Plummer's Vet Visit

[msjpk]

Returned from vet with Plummer, xray of esophagus and stomach, lungs are clear.
No obvious sign of Megaesophagus. Plummer lost 4 lbs and Vet feels there is underlying things going on. Will continue with soft foods, and original meds and now Reglan. Plummer is weak and tired, but still has the sparkle in his eyes, one day at a time.

 

 

 

Any suggestions on how to fatten him up?

[Guest FinnsMom]

Here is a recipe that has been posted on our Canadian adoption site when people need to put some weight on their dogs.

 

-5lb. fatty hamburger (fattiest you can find, or have your butcher make you some up)
-1/2 lb. Cream cheese
-1 small jar of natural peanut butter (nothing but peanuts in it)
-the yolks from 12 eggs (not the whites!)
-2 C oatmeal, soaked for at least 2 hours, better overnight, in 18% cream
-1 C wheatgerm

Mix everything up in a large bowl, you'll have to use your hands to do this, just dive in. When well mixed, roll into ping pong sized balls and place on cookie sheet. Freeze, put into a bag and serve 4 with each meal.

 

With him only down 4 pounds you may not need this big of a recipe, so you could do half to start and go from there.

Edited March 27, 2013 by FinnsMom

[KF_in_Georgia]

I'm adding Ensure (vanilla flavor) to Sam's kibble--half a bottle, twice a day. Sometimes, depending on his mood, I don't bother to put the kibble in the bowl since I know he'll drink the Ensure and leave the kibble until later.

 

Sam's also getting yogurt--the Yoplait flavored stuff in the big containers. Sam liked the strawberry/banana, but we're doing peach now.

 

And some days, he gets a peanut butter sandwich. I cut the sandwich into ninths, give one of the crustier corners to the girl to keep her happy, and put the other eight pieces in his bowl. He eats them all.

 

Giving fatty food to an underweight dog is okay when the dog is healthy--but just skinny. I'm hesitant to try fattier-than-normal meals for Sam, though, for fear of triggering a diarrhea blow-out.

 

If he's eating the soft foods well, can you just feed him small meals more often to get extra calories in him?

[msjpk]

I am also adding Ensure, yogurt and sometimes cottage cheese. Will try the peanut butter.

Vet feels that hard kibble soaked overnight and then put in food processor is more nutritious then canned food.

[KF_in_Georgia]

If he turns up his nose at food, try microwaving it for a few seconds to warm it up. Also, I'm getting the leftover can of food out of the fridge, putting some on a paper plate, microwaving it 30 seconds or so, then mixing that with the kibble. Once it's warmed, it's much easier to deal with than when it's straight from the fridge.

[tbhounds]

Please be careful of feeding stain balls etc. You may end up triggering pancreatitis. Personally, I would first try and increase the volume of his reg diet-perhaps making it more palatable by adding chicken....

[gryhnd_adoptee]

If he likes peanut butter, try mixing melted peanut butter into his kibble. This worked for my girlie for quite a while.

[Batmom]

For skinny/sick dogs here, I try to stick to the regular diet (or similar; especially want to avoid very high fat) but increase the amount by feeding small meals more frequently. There seems to be a sweet spot for each dog, for amount per feeding and hours in between feedings. If you work full time outside the home and can't get home for lunch, you might still be able to squeeze in an extra meal shortly before bedtime.

[Guest FinnsMom]

Please be careful of feeding stain balls etc. You may end up triggering pancreatitis. Personally, I would first try and increase the volume of his reg diet-perhaps making it more palatable by adding chicken....

 

Can the satin balls really trigger pancreatitis? If so, I did not know that. Is it with all breeds or just in greyhounds?

[FiveRoooooers]

{Plummer} So many good suggestions here. Adding canned puppy food also works for my seniors when they get a bit thin.

[KF_in_Georgia]

Too much fat can trigger pancreatitis. "Too much" varies from dog to dog.

[JJNg]

I agree with tbhounds and Batmom. To put weight on a dog, the first thing I'd try is just to increase amount of the regular diet. This increases calories in a more balanced way. If you just need a slight increase, you can increase the size of the meals, but if you're upping the food by a good bit, then add in additional meals. Some dogs can't handle too much at one sitting.

 

I shudder whenever I see the recipes that call for "the fattiest hamburger you can find". Some dogs may be able to handle that ok, but it could trigger pancreatitis in others, and I'd rather not take the risk.

[msjpk]

Plummer continues to vomit at least once a day. I have tried changing foods, adding Pediolyte to his food, feeding canned chicken. X ray reveals nothing, but vet seems to think underlying problem going on. Plummer is on medicine to control regurgitation, Reglan. He will be 13 in June, I do not want to put him through invasive testing. I am so worried as he is skin and bones. He poops, pees, eats, walks, gleam still in his eyes. Any suggestions or experience with this would be grateful. I have to travel in a couple of weeks and I am so anxious to leave him. However, the sitter has greys and is very experienced.

[tbhounds]

I know you mentioned you tried Pepcid--have you tried Prilosec??

[Guest Burkey]

Hi. I'm Mona. I do not have a greyhound. I have two boston terriers. I have been scouring the internet for literally months, because my Jax has been sick since Thanksgiving... so, about 4 1/2 months now. And that is how I found you...

 

My Jax is at least 12 years old, perhaps older. We adopted him 11 years ago from rescue, he was found as a stray.

 

In November, it started with a noise that is a cross between a cough/retch/burp. Just one hack per episode, not a coughing fit by any means, etc. Similar to the video you posted in another topic. He'd do it a couple times a day. Within a few weeks, he was vomitting out of the blue, perhaps 2 or 3 times per week at this point. One indicator that he was going to be sick in the next 24 hours or so, was he would swallow repeatedly through out the day. He'd get sick, and be "ok" for a few days. His personality remained excellent, always his happy go lucky self. His vet began treating him for acid reflux with famotidine.

 

Right at the new year, his vomitting became chronic. At least once per day, sometimes as many as 3 times per day. We switched his food from taste of the wild kibble to natural balance venison & sweet potato canned. And started feeding him many small meals per day. He was losing weight rapidly (normally 31 lbs, was down to 26 lbs at this point) and not himself. The thought was with smaller meals perhaps he'd keep some food down, instead of vomitting up his entire meal. Our vet sent us to see another who specializes in gastro & endoscopy procedures.

 

Due to his advanced age, we opted for no invasive procedures. Blood work, xray, and eventually ultlrasound was done. Initial thought was megaesphogus or esophagitis (spelling?). He was taken off the famotidne, and started on omeprazole (prilosec), metaclopramide (reglan), and cisapride (propulsid?). After several weeks there was very mild improvment... he'd go maybe 2, sometimes 3 days without vomitting. That's when the ultrasound was done and mild thickening of the intestine was found, otherwise inconclusive. So the vet added prednisone and metronidazole to the medication list, and a weekly b-12 shot. Treatment similar to that for inflammatory bowel.

 

By mid-march his vomitting was notably improved... about once every 7-8 days. However, he was not tolerating the medication cocktail well at all. His bi-weekly blood results started going through the roof, he couldn't hold his bladder more than 2 hours...even at night. He had become very mopey... still "there" but not interested in much of anything. So we decided the benefit wasn't worth the side effects, and started tapering him off most of the meds, knowing that we might very possibly end up back at square one.

 

He was doing "ok", then last Saturday was very bad. Around 6am he vomitted. Then he sneezed and sprayed a bit of blood from his nose. An hour or so later he sneezed again and yellow pus dripped from his nose. He was lethargic and not interested in food. We decided that he had been through enough, and called the vet to take him in for the last time. We said our goodbyes in the parking lot before going inside. It was difficult to say the least.

 

There are 4 awesome vets at our clinic. The one who'd been treating him these last several months was off last weekend, so we saw a different one. He took one look at Jax, who was thrilled to be there of course, and said he didn't think he was ready to go. He asked if we'd be willing to try an antibiotic to treat whatever infection was going on in his head, and desperate we jumped at it... yes yes yes. He was prescribed clindamycin 2x per day.

 

By Tuesday, Jax was feeling and behaving wonderfully!! He was happy again, engaging both us and our other boston (likes to steal her toys, and hasn't done that in months). He did vomit once this week. And we heard that retch/burp a few times, too. But it is like having the old Jax back. The mopey-ness is totally gone.

 

We had a follow up today with the same vet who saw him last weekend, and he said he looked like a million bucks. He's up to 28.5 lbs again. The clindamycin was initially prescribed for 10 days. The vet extended it for another 10 days, due to not knowing exactly how long this has been brewing inside him. While we STILL don't have a definitive diagnosis, it is very possible that this chronic vomitting has been caused all along by severe post nasal drip due to unknown sinus issues. Whether it's a long-standing infection or perhaps a polyp/cyst that has gotten out of control, we just don't know.

 

He's not 100%, as he still vomitted once this week. But... it is FINALLY a step in the right direction. He's only taking prilosec, 2 antibiotics (metronidazole and clindamycin), and weekly b-12 as of today. We just finished the final taper of the predisone mid-week, so it will be 2 more weeks before we test his blood again. I'm hoping for at least mild improvement there, too...but I know some damage from the meds could be permanent.

 

I'm so very sorry this message is so long! I didn't want to leave out anything in fear that it'd be the tidbit that could help. For reference... his vomit is mucus-like... food colored, but usually egg-white consistency... he strings it along... brings up a bit, takes a step, brings up a bit more, etc. Very much like what I would expect to see with a belly full of snot. Just wish I, or someone, had considered that months ago when it all began.

 

I wish Plummer and you all the best. I know what you are going through. It is hard, so hard, to see them get sick, know they are sick... yet 95% of the time not sick at all...and have no idea what is going on, yet know that SOMETHING is not right! Again, this is my experience with my boston terrier, not a greyhound, but the love we have for our dogs I'm certain is exactly the same.

 

Best of luck to you,

Mona

[msjpk]

Mona, thanks so much. It was not a long story. I so appreciate it. Funny you should say post nasal drip. A vet who I sent the video of the hacking to also stated it could be post nasal drip, but when I sent him the vomiting video, he then did not think it.

I am going to talk to my vet and show her your story, got nothing to loose, will keep you posted, again, thanks

[Newgreymom]

Joan, I messaged you about Dylan having the same "hack" as Plummer. Well, after Dr. Couto mentioned it sounded like post nasal drip, I started him on Claritin and low and behold it has gotten 98% better. He only does it in the morning now when he wakes up. Could Plummer have PND and it be upsetting his tummy, causing the vomiting?? I know if my sinuses are draining into my stomach I feel terribly sick. Antihistamines are pretty generic, meaning they don't interfere with much (per my vet friend) so it was worth a try for us. Maybe antibiotics and Claritin are worth a try. I hope this helps in some way. Please keep us posted.

[msjpk]

I am trying Benedryl, thanks for the suggestions of allergy. I have had this notion that his problem is around the throat area. He seems to swallow hard, when I walk him, he seems not to like the collar on his neck, I have had a "mother's feeling" that most of the symptoms seem in the head area.

 

We will see, I pray that he will be comfortable and no more vomiting. FYI, the vomiting has been very watery, mucus, more then food.

 

thanks again.

 

How much Claritin are you giving?

Edited April 7, 2013 by msjpk

[Newgreymom]

I give 10mgs in the morning (1full pill) and 5mgs (1/2 pill) at night. Vet said Benadryl does not work for allergies as well as Claritin or Zyrtec. I never thought his issues were post nasal drip. I thought for sure he had LP or something else. I'm hoping the improvement will continue...

[msjpk]

ok, thanks, Claritin or Zyrtec will be on tomorrow's menu. Will keep you posted. Keep all paws crossed.

[msjpk]

Started the Claritin. Happy to report we had a no vomit day yesterday. He did have a few reverse sneezes. But he hasn't done that in awhile.

 

He continues to eat small meals and then I give him a cocktail of Pedialyte and Ensure. Lethargic but I hope that changes as he puts on the pounds.

 

Keep paws crossed.

[Guest IrskasMom]

Good News about Plummer. Keep it up ..... Sweetheart

[racindog]

The flora in their gut is soooo important. I'd boost it up with some probiotics like Primal Defense that has some of the "earth" organisms in them. Kisses to Plummer!

[Newgreymom]

Great news!! Dylan has been much better with his hack since we started him on Claritin. I'm hoping it works for Plummer just as well. Please keep us posted.

[tbhounds]

Great news!! Dylan has been much better with his hack since we started him on Claritin. I'm hoping it works for Plummer just as well. Please keep us posted.

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