Dog died - kennel cough - misdiagnosed by owner - Please read and learn

[aaron]

is it normal for your dog not to eat for a few days he is really losing his weight and will turn his nose up at almost any thing, we gave him robotussin and this seems to stop the cough, he pooped a gooey bloody substance is this normal of kennel cough he can not get to the vet till wed or thursday

[mona_b]

Did your vet say it was kennel cough?

Get to an emergency vet ASAP.....

[aaron]

he's been showing signs of improvement, buit he has all the symptoms of kennel cough and to let it run its course like the flu, but he just pooped that today, and we though he was looking better. it says there supposed to have a lose of appetite, but when is it to severe

[Carina]

It's not usually severe at all, they just gack & sound like they're choking on something. I don't recall a real loss of appetite,
certainly not for several days. Is he eating at all? Drinking water? There's so many things that can cause blood in the stool...if he hasn't eaten in a while it may just be irritated, or worms,
or it could be something more serious like he's got an obstruction or something.
Check the following:
Are his gums looking real pale or greyish?
Is he drooling?
Does he feel bloated, or tender when you press his stomach?
When you pinch up the skin on his back does it spring back right away, or stay pinched up?
Does he seem very lethargic or is he walking funny like something hurts?
Is he vomiting?

If other than some coughing & bloody diarrhea he seems quite perky & normal, it might be fine to wait till morning...I would probably wait if that's all that was going on with one of my dogs. But if there were signs of anything more serious, (like above)
I'd be considering an emergency vet trip...it's really up to you to make the decision though.

[aaron]

THANK YOU FOR THE HELP,the dog just seems to be way more laidback he is not his usual self he is drinking water and only eating a little bit for hamburg and some hame thats all we can get him to eat but we figure that is better than nothin at all, he does not feel bloted but his gums are a little pale and cold to the touch,he has lost a lot of his mass but he just when through a heat with our other dog and when that happens he does not eat to much so that could be a factor in the weight loss
plase get back to us thank you very much

[Lucky Rescue]

Get your dog to a vet ASAP - he is suffering!

And get him neutered and your other dog spayed too, or you might end up rushing her to the vet for emergency surgery.

[aaron]

Do you have any clue what you are talking about maybe you should rush your dog to the vet and get it put to sleep?Are u a vet ?or you must work for them cause you sound just like every one tracked minded vet in the world.Why the hell would i have to bring my other dog in to the vet for emergancy surgey? Please fill me in

[mona_b]

Unless you have taken him to a vet,you shouldn't really assume anything.Not saying this in a mean tone ...

He should have been taken to the vets.And you shouldn't be giving him anything unless advised by your vet.

Please get him to a vet as soon as possible.It could be anything.You don't want to chance it.

[aaron]

The dog IS GOING TO THE VET OBVIOUSLY!!!lLike i said earlier he can not go until thrusday but the reason for my post is to find out info on any thing i can do to help him,he has every sign of KENNEL COUGH and if he does have kennel cough when i take him to the vet then I guess im doing the right thing ,It's like the flu and there is noting that can be really done.The robotussin rally helped him surpress his coughs

[mona_b]

OK...There is absolutley no need to get testy.

And there was no reason for that comment.The one that said why don't you rush your dog to the vets to be put down....

Your dog is suffering....Hasn't eaten and is loosing his mass.Has a bloody poop.

Anyone that I have known who's dog may or not may have kennel cough has taken their dog in right away.

You came on here asking how to help him.We told you.If you can't get him in till thursday,you can take him to an emergency vet.

What,and I mean what if you wake up in the morning and he had passed away.How would you feel?Knowing that he could have been saved.

And trust me,if you thought a vet was going to come right on here to answer you,you are so wrong.The vets who do come on here are not going to answer every post right away.It could take days.They are pretty busy.

If you read the top were it says ask a vet,they even tell you seek help ASAP....

So please no more testy comments.

[Carina]

Well...it's really not like kennel cough if he's not eating, is lethargic, has bloody stool & has pale gums as well as coughing. There's something else going on for sure.

Cool your jets! Nobody is telling you to rush your dog in for emergency surgery, to have your dog put to sleep, or to take your OTHER dog in for anything other than to be spayed. We are not vets, we're just people on an internet forum trying to give you some pointers is all.

If my dog was lethargic, not eating, had pale gums, was coughing and pooping blood, I would definitely have him to my vet before Thursday; I'd take time off to do it.

Think about it...if "we" were to tell you not to do anything until Thursday and your dog died, or needed expensive surgery because we told you to do the wrong thing, how mad would you be then! If there's a possibility what a poster is saying may be a serious or life threatening thing for your animal, the only responsible thing is to say "get it to a vet asap." Even a vet wouldn't be able to tell you what's wrong without actually seeing your dog.

How old is he? Cancers often present with rapid weight loss....this could be serious, or it could be a minor thing. But only someone who is qualified & can see your dog can tell you.

[Luba]

How did I not see this one earlier :

Aaron

Your dog is suffering my friend please do not wait until Thursday for by that time it could be too late.

#1 do not give your dog hamburger
#2 do not give your dog human cough syrup like Robitussin

There are ingredients that may make things worse, including alcohol. Hamburger causes pancreatitis.

Some things may 'look' like kennel cough but they could be heart conditions/heart failure. Dogs cough when they have heart conditions or respiratory problems.

So instead of waiting around, because quite honestly thats cruel please go to the vet NOW!

[Lucky Rescue]

OH geeze.

Why the hell would i have to bring my other dog in to the vet for emergancy surgey? Please fill me in

I'll happy to fill you in. You say your other dog was in heat, correct? Have you ever heard of pyometra? Look it up.

You have one intact dog in heat, and one sick dog and you are doing nothing about either situation, yet you get mad when given advice. A little education goes a long way.

And where do you see that severe weight loss, pale gums and bloody diarrhea are signs of kennel cough? Please fill ME in..

[aaron]

we took him to the emerg and he died in my arms

[Luba]

You waited a FEW days if you took your dog earlier he wouldn't have suffered as he did.

SHAME on you!!

[Lucky Rescue]

Anyone who is reading this, has a sick dog, and refuses to take it to the vet, this is what can and DOES happen and you have to live with that guilt.

Fine way to treat man's best friend.

Also, in many places it's illegal to deny vet care to desperately sick animals.

[Lucky Rescue]

I"m very sorry "the dog" (nice of you to not even use his name) suffered and died because you wouldn't take him to the vet.

Funny you could afford to take him tonight though, and not yesterday or the day before.

And don't say he just got sick today - you already told us he lost a great deal of weight - did that just happen today too?

As Luba said "Shame on you." Pleasant dreams.

[Luba]

Aaron you are indeed one of the most ignorant individuals that I have seen to date on this board.

Your dog's symptoms did NOT indicate kennel cough, many tried to tell you that yet you did not listen.

We advised you to take your dog to the vet, you decided to wait until it was too late.

It is completely YOUR fault your dog died suffering this way!

We are sensitive to what you put the dog through, I could care less what you are going through right now. That dog could not take himself to the vet, he relied on you!

Beg or borrow money, you do what you have to do!

Expecting sympathy from ANYONE on this board in light of what you have done is asking for an 8th day to appear on the 7 day calendar.

YOU supplied us with enough information so that we knew it was serious enough for you to take your dog to the vet and we weren't even there. You thought it was serious enough to ASK about it so why didnt' you ACT on it?

I only hope that after your steam gets let out you decide to change your irrational thinking in the future. Remember our pets rely on us, you have to do for them as they cannot do for themselves.

[wAggie]

your perception to the horrid event is quite skewed.

there's such a thing as using a Credit Card or asking family/friends for a bit of money.


and HEY, you could always have SWALLOWED YOUR PRIDE and let the vet know that you're extremely low on funds and ask to pay back in portions.

&*CK!



if only YOU would refuse medical aid at one time in your life and see where THAT leads your health

[wAggie]

my turn.


oh, how I wish I could post something without being banned...

as it was stated earlier, you had MUCH time to rush to the vet and start treating that 'kennel cough.'


WHY did your dog have a heart attack now? am I missing something, or could this have been avoidable anyways... was it related to the kennel cough or something else altogether?

at this point, I would see the vet telling you nothing could be done so that you're at peace with the neglect you have put your dear dog through.

then, I think what a load of crock this is and you're simply making up a story to see how angered this message group can get...


THINK WITH YOUR HEAD NOT WITH YOUR POCKET!!!

[Luba]

Remember Aaron you thought it was Kennel cough, we encouraged you it wasn't.

Take this as a very strong reminder to you, that life is precious.
We have to be careful and cautious.

BTW your ignorance and foul language only denotes how you are not in the right frame of mind. Think over what has happened and just let it not happen again.

Use your experience to educate others and please refrain from using such language towards the lovely ladies on this board. I'm sure you can do better then that.


Your original post was: January 26th, 2004 09:52
you stated the problem had been on going for a few days!

[aaron]

listenup i posted a ad today took your advice and did what u said it was to late the dog got worse with in 30 min i sorry im up set and your right now i got to live with the fact that i killed my best friend that sucks sorry bout the foul words and i wont bother you again you can have my ip if you like but i did suffer a tragic event and i have learned a very costly lesson so once again im very sorry and i hope you all well sorry aaron

[wAggie]

wait a min., THIRTY MINUTES LATER??!


does your community NOT have an emergency vet clinic?

GUY, WHY DID U NOT TAKE YOUR DOG INTO A WALK IN OR DEMAND YOUR DYING DOG SEE YOUR VET A.S.A.P??????!!!


instead you went surfing on the net, right?

how the HECK did u manage to sleep at night knowing your dog was suffering so much from an UNDIAGNOSED "kennel cough"???!

[Luba]

Yes it does "suck"

but it seems you may take away with you some education to pass on to others.

There is a virtual pet cemetery on this site, it may help your berevement to post your dogs picture there and some information about his life.

[Luba]

http://www.pets.ca/petsites/index_cemetery.php

[Carina]

Aaron, I'm sorry about your dog, I hope you can post a picture of him. What was his name?

[mona_b]

I'm sorry he died.


BUT I told you and so did others.Instead of waiting for responses on here,you should have taken him right away...

And for him to have lost all that weight in just 2 days?That should have told you something.

You did not take hime to a vet when this started.You just presumed it was kennel cough.And figured you knew what to do on your own.

You said you would never hurt your dog.What do you think you just did?

He did NOT deserve this.

[marko]

Dear visitors to this BB,

Please learn from this person's tragedy

The dog in this thread has died. The dog probably would have lived had the dog's owner gone immediately to the vet instead of posting on the net and arguing with people about the urgency of his situation. ALL emergencies need to be dealt with IMMEDIATELY by a live veterinarian.

WE CANNOT STRESS HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO BRING YOUR PETS TO THE VET WHEN THE SYMPTOMS ARE SERIOUS. THE INTERNET IS NOT THE PLACE FOR PET EMERGENCIES. If your pet is seriously ill, bleeding, can't move, hasn't pooped or peed in a couple of days, has green mucus coming out of the nose or eyes, hasn't eaten or drank in a few days, is pooping blood, is coughing blood, has a bloated tummy, cries when touched or picked up.....Then please take the poor animal to the VETS ASAP.......Do not waste time posting here, your pet needs you to take him/her to a real live veterinarian immediately.

If you cannot afford vet care, check to see if your vet or another vet can take payments, or check to see if any veterinary school or college facility can help.

This thread will now be closed. Please learn from it. Be wise and be compassionate to your pet.