARNING:

NO KETAMINE

 

That's part of Sam's normal cluster of tags on his tag collar.

[mychip1]

You can't imagine my relief as I finished reading your post and saw that your hound was recovering. My Jack died of complications from minor surgery. He woke up and was fine....looking for me and everything. Within an hour, when I got to the vet, they said he was sleeping heavily again. Two hours later he was covered in purple splotches - and nearly comatose. Eyes would follow me - but could not move and his body was horribly rigid - and if I moved him, he howled. It was tragic. NO FEVER, though. We worked all night with fluids to save him - had carried him home for the overnight so that he could be in a comfortable environment - since I could do the fluids for him. Eighteen hours later, he looked like he was trying to get alert - even sipped some chicken broth - and within an hour after spiked a 1108 fever, convulsed and died in my arms in the car on the way to meet e-vet......The vet who did the surgery had neutered him and done his dental at the track - as she was a track vet.....she was floored. Some people said platelets....but it wasn't fully symptomatic of that....all I can say is it was the most horrible experience of my life.

 

 

So again...great joy that he is improving!! I am so glad to see there was a tail wag and that he is peeing and pooping. Every day is a gift ....and NO SURGERY is minor.

Edited November 3, 2011 by mychip1

[carronstar]

So happy to hear your boy is on the mend. That sounds like a horrifying experience.

[Dawnnziggy]

He met me at the door yesterday. He is back to his normal self. We have been given a gift of his life. I am so thankful of that every day. I will never just take it for granted that they will be with me tomorrow. I am trying to show them just how much they mean to me. What a scarey thing! We did almost lose him. I don't know what I owe my vet but it was worth it.

 

Thank you for all of the posts. Krissy, I really appreciated your professional opinion. You really helped me out.

 

YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!

[krissy]

Krissy, I really appreciated your professional opinion. You really helped me out.

 

No worries. It's part of my job to help people with their pets. I'm just glad everyone is alright and on the mend.

[Batmom]

So glad he is doing well now. What a ghastly scare for all of you.