My dog hasn't been well for the last few days. We took him to the emergency vet services because we couldn't get an appointment at our local vet until Monday afternoon.
He's been vomiting, not eating, drinking twice the usual amount of water and consequently peeing a lot.
They did some blood and urine tests and figured out it's his liver that's the problem but they don't know why. There's apparently 20 possible things that could be impacting it from ingested toxicity to cancer.
He was about 5% dehydrated which isn't much, but the doctor recommended that he be put on IV for increased fluids plus to administer antibiotics that would get to his liver faster than orally. Then they can repeat the bloodwork in a couple of days to determine if it is trending positively.
He said it is difficult to pinpoint the cause without further diagnostic tests including ultrasound ($300). He said that if he responds to the treatment, then we can stop there and may never know what the cause was but avoid further expensive lab tests.
Hey, we were in for $300 yesterday for the visit and tests and it's going to cost another $1000 for the hospital stay plus meds. I don't know if we've been had or not.
It broke my heart to have to leave him there last night. All he wanted to do was go home. I know he won't eat when he's there and that is very important to his recovery. I know this because he barely ate when we had him minded by friends for a weekend. They are former standard poodle dog owners, who knew him and the breed. Their dog used to be Fergus' best friend. When we go to their house, Fergus is still always excited that he is going to see Shadow and looks for him all over the house.
The vet said that if he doesn't eat then they may call us to come in and try to feed him but knowing him that will not help. He will just go to the door and wait with his nose pointing right at the opening, saying "Take me home".
He also said we can go and visit in the afternoon. I know when he sees us he will think he is going home so I have mixed feelings about going in. I cried last night when we had to leave him and all the way home and all the time in the bathtub and finally stopped when I started playing solitaire on the computer. I didn't even feel like blogging about it then nor visiting anyone's blogs.
Of course I woke up at 1 a.m. still worried and wondering if we should have just asked for oral antibiotics and brought him home. Our regular vet whom we love and trust is just establishing his own practise and is not open yet. He was supposed to be open in November but when we called there was a recorded message and when we checked the website it now says opening in January and left an email address. We contacted him by email but have not heard back from him. If he does contact us I am going to get his opinion.
I am worried about Fergus of course, I hope it is nothing more serious. He is 6 1/2 years old. I am also worried about the cost of the treatment. Suffice it to say, that this is one more bill we had not planned for nor can afford right now.
I think this is the root cause of my current state of mind - worries about finances. Another blog, another day. I've got all I can handle right now.
I need to blog about my daughter's Irish Dance competitions from last weekend and this weekend too. Laters .... I need hugs.
He's been vomiting, not eating, drinking twice the usual amount of water and consequently peeing a lot.
They did some blood and urine tests and figured out it's his liver that's the problem but they don't know why. There's apparently 20 possible things that could be impacting it from ingested toxicity to cancer.
He was about 5% dehydrated which isn't much, but the doctor recommended that he be put on IV for increased fluids plus to administer antibiotics that would get to his liver faster than orally. Then they can repeat the bloodwork in a couple of days to determine if it is trending positively.
He said it is difficult to pinpoint the cause without further diagnostic tests including ultrasound ($300). He said that if he responds to the treatment, then we can stop there and may never know what the cause was but avoid further expensive lab tests.
Hey, we were in for $300 yesterday for the visit and tests and it's going to cost another $1000 for the hospital stay plus meds. I don't know if we've been had or not.
It broke my heart to have to leave him there last night. All he wanted to do was go home. I know he won't eat when he's there and that is very important to his recovery. I know this because he barely ate when we had him minded by friends for a weekend. They are former standard poodle dog owners, who knew him and the breed. Their dog used to be Fergus' best friend. When we go to their house, Fergus is still always excited that he is going to see Shadow and looks for him all over the house.
The vet said that if he doesn't eat then they may call us to come in and try to feed him but knowing him that will not help. He will just go to the door and wait with his nose pointing right at the opening, saying "Take me home".
He also said we can go and visit in the afternoon. I know when he sees us he will think he is going home so I have mixed feelings about going in. I cried last night when we had to leave him and all the way home and all the time in the bathtub and finally stopped when I started playing solitaire on the computer. I didn't even feel like blogging about it then nor visiting anyone's blogs.
Of course I woke up at 1 a.m. still worried and wondering if we should have just asked for oral antibiotics and brought him home. Our regular vet whom we love and trust is just establishing his own practise and is not open yet. He was supposed to be open in November but when we called there was a recorded message and when we checked the website it now says opening in January and left an email address. We contacted him by email but have not heard back from him. If he does contact us I am going to get his opinion.
I am worried about Fergus of course, I hope it is nothing more serious. He is 6 1/2 years old. I am also worried about the cost of the treatment. Suffice it to say, that this is one more bill we had not planned for nor can afford right now.
I think this is the root cause of my current state of mind - worries about finances. Another blog, another day. I've got all I can handle right now.
I need to blog about my daughter's Irish Dance competitions from last weekend and this weekend too. Laters .... I need hugs.
Me and my boyStandard Poodles
Irish Church Lady
ICL
Veterinary
15 comments:
Hope Fergus is ok. Sending hugs to both of you..
:( I'm sorry to hear that Fergus is sick - I hope that he gets better soon!!
First of all here is a big hug for you! :::hugs:::
I'll be thinking about you and Fergus. It is always so hard when something is wrong with one of our kids or our "kids."
It's never easy to know if what the vet is telling you is the right thing. Especially when it isn't your regular vet. Just do what your heart tells you.
Sending you best wishes today! :-)
Oh I am so sorry. I do know how you feel. I was half out of my mind when Shubi first got sick three years ago. I cried all the time and I couldn't sleep or eat.
My doggies are my babies and I adore them.
Healing prayers and hugs to you and Fergus!!!
Sending hugs for you.
I hope everything turns out okay.
♥Pam
Thanks for the thoughts and well wishes, internets!
Fergus is still in the hospital on IV fluids and antibiotics. More tests to come tomorrow. His liver is small by looking at the xrays according to the vet so they want to find out what's up with that as it definitely isn't functioning properly.
He's still really thirsty I find but they have ruled out diabetes. He wouldn't eat for the technician but when we went to visit him tonight we brought some of his own food which he ate at least the canned food but not the kibble.
He is so happy to see us when we come and we take him for short walk outside. He needs to pee alot with all the fluids their giving him. He tries to go to the car though! He wants to go home. It is so sad leaving him there.
He definitely is like a kid, but one who can't talk and tell you how he feels though I can see it in his eyes....poor puppy.
Oh, ICL, my heart goes out to you.
Oh poor doggie!! My heart aches. I never like to see any animal suffer!!! I do hope they find something that will make him better!
I pray for you and your family.
I am so sorry to hear about your dog; your love for him seems very special...
On a related note, I just got finished reading Living Downstream and was saddened to discover how many of our pets (and wild animals) are ill from exposures... to things as simple as a lawn treated with pesticides. It is terribly ironic how our reaches for "beauty" cause such blight.
{{{{{HUGS}}}}} I am just getting to the point where I can talk about my weezer without tearing up. I hope all turns out well.
*hugs* to you! I hope your dog is okay! Believe it or not, the whole first half of your post was exactly the same story for my cat. She's super old though so the vet wasn't very optimistic. She told me it could be kidneys, liver, cancer, or nothing at all. It turned out to be nothing except a minor UTI which oral antibiotics took care of. I hope your dog is ok! Hang in there! I love our furry friends so much, so I know how you must feel!
SOrry about your doggie. I know that can be rough.
Steve~
I was so sad to hear about your doggie. Like you, I get very attached to pets and get very depressed when they get sick or pass on. I haven't had a dog in many years for just that reason. I have a pet hamster right now, which is all I can manage. I just get weepier as I get older. LOL.
Hope they can do something to help him.
You're in my thoughts today.
Oh that is too bad about your dog.
Our dog had gone through similar problems. We changed our dog food to Solid Gold dry and solid Gold treats. We were able to get her a few more healthy years.
I did get an email from my mom this week that was a chain note she passed on. It was about dogs getting toxic poisoning and liver damage after licking their paws. The culprit they were licking off was the residue from a swiffer wet jet.
Thanks everyone for your kind words and shared experiences.
Fergus is now home. I will post an update. It's good to have a puppy back home and he agrees.
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