Thank you ladyjane, I did ask my vet today if he had consulted Dr. Love. He says he used to but she is very hard to reach these days and mostly works in Anchorage, so he discussed Jenna's case with another doctor since time was of the essence. I think he is a good vet, it is the attending vet over the weekend that I have an issue with currently.
We took her in as per our vet's instructions because she was not eating and drinking. He was apparently concerned that the redness on her skin was so extensive, and it had not looked that way when he had to leave town during her stay at the office... but the attending had released her looking that way the other day and since my first vet had not returned yet I had no one to consult about it. So we have taken her off the food they were feeding her while in the office those few days and for the day or so she was home as she is obviously reacting to it. She will now be switched to a vegetarian diet and he is getting together with a nutritionist to help me put something together for her to be on long term.
She ate a few of the new kibbles today after we got home, has had her pentoxi dose and some benadryl and is now resting comfortably.
She is doing better with her walking too, when she was so sick the other day she couldn't get past the front porch. Today and yesterday she went down the street to do number two. (I took a sample in in case they needed it.) The Dr. we saw today said she is not dehydrated and her temp has actually come down a wee bit. So this is good news.
He will be on all weekend if I need anything, so I feel much better. He thinks we will see more improvement in her once we can get her up to the more therapeutic dose of .8 mls twice a day, but currently she is on the .4 mls for four more days to reduce the possibility of her having a reacton.
I'm sorry if I seem frantic to you. I guess it comes from the sense of being responsible for her illness by giving her treats that I would not otherwise have fed. I am trying my best to keep calm as I know it will upset her if I am upset. It is hard when I see her so stressed too and there's nothing I can do about it. Anxiolytics are contraindicated for her because it will reverse the effect of the pentoxi. (I know...perhaps I should have a few for her, right?) I just want her to be comfortable. The vet was sure she was not in pain though, so I guess now it's just a matter of her getting used to the medicine until it doesn't bother her to take it anymore. He is not going to give her steroids again because she may have gotten the blood in her vomit and stool from the Medrol (I did ask him if there was any way she could use them if it were a different one, he said no) and since there can be no famotidine or anything else that would counteract an ulcer given to her during this therapy, we must hope this will be enough to help, and her new diet.
Once again, thank you for all your advice and prayers. I hope we are now moving forward in a positive direction.
__________________ Jenna Bean ~  ~ An angel on four legs  Sometimes I wonder who rescued who? |