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Roxy | 1 year ago
Suspected IVDD: My 14 Yr Old Jack Russell Has Been Experiencing Some Severe What Looks To Be …

Suspected IVDD: my 14 yr old Jack Russell has been experiencing some severe what looks to be muscle spasms. Took her into the vet and was told she may have joint pain or a neurological nerve pain. They sent me home with pain meds gabapentin, anti inflammatory carprofen and vitamin antinol to see if she got better. It was four days and she didn’t really seem to get better.

Then she seemed like she was developing some sort of serve cough. Took her back to the vet and they said she has some bacterial respiratory infection (also took X-rays) but I suspected kennel cough which they could not tell me 100% for sure, so was sent home with antibiotics. She is up on her vaccines and the only place she has been is at the vet because we don’t have any other dogs around us at home and haven’t been taking her for any walks due to her pain.

It’s been 5 days now and the cough is getting better. However, she is having muscle flares up everyday, multiple times a day. She is panting a lot and seems to be in a lot of pain. The meds don’t seem to be helping a whole lot.

She can still walk but is wobbly. Her legs tremble. I can see her legs are very stiff. Her back looks a little raised. She is still going to the bathroom on her own, but is wobbly.

I’ve put some paw grips on her feet since we have tile floors and some more rugs around the house. I’ve also tried to give her messages which she sometimes allowed me but she’s a Jack Russell and they have their own kind of personality.

What should I do? Any advice? I hate seeing her in so much pain.

4 Responses

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,

    I think it sounds like you are worried and unsure about your pets condition. In cases like this I recommend two things:
    1: ask your vet to help clarify and solidify your pets condition. Just explain that you are worried and want to make sure you are doing everything you can.
    2. Ask friends and family for help in finding a vet they trust and call them for a second opinion.

    I would also ask about more pain management help, like robaxin or even something stronger, and make sure you are following the very strict cage rest guidelines. These guys just stay in a cage to rest for 6-8 weeks. They only go out for bathroom breaks.

    Also you can follow dodgers list in facebook. They are helpful.

    Good luck.

  2. Roxy Post author

    I’ve switched vets three different times in the last couple of years. Every time I go to the vet there is just really no real solution given other than meds and then come out with a minimum $300-500 or more bill. Tests look normal and basically just have to deal with the problem on my own. To me there are not many vets that are really trying to help or maybe they can’t help. (Have not done an MRI yet, it’s so expensive).

    My dog also has a very stubborn personality. She wants to do what she wants to do. She doesn’t do well with crating. She can be aggressive at times and want to bite. Regardless of her pain, she wants to walk around and “be nosey.” She has to know what’s going on and what we are doing. She has to be around us at all times. I feel like I have to be stationary in order for her to relax. She only eats on her time and if she likes the food (changed food so many times due to refusing to eat). It gets hard with giving her meds when she’s so picky.

    She is currently on Methocarbamol muscle relaxer and seems to help only for a couple of hours if that.

    I’ve been trying to switch her from carprofen to prednisolone but vet said there should be a 3 day wash out period. I feel like I just can’t wait 3 days with her in so much pain without having an anti inflammatory.

    I am lost and cry for her everyday.

    1. Roxy Post author

      My dog actually had a seizure tonight, so we took her to the emergency room. After some tests, it looks like she has low calcium which may have caused the seizure and the leg tremors and muscle spasms. The ER vet doesn’t think her symptoms are associated with IVDD. We are keeping her overnight at the ER while they are administering calcium. She is to be transferred to internal medicine tomorrow to find out the cause or more information. Any thoughts/advice?

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Rebekah | 1 year ago
Today I Noticed A Small Lump On Our 14 Week Old Puppy’s Lower Abdomen. There Are …

Today I noticed a small lump on our 14 week old puppy’s lower abdomen. There are two but one is larger than the other. I’m assuming it’s her ovaries. No unusual behavior, eating and drinking normally. Is this normal for one to be enlarged? We have always had boy dogs so just making sure all is ok. Adding pictures for reference.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    It is not possible to provide any kind of helpful advice on a lump or a bump from a photo. This appears to be under the skin but even with that I can’t help direct you as to whether this is an acute swelling from an injury or insect bite, or the beginning of something more concerning like a cancer or infection.

    The only way to help is to see your vet and let them examine it in person. From there they may recommend it be monitored or an aspiration or biopsy be done.

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Kyanna | 2 years ago
I Have Three Dogs. One Of My Dogs, Angel A Husky , Jumped Over My Other Dog …

I have three dogs. One of my dogs, Angel a husky , jumped over my other dog Adonis, and missed so he landed on him. Ever since, he has been lethargic and he does have hip displasia as he is a pure breed Akita Inu.

Well we went in Friday September 1st to an emergency vet near us at around 5 or 6 pm with Adonis presenting limping and being lethargic and acting not like his normal self. After 30 minutes or so of waiting a technician came out and spoke to us saying how Adonis was very reactive when trying to examine him and asked if they could give him pain killers to soothe him and further inspect him. I told them verbally that they needed to put a muzzle on him because I know how he gets when you touch his legs and poke at him, after the tech came to talk to us we waited a total of 4 hours until they finally grabbed us and told us they thought it was his front paw because it looked “swollen” so they gave us an anti inflammatory and pain killer pills. When adonis was brought in he was able to walk but barely and when they handed him back to us he was unable to stand or walk or lift his head, once we got the paperwork, we were aware that pain killers were not given but he was given a sedative instead and no further examination was made after sedative was given as quote “we are very busy in the back”

Saturday September 2nd all day and Sunday September 3rd morning and part of the afternoon we were at the house watching over him trying to accommodate him as much as we could, we called the emergency vet place to ask for advice on how to relive Adonis since he had not been able to stand up since they gave him back to us Friday September 1st at 11pm and had been holding in his pee and poop.

Sunday September 3rd around 7 we took him back to the vet since they suggested they couldn’t give us advice since they didn’t know exactly what was wrong with him and were confused as to why he couldn’t walk, upon arrival to the vet they took him in on a gurney, and we were seated in an examination room. A tech came in and said to give them a few minutes to examine him, 20 minutes later the doctor came in to tell us she thought now the problem was a disk on his neck and suggested surgery or putting him down but leaned more towards putting him down because he is such a large dog. I asked for an x ray or an MRI but both were denied due to his size (130 lbs). The doctors only recommendation is to put him down and because of his large size nothing else was done and they further prescribed muscle relaxants. This visit lasted 40 minutes at most with very little options on how to further help Adonis.

Please help me understand what is going on and if putting him down is really the option or if this vet is being unethical or not doing enough for my dog. I just want to understand my options and how I can move going forward.

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  1. Laura

    I’d be looking for a veterinary neuro at this point. Did they at least help him relieve himself while he was there?

    1. Kyanna Post author

      Not even. The excuse was that he would try to bite me but its my dog, I don’t care. So she never showed us how to do it. Thankfully yesterday, me and my mom carried him outside and tried to massage him again like we found online and he finally peed. he was so happy about it too!

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Doug | 2 years ago
Hello And Thank You For Anyone Willing To Share Their Expertise Or Experiences With Toe Amputation. …

Hello and thank you for anyone willing to share their expertise or experiences with toe amputation. My dog Theo is a 14 year old beagle mix and was attacked by another dog a month ago and sustained many injuries but the most severe was a broken 5th metacarpal bone on his front right leg. He has been wearing a splint/cast for a month and just had his 4 week X-ray to check healing and unfortunately it doesn’t appear that much healing has happened. Ultimately my vet had recommended that the fastest and most effective way for him to recover and walk again. Would be to amputate the tie up to the knuckle. I am just concerned about his ability to walk after the surgery and how other people’s dogs, particularly older ones have handled this type of surgery. Because of his age and a previous herniated disc in his back which causes some weakness in his back end he has been unable to walk since the injury. Just hoping to find the right solution to get him back to normal as soon as possible. Any information you can provide would be helpful. Thank you!

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    Have you spoken to your vet about splinting or using a half cast to allow the broken bone to heal. I only amputate when I am concerned about cancer.
    Also this fracture seems very high in the foot to allow amputation unless you remove the leg? And oh my that sounds very aggressive. Please ask for a referral to an orthopedic specialist or get a second opinion. Also it is imperative (!!!!!!) to cage rest. Strict cage rest with limited mobility. Your pet should only be leashes walk to use the bathroom. No free ranging or unsupervised activities.

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S | 2 years ago
Hello, Our One Year Old Cat Has Been Having Soft Bowel Movements For The Past Few …

Hello, our one year old male neutered cat (domestic shorthair) has been having soft bowel movements for the past few weeks. The vet prescribed him the Hills Z/D diet to help with it. He had some improvement but we weren’t told to stop other treats until recently which we did. He is now exclusively being fed wet Z/D and only a few pieces of the dry Z/D.

His blood test showed elevated eosinophils and the vet suspects IBD.

Three days ago we noticed a few millimeters of rectal prolapse after he had a bowel movement. The tissue went back inside and I gently wiped his backside. There was a little bit of blood. We called and took a vet appointment and he’s being seen in a couple of days.

Since then he’s had the prolapse each time he poops, and it retreats about 30 seconds later. I am very worried that this will become a chronic problem requiring surgery. I would like some advice please on what questions I should ask the vet. What if they suggest surgery? Should we get an ultrasound done, or a colonoscopy? Thank you.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,

    I would call your vet and discuss this with them. I suspect the diarrhea is causing constant straining and this is causing the prolapse. So I would ask about something for pain and get the diarrhea under control.

    At my clinic I would talk about trying gabapentin or a steroid and adding a probiotic. Or ask for a second opinion from a feline specialist. Also ask about diagnostics available. Like a fecal or maldigestion profile.

    1. S Post author

      Thank you so much for your advice. We will ask the vet these questions tomorrow. Our cat’s bowel movements are not diarrhea anymore but he is still prolapsing. Is it possible that the high fiber in the Z/D diet could be a factor? Maybe it’s making the poop too wide?

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Mikayla | 2 years ago
I Have A 4 Year Old Male Cat(Lucifer, After The Show) That I’ve Had Since …

I have a 4 year old male cat(Lucifer, after the show) that I’ve had since he was maybe 6-7 weeks old. For the first 2 years, he was living with my Fiancé, whom lived in 3 different households throughout those 2 years. And then Lucifer lived with my aunt while I searched for an apartment. Each household had dogs and other cats (both male and female) he got along well with the male cats, but not so much the females. and he loves the dogs. he’s lived with us in our apartment for 2 years now and hasn’t stayed anywhere else. On July 23rd, we decided to take in a 9 week old male kitten. Had I known then what I know now, I certainly wouldn’t have rushed the introduction as, Lucifer was my very first cat and I never got the chance to slowly introduce him to other animals. but unfortunately I was a bit hesitant to leave the kitten in my daughter’s room as she likes to play in there every morning and I was worried she would get into the litter box or the food and water. (she’s 3 and, she still sleeps with me here and there) it’s now July 31st and Lucifer hadn’t eaten in two days, so in an attempt to get him to eat, I set up a litter box in my daughter’s room, placed food and water in there as well as Salem’s (the kitten) toys and little nap basket. and I go up there often to play with him and make sure he’s eating and using the litter box. Lucifer began to eat after about an hour of not seeing Salem. Now that he seems to be doing better, my question is how long should I keep them apart before reintroducing them? Lucifer was my first pet, at 19. Growing up, we never lived in a home that allowed pets of any sort. So having 2 cats was really exciting for me. But now I’m starting to wonder if because I screwed up and rushed the introduction, they’ll ever actually get along or if I’ll have to permanently keep them apart..? Any advice helps!

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    Is everyone spayed and neutered? That might help settle down of the stress?
    After that make sure everyone is healthy. At my clinic this would include an exam on all of the cats and perhaps even blood work.
    Then we talk about a more gradual acclimation period. I’ve seen this be between two weeks to years. Cats are their own bosses. So they decide on their own terms

    Good luck.

    1. Mikayla Post author

      Hi! Lucifer is neutered but Salem is not, they won’t perform the procedure on him until he’s 6 months old! Salem also has a vet appointment today for his first vaccine, deworming, and a stool test as well as anything else he may need. And I will definitely bring up the behavior of my adult cat as well to see if they want me to bring him in too! I have noticed when Lucifer sniffs his food, he begins to drool and makes a chattering type movement with his mouth but no sound comes out and I’m not sure if this is something I should be worrying about as he’s adjusted perfectly fine to other cats!

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Deborah | 2 years ago
Hello, Our Cat Bruce Is Over Grooming His Leg Until It Bleeds. I’ve Tried Cortisone …

Hello,
Our cat Bruce is over grooming his leg until it bleeds. I’ve tried cortisone shot, Valium, (both which I didn’t want to do but was desperate)
I have tried no chicken in his diet, and various hotspot sprays. He is extremely active and healthy in every other way. Loves to go outside and play with all the neighborhood cats. He showed up as a stray on our doorstep. His skin was fine. He got his tests and shots and was neutered in November. Skin issues started in January. He is little over a year old. I have him on a homeopathic drop for skin allergies and itching. Hopefully it will help. Any ideas??

1 Response

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello my friend!
    As with all skin cases the following is super important.
    1. Get a good history of the patient and their clinical signs.
    2. Do a thorough examination
    3. Treat for parasites.
    4. Start your diagnostics based on most likely rule outs.
    5. Offer treatment plans that work for the patient the pet parent and your list of most likely diagnosis.

    Here’s where I think your cat needs more help; it doesn’t sound like a list of most “likely conditions” work up and diagnose has been formulated to start a treatment plan that is best directed at the source of the itching.

    For your cat I would ask your vet (or come see me and I am happy to help). I would use revolution monthly and place an ecollar while starting gabapentin. I might also suggest a shampoo if you think he will let you bathe him.
    After that I would talk about the next tests that might need to be done to start to treat and rule out possible causes to the itch.

    The most common thing that causes itching in pets is fleas. In some cases one flea with one bite can cause a pet to become extremely itchy . And the more they scratch the more it itches until the skin is so inflamed secondary infections happen. Which just perpetuates more itching.

    So for me I start with a plan. And go through the list of control. And treatment until we get it figured out.

    The old days of “give a steroid and hope it works” are over. We can do better.

    Keep me posted.

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Jam | 2 years ago
I’m From The Philippines, My Cat Named Gabe Wasn’t Eating And Drinking Water For 1 …

I’m from the Philippines, My cat named Gabe wasn’t eating and drinking water for 1 day already and i saw him struggling to pee or poop, but a day before that he was fine and pee and poop so much.
So I took him to the vet and said he needs to have catheter because his bladder was full and blocked, so they did insert a catheter and IV fluid on him and saw some blood coming out too. They said he’s a bit dehydrated as well since he didn’t eat and drink for a day. Unfortunately I can’t afford to admit him to the vet for another day because the admission per day is way too expensive, I only admitted him just for today and I will take him home tomorrow because i have no other choice.

is it okay for me to take him home after cathetherized for 1 day? his vet suggested at least 3 days for him to stay but i cannot afford it, only 1 day but they removed the blockage already.. what can i do after taking him home after catheter? can i take him home with iv fluids just in case he wont eat?

3 Responses

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I’m sorry to hear about your cat. I don’t know what to say about this as I don’t know the full extent of his issue. If the vet thinks he needs the urinary catheter in place for multiple days is it possible for him to go home with it in? Or be transferred somewhere that is more affordable? I would ask these questions. Also can he be given medication to help with anything? Perhaps a steroid or anti inflammatory?
    See if there are any options for you?

    Best of luck

  2. Krista Magnifico

    Also ask about long term diet options. I recommend a high quality canned food with water added. And stop or reduce feeding dry food.

    1. Jam Post author

      thank you so much! ???????? another question, is boiled chicken breast, liver, squash and carrots be alternative? its blended as wet food. is it safe for him to eat it every day?

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Noelle | 2 years ago
My Cat Coco (female Three Years Old) Has Blood In Urine. After Bringing Her To The …

My cat Coco (female three years old) has blood in Urine. After bringing her to the vet and having a Urine analysis done, the vet decided to give her antibiotics. He mentioned that they could see a bacterial infection and thought it was coming from the liver. After treating her with a round of antibiotics for 15 days, the quantity of blood in Urine was lower but unfortunately still there. He switches the antibiotics to amoxicillin and treats her for 7 days. It went a lot better but still blood in the urine and Coco was developing a fever at this time. Blood analysis came back alright with no specific sign except an infection showing. So the vet changed the antibiotic and used on for the kidney this time. He mentioned that if nothing gets better then, it might be a pancreas infection and as our cat is obese (very tall cat 16.7 pounds), the kidneys are suffering and gorging or are inflamed from the pancreas and it might be why she is bleeding. We were giving kibble to my cat and for now a full month, she is eating only one can of food a day (a small can of Nulo). He told us to continue the third antibiotic (Baytril)and if at the end of the 10 days, she still bleeds, we should treat the pancreas with some other tablets and do eventually an ultrasound to see where we are staying at. I am getting worried for my cat as she is developing a fever, starting to sleep more, and searching for comfort, pee still blood, and even more as when we brought her the first time! She is not dehydrated, she drinks normally and pees a lot, with no blockage. She is going to her litter multiple times (too often for sure) and does not seem to be in pain. She strangely loves to go into our bath tub now and lays there. My worries and my question is how long can a cat keeps going on like that with rounds of different antibiotic and not getting better? Should I consult another vet for a double opinion?

1 Response

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    If the first round of antibiotics isn’t helping I would consult about a blood work being done to look at internal organ function. If that isn’t helpful an X-ray to look for a bladder stone or ultrasound is the next step. Before trying multiple antibiotics you. An also ask about a urine culture and sensitivity test.
    Ask about these.
    For cats with persistent blood in the urine I worry about idiopathic cystitis which is best treated with a diet change to a urinary prescription diet and anti inflammatories, or, bladder stone which is either treated by a prescription diet based on what kind of bladder stone I think it might be (this is based on urine ph and appearance of the stone on X-ray) and cancer.

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Andrea | 2 years ago
Last Summer My Healthy, Energetic 6 Year Old Cat Stopped Eating, Became Lethargic. A Trip To The …

Last summer my healthy, energetic 6 year old cat stopped eating, became lethargic. A trip to the vet turned into a trip to emergency where he spent a day and a half. The dx was hepatic lipidosis – or at least that’s what was happening to him due to something else. He got better. Didn’t return to previous weight (which was okay – he was a couple pounds overweight at the time) but he was back to his happy self.

A couple of months ago, he dropped a bunch of weight, but was still eating. Off to the vet for a blood draw. Low RBC. A trip to the emergency, where he got a transfusion, an ultrasound, and a huge variety of in-depth blood tests to find out what was happening. My vet thought cancer, but the results weren’t showing cancer. The results weren’t showing much of anything. I had no diagnosis. He was placed on prenisolone and an antibiotic. He went for weekly bloodwork. No significant change – and then it was going down again (RBC). Off the antibiotic since it wasn’t doing anything.

We were going to start him on B12 (cobalquin) and then he took a turn for the worse. Hiding away, no eating, no moving. I used a syringe to feed him and still gave him his steroid. He hid in his cat condo, peed in there but wouldn’t move. I set up a temp litter box and feeding area by the condo, and slept on the floor with him. I didn’t expect him to live through the night. In the middle of the night he came out and sat on me. The next day he moved more. And then – he got better. Moving, eating, jumping. Except for being too thin, he was acting just like his normal self.

That was about a month ago and I have been working to give him calories to have him gain weight. A week ago – we’re slowing down again. Sleeping a lot, not eating at the food bowl. So, I have begun using syringe feeding with kitten food (for higher calories) and a calorie/vitamin supplement. He gets B12 and the prednisolone daily. I’m assuming he’s going through the lipidosis issue again, but now that I recognize it I can catch it early and get feedings going.

My questions – how often should I be syringe feeding? I know my cat will only tolerate so much before he gets irritated and walks away, but I can get 10-20 ml in him at one time. I understand a feeding tube would probably be easier, but this cat has been through a lot and I’m trying to make him comfortable and happy and relaxed.

What could be causing this? My vet has been great at trying to find solutions, the specialist/internist didn’t really have any other suggestions, and I’ve been trying to find anything online about illnesses that could cause this drop in health so quickly. (This is an indoor cat, and my other cat is fine.)

Thanks for any help!

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