49 replies to this topic

[fannierose]

it's susan here...

i posted a while back about
dusty, my 7 1/2 yo who i
adopted about 3 years ago...

since we have gotten him ..he
has bouts of vomitting bile...
then eating okay right afterwards
until the next bout...

he also at times gets frantic
and tries to eat whatever he
can find to fill his tummy..
which last time resulted in
abdominal surgery as he ate
some many leaves and grass that
it wouldn't pass...vet gave us
cerenia to use in that case...

he is on pepcid 10mg a day...

this week..he vomitted bile and
retched so loud you almost had
to look and see if there was a
great dane in the area.!!!!!!!!

eating off and on....one more
episode of bile vomitting and then
eating okay right after...

i am feeding him..at the moment...
home cooked boiled chicken and rice...

he pooped last on wednesday morning..
which started out as a normal stool
but ended up yellowish and very soft...
but..since then no poop....it gets me
very nervous..he has gone 48 hours before
during a stomach bout but we are over that
time now....

he is scheduled for an ultrasound next thursday...

anyone have any light to shed on this.?

many thanks......susan

[Tracy A.]

Fannie Rose, has his pancrease been checked? Is he losing weight? I had a GSD who lost function of her pancrease and she lost a lot of weight, and had simular symptoms- loose stools, undigested food... bile in the stool.
We had a hard time getting the right diagnosis and she got so thin we could see her rib cage, we ended up changing vets and she got the right treatment... looking back i'm surprised that a neighboor didn't call the police she was that bad looking...

I'd be worried to, not pooping and vomiting are not good and signs of a blockage as you know... since he had surger for it already.... If your vet hasn't checked the pancrease function, i'd see if they can get you in... or you can always go to another vet... i've done that several times when i wasn't sure if they were diagnosing mmy dog correctly or not.

Edited by Tracy A., 12 March 2010 - 08:33 AM.

[fannierose]

hi tracy...

thanks for the reply...

no he isn't losing any weight...
he had all his functions checked
in october when he had the surgery
and again afterwards and all is well
in that department...

he is scheduled for more bloodwork
the day of the ultrasound..

sometimes...i think i get overly
concerened and make *myself* sick...
dusty is acting fine...peeing okay...
just hasn't pooped since wednesday morning...

hope he goes soon...

many thanks.......susan

[sanford]

I'm concerned about waiting an entire week in order to do his bloodwoork for the scheduled ultra sound. I would hope your vet would squeeze you in ASAP on an emergency basis to examine Dusty further and do the bloodwork without delay. Even if the bloodwork has to be repeated on ultrasound day, (which I doubt), I think it would be worth it for peace of mind.

[rallycairn]

You have probably already done this but be sure your vet is VERY CLEAR on how long it has been since Dusty has pooped. As has already been mentioned an intestinal blockage is one possibility here it seems (I'm not a vet but I've unfortunately had to deal with emergency surgery due to a blockage in my dear lurcher a year and a half ago, and it is very scary). I realize you said that other than the lack of pooping Dusty appears okay, so that probably is a good sign, but you might get the information you need if you call the vet again and make sure the situation really can wait until the ultrasound next Thursday.

Good wishes for you and your baby!

[pkcrossley]

i agree that an intestinal blockage is a possibility. barfing is not good, but not pooping is serious in the extreme. i agree completely that you need to make sure the vet knows that dusty is not pooping at all, if that is the case, and exactly how many days it has been since he has pooped. call the office. if they have a 24 clinic or one is within reach, go there if your vet is not open for the weekend.

[cleokiki]

Agree here also that you need to go to vet ASAP. Wonder why Vet is having you wait since it has been so long since your doggie has pooped?

Had a similar experience where Skye was vomiting bile and did not poop the next day and did not want to eat. Called vet and he saw her immediately.(same day) Did a few xrays with barium,(I think that was it) and had her on intravenous because she was a bit dehydrated. Was with vet a couple of days then took her back to be sure all was OK. She had eaten something she shouldn't have. Whatever it was, the barium made it pass, which the vet mentioned might happen. That was quite a few months ago when she was much smaller and now she is fine.

Don't wait too long. Same concern as others posted that Thursday is too long to wait until visit.

[cairnrescueleague]

Vomiting and not pooping is an extreme veterinary emergency. You need to get him to your vet or an emergency clinic right away. This could be a matter of life or death.

[rallycairn]

Would love to hear that Dusty's ok. Please give us an update, Susan.

[fannierose]

hi all...

sorry to be absent for a few days...

dusty finally pooped on friday afternoon..
normal..yay!

he has been eating home cooked boiled
chicken and rice....added w/his id...but
with the gastic upset...just the chic and rice..

he is on pepcid 2x a day....10 mg total...

he had abdominal surgery for a blockage
in october...so the previous vet
actually looked/felt around inside him and
all was okay...or at least didn't say anything
was wrong..

since then ..off and on...with
stomach upsets...actually..since we adopted him
3 years ago..there have been repeated stomach
episodes....one vet treated w/reglan for 5 days
and that seemed to do the trick for quite a while...

mentioned this to current vet and she is hesitant
to use reglan...

anyhoo......

started w/a little biliary vomitting lst
thing in the morning on 2/18 and 2/19...adjusted
pepcid time per vet and all was okay...

had rabies 3 year booster and lyme vaccine
on 2/28....along w/bloodwork and physical
exam and everything came back okay..
he was pretty sore the day of
...hobbling a bit etc....then okay...

vomitted and hacked last week like i wrote about
on here...then the no poop...which actually does
happen to him after he vomits a bit but that was
the longest he ever went...

last wednesday i added a teeny amount of id to his
chic and rice and that is when he vomitted for the
2nd in the week...

back to just chic and rice...all seemed okay..so
this morning i added 7 little kernels of id...4 hours
later..he regurgitated...guarded it for a bit and then
re-ate it...ewwww.....that was at 2 pm....

he seems okay ....very worrisome as i feel like
i should be able to help him in some way...

have another call into the vet...

i am on the verge of tears..

i haven't had very good experiences w/vets...
one operated on my pup at the time for kidney
stones and LEFT IT IN HIM!!!! then treated me
like i was the menopausal mother who had
empty nest syndrome UNTIL he decided to take
another xray and lo and behold it was still in
there....brought him to another vet to re operate...

other issues..with vets...

this is a new vet who i like very much
but..............

any light you can shed on this would
surely be helpful...

again...i apologize for being mia for
a few days...

warmly.........susan

[lindasue]

You should find a good vet that you like and trust. Too bad you aren't one state up in Mass; I have a great one!

[fannierose]

i wish i were...too!

i like the vet i have now...

waiting for her to call back..
she is very busy and sometimes
calls at 10 p at night...

keep us in your thoughts please..

warmly.....susan

[Oliver's Mom]

Just a thought...

From your previous post it seems that everytime he vomited you said you put a few pieces of id in his chicken and rice, is that common for him to always vomit after eating food with that added and not when it's just chicken and rice? If it is the case maybe he has some type of intolerance ti the id.

Good luck and keep us posted!!

[oscar's mom]

Ok, he may not able to tolerate ID, or the ID is stale. Why doesn't the vet like Reglan, I think it's a wonderful drug for animals and humans. It increases periostitis, meaning making the stomach, and intestines work. Basically if you feel this drug works for your pup, advocate for him! Your his mama, you know him best. How close to Mass are you, I have a great vet in Springfield.

[sanford]

My cairn had a history of vomiting which resulted in my trying one vet after another until it was (mostly) resolved. When he was was eventually put on a limited ingredient, novel protein diet, he improved. Also, I refused to put him on Hill's Prescription Diet id. The Hill's dry formula lists the first, (main) ingredient as corn which is a very common allergen to many Cairns. Many vets are not familiar enough with Cairns to know about their common allergy to corn. The canned version lists water, of all things as the first (main) ingredient, then it lists corn as a main ingredient as well!

Hill's Prescription and Science Diet foods are widely recommended by vets, but I can't reconcile this with the fact that Hill's has a lot of corn in it. I've read that the corn that's used in many dog foods is actually the cob, which doesn't have much nutritional value; it's mainly a filler. At any rate, switching foods to one with no corn or grain would be a reasonabe step to consider.

Again, having gone through this with my own dog, I know how you feel and I understand your concern. My dog still has a tendency to vomit, but a lot less than he used to and I'm happy to report that he'll soon be 16 years old, so I hope that gives you some encouragement!

Edited by sanford, 15 March 2010 - 03:33 PM.