Zoe update

[Love4himies]

Awww, poor Zoe

for her.

[rainbow]

Awww, big hugs to both you and Zoe.

Can you request to see the senior or lady vet that Zoe likes?

Good luck tomorrow and I hope you get to the bottom of Zoe's problem.

[hazelrunpack]

Hope the bloodwork gives you some definitive results!!

[growler~GateKeeper]

Sending along some for the bloodwork

You should have no problem requesting which vet sees Zoe, as most multi doctor practises understand that some animals & people do better with certain vets, or just pick a day when your fave vet is working

If the new vet is scared of a dog showing teeth, he's not gonna last too long in that field, most dogs are scared at the vets & will show their teeth

I had a great lady vet for Cally (Dal x Lab) who was never bothered by his growling at her whenever she needed to look at his feet, give a shot or tend to any injury. I also always had a hand on his snout & a muzzle in my pocket just incase, and she had lots of cookies in her pocket. Cally was a fear/reactionary snapper but never bit anyone & was never labeled as vicious

[Shaykeija]

Have you tried baked potato yet? Some times when my dogs get the poops, and they will not eat pumpkin, we give them the potato. The starch seems to help bind the poop pretty well.

[rainbow]

Just sending more for you and Zoe today.

[dogcatharmony]

Zoe's bloodwork was cancelled on Friday, she was a hell hound. Two vets and three vet techs plus me could not get her in the back room. She was seriously freaking out. Vet said no more stress, to take her home and relax. She obviously doesn't have "energy" issues.

They gave me a muzzle to bring her in with, muzzle her at home and bring her in tomorrow at 2.

Sad thing is that Saturday and Sunday she had great poops, solid, good size. Then late Sunday night it when straight back to liquid, super liquid, there is nothing to pick up. I havent' slept yet because she is needing to go out constantly. Then she vomitted twice today, put it in a baggie to take to the vets.........it looks like a lot of hair. mixed with black balls (that are solid) and some food from the night before.

I am so worried and wrung out from waiting to find out what is wrong with her. I can't wait for tomorrow at 2.....

[ancientgirl]

I can imagine how you feel. The worst part is you don't know how to help her. Hopefully she'll be calmer and they can get a blood sample.

[MadeleineI]

Any quality raw meat and bones will bring up any cat or dog's immune system making it possible to fight off any disease state. Try to avoid factory farmed animals, too. Holistic vets find that on a raw diet, chronic disease melts away. Put the pet back on commercial pet food and back it comes.

[edwina]

Couldnt they gas her slightly ?
Gabby was too stressed to get blood work last week at the vet, and they gave her some gas so they could take blood and give her shots.

[14+kitties]

Sending lots of for Zoe tomorrow. Poor sweetie. And lots and lots of for you!

[growler~GateKeeper]

I think the previous visit with the other vet might have something to do with the reaction Zoe was showing.

Since she reacted that strongly against just going into the room why not try to take a sample in the waiting area or out in the parking lot where she is calmer.

Maybe next time also ask if the vet can take the white lab coat off - that sets alot of cats & dogs off it's commonly called "White Coat Syndrome" - before Zoe sees him & walk into the room together. My homeopath vet doesn't wear a lab coat - everyone's much calmer

for the visit & the test results

[dogcatharmony]

Thanks everyone, I sure do need the vibes.

Growler, my vet doesn't wear a lab coat either, he wears different coloured "scrub" tops (like the doctors and nurses wear) and normal pants.

I think she can smell things in that room at the back. That is where they keep the animals after their surgeries, plus you have to walk through the main surgery room. She walked part way down the hallway, that didn't help either it is a small hallway, and then she reared like a horse and the teeth came out.

Edwina, they couldn't gas her because no one could get near her. I was even surprised at how quick she was to turn and snap one way and then turn and snap the other. 70 pounds of scared, ticked off dog......the vet just let her leash go and she bolted straight to the front door and was pressed up against it. I brought her straight out to the truck, and then went back in to speak with the vet.

I wonder if they have a back door that I can bring her in? I have no problem putting the muzzle on, she don't like it, paws at it and gets all head flippy, but if I could muzzle her, walk in a back door closer to that room.....instead of walking throught the entire clinic.

I will call when they open and ask. I just have to remember to keep myself calm....don't want her picking up nervous vibes from me. Hard not to, that scene was quite embarrasing and scary.

[Love4himies]

Awwww, poor Zoe. Can they not make a house call to do this?

[ancientgirl]

I don't know how this would turn up on blood tests, but Vlad gets really stressed when I take him in, so the vet has me give him some Xanax before. It's not much, but just enough to keep him calm. He still a little nasty, but not so much the vet can't examine him.

[kandy]

Poor Zoe! Hope that young vet wasn't there or she'll have another black mark in her file.

Hazel freaks out at all vets - even if she's never been to that particular one before. One vet told me that they can change the decor all they want but they can't hide that smell.

I hope you can get her in there for her bloodwork!

[luckypenny]

Oh Zoe, be a good girl for mom so she can get the vets to find out what's troubling you .

Dogcatharmony, do you think the vet would consider taking her blood outside of the clinic? I know of several here that do that for fearful/aggressive dogs. And I know it won't help you at this moment but, to make wearing a basket muzzle more pleasant, we've spent considerable time making positive associations with it for Penny. It takes a few weeks, then some practice every other week or so, but it does work.

[rainbow]

I hope that everything is going well for you and Zoe today.

[dogcatharmony]

Well no bloodwork today either. Instead he prescribed Metoclopramide, said he would like to treat the stomach now.

We had a bit of a moment, talking about the bloodwork. He said that he doesn't feel that I should spend the money on the bloodwork right now because it could be useless. That in his opinion she isn't a "sick" dog, yes there is something wrong, but whatever it is, is not something serious. I told him that I don't look at it as wasting money (I know that is not what he meant) but I want to know if she is okay. He explained to me that right now she is not losing any weight, she is clear eyed and full of energy. There is no temp, she doesn't growl when he pushes on her abdomen. She is alert, her coat is good (he said if she was really sick, her coat would be dull, oily, smelly.....didn't know that they used the coat condition to make medical judgements that could be on the inside). She is eating, drinking, none of her normal habits are off. She just has something funky going on.

He said that if by the end of August she is still having total diarreha then we will definitly do bloodwork. She has had four solid stools since starting the Metronidazole.......so something is upset in her digestive system. Now to try the Meroclopramide and see if it is the stomach end of things.

I hate hate hate the waiting game.....................

[luckypenny]

Metoclopramide is used to treat reflux and heartburn. Is this what the vet thinks is Zoe's problem? It's not meant for diarrhea I don't think ? Did he explain to you why he chose this med? The FDA had issued a warning in Feb. this year linking Metoclopramide to Tardive Dyskinesia.

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/S.../ucm106942.htm

[Tundra_Queen]

DCH, I'm so sorry to hear that zoe is still having troubles. Give her a hug from me..poor girl.

Could she have irritable bowel syndrome? Or has the vet already thought of that?

I sure wish they could figure out what is wrong. Didn't they all start after she ate that mouse?

Debbie

[dogcatharmony]

ohhh great..............thanks Luckypenny.

He gave it because of the vomit sample I brought in. Zoe barfed all day yesterday. And has been walking around dry hacking today, with nothing but lots of drool. I even told him that only out of ordinary thing I have noticed is excessive panting. But he said she doesn't have a temp, so it could just be weather (finally summer has arrived) He asked when she dry hacked, and I said a little while after she eats or drinks, then you can hear her belly rumbling and she hacks.

This is the one odd thing, when she vomitted yesterday she barfed out a mushroom. She snarfed two when i was making spagetti sauce on FRIDAY. It fell on the floor and she ate it, and then barfed it out MONDAY, the other one came out of her back end on MONDAY morning. That wasn't in the sample I brought today. The one I brought had hard little black balls, lots of hair and stomach gunk.

So vet went to tummy upset.

[ancientgirl]

I'm not saying anything here against your vet, so I hope you don't take it like I am, but I don't get why he wouldn't just do bloodwork to ascertain once and for all what is bothering her. Instead of having to have her be like this until the end of the month.

Oh, and about the mushrooms. I've read in a couple of places mushrooms are not good for cats to eat, so you might want to make sure it's okay for dogs.

The good thing is at least she's acting normal.

[dogcatharmony]

Thanks AG, as for the mushrooms, I am not really concerned, that happened far after. It has been a month now (coming close to) of diarreha. It happened after eating baby mice. I went and looked at pics of newborn mice and moles on the internet, it was definetly baby mice she ingested. But the mushrooms coming out three days later.......well that has me concerned.

Anyways, I got an email from a friend, to go see the vet she does. Not that money is an issue, but she said that they take payment plans and I could get her xray and bloodwork done together and not worry about having to make the payment full right then. The xray, well that is beside the fact....I WANT to know about her digestive problem. I am going to call this vet tomorrow for an appt. nothing wrong with a second opinion.

I know she doesn't appear sick, and I adore the vet I am going to now, been over 20 years and he is super. But I need to know what is going on. I know she is eating, and drinking and doing her normal things, but diarreaha for that long......well I know my doctor would have checked into things by now.

Sorry I am just super super frustrated right now......and don't know what to think. He was super confident the Metronidazole would work......no......now move on to stomach. My head is seriously spinning......

[14+kitties]

Yep, time for a second opinion. You are perfectly within your right to have one. Poor Zoe. I hope things get better soon.

[ancientgirl]

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

Anyways, I got an email from a friend, to go see the vet she does. Not that money is an issue, but she said that they take payment plans and I could get her xray and bloodwork done together and not worry about having to make the payment full right then. The xray, well that is beside the fact....I WANT to know about her digestive problem. I am going to call this vet tomorrow for an appt. nothing wrong with a second opinion.

I know she doesn't appear sick, and I adore the vet I am going to now, been over 20 years and he is super. But I need to know what is going on. I know she is eating, and drinking and doing her normal things, but diarreaha for that long......well I know my doctor would have checked into things by now.

Sorry I am just super super frustrated right now......and don't know what to think. He was super confident the Metronidazole would work......no......now move on to stomach. My head is seriously spinning......

You have every right to be frustrated. But you also have the right to know what's wrong with her now and not have to wait and see.

It can't be pleasant for her to be vomiting and have diarreah for so long. I know if this were happening to a person, any good doctor would have ordered blood work.

[luckypenny]

Reading back on this thread brings several things to mind. Giardia and tapeworm are two of them. Lucky had Giardia when he first came to us (bloody stools and vomiting) and Metronidozole did not help him. Only Panacur was successful in ridding him of the parasite. Penny had caught and eaten mice in the past which resulted in tapeworm. We didn't notice any symptoms until some time later (Drontal Plus being the drug used for treatment). Fecal samples do not always test positive for intestinal parasites...I remember having two or three done on Lucky before he tested positive for Giardia. I'd think about having a repeat test done specifying you want it done for Giardia too.

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

...Even so, shouldn't there be some concern with the rapid weight gain. He said she isn't overweight, according to him. She is five.......don't think she should be packing on 8 pounds in a month when she hardly ever eats.

If the same scale was used only a month previous, chances are it's pretty accurate in measuring the weight gain. Eight pounds, nor six even, is not normal within a month. You mention Zoe being "crabby" as of late. Is this more than usual? If so, then I'd definitely be wanting a blood panel done...I'm thinking perhaps to test thyroid function would be wise.

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

ohhh great..............thanks Luckypenny.

I'm sorry, I'm a little anal about having drugs prescribed without an explanation of side-effects and drug interactions and also about them being prescribed without a certain diagnosis...whether it be for our pets or for humans .

I hope Zoe's next vet visit finds some results for you. It's no fun waiting and worrying .

[dogcatharmony]

thank you AG, +14, and LP. I am going with the second vet option. I am calling early in the morning, and see if I can get her in ASAP. Now she hasn't pooped since Monday morning.....it is now early Wednesday morning. I don't want to mess around anymore. She means too much to me to try this and try that......and wait for an outcome.

Thankyou LP, I will read up on tapeworm and Giardia. Vet said to rule them out because of no weight loss. But I just did some reading on fecal floatation tests and how acurate they are, and how much they dont show. That is why he prescribed Metronidazole, to cover all the bases.

The crabbiness came with the meds, now that she is off them she is back to normal around the house. NO snarling, or teethies. I had company tonight, someone she has never met, the only time she growled was when he jumped up and cheered. She is back to normal with Dex.

She ate like usual, and is now asking to go to bed, not normal that I stay up this late.

[growler~GateKeeper]

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

I think she can smell things in that room at the back. That is where they keep the animals after their surgeries, plus you have to walk through the main surgery room. She walked part way down the hallway, that didn't help either it is a small hallway, and then she reared like a horse and the teeth came out.

Why didn't they just take the blood sample in the exam room then?

I've had several vets take blood samples in the exam room with me restraining my cat/dog. Usually makes the animal less nervous unless the owner is really stressed, but then they just have the owner step out into the waiting room instead of stressing the animal more by taking them into the back.

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

I wonder if they have a back door that I can bring her in? I have no problem putting the muzzle on, she don't like it, paws at it and gets all head flippy, but if I could muzzle her, walk in a back door closer to that room.....instead of walking throught the entire clinic.

Any hosp/clinic that has a back door it opens into the recovery area which is where the animals are kept after surgerys so that wouldn't help.

[ancientgirl]

Good luck! I hope you can get in today.