just got back from ER~
 

Shorty just got vaccined this morning, and she started having allergic reactions at dinner time, half of her face is all swellen, both of her ears, her eyes are really red, and Shorty was itching like crazy.
so I took her to the ER, and they gave her a shot of benedryl and a dose of steroids. and they told me to pick up some children's benedryl and give it to her for three days starting tomorrow, and they seemed to think that Im overreacting:eek:
after we got home, while the swellen and redness are visibly reduced, she still seems to be very uncomfortable due to itching. Im wondering, is that alright, I thought that after the treatment she should feel better right away:confused:
she is digging into all her toys as she is so itchy, my poor baby:(

Oh, I'm so sorry she's having this reaction. I can't believe they told you that you were over-reacting?? You're just being a good Mommie. Hope she gets better very soon. Hoping someone who's had experience with this can help you out on any thoughts with how long this takes to get better.

If that happened to my Suzi I would have done the exact same thing as you had ! You did the right thing for Shorty. That sounds miserable for her. I hope she will feel better , but if she is not by tommorow morning, take her to your regular vet. :aimeeyork

they thought you were over-reacting!?

i don't think you were! it's your baby and you are a good mama!! :thumbup:

hope your baby feels better soon!

(don't worry about the ER people. lol, my vet had asked me nicely before when i took my bunny to him why i felt that i should bring him to the vet since nothing was wrong... and i said because he can not speak to me and i need to make sure he is ok! lol, the vet was nice about it, but he said it! "why did you bring him in!" lol! :rolleyes: )

If a dog swells after vaccines, it is an emergency. Their airway can swell shut. You did the right thing and if they thought you were over-reacting, first they wouldn't have told you to give Benadryl for 3 days and second if they really did think that, I'd find a new vet.

well, the ER is not my regular vet.
after I told them what happened, they asked me if I tried benedryl, I said no, honestly I don't have any experience and since my baby was having all the reactions, I was nervous already. then the lady at the front desk said: well, you should have tried benedryl first before you come here!

Oh, and Shorty finally fell asleep in between our pillows, poor thing:cry: hopefully tomorrow morning she will feel all better:love:

thanks everyone for the support:thumbs up

awww poor Shorty..... I hope she begins to feel better! Keep us posted!

Aw poor thing I hope she feels better soon.

I hope your baby feels better soon. I understand....believe me.

The reaction from the receptionist would have brought out the worst in me, for sure. I'm afraid I would have to say something about her being paid whether it's an over-reaction or not. Much like I'd say to someone who says something about wasting their time..."Made your day pass faster though didn't it?" There is no rationale for people to be rude to those seeking their services...especially when others such as myself judge a business quite often by their politeness.

I had something very similar happen when Piper had her 2nd rabies shot. (she had the first at the breeders). Fortunately the vet was open still when she started having problems and they told me to try Benadryl right away. I gave her that and then brought her in as well. They then gave her a steroid shot. She recovered, but it was quite scary. I don't think you overreacted at all. My vet never made me feel like I was being silly for worrying about my dog.
It's been a year and Piper just had one more round of vacinations. This time the vet was very careful and gave her benadryl and a steroid BEFORE the shots. Then we waited 20 minutes before he gave her any shots. Then we waited 30 minutes before leaving the office...just to make sure she was fine. It cost a good 30 dollars more to pre-treat...and was worth every penny. She had no reaction at all this time because her little body was ready for the shots. She was just really, really tired. I would advise anyone who is worried about this sort of thing to talk to their vet about pre-treating. It seemed to do the trick for Piper.
The vet said that a lot of times when a dog has a reaction to something like a vaccine, the first time is kind of a warning sign and the second reaction is much, much worse.
Please be careful and find a vet that understands about pretreating for reactions.
I'm so glad Shorty is okay.

sorry to have that Shorty had a reaction to her vaccination.You will want to make sure that your regular vet is aware of Shorty having a reaction because next time she has to get shots they will want to treat her before giving the vaccination. All 3 of mine get treated with an antihistamine shot before they get any vaccination.

Overreacting my butt, we all would of done the same thing, maybe if it was one of their furkids they would think differently.

Sock Therapy
 

If Shorty keeps "digging" at herself she'll probably cause sores with bleeding. Before that happens try putting her in a snug fitting sock. Our vet told me about it after Rocky had a particularly nasty reaction. Take a man's large white tube sock and cut off the toe. Holding it by the top cut slits where you think the front legs will be. Then slip it over the head, sock top last, easying it over the body, down to it's tail end. Turn back the top to make it a "turtle-neck" top. It fits snug and doesn't let air get to the skin, and thus eases the itching. Good Luck with your problem! :animal-pa :animal-pa :animal-pa

thats a really good idea to pre-treat before vaccines.
Shorty is close to four years old, and this is the first time she showed any reaction to vaccines, so Im kinda confused.
I spent 160 dollars for a 15 mins visit to the ER, and the service was not even that pleasent:mad: I would rather spend 30 to pre-treat by my regular vet who is a lot nicer;)

thanks, she's doing a lot better, all the swelling and redness are gone, and she actually slept through the night, and still sleeping, Im gonna give her some benedryl after she gets up.

You're never over acting when it comes to your Pup....
What you need to know and take from this is that
She is over the danger point

An allergic reaction to a vaccine is a medical emergency
because the swelling can if untreated cut off airflow and
can be deadly

The discomfort and itching though bothersome to you and the pup is treatable and not life-threatening
Watch her .... if she is uncomfortable call the Vet and ask if you can increase her anti-histamine dosage
This will settle as her body washes itself of the irritating chemicals

Glad Shorty is doing better. Scary. There's been some good advice given on this thread. Thanks. I worry about my white Pommie. He has so many allergies. The vet always has me give Benadryl before his vaccinations and hang around 30 minutes afterwards.

Happy to hear that Shorty is doing better!

That was a pretty incensitive remark from someone working in a
ER Animal Clinic. Perhaps she needs to find another job!

Hope Shorty is feeling pretty much like her self this am.


Hugs,

Over reacting. That's ridiculous. What is you skin kid swelled up, and turned red? Would you not rush them to the hospital. I'm glad things are going better.

I took my babies Kramer & Kozmo on Friday afternoon for their big boy boosters. Kramer had a reaction about 30 minutes after. Same symptoms.
His face swelled up & he started wheezing, his ears turned red & got little whelps. I rushed him back to the vet & they used the same protocal & had me pick up children's benedryl. He was still uncomfortable for several hours. And, he was pretty lazy all day the next day. But, by yesterday morning he was his usual playful self. The odd thing is they told me it was very rare for this to happen and, I find you had the same thing happen this weekend.

what a coincidnece, sadly not a happy one.
thats the same thing they've told me as well, very rare that she would have a reaction, usually just sleeply. and since shorty is 4 and has never had a problem in the past, we really don't understand why this is even possible, we've been using the same vet, same vaccine(I think). plus, Shorty didn't start reacting until 7 hours after:confused:

thanks again, everyone. you are always here for us when we need help!
Shorty is doing a lot better with the allergic reaction. she is just kinda lazy and sleepy right now and hasn't shown any sign of itching.
the only problem is, I gave her some children's benedryl this morning(2ml), and she started having diarrhea about 45 mins after, she did not eat anything before, so maybe she has a hard time digesting or the dose is too much for her?
I called her vet and she told me to cut the dose in half and give it to her in 8 hrs, and of course, watch her closely.

The laziness is likely from the Benadryl.
Ellie had a vaccine reaction also and the same protocol was used (although nobody made me feel like I was over-reacting). Goodness, I'd be upset with that.:(

What vaccination(s) did Shorty react to? I would definitely ask the vet if they've switched brands of vaccination. If he got more than one vaccination, for the future never give more than one vaccine with at least two weeks between any subsequent vaccines. There are pre-vaccination protective measures that should probably be done from now on as well.

Glad to hear he a little better today. You definitely did not overreact!!!!