Need An Excellent Vet W/greyhound Experience In The Atlanta, Ga Area

[Guest mkalis01]

Hi!... Sorry if this topic is a repeat. I just joined and need some information.

 

I have a 14-year-old Greyhound who has been in excellent health. The only chronic problem she has had is Symmetric Lupoid Onychodystrophy (SLO), which we have figured out how to manage over the years. But... She has now developed a new problem which has me gravely worried. About a month ago, she started limping on her back right leg and would put very little weight on it when standing. She seems to walk better than standing still. (Fearing Osteosarcoma), I took her to our vet. He did an thorough physical examination and took X-rays. Nothing was found and he even commented on how excellent her spine and bone structure looks for her age! His words: "I can't believe it!" Well... We take very good care of her.

 

Her problem seems to be getting worse. She is very "wobbly" in her back end. I also noticed that there is a long muscle that runs along the back right side of her body (next to her stomach) that is tight, about from the end of her rib cage to her rear right leg. The muscle on the other side of the body is not like this.

 

I've done some research and I'm wondering if it is Lumbosacral Stenosis (LS). I also wonder if it is some type of tick-borne illness, especially since I have a lot of ticks on my property (I had to pull 4 of them off me this year, despite the use of repellent!) Our Greyhound is on Trifexis, but she also wears a Soresto collar for added protection against ticks. That doesn't mean anything, however. The ticks here are very aggressive and will latch on for as long as they can stand it.

 

Anyway... Sorry for the rambling. Can anyone recommend an excellent veterinarian who has a lot of experience with Greyhounds in the Atlanta, GA area? We all know that our Greys have some health-related idiosyncrasies and I want someone who knows what they are doing. My current vet is referring our Grey to BluePearl Animal Hospital in Sandy Springs, GA. They have a lot of specialists there. When I called to speak with them, however, I asked if they see a lot of Greyhounds and they said "We see a lot of all kinds of breeds." That is an evasive answer to me and I have my doubts.

 

I really want to get to the bottom of what's going on with her because other than this new problem, she is doing fantastically health-wise. She is extremely alert, has an excellent appetite, doesn't seem to have a lot of pain, and is doing great! If she gets to the point, however, where she can't walk or stand any longer, I don't know what's going to happen... and it would be a real shame if it got to that point, especially given how she's doing otherwise. Also, I'm sure that extra strain is being put on other parts of her body, especially given her altered stance and walking gait.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

[FiveRoooooers]

I can't give you a vet rec but have you checked the paw on that side for corns? 14 is amazing, lucky all of you!

[KF_in_Georgia]

BluePearl does see quite a few greyhounds (and other dogs) who have mobility issues. A better bet might be Dr Toby Carmichael at Lake City Animal Hospital in Acworth; he's the vet for SEGA's dogs (neuters, spays, etc.), and lots of SEGA members continue to see him after they adopt. 3671 Cobb Pkwy NW, Acworth, GA 30101, (770) 974-3536.

 

My vet is terrific for the basics, but if one of my dogs had a problem and we needed to consult, I'd be calling Dr Carmichael at Lake City in a heartbeat.

 

(Actually, I know my vet has called him on occasion...)

Edited October 22, 2015 by KF_in_Georgia

[Guest mkalis01]

I can't give you a vet rec but have you checked the paw on that side for corns? 14 is amazing, lucky all of you!

Thanks for the suggestion! Yes... The paw, leg, hip, and everything else has been checked. Nothing there. I noticed that there is a long muscle that runs horizontally toward the end of the rib cage, past the stomach, to the back right leg which is very taut. It doesn't do this on the other side of the body. To me, this may be an indication of something muscular or even neurological (since the nerves can control muscles.) It almost seems that a vet could prescribe some type of muscle relaxer to help with the discomfort while doing other test to determine what the actual cause is. Wherever I wind up going, I'm going to ask the vet about that.

[KF_in_Georgia]

Vets can prescribe methocarbamol (Robaxin). It's a muscle relaxer and I have some on hand because I have a 10-year-old who gets achy sometimes and methocarbamol plus an anti-inflammatory work well for her. Methocarbamol is available from people-pharmacies (prescription only), and is cheaper there than from the vet.

[kudzu]

At already mentioned, Dr Carmichael & Lake City Animal Hospital in Acworth see a lot of Greyhounds.

 

In Gwinnett, Dr Bruno & Animal Medical Center of Lawrenceville also see a lot of Greyhounds. There are quite a few of us who go there.

770-963-7363

552 Buford Drive, NE

Lawrenceville, GA 30046

[Guest mkalis01]

BluePearl does see quite a few greyhounds (and other dogs) who have mobility issues. A better bet might be Dr Toby Carmichael at Lake City Animal Hospital in Acworth; he's the vet for SEGA's dogs (neuters, spays, etc.), and lots of SEGA members continue to see him after they adopt. 3671 Cobb Pkwy NW, Acworth, GA 30101, (770) 974-3536.

 

My vet is terrific for the basics, but if one of my dogs had a problem and we needed to consult, I'd be calling Dr Carmichael at Lake City in a heartbeat.

 

(Actually, I know my vet has called him on occasion...)

Thanks for the recommendation! I know Dr. Carmichael and have taken our Grey to see him before when we used to live up in Gwinnett County. Actually, that's where we adopted her from... through SEGA, but at Lake City Animal Hospital. :-)

 

I had a bit of a "strange" experience with Dr. Carmichael at the beginning of our Grey's onset of SLO. Dr. Carmichael insisted that there was nothing wrong, but we knew something was happening and our Grey was in a lot of pain. He was talking about possibly doing surgery and installing small steel rods in the toes of our Grey. WTH??? Anyway... I didn't make an ordeal of it and I quietly went somewhere else. The other vet did a bacterial and fungal culture on the toenails (per my request) and it came back positive for Staph infection in almost all nails on all four paws! Two rounds of a powerful antibiotic and weeks of soaks got rid of the infection. But, the new vet never diagnosed the SLO. After we moved, we picked up another new vet (Dr. Gentry) in Warner Robins. He took one look at her nails and immediately identified it as SLO. I'd never heard of this, so being somewhat skeptical, I immediately researched it... and he was right on the money! Unfortunately, the diagnosis came about 3 or 4 years after the onset, so all we could do was to manage it with Trental, Biotin, Vitamin E, and fish oil. Luckily, SLO is not too serious or life-threatening. It's just uncomfortable and messy for the dog, especially when there are nail breaks (OUCH!)

 

I'm not trying to bad-mouth Dr. Carmichael. I do agree that he has a wealth of knowledge about Greyhounds. He sees so many of them! I've just been a little tainted by my experience. It was probably just one isolated incident. Nobody is perfect... I realize that.

 

Our current Vet in Warner Robins (Dr. Gentry) wants to refer our Grey to BluePearl. Right now, I'm going to follow his recommendation, but it's taking a while to get an appointment at BluePearl. If BluePearl wants to consult with Dr. Carmichael, that's fine... I'll leave that up to them. He does have a lot of helpful knowledge to share. I thought I'd make an effort to see if anyone has other recommendations for vets in the Atlanta area while I wait to get an appointment to BluePearl. People who own Greys really know their dogs and this business, and I wanted to tap into the wealth of knowledge out there.

 

Again... Thanks for the recommendation and insight! And you're right... 14 years old is a miracle! Other than the SLO, she's in excellent health (never had any other problems whatsoever!) We feed her very high quality food (costs a fortune!), but I think it's make a tremendous difference in her health, especially over the past few years as she's gotten older. Ironically, per recommendation of our current vet, we switched her to another food a few months ago due to a slight increase in her kidney activity. After about two or so months on the new food, we started noticing a change in her SLO (for the worse) and her coat was losing its softness and luster. So I started doing some research and discovered that it is not abnormal for Greys to have slightly elevated kidney function readings on the blood work (just like a slightly lower thyroid reading). Therefore, we switched her back to her old food about 3 weeks ago. This is a perfect example of why a good vet is needed who really understands the health-related idiosyncrasies of Greyhounds.

 

Thanks again!

Vets can prescribe methocarbamol (Robaxin). It's a muscle relaxer and I have some on hand because I have a 10-year-old who gets achy sometimes and methocarbamol plus an anti-inflammatory work well for her. Methocarbamol is available from people-pharmacies (prescription only), and is cheaper there than from the vet.

Excellent! Thanks so much! This is good to know! I will ask the vet about this and see what he recommends.

At already mentioned, Dr Carmichael & Lake City Animal Hospital in Acworth see a lot of Greyhounds.

 

In Gwinnett, Dr Bruno & Animal Medical Center of Lawrenceville also see a lot of Greyhounds. There are quite a few of us who go there.

770-963-7363

552 Buford Drive, NE

Lawrenceville, GA 30046

Thank you!!! I'm going to give the vets you mentioned in Gwinnet County a call. I know my way around Lawrenceville quite well, so I'll be pretty comfortable getting there (and battling the traffic!) :-)

[Guest mkalis01]

At already mentioned, Dr Carmichael & Lake City Animal Hospital in Acworth see a lot of Greyhounds.

 

In Gwinnett, Dr Bruno & Animal Medical Center of Lawrenceville also see a lot of Greyhounds. There are quite a few of us who go there.

770-963-7363

552 Buford Drive, NE

Lawrenceville, GA 30046

Again... Thanks so much! Just called and spoke with them! Very nice and helpful! I have an appointment with Dr. Bruno on Saturday to see my Grey. Fortuitously, Dr. Bruno is usually not there on Saturdays, but another vet is out and he is stepping in. It's almost as if it's meant to be! Plus, their rates are quite reasonable!

[Guest mkalis01]

All... I just wanted to thank everyone for their input on this thread. A few hours after I posted this, I let our Grey outside to use the bathroom and she had a horrific accident. Her back legs gave out and she fell. She injured herself extremely badly and lost the use of her back legs. A vet made a house call and examined her. Unfortunately, she had to be euthanized.

 

What a bad, tough day for everyone.

[PatricksMom]

I'm so, so sorry, I'm glad she's not in pain, but I know how traumatic and horrible this must be for you. When you're ready, if you'd like to, we'd love to hear more about your girl and the amazing life she lived.

[Guest goofydog]

I was about to post about another Gwinnett vet when I saw that your pup had suffered a traumatic injury. I am so sorry for your loss. After reading your original post I understand what a wonderful life she had with your family. Hoping you eventually find comfort in the love all of you shared. Hugs.

[FiveRoooooers]

Oh my goodness. I am so sorry.

[Beachbum1]

So very sorry for your loss

[Hubcitypam]

Run free sweet girlhound.

[Guest mkalis01]

Thanks, everyone. Everything just happened so fast. About a month ago, she was fine. Then, she slowly started losing use of her back leg(s). Yesterday afternoon, it got noticeable worse. Today, when she went outside to use the bathroom, her back legs collapsed, she fell horribly wrong, and must have broken something because she completely lost the use of her back legs. It was really strange what her legs did, but I won't go into detail. She was in a lot of pain and distress... to the point of no return. I carried her into the house and we had no other choice but to let her go. It was horrific, but at least she didn't suffer a lot. I keep reflecting in my mind what I could have done differently, but I don't think anything else could have been done. It was time...

 

Everyone give their Greys a big kiss and hug, and tell them you love them, because you never know when their last day will be. My wife and I are pretty heartbroken, especially since we don't have any children and she was like our daughter. It's gonna take a while to come to grips with this.

 

Thanks for the support...

[4My2Greys]

I'm so sorry you've lost your precious girl.

[kudzu]

My heart aches for you. I am so sorry. Thank you for giving her a loving home & taking care of her. She was blessed.

[Feisty49]

I am so sorry for your loss. Our Greys mean so much to us and to have them go is heartbreaking.

Edited October 23, 2015 by Feisty49

[45MPHK9]

I'm so sorry.

[tbhounds]

Oh my-I am so sorry :-(