Kidney problems?

[Julie B.]

My 15 week old pup has had a bad week and I thought I'd post her problems to see if anyone else has experienced this. I already searched the forum and didn't see anything real relevant. Anyway it started 2 days ago. She began vomiting in the morning, then again after her lunch. It was all food, no foreign objects. She vomited 3 more times after 3:30 so I took her to the vet. Her phosphorus levels were high and out of range so they suspected poisoning... I have checked and rechecked my yard and there is no indication of anything she could have gotten into... (I would never leave anything potentially bad out in the yard or in the house, plus I supervise her constantly.) Anyway, they gave her subtaneous fluids and a binder for the phosphorus and told me to come back in the morning for another blood test. That blood test came back with the same elevated levels plus additional elevation of Calcium so they kept her there all day for IV fluid therapy. She was home last night, ate well (hamburger and rice), drank well and had great energy (keeping a pup in a crate all day will do that!). I am taking her back in today for another subtaneous fluid injection because I do not want to leave her there again all day. Then later on today they want to recheck her blood. The vet does not think its kidney or liver disease because those indicators are not elevated in her blood work but I am having my doubts. The main reason being she has been by far the hardest pup to housebreak. She doesn't seem to have the ability to hold it (except when in her crate) and her urine is very clear and oderless. These can be signs of early kidney disease. Has anyone out there had this situation? I have also done quite a bit of internet searching and another possibility that I am pursueing is Rimadyl toxicity. She was injected with 50 mg of Rimadyl and given 5 days worth of pills 2 weeks ago. There is some controversy regarding Rimadyl toxicity in a very small percentage of dogs but it is the only foreign chemical that has entered her body since I brought her home... Quite an emotional week for me not to mention expensive so I just thought I'd ask all of you. Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

You don't mention the results of a urine test. I am sure they did a urine sample at the vets.

[Julie B.]

Actually I asked to have one done and I took it in this morning. They said they would call with the results tomorrow or Monday at the latest. I think if I had had Sydney there at their clinic all day on Wednesday I would have ordered a urine sample then but... who am I to question the doctor?? Instead I ran around with a plastic container and tried to stick it under her tail when she peed this morning in the dark.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Well next time try a soup ladle (sp ) to collect urine. It works great. I learned that here on a post. I thought I would never need to know this. HA.... the very next week there I was chasing a foster around with a ladle in the yard.

Since they told you a few days it sounds like they may stain and culture the urine. I would think though, that renal problems would show up in the urine. If this is negative and the serum renal panel is negative than you may want to give up your theory on kidney issues and look in another direction.

[Julie B.]

Yes, that is one reason why I want the urine tested... to eliminate another variable. I am still very concerned that her phosphorus and calcium levels remain pretty high because over time these will create kidney/liver problems. Thanks for the ladle trick. I'll remember that for next time!

[Linda, Webber and Seda]

Julie, You sound like you are having a hard time. I am so sorry.

Are the phos and calcium levels trending down at all? When you say she is not getting better, are you talking about the blood tests, or is she still vomiting? I understand that you are terrified, and that so far, the vet has not come up with anything that has explained this. I like the idea of getting a School of Veterinary Medicine involved, even if it is only that you request that your Vet consult with them and discuss the case. I would think that someone could come up with a differential diagnosis for you at this point.

Please keep updating.

[Julie B.]

Thanks for your concern Linda. Sydney's blood levels are not changing but Sydney hasn't vomited since Tuesday when I first took her in. She is sleeping a lot more than she should but she is eating, keeping it down and drinking. She gets up to play with my other dogs for about 15-30 minutes then she wants to sleep again. Another complication that I am going to have to test for again tomorrow is she was treated for the second time for giardia and I thought she was over it but... this morning her poop was very mucousy and I know that sign. It means we didn't get rid of the giardia yet. I will be taking a fecal in tomorrow. I just hate to put her back on those hard core worming medicines when her GI seems to be frail but I know I have to get rid of this now because it is also causing intestinal upset and potential anemia due to blood loss.

[Julie B.]

Sydney's urinalysis came back normal so I don't think we'll know what happened last week other than she may have just eaten too much dirt or grass and spent the day vomiting... I'll recheck her blood next week and continue to work on the "leave it" command to keep her from eating dirt. She still seems to pee a lot so I have another question for this learned group: Do any of you have a young female who knows to mark already? That must be what she's doing and I have never seen it so young before. My older female just started marking last year when we had our son's dog here so maybe that's what she's doing??

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

When Guinness was four months old he went through a period of frequent peeing. He was asking to go out every one to two hours during the day, and always peed. He always was able to go through the night without having to go out. I had him checked for diabetes and UTI, but he had neither. My vet said that it was probably behavioral at that point but to cut back slightly on his water intake and give it to him at scheduled times or after exercise, not just leave it out all day. I had been leaving water out, and he drank frequently (although not that much at one time). I'm not sure if this was "marking behavior" or if he just wanted to out every time he felt any urge to prevent "accidents". Controlling the water helped a little, but this phase actually lasted about six weeks. I never really knew what was going on, but it corrected itself. Now Guinness probably pees a little more often than many dogs (every two to three hours), but I think this is just normal for him. I do remember it being a frustrating time. It seemed like I was always taking him out - good thing it was Summer. Good Luck.

[Julie B.]

Thanks Jane, misery loves company I guess. I used to pull her water up after 7:30 or so but since she has had the high blood levels I have encouraged drinking. Frankly I haven't seen a big difference either way. She just has to pee a lot and goes every time she is outside. Now I am going back to the crate more often hoping that it will help her learn to control her bladder better. She does not pee in there. I am a stay at home person so I have the luxury of letting her nap in the family room when I am there. Now, I put her in her crate for a good 2-3 hour nap morning and afternoon. We'll see if that helps.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

My poodle did this kind of urinary "marking"; every few feet, a little pee-mail to let all the other dogs know she'd been there. She was a dominant female, too.