Bella has a Collapsed Trachea...does your Yorkie? My poor Bella got the news today that she does indeed have Collapsed Trachea...and I'm sad! :cry2: She's always been a "reverse sneezer"...sometimes we might hear it once or twice a week if she got over overly excited but, last week everything changed. It started out with what seemed like a little cough so, I took her in to see our Vet and he put her on an antibiotic & cough suppressant for the "crud" and told me to check back if anything got worse. Then, she started having these attacks which started out sounding like a reverse sneeze only to progress into a honking chorus which ended in a hacking cough and then they'd just start all over again. This might go on two or three times in a row. I called our Vet who said to bring her back in the next day and until then, to bump up her dosage of her cough suppressant to every 4 hours to help her get some relief. Well, in the back of my mind I've always wondered if Bella might have CT and so, last night I searched here for any threads on this topic only to come across one which had actual video links for each type of cough: Kennel Cough, Reverse Sneeze & Collapsed Trachea. Needless to say, I pretty much knew right away which one matched my Bella. :( Fast forward to this morning's Vet appointment...I jokingly told our Vet as he scooped up Bella for her x-ray that if he found a little toy lodged inside there...I'd be ever so grateful and he was quick to reply, "here's hoping for a little toy horse!"...but, that was not the case. Instead, he came back to show me her x-ray which revealed an area of significant narrowing of her trachea = Collapsed Trachea. The first thing he did was give her an injection of a Torbutrol, a pain relief medication to relieve the coughing. Next, an Rx for Temaril-P an Antitussive/Anti-Inflammatory (Prednisone) medication to help control the cough which she will take every 12 hours. In conjunction with her Rx therapy, she must lose weight STAT or like yesterday...which we had literally started just yesterday anyway. Canidae-Platinum Weight Control was on Bella's menu and she loved it. Normally, if introducing a new dog food, I would have introduced it slowly but, because her serving size was so tiny...I went ahead and gave it to her straight. The only side effect noticed was a little gas...I can live with that. However, her Vet decided to restrict her serving half of the recommended package serving size to speed up her weight loss. Her goal loss is 4 lbs...which will bring her back to a reasonable 9-10 lbs for her frame. He'd like less but, this is a good starting goal. Because activity such as exercise like walks can actually aggravate her condition...this will be restricted for right now till her weight starts to come down and than gradually introduced as tolerated. The only downside I see in this plan is that the cough Rx therapy has a steroid component which could make the weight loss plan difficult since there is the side effect of that drug for weight gain. :( Soooo...here we be and I was hoping to open some dialogue with others with this thread who are sharing the same diagnosis with their lil' furbaby, too. I'd appreciate hearing ANYTHING from anyone who has info or tips to share on this subject. Jo Ann & Bella :aimeeyork |
I'm so sorry for Bella's diagnosis :(. You are so on top of everything though, and your post was so informative too - it sounds like your vet is really on it as well. I have not been through this, so I don't have much to say about it - but are there any other antitussives she could try? Was stent surgery discussed or is now not the time for that? I really wish you the best, and I know you'll get her through this - and with a good vet, you may be able to get her where she needs to be without further intervention. Keep us posted. :) |
I am so sorry to hear about Bella. I have never had experience with a collapsed trachea, I just wanted to let you know you and Bella will be in our prayers! Keep us posted on how she is doing! |
Thank you for your warm wishes... I'm trying to remember who's Thread I saw that listed the "3" different video links for Kennel Cough, Reverse Sneeze & Collapsed Trachea...was that you, Wylie's Mom? If possible, could you link it into this thread for anyone else who might be interested or even questioning which their Yorkie might actually be doing? I had actually just enrolled Bella into a pet health insurance program which would have actually covered this condition IF she had stayed symptomatic-free for the next 30 days and her medical records from her Vet could attest to that...unfortunately, we didn't make that window of time...sucks! Which is another reason, I think linking that thread to this one could actually help someone else avoid the dilemma I've found myself in in regards to insuring their pet before they receive this kind of diagnosis. They say hindsight is always 20/20 and if I'd listened to my gut feelings about what I thought was "reverse sneezing"...I'd have insured Bella long ago to ensure her future care down the road...I hope that makes sense! |
Here you go :): http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/yor...d-trachea.html [and thanks to Dwerten for finding these videos :)] |
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I've been so lucky to have found a Vet who's there for his animals and doesn't see $$ when a patient walks in his doors so, I know he'll lead me in the right direction for Bella's care. I am also a Foster Mom for YTNR and he's been an invaluable asset to me with my Rescues. If he can't do something, he'll point you to who can without hesitation. Still I'm the type that always likes to research something to also be familiar with it. That is why I am especially interested to hear from anyone who's been here or even ended up with surgery...where they took their pet for surgery (University?) and they're feelings with the outcome...pro's & con's. I'm a sponge right now waiting to soak up any an all info...so anyone please feel free to share your story with me & Bella:aimeeyork |
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NO STENT SURGERY EVER - SUCCESS RATE IS VERY LOW :( STILL EXPERIMENTAL IT SEEMS AND WE LOST A YORKIE TO THIS ON MY YAHOO GROUPS -- THERE IS A YAHOOGROUP FOR COLLAPSED TRACHEA - go to yahoogroups.com and do search collapsed trachea and join and they will help you alot - connie on here has a boy rhett with ct - not sure her user name though :( |
CollapsingTrachea here is my friends site on ct and she is involved in ytnr as well :) she will help you just two pounds over weight makes a huge difference as fatty deposit on trachea |
Thank you debbie... Quote:
In my mind, I used to think that Bella was just a bigger Yorkie-girl at 14 lbs. I could never figure out why...if each of my girls got the same amount (1/3 cup) of food twice a day for their meals that somehow Bella was the "only" one in the bunch who's weight has progressively gone up. For snacks, it's usually baby carrots or frozen peas or a P-Nuttier (small) biscuit & not even every day either. When it comes to exercising, Abby & Phoebe will peter-out after a few blocks but, it's always Bella :animal37 who can go forever...and yet she's my "thick" Yorkie-girl...:confused: Well, we're going to stick to the diet and see where she goes from here and definitely must keep thinking positive thoughts for my lil' teapot-girl :aimeeyork |
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Collapsed Trachea Hi Jo ann, CT can be diet and medically controlled...My Rhett has been diagnosed with a severe collapse...his was also due to being over weight....for the last year he has been on 1/4 tab torbutrol and 1/4 tab lasix twice a day....he had to loose 3 lbs...which he did immediatly once we found the collapse...we put him on solid Gold Holistiq Blendz kibble....he was not thrilled at first but he soon realized there would be nothing else so he ate...he is at a healthy 5 lbs now and has maintained it for over a year now....I also use Olbas Oil...I rub it on his throat area when he has breathing problems..it really helps...you can get it at olbas.com humidity sems to be his worse enemy...we use a whole house cool mist humidifier...it is set up in the bedroom.....since his worse episodes seem to be at night....Rhett also has severe corn, wheat and soy allergies and that will also trigger breathing episodes...he however does not have the cough...but does honk like a goose....we have just upped his Torbutrol dosage to a 1/2 tab twice daily as his collapse has progressed...we have not yet put him on any preds...as we are not ready to introduce the steriods into his system.......he is just now starting to get an enlarged heart...that seems to go hand in hand with the CT.....if you would like to talk with me more please feel free to email me privately I would be happy to give you my phone number...I to am with YTNR..... Your little one will do well as long as you get the weight off of her.....Rhett had the honk but never the reverse sneeze...then one day like yours it all changed.....other than his breathing he sems to get tired quicker but has learned his limitations....he is still the spunky, feisty boy he should be at 5.5 yrs of age..... Big hugs..... Quote:
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Thanks Deb.... Thank you Deb...hopefully we can get JoAnn some help for her little one...:animal36 Quote:
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Thank you so much Connie & EVERYONE else for your information & kind thoughts for my Bella :aimeeyork! |
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