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took are one year old cat in to see the vet because he could not urinate. On exame the vet drew fluid and did a ultrasound. There was blood in the urine and the ultrasound showed some indications of foreign bodies but not crystals. She gave us Clavamox a antibiotic, prazosin for inflammation and Buprenorphine for pain all was ok for two weeks then are cat Leo was back in trouble again with not urinating . Same m.o. , and she told us about the PU surgery, or leaving him there for a few days while they but a catheter in him to reestablish his bladder function. My question is this, we feed are cat raw food that we make from chicken livers and hearts with bone ground up for fiber . Leo drinks lots of water so we are wondering why this is recurring in such a young male cat that is a outdoor cat . Is there something we are missing in Leos care or prevention of this problem . love your videos on youtube and saw the cat being unblocked with a catheter, wish we could do that at home.
Hi, i need all the advice and help you guys can give me. I have a two-year-old French bulldog and yesterday morning we realized she was a little paralyzed from her hip down she ate and pooped fine. Took her to the emergency room they diagnosed her with IVDD. They told me they need to do surgery on her spine and I can’t afford the surgery process. Is there other options? She’s on steroids and pain medication
Prednisone
Gabapentin
Prazonsin
Please help us she means the world to our family!
Hello,
I have tons (and tons) of information on my blog and YouTube channel. If you just google my name and ivdd at either of these places you will find loads of advice. Start there. I also think the book below helps many newly diagnosed pup parents.
Hi,
I only noticed this bump under Beasley’s nose few weeks ago. It is steadily growing. Doctor thinks it is a skin granuloma, gave him antibiotics and steroids for the past week. Hasn’t helped I went back and looked at pictures, looks like it started mid August, after a trip to the beach. I can’t keep him from licking the spot, anything we put on it, he licks more to get it of.
Hello,
The best way to diagnose and lump or bump is with surgical excision and biopsy. Until that is done it is just a guess and many lesions can look very similar. I would hope it’s a histocytoma but I would talk to your vet about treatment options including surgical excision or referral to a veterinary dermatologist. Let us know what happens. And good luck!
I recently adopted my cat, Critter, as he was on my grandma’s farm and had a paw infection. We brought him inside and started him on antibiotics. Unfortunately, the infection did not respond as hoped and he had to have his leg amputated.
After this, he was back to a perky young cat – playing and eating well. A week after surgery I noticed a bump just below the incision. I asked my vet if I should be concerned, and she said not unless it’s hot and that it’s probably a seroma. This made sense to me as he was more active than he probably should have been post surgery.
The next day, that bump burst and started leaking fluid. It was pink and not super cloudy, not smelly or hot. I kept and eye on it all day, and found that it never stopped leaking, so today I took him to the vet. There appears to be a small hole and it’s infected. It’s not at the site of the incision and the incision looks perfect.
He’s on a higher dose of antibiotics now, and some more pain meds as it is tender. He had the wound flushed this morning, and goes again in two days for another flushing.
I guess my question is – is it possible this is the same infection as before? The vets who performed the amputation said they were positive they got any infection (even taking the lymph node), I’m hoping that this is secondary and that maybe the bump was caught on something, or he scratched it open?
ETA: 1st photo is Saturday night, 2nd photo is Sunday afternoon, 3rd photo is today after flushing and rest.
Hello,
Well this is a lot of info to go through. First it is always hard for an outside person to assess a situation and the response to that situation. That being said I have never amputated due to infection. Cancer yes. Infection no. Damage to a limb yes. So perhaps that was the issue? If the limb wasn’t functional and it was infected then amputation was prob the best way to go. After that I would talk about culturing the infection to make sure the correct antibiotic is being used. Talk to your vet about this. See what they say. It’s not cheap but it helps to direct the treatment plan.
Thank you for the insight!
They did take a swab of the infection today so hopefully this provides us with some direction.
The limb wasn’t broken, but the initial x-ray did show that there was an abnormality with the wrist. They weren’t sure what caused it, but they indicated it would probably not heal property on its own. He stopped walking on it on September 21st, and had it amputated October 18th.
Hello. I have a 15 year old Dachshund, Brody, who is currently suffering from a cervical IVDD injury. This is Brody’s third IVDD injury in his short life, however, it is the most severe. We are not sure what happened this time since Brody was injured when we got home from work. Today is day 7 since Brody went down. While Brody is able to right himself from the lateral position, he does spend most of his time on his side. Brody is able to lift his head and look around, he can scoot himself from one position to another, he has a fantastic appetite, he has feeling in his hind quarters and only deep pain in his front two. My poor boy is not able to consistently empty his bladder and has required cathing; as of today, with the help of lactulose, Brody has been able to empty his bowels, incontinent.
Brody is not a candidate for surgery due to his age and other health conditions, so we are managing him conservatively. Brody has been seen by his regular vet where he was started on prednisone, robaxin, & gabapentin; he also takes CBD and I just started him on tumeric paste. Brody has seen a holistic vet where he had acupuncture done with electro stimulation.
My question is, how long do I give him before we decide that enough is enough? Brody is not in extreme pain, but he does have occasional neck/shoulder spasms that make him scream. I just am afraid of putting him through more than what I should just because I am not ready to let him go. Brody has been my guy for 15 years and I cannot imagine life without him, but I don’t want him to suffer. I have watched Dr. Magnifico’s YouTube videos about giving IVDD dogs time, but what is a realistic timeframe?
Good morning. I am so sorry you are going through this. I am a firm believer of “you know” as in, when it is time you will just know it. I think it differs for each individual pet and person. I feel that if your guy is still in general good spirits all things considered, and has an appetite- then it probably isn’t time yet. If he is still trying then there is a chance that things could improve. When the time comes where you feel you have to make a judgement call, he will help you. Best wishes for you all.
Hello,
I have to say that based on my experience and my personal views I don’t know if there is an answer anymore. I used to say to wait 3 weeks before making a decision and now I am realizing that many pets can live happy lives as pets that aren’t quite perfect. It sounds like a few things might be helpful. Ask about Your dogs ideal body condition score and then work very hard to help your pup become a lean muscular athlete. I see this disease a lot in dachshunds, of course, but oversight dachs are especially troubling and to often reinjure and recur with issues. I also think it is time to learn how to palpate and empty the bladder. Over time this gets easier and it’s far better than repeat catheterization. I also think more physical therapy like propping him up so he’s sternal and keeping him in a crate at all times he is not with you. These are just a few of my thoughts. I have a ton of info on my blog and YouTube channel. I hope this helps. Very best of luck.
Dr. Magnifico,
I want to thank you so very much for your guidance in your response and through your blog and YouTube channel. Because of you, we continued to work with Brody during this IVDD injury and residual effects of this injury. Thank you for giving us hope.
We helped my sweet Brody cross the Rainbow Bridge this past weekend due to kidney failure and other health issues…he was ready. I am so grateful to you for taking the time to provide education through your platforms. I will be forever grateful to you for the extra time that you gave me with my precious little man.
Thank you!!
Hi Ana,
How is Brody doing now? I have a 15 year old
Chihuahua who just recently got diagnosed with ivdd and it’s only day 4 but I feel so bad for him. He’s
Constantly crying or whimpering when he the meds
start to wear off. I’m in the same boat as you . I don’t know when enough is enough. I’m constantly crying from seeing him in so much pain and discomfort.
PLEASE HELP, IT COULD BE LIFE-THREATENING
My 6 months old dog doesnt take any food for 30hrs already. He got SQ fluids 15hrs ago from our local vet. At the begining of him rejecting food – he threw up some pieces of the bones with grass (I dont give them bones so I dont know from which animal those are or who gave them). This morning (few hours ago) he had diarrhea mixed with grass and mucus (not a big amount). The vet with an x ray is hours away and also doesnt work on the weekends.
WHAT SHOULD I DO?
COULD THIS BE AN OBSTRUCTION IN HIS DIGESTIVE SYSTEM? Could a grass pass if he has an obstruction?
Please if you know more let me know.
There was no blood in his vomit or his stool
His temperature yesterday checked by the vet – 38.9°, and today checked by me – 38.6°
Hello,
I’m sorry to her about your pup. Without more information it is impossible for us to guess what is going on and without that we can only advise that you see a veterinarian as quickly as possible. Certainly gastrointestinal obstruction isn’t a possibility but so are many other things. Your dog needs to be examined and from there treatment options can be recommended. Please get help. Someone over the internet without knowledge of your pet is not the place to be at this point. I wish you the best of luck.
My 12 1/2 year old miniature schnauzer has a bump on her face I discovered two days ago. The bump was originally pink and matted over by hair. She got a full hair cut about a month ago so the bump wasn’t there before that. We’ve been putting Neosporin on it and a liquid band aid but after cutting more hair from the wound which had scabs over it with the hair, it is red and still fully exposed with a black edge. Not sure what this could be. Is it life threatening or do I need to take her to the vet?
Our 2 year old Pitt mix recently suffered from a laceration to his front paw pad. We ended up bringing him into the ER for stitches, which he received. However, neither the vets or ourselves were able to get him in his cone of shame. For about 4 days we were able to deter him from interfering with his wound through careful monitoring and a sock with cayenne pepper placed over the bandage. Day # 5, however, is when things went to pieces. Sometime between lunch and when I get off work, he was able to get his bandage off and proceeded to gnaw at his stitches… We took him back to the ER last night, but given how he is with strangers (not good), we opted to forgo getting him sedated and re-stitched, and try to take care of him from home. He lets us change his bandage, but when I tried changing it this morning, some of the gauze had adhered to the wound. I’m afraid if I pull more of it off, I will make the wound worse, but I can’t imagine that leaving it on there is a good idea either. If we can avoid even more costly medical bills without jeopardizing his health, that would be great. That being said, I’m reaching out to the canine community for any advice available! Thanks for taking the time to read my post 🙂
Is it normal for a cat in heat to have abdominal swelling? My cat is 3 yrs old and we have been meaning to spay her, but she goes into heat so often it’s hard to find time to do it. She is currently in heat and has been for over a week, and last week she had shown asymmetrical swelling on the left and right of her belly. The next day it went down so I figured it was nothing serious and probably swelling from being in heat. Now it has been a week she is still in heat and her abdomen seems just ever so slightly fuller on the right and left and firm. She is crazy in heat and doesn’t show any signs of being sick, acting normal, eating drinking, playing and jumping.
Is it possible for a cat in extreme heat to cause extreme swelling of the ovaries to where they would be palpable? I’m worried it could be early signs of pyometra, or if this is normal with heat. Her cycles have gotten more intense and extreme, as well as longer and more often, which makes me think it could be possible her reproductive system is simply engorged with blood causing it to be palpable.
If that (the swelling) is not normal with heat then I’ll take her to the vet ASAP, but again she is not grossly distended, she just appears “full”. Also there is no chance of pregnancy. Thanks.
Hello-
I would get into the vet for an exam and probably an X-ray or ultrasound ASAP. I just would not want to chance it- and I would definitely spay her for her benefit and everyone’s peace of mind. Best of luck.
Hello,
I wouldn’t ever say that something is impossible, but, I get very concerned if anyone mentions abdominal swelling. Please see your vet ASAP for an examination. Certainly I would be worried about pregnancy but I am also worried about fluids and Organ enlargement which are both indicative of a problem and need to be addressed by your vet. I would recommend an exam ASAP. Your vet might also want todo an X-ray or ultrasound. If everything is Normal. I would spay her as soon as possible to avoid all of this from hopefully happening again. Please let us know what happens. If you are tight on funds ask for her to be spayed and while they are doing that take an internal exam of her to make sure everything looks grossly normal.
Wanted to post an update. She had a lot of discharge suddenly so I took her to the vet. It indeed was pyometra and she had an emergency spay. Hoping for a smooth recovery.
I recently purchased a “furminator” brush for my cat with medium long hair so that I can brush her daily to help cut down on her hair balls. The brush works great! So, I am working on brushing daily and have purchased over the counter hair all control dry cat food to use with basic wet food. What is my next step if she is still vomiting Hair balls once in a while? Thanks!
Hello,
Great questions. If you are still having issues talk to your vet about having your cat shaved down. You can also try otc catlax. But if you have excessive vomiiting don’t forget to ask about a possible medical issue. I worry some of these guys have an underlying medical condition that causes them to be chronically nauseous so they over groom and Chronically vomit. Chronic vomiting can have a huge range of causes but for these cases I start with a thorough history, exam, bloodwork, X-ray and ultrasound. Then I talk about an anti nausea medication trial highly digest able food and managing stress. But like I said this can be a long rule out list. Start at the easy and most likely and go from there. Monitor weight closely and document the vomiting with time, amount and vomitus description. It call help to identify the location of the primary issue. Let us know what happens. And ps I love the Furminator. It works great!
Hello,
I think that this is an excellent question to ask your vet. I don’t know enough about Your car to answer this. I c an say that in some cases we never know why some cats have issues while others do not. In my personal experience I have found that I see this most commonly in indoor only, overweight, sedentary cats who are being fed a poor quality dry food. It doesn’t sound like a lot of this criteria is consistent with your cat but please talk to your vet. If possible I would love to have you add your experience and cost of care to our storylines page. It will help others. And that’s what we are all about.
Please keep us updated.
Best of luck. Krista