What killed my dog?

[aherrin1966]

Thursday morning by chihuahua began throwing up. She stopped eating a drinking. It seemed her heart was beating to fast and her eyes looked strange. I took her to a vet on Friday. We discussed her symtoms, parvo, viruses and a posible blockage. He ran one test which I thought was a parvo test and he said it was negative. He gave her fluids, an antibiotic shot and something to coat her tummy. She vomited a thick, white sloathy substance right on the vet's exam table. He told me to watch her and bring her back if she got worse and sent us home with no medications. That evening, she began to drink water but of course couldn't keep much down. She got worse over night and the next day, when she finally had a bowel movement that was extremely smelly and dark. There was no blood. So, the Saturday, the vet's office was closed so I took her to an animal hospital. At this point, her vomiting seemed to have slowed down, she was still walking around and able to jump on the couch. At the hospital, they mentioned parvo because she had some of the symptoms. So, they ran a white cell exam (not the actual parvo test) and her count was 1.6. She only weighs 2.6 lbs. She stated it was probably parvo. They gave her an antibiotic shot, tummy soother and fluids. Due to not have enough money for aggressive treatment they sent me home with a home fluied treatment kit. About 10 minutes after them giving her this initial treatment, she became almost comatose. About 30 minutes later, she began having what looked like trouble breathing and a seizure. Five minutes later she died. I still don't know what really happened. I just need to know. Please help.

[Maya]

:sad: I'm so sorry. I guess they didn't do a necropsy so it may be difficult to really know for sure what happened. It is strange that the first vet said it wasn't parvo and the second suspected it was. I'm sorry, I wish I could be of more help.:sad: It sounds like you did everthing you could to help her.

[Shamrock]

I'm afraid I cant offer any ideas on what might have caused your little Chi's death, but just wanted to say I am so sorry for your loss.
My sincere condolences go out to you.

I certainly understand you have a need to know "why" this happened.
Mabye you could talk again to both of the vets that treated her, and ask for their final summary of what was most "likely" the cause.
As Maya's stated though, without a necropsy you will likely be left with a couple of possibilities rather than anything conclusive.
Again, I'm very sorry, you did all you could to help her.

[SableCollie]

I'm so sorry you lost your little dog. :sad:

It does sound like it could be parvo, extremely foul smelling diarrhea is one of the hallmarks of parvo, I've been told once you smell it, you will never forget it. You could ask the first vet what the test they did was for specifically and what kind of test it was. Some tests are not as accurate as others.

If you ever decide to get another dog, make sure your home is cleaned thoroughly, parvo is very contagious, and there are only certain cleaning solutions that can kill the virus. Puppies should also have a series of parvo vaccines, it is considered a "core" (necessary vaccine) for puppies because the disease is so deadly.

I am very sorry you had to go through this terrible experience.

[Brad411]

I'm sorry to. how old was the dog?

[deemaree7]

Sorry for your loss, how sad.
I don't think your dog had parvo, i had one with that once and a marked feature is depression due to feeling just sooo sick. They stand still with their head hanging down and don't move, they certainly don't jump up on the couch. Bowel action that is very dark or black usually means blood from further up in the stomach or bowel. With frothy white vomit, it sounds rather like poisoning, check ur home for snail bait or the like, only a little can kill a little dog and often some days after they eat it before they get sick depending on what the chemicals are in the brand.This isn't saying what it was but may help clarify what it wasn't.

[amsmom2njkz]

I am soo sorry about your loss. I know how difficult it can be to not know what happened and if there was more that could have been done, but you did the right thing by taking your baby to the vet.

sweet pup

[patriciar]

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. The problem is there are so many symptoms of the same illness. I just lost a dog this weekend. After 5 different vets, we finally found out he had aggressive lymphoma and when that took over, he had to be put down due to renal failure. He had the same symptoms as your dog, but the professor at the Veterinary school said that there are many similar signs of the same thing (just like with people) and it's a process of elimination.

My suggestion is not to dwell on what happened. I would take every precaution to prevent any issues in the future. I would disinfect to eliminate parvo and parasites, I would keep the dogfood safe and fresh, I would not put down any pesticides or herbicides, and realize that there was no way of you knowing what was wrong and not dwell as it would just consume all of your time.

[glitterless]

I'm so sorry for your loss. I agree that a necropsy is your best bet. If it was parvo or another virus, the vet will be able to tell you. Of course it could be many things and you may never get a definitive answer.

Take care. My heart goes out to you right now.

[MzPenny]

My heart goes out to you! I just lost my Shihtzu a week ago at the age of 11 and it hurts like heck.

I lost one of my Chi's a few months ago to parvo and it sounds just like what you describe. I bleached everything in the house to keep the others from getting it.

Big Hugz to you!