Hi All,
Its been a while sorry I have not posted sooner. With Thumper being sick, then myself sick, no internet and trying to find a new home for my foster it has been a crazy and exhausting month. This is a long post so bear with me
Thumper is back to normal for the most part. On the outside he looks like nothing is wrong.
He had pancrititis and had to be hospitalized for a day. He did great and I was able to take him home the next day. He got spoiled at the Vet as they gave him wet food and now the "spoiled brat" as I good naturally like to call him refuses to eat his food without the wet food. So mommy gives in and tops off his food with some wet food.
They did a slew of tests and his numbers were all out of wack so we went today to repeat some of them now that he is feeling better to see if it was just because he was sick.
I now need to monitor his food even more closely than before. I didn't give him any table scraps or treats but he would sometimes get a piece of bread or some of my food along with Bella's. I didn't think it was a big deal as it was not a lot or often.
Now no more! To make it easier the Vet said I can give Bella the same prescription food as Thumper to make sure he does not get her food. He is on Hill's Science K/D Diet. This is good both financially and to be able to monitor him.
Thumper's SDMA was originally 18 a few weeks ago and now it is down to 9 which is awesome. We repeated the Senior CBC Panel and ACTH so will get those results tomorrow. Based on the blood work my Vet will come up with a game plan regarding his spleen. During the ultrasound she found a nodule on it. She doesn't think its cancer as the numbers don't indicate it but we are retesting to double check. He can live without his spleen so it might have to be removed but she doesn't want to do surgery if she does not have to. Additionally, she said the spleen tends to bleed so she wants to avoid removing it if possible. She has done many splenectomies so I have full confidence in her.
Thumper's numbers were also low-normal for his ACTH and Thyroid so we are re-testing to see where they fall now. I may have to adjust his meds. Finally, his blood pressure was once again high. He is already on BP medication.
All this means is tomorrow hopefully after reviewing the blood work we can come up with a game plan to treat the Cushing, Spleen, and BP. She doesn't want to keep pumping Thumper with medication if she does not have to. I really respect her. She has been wonderful throughout this process. I really trust her judgement. When I ask if it was her dog what would she do she is honest with me but allows me to make the final decision.
On to a semi-funny antidote (only funny because of the timing and what is going on in the news) Apparently, Thumper tested positive for the Coronavirus (NOT THE ONE for HUMANS) I never even knew there was one for dogs but apparently there is. They did a whole diarrhea panel and it was one of tests. I would have never known if not for that test. There is a vaccine but it is not that effective according to my Vet. Also, since Thumper tested positive the vaccine would do nothing for him. When he has a flare up we will just treat the symptoms with antibiotics.
Finally, I learned that there is a new ACTH test that is only an hour long instead of the typical 2 hour test. That is good as it alleviates me having to be at the Vet's office longer. My Vet said its only a minuscule difference in the 2 hour test but much cheaper for him to purchase. Since he has a lot of low income families he is using that test. Also the 2 hour test is back ordered from China he said so even if I wanted the other test its not an option at the moment.
All the Vets and staff at my Vet love Thumper since his stay they have all gotten to know him and think he is adorable. Makes me smile every time we have to go for a visit.
For now we are home relaxing and I am making all of us bone broth from scratch. I am going to make a separate post about that to see what everyone puts in their broth.
Thanks all for the well wishes and I will keep posted on Thumper as I know more.