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05-11-2010, 07:55 AM | #1 |
Yorkie Yakker | Theophylline - Enlarged heart (Cardiomegaly)and Collapsed Airway Disease I'm new to YT, but have had Yorkies now for 12 years. My first Yorkie died at the age of 4 from trachea collapse in the thoracic area. There was nothing we could do for him, as he was suffering and we had to let him go. Needless to say, anyone who has heard a dog gasping for breath will never forget the horror of it all. We are still grieving his loss. He was my little boy and the love of my life and he did not have a chance to live a full life. My 2nd furbaby, Kissy, is about to be 8 years old and about a month ago began to cough and honk which made us immediately take her to our regular vet. He diagnosed her after doing xrays with a collapsing airway further up near her mouth area. Since she was having extreme breathing problems, he put her on Baytril should she also have bronchitis or pneumonia, whereupon she began to improve. In the meantime, my husband decided to go to a specialist and have them take a look at the xrays. Why not, since a 2nd opinion is better than none. The specialist informed my husband that she indeed does have a collapsing airway, but that her heart was pressing on the throat and she has an enlarged heart. She should begin a diuretic. Well, we started the Lasix (prescribed by my reg. vet) and it did not seem to improve her as much as the antibiotic. The first antibiotic round finished after 10 days and she began coughing. I asked my regular vet what I should do and he suggested trying a 14 day regimen of the antibiotic again (Baytril). Well, that seemed to improve her immensely again, but after finishing this round and the next day, she really got into trouble with foaming out of her mouth and not being able to breath properly. She was in dire need of help. I had not been told to put her on the Theophylline, though I had some in my possession prescribed by my regular vet and was told to "hold off" giving it to her. Friday (05/07) I called my regular vet and he could not see my dog until 3:30PM and it was 10AM. He was in surgery with other dogs. I knew that she would not make it for long like this. Each breath became more labored and she was gasping for air. I immediately called the specialist who runs an emergency specialty center and they told me to get her there FAST. I got her there 30 minutes later and this vet immediately recognized the xrays that my husband had brought in a month ago. He did a thorough checkup on Kissy and informed me that she is a "respiratory cripple" and that if I even was lucky enough to get her home and should she survive the weekend that I must get these medicines into her. OK...this is why I am posting. He told me that the Theophylline that I had gotten from a pharmacy in Arizona in liquid form I could just throw away. Kissy will not take pills easily. He also told me that the Theophylline pills that I had gotten from Kroger ALSO were not any good and I needed to throw them out. He explained to me that there are probably 30 different manufacturers of Theophylline and he has only seen ONE manufacturer where his patients have success with taking the pill. The pill MUST remain in tact, though I give her 1/4 in the morning and 12 hours later another 1/4. The syrup is immediately absorbed into a dogs body and will not give the "time release" properties that the dog needs to have it work effectively. The type of Theophylline tablet that he uses is made by BARR PHARMACEUTICALS and he has 1,000's of them on hand. I wanted to bring this to my fellow Yorkie owner's attention, as maybe you have not had success with the pills you are using, and this may be the reason why. I want you to know that Kissy after 1 day was doing so well that she looked at me on Saturday morning as though she could not believe her good fortune to be feeling good again and continues to improve with each day. The words are still ringing in my ears that she could die in my arms on the way home and also it was a critical time for her and she could "go" at any moment. The specialist's office was OVERJOYED when I called yesterday saying that Kissy is doing much, much better. I know she still has issues with her collapsed trachea, but to see her feeling better after one dose of these medicines made me post. She also is taking 0.25cc's of Lasix 2x per day. They will adjust after she's been on it 1 week. Oh... and as for why the antibiotics "seemed" to work, he said it was sheer coincidence and who knows why she got better??? I'm thankful she survived the last month and seems like someone "up there" was watching over us. I'm taking it one day at a time. I cannot believe that I almost lost her for good Friday. ---- I'm so new at posting that I erroneously posted this message to my own blog... please excuse. I wanted this to be "out there" for everyone to see. |
Welcome Guest! | |
05-11-2010, 09:06 AM | #2 |
Donating YT 500 Club Member | Hi and Welcome to YT! Thank you for posting your information about this drug, it could save another yorkies life. I'm thrilled your Kissy is doing so much better and pray you will have many more happy years together!
__________________ ~Ruby, Reno, Razz, & Jack~ |
05-11-2010, 09:14 AM | #3 |
Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island
Posts: 7,247
| Welcome to YT YAY for Kissy |
05-11-2010, 09:34 AM | #4 |
Yorkie Yakker | Teva generic name, brand name product search I did a bit more research on Barr Pharmaceuticals and found out that TEVA Pharmaceuticals bought them, though the name "Barr" is still used on certain drugs that they dispense. My pill matches the 100mg pill shown on the very top with the imprint code PLIVA / 483. Hope this helps, if your vet is wondering how to acquire these little gems. They are extended-release tablets, which I cut into 1/4's and give her 12 hours apart. |
05-11-2010, 10:03 AM | #5 |
Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 1,293
| So happy that Kissy is doing better now. What GREAT parents for getting her to a specialist so quickly.
__________________ "The little furry buggers are just deep, deep wells you throw all your emotions into." ~ Bruce Schimmel |
05-11-2010, 11:32 AM | #6 |
YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Ball Ground, GA
Posts: 1,262
| I'm so glad you got help for Kissy and she is doing better. I hope she continues to improve. I have a dog that was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, as she had been coughing, but she really has a severely prolapsed valve and her right atrium is so enlarged, it is pressing on her throat. She has been on vetmedin for over a year. She saw my regular vet a few months ago, and I was told to keep doing what I had been doing, give her the vetmedin. I really wondered if it was enough, so I took her to the specialist who treated one of my dogs for lymphoma. Besides the fact that Opal has a mass in her chest which her heart prohibits surgery for, she is also on enalipril and lasix in addition to the vetmedin, and she is doing much better. Since your vet is treating Kissy so differently, does she have something wrong besides congestive heart failure?
__________________ Kristan Lizzy's mom |
05-11-2010, 12:09 PM | #7 |
Yorkie Yakker | Hi Lizzie07, As far as I know she has just the two issues - narrowing of her airway which he called "collapsed airway disease" and enlargement of her heart. She did not have a heart murmur which can happen with the disease. Since she was in such fragile condition, he did nothing more that put her on these two drugs. When she gets excited she still does begin panting and will honk and we're to keep her calm. I'm not sure of her prognosis at this point and he will evaluate how she is doing by phone this Friday. The vet tech said that she was so upset with being in the doctor's office that they did not want to tip the scales with her. Friday she was so upset that the foam (white) was dripping so badly that we asked them to give her a Torbitrol injection (sedative) and that greatly helped. I'm sure at some point in time he will have to see her again, but I am so fearful of that. I see that you are in Ballground, Georgia and I'm in Roswell. I took her to Randall J. Itkin, DVM, MS, DACVIM of All Pets Emergency & Referral Center in Alpharetta, Georgia. 678-366-2125 Hope I'm allowed to post this info for folks looking someone who really knows his stuff and did not take us to the cleaners on our misfortune to have a sick furbaby. I have great respect for him and his staff. They are all very professional. |
05-11-2010, 06:04 PM | #8 |
Crazy about Kacee! Donating Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Kansas
Posts: 21,173
| I'm so sorry you lost your little 4-yr-old. That's so very sad. I wanted to thank you for sharing this information. It may save another yorkie someday. That was very thoughtful of you.
__________________ Karen Kacee Muffin 1991-2005 Rest in Peace My Little Angel |
05-11-2010, 06:09 PM | #9 | |
YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Ball Ground, GA
Posts: 1,262
| Quote:
I think it's okay. I know All Pets, it is where I take my dogs when we have an emergency. I also have a friend who worked there. She thought very highly of Dr. Itkin. I started taking Libby, my dog with lymphoma, to Dr Jory Olsen, an Internist at Greater Atlanta Veterinary Specialists in Marietta at the recommendation of my vet. This year, I decided to take Opal to him as well because I felt something wasn't right and I wanted her checked over well, including an ultrasound. That is when he put her on enalipril and lasix. He also found a mast cell tumor on her side, which his wife, Diana removed, and a mass in her abdomen. We can't do anything about that, and the tumor on her side was removed using a local, rather than general anesthesia. I really like them and feel they are reasonable as well.
__________________ Kristan Lizzy's mom | |
05-11-2010, 07:23 PM | #11 |
Donating YT 30K Club Member | I am so glad Kissy is responding well to the medicine. I lost my Gracie at 6 1/2 to CT in her thoracic area. She was diagnosed with it at age 5. I know what you mean about the gasping for breath. It was horrible to see and hear. I will keep Kissy in my prayers. That is good to know about the medicine.
__________________ Cali Pixie Roxie : RIP Nikki; RIP Maya;RIP my sweet Dixie girl 1/17/08 http://callipuppyscastle.bravehost.com/index.html |
05-12-2010, 06:14 AM | #12 |
Yorkie Yakker | Yes, CT was the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life. With us being new to Yorkies at that time (9 years ago) we did not have a clue what we were up against. My boy, Secret, had always had a funny little cough that I addressed immediately to the vet and was told it was probably reverse sneezing, so I did not worry. It was on his 3rd birthday when I purchased a ball that smelled like peanut butter and when my daughter and I threw it to him to celebrate he went from no honking to non-stop honking.He was so excited over this ball and this is what one throw did to him. He could NOT stop and when he did it was only for brief periods of time. I could not believe what was happening. Only upon going to the vet with him immediately was he diagnosed with an inoperable thoracic CT. We were devastated, but we also did not know what the last year of his life would be like. He had a strong heart and therefore, wanted to play and we could not encourage it and our hearts were breaking as we watched him slip from us. He passed away in a specialist hospital in Marietta, Georgia - Greater Atlanta Veterinary Specialist. They told us nothing could be done for him and he was suffering. The only reason we have Kissy today, is because we saw a new littler of pups about 2 months prior to Secret passing. We wondered what it would be like to have 2 Yorkies at the same time, since we were enthralled with them and their extreme intelligence, loyalty and unique personalities. It was not to be for us and so, once Secret passed, we were lucky to have Kissy to grieve with, but there could never be another to take Secret's place. My husband said last week if Kissy does not make it, we will get another. Ohhh... I just don't think I can go there and I know he was trying to ease the pain, but I just don't think I can do it again.We are so attached to Yorkshire Terriers and I cannot imagine not having one. My husband comes home at lunch to see how his "baby" (KIssy) is doing. He drives her around the neighborhood multiple times after work, because she "enjoys" it and her name is on our lips most of the day and always has been. If we are separated for an hour to go out to eat, we cannot wait to get back to her. It is a bond that has gone deep and I know each and everyone of you feels the same about your furbabys. |
05-16-2010, 06:25 AM | #13 |
Yorkie Yakker | Just wanted to update my thread and let everyone know that my baby is doing much, much better. It has been 1 1/2 months of keeping her close to me and keeping her calm, but the medicines that the specialist prescribed are working. I have waited to post, as my last month and a half has had so many highs and lows I was afraid to comment on any good fortune. The theophylline is doing it's stuff and the lasix has been reduced to 1x per day with the instructions to watch her and see if we need to go back to 2x. The only problem I have encountered is her Houdini way of holding a pill in her mouth for over 2 hours and spitting it out. I think we have remedied that with hiding it in Liverwurst. She doesn't have a clue. |
05-16-2010, 06:38 AM | #14 |
Donating YT 10K Club Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: S. W. Suburbs of Chicago, IL
Posts: 12,235
| Welcome to YT! I am so glad that your vet knew that just the manufacturer of the drug was the issue and had you change. It's wonderful to hear that you have seen such an improvement over the past month and a half. Have you tried to put the pill into a little cream cheese? I found this works the very best because the dairy covers the taste of the pills and it seems to always go right down with mine. Anything else that I have ever tried to hide the pill in they would always spit the pill out. Good luck and I hope that this trick will help you with Kissy too.
__________________ “Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference.” Mark Twain |
05-16-2010, 07:25 AM | #15 |
Yorkie Yakker | Thank you, Megansmomma for the tip! I definitely will try that, too. She gets pretty wise after a while and then, I'll need a back-up plan. We've stood on our heads and done somersaults to get her to take them and the hiding seems to be the only way. |
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