Ava is sick and in hospital again; GI problems

[TLC]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

He is one of my fosters. He has been exhibiting signs of IBD and a fecal showed nothing; so we are trying food to see if it helps. If it does not then we will get into further testing. Maybe once/week or every 2 weeks he will have a bout of loose yellow stools....and sometimes a stool with gelly like, blood. It only lasts for a day when it happens. SO....this is a guess. He has never eaten this food before today, so i cannot give you a review on it.

I had looked at some threads here and saw that many do use it with success and since it also was the one my vet suggested we start with, that is what I did.

I agree with you....and I would NOT use a food that had corn in it...no way. No matter what the vet said. (I would definitely ask him why he is suggesting corn....and ask him about Z/D....I don't like to tell people not to listen to their vet...he would have to give me a good reason for that food...and I doubt he really could) That was the first thing I looked at with the Z/D...if it had corn.

Ahhh...poor baby, reminds me so much of TJ when he had his episodes. You just knew he didn't feel well, he didn't want to eat and had these crazy monster noises coming from his body, then a some point during the day he would poop about 1/2 inch normal then the rest rest would be a glob or orange/yellow muscus. Once this was out, he was back to himself and straving

[TLC]

Originally Posted by ally173

just sent it; thanks for ur help

Got it and I will mail it to you Monday.

I use this measuring spoon Norpro Mini Measuring Spoon Set (The Pinch One)

You can get it online, or I do believe they sell it at Bed Bath and Beyond (which I have a 20% off and $5 off coupon, which I will include for you too), or I read Joann Fabric carries it to.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by TLC

Ahhh...poor baby, reminds me so much of TJ when he had his episodes. You just knew he didn't feel well, he didn't want to eat and had these crazy monster noises coming from his body, then a some point during the day he would poop about 1/2 inch normal then the rest rest would be a glob or orange/yellow muscus. Once this was out, he was back to himself and straving

That is exactly what has been going on with Rookie! I have been suspecting IBD for a while but it was weird because it would happen and then just clear up the same day.

I took a fecal sample in last month to be sure it was not a parasite. The other thing I have noticed is that he passes smelly gas a lot. So.... I kind of put it all together and today I called to run it all by my vet. She agreed that it sounded like IBD, so we are trying the food to see how it goes.

[TLC]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

That is exactly what has been going on with Rookie! I have been suspecting IBD for a while but it was weird because it would happen and then just clear up the same day.

I took a fecal sample in last month to be sure it was not a parasite. The other thing I have noticed is that he passes smelly gas a lot. So.... I kind of put it all together and today I called to run it all by my vet. She agreed that it sounded like IBD, so we are trying the food to see how it goes.

Yup ~ TJ had stink butt too...

We tried the Rx Duck/Potaoe food (for the single protein source), but didn't really help. Did Metro 2x and it didn't help. Bloodwork showed high folate levels, and we finally got him on Tylan Powder (and still doing the duck/potato diet). The tylan is what finally stopped these issues. He was good from 1.5 years old till just this past summer when he was 4.5 years old, and the mucus has started again. He is now getting more fiber in his diet and the VSL#3 ~ so far this is working, otherwise he would have to go back on the Tylan and probably have to stay on it for life.

[ally173]

Originally Posted by TLC

Got it and I will mail it to you Monday.

I use this measuring spoon Norpro Mini Measuring Spoon Set (The Pinch One)

You can get it online, or I do believe they sell it at Bed Bath and Beyond (which I have a 20% off and $5 off coupon, which I will include for you too), or I read Joann Fabric carries it to.

great; thank you so much!

[ladyjane]

This Z/D smells awful. He ate it, but I do not like the way it smells.

[ally173]

ok; picked her up. she's doing fine. the bill was outrageous; don't know what happened over the past few days; but they added $1000 on top of the previous bill. anyway, i didnt have the energy to argue; plus nothing i can do at this point.
as soon as i got home i noticed her ears are very red; and she won't let me touch them. so i am guessing she caught an ear infection. anyone knows if cortisone shots causes this?
i will call him tomorrow to ask; but i think she might have an infection
he gave her prednisone prescription; but no metronidazole; i wonder if he forgot to give it to me.
he seems in a rush and he left the office when i was paying the bill at the front desk.
i am drained at this point, emotionally, physically and financially

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by ally173

ok; picked her up. she's doing fine. the bill was outrageous; don't know what happened over the past few days; but they added $1000 on top of the previous bill. anyway, i didnt have the energy to argue; plus nothing i can do at this point.
as soon as i got home i noticed her ears are very red; and she won't let me touch them. so i am guessing she caught an ear infection. anyone knows if cortisone shots causes this?
i will call him tomorrow to ask; but i think she might have an infection
he gave her prednisone prescription; but no metronidazole; i wonder if he forgot to give it to me.
he seems in a rush and he left the office when i was paying the bill at the front desk.
i am drained at this point, emotionally, physically and financially

I am SO sorry, Elly. Seems to never end for you. I just hope she stays healthy now.

I would call them back and mention her ears...also ask for the metronidazole. What was the extra money for? Had you spoken with him about what the charges would be? I would definitely question it...maybe in a day or so. I can understand not wanting to today, but you need to know where all of this came from.

[yorkielady06]

Just wanted to send feel better wishes to Ava

[ally173]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

I am SO sorry, Elly. Seems to never end for you. I just hope she stays healthy now.

I would call them back and mention her ears...also ask for the metronidazole. What was the extra money for? Had you spoken with him about what the charges would be? I would definitely question it...maybe in a day or so. I can understand not wanting to today, but you need to know where all of this came from.

they gave her a bath and blow dry; maybe that hurt her ears; she never goes to the groomer

i am going to ask tomorrow for the metronidazole; i think she needs it at least in the begining; he gave her no antibiotic whatsoever all this time there; he said he doesnt believe in over medicating with antibiotic

they did give me an itemized bill; and i did ask questions about some fees; adn they seem to have an answer right away; which makes sense but i dont think it's fair

added 250 for extra anesthia; kept her longer to clean the teeth
200 for an extra biopsy site
250 for usign the endoscope a little longer
and goes on and on like this; fees that dont make sense but i have no say; nothing i can do
he already took blood and send for the allergy test; before i got to the office and had charged 200 for that
after paying 3,300 i only could afford to buy 4 cans of food for her today; and that was $10; i will buy more next week if she likes it
no way i can afford another episode like this.

i am going to pull my hair out
i told ava in front of them; now u look healthy and beautiful; but we are homeless. we are going to eat dog food and live on the street....
not funny though, because i am literally broke
i only have few hundreds in my bank


sorry for the long message but i needed to vent to someone

thanks all for ur support

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by TLC

Yup ~ TJ had stink butt too...

We tried the Rx Duck/Potaoe food (for the single protein source), but didn't really help. Did Metro 2x and it didn't help. Bloodwork showed high folate levels, and we finally got him on Tylan Powder (and still doing the duck/potato diet). The tylan is what finally stopped these issues. He was good from 1.5 years old till just this past summer when he was 4.5 years old, and the mucus has started again. He is now getting more fiber in his diet and the VSL#3 ~ so far this is working, otherwise he would have to go back on the Tylan and probably have to stay on it for life.

yeah tylan is the lower dose antibiotic than metronidazole. The duck and potato has white potato which is inflammatory to the intestines

i really think ava needs to be on a hydrolized diet like ultra z/d as that worked for dex but he itched on it and now on hydrolized soy diet and it is working well but not all dogs will eat it. The hard part is ava is a picky eater BUT i think she might be picky because food makes her feel sick after all she has been through and she may be afraid of throwing up

I knew all along this was ibd in small intestines as we discussed as dogs will vomit with ibd in small intestines and have diarhea with ibd in large intestines. I just think ava has a worse case than dex bc she has had quite a few bouts of it poor thing. She may need to be on long term tylan powder.

I would question why no metronidazole

this is the stuff that infuriates me as you spent 3500 and he rushes out the door and does not sit and explain everything and help you understand and go over treatment plan and give you some answers and why i like dealing with women as i think they tend to take more time with things - men tend to be always in a hurry to solve the problem and fix it and less detailed - I just hope i am wrong about this guy as from his website seemed to be on top of it but I am getting upset now with how you were treated after spending this kind of money I know your area and my area are very expensive as my friend lives in new jersey. I just wish you were closer to her as she is really picky and has great vets and internal medicine specialist.

I am so sorry elly you have been through so much with her and I really hope with a good diet she will be on track. The prob with ibd is they can do ok on a diet for a little bit then not be able to tolerate it after time is what our vet said so you are constantly rotating the diets with ibd dogs but luckily purina ha worked with dex and i would have kept him on ultra zd for life he did not itch like crazy but it has worked for some dogs but i will pay for the vet food as it has saved us i think in vet costs - I just hope this works for you and ava

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by ally173

they gave her a bath and blow dry; maybe that hurt her ears; she never goes to the groomer

i am going to ask tomorrow for the metronidazole; i think she needs it at least in the begining; he gave her no antibiotic whatsoever all this time there; he said he doesnt believe in over medicating with antibiotic

they did give me an itemized bill; and i did ask questions about some fees; adn they seem to have an answer right away; which makes sense but i dont think it's fair

added 250 for extra anesthia; kept her longer to clean the teeth
200 for an extra biopsy site
250 for usign the endoscope a little longer
and goes on and on like this; fees that dont make sense but i have no say; nothing i can do
he already took blood and send for the allergy test; before i got to the office and had charged 200 for that
after paying 3,300 i only could afford to buy 4 cans of food for her today; and that was $10; i will buy more next week if she likes it
no way i can afford another episode like this.

i am going to pull my hair out
i told ava in front of them; now u look healthy and beautiful; but we are homeless. we are going to eat dog food and live on the street....
not funny though, because i am literally broke
i only have few hundreds in my bank


sorry for the long message but i needed to vent to someone

thanks all for ur support

did they pluck her ears?

[ally173]

i dont think so; just gave her a bath and blow dry

[ally173]

oh; forgot to mention
he gave her Bene-Bac probiotic gel ; the nurse there told me to give her 1gm per day
but when i went online to check it says 1/2-1 g, 12-24 hours before feeding and 2-12 hours after feeding.
does anyone have better and easier directions

he wanted to give her nutrigest capsule; but i didnt buy it
anyone knows about these products

also he said eventually he want to switch her to NV prairie food
i didnt think that food can be fed to dogs with IBD

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by ally173

oh; forgot to mention
he gave her Bene-Bac probiotic gel ; the nurse there told me to give her 1gm per day
but when i went online to check it says 1/2-1 g, 12-24 hours before feeding and 2-12 hours after feeding.
does anyone have better and easier directions

he wanted to give her nutrigest capsule; but i didnt buy it
anyone knows about these products

also he said eventually he want to switch her to NV prairie food
i didnt think that food can be fed to dogs with IBD

that is a raw diet ???

probiotics are to be given 20-30 min before food and 2 hrs after an antibiotic so not sure not familiar with that probiotics

nutrigest sounds like a digestive enzyme to me not sure never heard of it