Health and Medical Issues (for our pets)

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This group is a place to discuss any and all health and medical issues related to our pets. We can have in depth discussions here. All discussions on Seizures are now in their own group.

Members: 778
Latest Activity: Aug 20, 2019

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General Guidelines

Over the years that this group has been in existence it has assisted many doodles and their humans. It has offered advice, a place to vent, etc. This group MUST be a place where people can turn and be confident that the advice they will get is based upon FACT - medically and scientifically accepted FACT- not "I heard", anecdotes, advertising claims, or other unfounded or misleading advice. The moderators of this Group will delete any post that we feel does not meet this criteria.

Discussion Forum

Inflammatory matory Bowel Disease

Started by Rita and Fazzy. Last reply by Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle Aug 20, 2019. 18 Replies 0 Favorites

Hi all....after a scare of bloat without torsion in May, my7 year old labradoodle Fazzy was diagnosed with IBD via biopsy. He was doing OK once he got back to eating again until I thought it might be a good idea to switch to raw...didn't go well. Switched him back to what he was on prior, Canidae kibble, variety of canned "flavors" as well as chicken breast, turkey breast, low fat hamburger...just depending on what we had on hand and cooked for the dogs. I've never been able to get his stools back to normal and consistently solid and in the past week its just been yucky. He went to the vet yesterday and per their suggestion, we carried home a bag of Purina HA both dry and canned. He ate a few bites yesterday but wants none of it today. Over the past couple of weeks he has become less and less into eating, needing plenty of encouragement and hand feeding. Vet also sent us home with Cerenia, metronidazole and Diagel. Waiting for results of stool sample. I really don't want to deal with the rx diet, but we also need to get his gut back to feeling better. A couple of friends are pushing me to see a holistic vet, which I'm not opposed to, it's just expensive. I hate that I have to even throw that word out there, but seeing a holistic is not out of the question. Jolene suggested I reach out to Karen for some words of wisdom/suggestions ..and I know she'll see this.Any suggestions, feedback etc would be great!!Rita and Fazzy Continue

Denamarin for elevated liver enzyme

Started by Michelle and Chloe. Last reply by Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle Aug 6, 2019. 1 Reply 0 Favorites

Chloe is turning 10 years old in October. I recently took her to the vet to check out some new masses on her flank and to see if there was a correlation with these masses and her increased water intake and occasional vomiting. Her 2 masses were lipomas ( needle aspiration) and the vet checked lab values. Although most of the values came back normal, her ALT was slightly elevated at 213 (nl 12-118) so vet recommended placing her on Denamarin. She is also going to have an abdominal ultrasound and a chest X-ray. Has anyone have experience with Denamarin?Continue

Dinah has an enlarged heart and mild left ventricle dialation

Started by c zoomer. Last reply by Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie Jul 3, 2019. 15 Replies 0 Favorites

the Doctor (cardiologist) has ordered me to take her off of the grain free dog foods and retest in 6 months.Continue

Emergency stomach surgery and the after effects

Started by Gracie, Jade, & Barkley. Last reply by F, Calla & Luca Jun 30, 2019. 6 Replies 0 Favorites

It's me again. We are having the worst luck when it comes to our doodles this year. :( We lost Gracie who was only 4 in February to Hemangiosarcoma which appeared out of nowhere and hit us pretty hard. Now Jade who is 3.5 yrs is having issues. She was vomiting for hours early morning on Thurs and after getting a dose of cerrenia (She had gotten sick 2 weeks prior and we had some leftover), she was drooling excessively. The vet had us drop her off to observe, take tests, and xrays. She said it sounded like an obstruction of some sort. When she called, she said bloodwork was normal for a dog who had become dehydrated and was what she expected. But, had sent the xrays to a radiologist - which they didn't do two weeks prior. The radiologist said there was some sort of blockage in the upper gi and so the vet asked if we could do a barium treatment to see where it stopped - which was the stomach.I agreed to surgery and the blockage was caused by excess fluid and the pyloric muscle was thickened and the entry (exit?) was narrowed. The vet asked if she had had any issues prior as it looked like she had pyloric stenosis and maybe some ulcers as in the fluid there were flecks of blood. They do not have a flexible endoscope at their office, so she could only surmise that the flecks of blood came from ulcers. The only vomiting Jade has done previously was for car sickness which she outgrew. Then the episode 2 weeks ago which was an expulsion of her breakfast and she collapsed afterward which is why we took her to the vet. The vet took care of the fluid in her stomach and sent her home with sucraflate, famotidine, and omeprazole.Jade hasn't been eating much. She refuses the science diet l/i that they sent home, but she has ate some chicken and rice.She also continues to regurgitate small amounts of liquid. Sometimes it has yellow blobs in it. Usually this happens after she drinks some water. I am going to call tomorrow to update them, but am concerned we really haven't gotten…Continue

Flea and Tick Prevention Choices

Started by Cindy and Olive (Ollie). Last reply by Stacy Jun 26, 2019. 44 Replies 0 Favorites

It is tick season here in NJ and I have always given Olive Sentinel (every 39 days) and Frontline Plus every 27 days. What’s the deal with Frontline Plus vs Frontline Gold - I see one new med added to the Gold, but figured I’d ask the experts. I’ve stuck with Frontline as it has been the forerunner in this and is tried and true, and I’m a bit leery of those oral tabs. But should I switch her to Frontline Gold? Thanks!Continue

UTI infections

Started by DonMarie and Picco. Last reply by Jane, Guinness and Murphy Jun 24, 2019. 10 Replies 0 Favorites

A friend of mine has a sweet yellow lab that frequently has urinary tract infections. We were discussing cranberry pills since it works for humans. When I Google it I'm finding some sites it is okay but also finding that in larger dosages (who know what that is) that cranberries can be toxic to dogs. These aren't necessarily referring to the pills but dried or fresh fruit. I can't imagine a dog eating the fruit or juice, that's why we thought of the pills! So anyway I figured I'd pose this question here. Does anyone know or can clarify if cranberry pills can be helpful or harmful to dogs and can actually help UTIs?Continue

Fatty deposit

Started by Murph and Me. Last reply by Bonnie and Kona May 20, 2019. 4 Replies 0 Favorites

So Murphy has on his stomach some fatty deposit that the Vet has checked in the past and said no big deal he said. It has gotten bigger of late. It feels like a small balloon. Does not bother him when you squish it around. I'm going to bring him in for another checkup of it. I trust the vet but it doesn't hurt to ask here in the group if anyone has had any history with a similar situation. and if so what did you do about it. Thanks in advance.Continue

Recessed Vulva (this is a new one) and an ear infection

Started by Stacy. Last reply by Stacy May 20, 2019. 13 Replies 0 Favorites

Willow went to the vet yesterday with an ear infection, and Karen you should be pleased to hear I do finally have a vet who cultures ear infection goo. We treated it with a medication I hadn't heard of before called Claro. It's still a combination of antibiotic, anti-fungal, and anti-inflammatory. But the nice thing about this drug is it's a one time treatment that is supposed to work continuously for 30 days, so I don't have to squirt anything in there. She has an appointment for a recheck in 2 weeks. The vet said as an isolated event it's not a big deal, but if it becomes a chronic problem it's often associated with food allergies and we should do a food trial. I have mixed emotions about that. Right now I'm hoping it isn't a recurrent problem so we don't even have to go there. The other thing I brought up to him is that Willow always seems to pee on herself. The hair surrounding her vulva is always dirty. And she had that UTI a while ago. He looked at her and said she has a recessed vulva, and if it's a problem they can do a vulvoplasty to resect the skin folds there so the vulva protrudes more. Or if it seems to be more minor we can just keep the fur clipped from around that area - something I knew needed to be done but clippers, delicate skin, wiggly puppy and I have not been able to accomplish that on our own.This issue is something I haven't experienced before but I had been reading about it and I couldn't figure it out. The trick is, she looks normal when you look at her lying on her back with her belly up. But if you look at her from behind when she's standing you can see that her vulva is surrounded by skin folds and does look different than the other girls. I had heard that they usually grow out of it, but that's not really what I'm reading in the veterinary articles. But I'm still hoping that if she grows a little more she might grow into her skin folds. He also mentioned that slightly delayed spaying may help with this. We are doing slightly delayed…Continue

Struvite Crystals (Also posted in Food Group)

Started by Laurie, Wally & Charlotte. Last reply by Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle May 14, 2019. 1 Reply 0 Favorites

For the past six months, Charlotte's pH has been fluctuating and she has had a number of urine tests with some showing struvite crystals and some without. An x-ray was taken in December and revealed no bladder stones. Our vet concluded that Charlotte's pH just goes up and down, and without any stones, this is Charlotte's "normal." About 10 days ago, she was showing physical signs of a UTI and was put on an antibiotic since we'd be traveling, but the urine evaluation did not find any bacteria. We have been flooding her food (Acana Grasslands) with water to dilute her urine, hoping that this will help keep the pH down. Next week, she'll have another x-ray done as well as a sterile urine culture. Here are my questions: If the x-ray shows no stone/s and the culture indicates no bacteria, but possibly struvite crystals again, should I change her food to one without starches (since starch alkalizes pH) and one without magnesium and calcium? Should I give her any supplements such as ascorbic acid, cranberries, d-mannose? Some of these are just for bacteria prevention if I understand it correctly. And if she doesn't have any bacteria in her urine, what would be the point? I'm hoping to find some additional perspectives to help inform our decisions moving forward. Continue

Spay & Gastropexy Surgery - After Care Advice?

Started by Jolene, Sassparilla & Josie. Last reply by Jolene, Sassparilla & Josie May 6, 2019. 44 Replies 0 Favorites

So my baby girl goes in this week for the double surgery, I'm just reaching out for feedback/advice on aftercare. I know the gastropexy is much more invasive than the spay and I know I'll get a checklist of things to do from the vet when I pick her up but looking for feedback from those who have already been through it (hits, misses, things to watch for, etc). I'm just real nervous for her, she's my odd little wild child so I'm concerned about her plus the surgery facility is not local so any issues will fall on my vet and/or at an emergency facility. The more I know the better prepared I'll be. This poor girl had a rough start in the beginning so I want to make this as easy on her as possible.It's been a while since my other two were spayed and neither had any interest in the stitches luckily but Sassy was extremely hyper (spastic) the week following her surgery so keeping her calm was a real challenge. I'll be home with her the first few days then will do a tag team with my daughter.Any advice on keeping her from the stitches if it poses a problem, resuming her normal diet (vet office briefly mentioned transitioning slowly back to kibble), walking, stairs, downtime, etc.Thanks in advanceJolene and Miss MaisieContinue

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Comment by HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08 on March 27, 2009 at 4:35am: ALL DOGS ARE PRONE TO BLOAT
Signs and Symptoms of Bloat
Most dogs with symptoms of bloat will have abdominal distention that you can both see and feel to the touch. Abnormal salivating and dry heaving will emerge as well as restlessness, lethargy and a rapid heart rate. A very obvious sign of discomfort will show in your dog – some will even look to you for help with confusion and fear in their eyes. These symptoms manifest of a short period of time and it is imperative to take your pet to the veterinarian at once – as no dog survives Bloat without treatment.

Prevention of Bloat
Prevention through the use of prophylactic measures for those that have a predisposition to bloat is the best coarse of action. There have been professionals agree that predispositions to bloat can be inherited. For those dogs and people, extra measure and caution should be taken including prophylactic gastroplexy. Furthermore, smaller feeding schedules i.e. 2 – 3 meals per day should be set. A couple of hours of rest should always follow any meal. Some dogs seem to get a big deal of energy after a meal and should be impeded.

Conclusion
All dogs are prone to bloat no matter the breed. Simple safeguards should be used – even if it is just a simple routine of eating, then lying down. Keep meal portions small and keep an eye out for signs of discomfort. If you do this, you help keep your pet around for a happier, healthier lifetime.

I have always given my dogs two or three meals a day, not because they were pups and you should feed them more times a day, but it does help them to empty out their stomachs, and you wouldn't like eating one meal a day and wolfing it down cause your hungry, it would give you an upset stomach, same with dogs! I will not let them run around for at least one hour after meals, they go on a short walk to relieve themselves and then its rest time. I don't know if anyone else does this, but I also put about a teaspoon of plain yogurt in my dogs food morning and night time, this helps the cultures in their stomachs and seems to keep them from getting upset stomachs, is fantastic for growing pups and helps with bones, their coats, and most picky eaters will eat their dry food with this over it.

Comment by Adina P on January 9, 2009 at 1:13pm: "IF ANYONE DOES THINK THAT THEY HAVE AN EMERGENCY - DON'T START ASKING CALL THE VET ASAP."

AMEN to that Andy!

Comment by AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner on January 9, 2009 at 1:11pm: Adina - The thought on the emergency topic is as a reference to be read before there is an issue. Kind of like a list -

Like what bloat looks like or one of my particular interests is with when a seizure is an emergency.

IF ANYONE DOES THINK THAT THEY HAVE AN EMERGENCY - DON'T START ASKING CALL THE VET ASAP.

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