Puppy Diagnosed with Pneumonia
 

My new 2 month old puppy was diagnosed with pneumonia last week... the vet started him on antibiotics on Monday and I've been taking him to the vet to get the nebulizer treatment every day since then. The vet kept him at the hospital each day to give him the treatment 4 times a day and I would pick him up for the night and then take him back to the vet the next morning. When I took him to the vet on Monday, he had been sneezing excessively and had lost his appetite. The vet had to force feed him during the day, because the puppy just completely refused to eat. The sneezing has finally stopped now. The vet did another chest x-ray on Friday to see how my puppy was doing, but it turns out the pneumonia got worse, so the vet changed to some different antibiotic.

The vet tested my puppy for distemper twice, but both times, he tested negative. He was finally admitted yesterday morning and he's been hooked up to an iv since. I went to go visit him today, and they told me he's now eating on his own and he's been eating every 2 hrs.

The vet also gave him a plasma shot. They're keeping him for a couple more days... but can anyone shed some light on what the likelihood of my puppy making it will be? He still has a bit of trouble breathing, but I'm extremely relieved that he's at least eating on his own now... He had stopped eating on his own since Monday and had to be force fed by both the vet and myself. The vet tried to entice him with all sorts of different foods: chicken breast, a/d, milk for dogs, nutri-cal, etc. but my puppy just was not interested in any of them. Now, it looks like he has regained his appetite... he's been eating some a/d every 2 hrs on his own.

This is my first time owning a dog and I just... don't know what to do. I know the vet is doing all he can to help my puppy... but he's so small. I'd be very grateful for any information or advice... Thanks.

Oh, I'm sooo sorry you and your puppy have to go through this:(. I don't have any advise for you necessarily other than maybe look into a second opinion or take him to a veterinary university in your area that will be able to possibly do more for him and if there's something else going on, diagnose it. Hopefully Ellie Mae (I'll send her a PM for you) will see this post an offer some advise (she's in vet school). Good luck, sending prayers your way. You definatly cam eto the right place for support:)

The vet actually brought it up earlier today that he and his colleagues are going to see how he reacts to this new round of treatments and if he gets worse, they'll have to take him to a hospital. I'm really hoping it doesn't have to get to that point. :T This whole ''having to wait and see'' thing is driving me crazy. Thanks for your response though~ My little Riley needs all the prayers he can get, so I really appreciate it.

Do they have him on oxygen? Also wondering, how old was he when you got him. Guess I've lived a sheltered life, but I've never known of a puppy having pneumonia..

Sending get well prayers for Riley.

You mention the vets may take him to a hospital. Are they not at a clinic that has the capabilities of caring for such problems? If that is the case, I would definitely seek other help. During a c-section, the tube slipped out and Fancy got fluid in her lungs they thought if not cared for properly, could develop into pneumonia. Once during a surgery, the tube slipped out and a small amount of fluid got into the lungs of one of my "kids". Fearing it could turn into pneumonia, the vet did give antibiotics, but also ordered her to be put under oxygen. Fortunately, I have a concentrator and was able to give her what she needed at home and all ended well. It is scary, and I am definitely sending prayers for the baby.

Ya know, I was kind of thinking about that, idk if I've ever heard that actual diagnosis either (I worked as a vet tech). I'm assuming there's fluid in his lungs? That's got to be a secondary symptom of an underlying cause. Is your puppy coughing or just sneezing? Also, I hate to say it to you, but 2 months old is too young to be taken away from his mother (with Yorkies and other small breeds it's recommended 12 weeks old) so that leads me to the question - where did you get him? I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it most likely wasn't from a good breeder if they let him go that young. In that case, there's unfortunatly probably a pretty wide variety of things that could be causing this. Hopefully a breeder on here will be able to tell you more, but my first step would be to go somewhere with more specialty in deseases if your vet's colegues don't give you an answer. Good luck, please keep us updated:)

I'm just a pre-vet but have some questions.

What have the treatments been?
Has your puppy been kept in an oxygen cage?
Is this a facility with 24/7 care?
Do the xrays look normal minus the lungs (heart)?
Are they sure it is pneumonia and do they believe it is secondary to something?

If the lungs are looking worse, then your pup needs to be in an oxygen cage at a hospital with capabilities to deal with this.

Rhett developed an aspiration pneumonia when he was about 12 weeks old. Fortunately we caught it early and he responded to just antibiotics and the use of a vaporizer to help thin his secretions.

yes, they've kept him in an oxygen cage since saturday (i'm currently in seoul, korea right now... so it's Monday morning here). they tested his stool to see if he had any worms and the vet said he didn't find any. on the x-ray, riley's lungs came out white instead of black. so far, that's the only abnormal thing they could find. he's been tested for distemper twice and both times, it came out negative. the vet said riley's not completely out of the water, yet, because there's a chance the virus could be in the dormant stage right now. there's someone watching him 24/7 there and they're feeding him once every 2 hrs. they're also giving him the nebulizer treatment 4 times a day. they're also making sure to raise and maintain his body temp, because it's about 2 deg. C lower than it should be. they put an electric blanket in the oxygen cage with him and then using a hair dryer when needed. i'm going to go see him in a couple hours and i'm praying that the vet will have some hopeful news. :(

Sending prayers your way. I am so sorry you are going thru this.

Sophie Kate also had Pneumonia at 16 weeks, it was so very scary. With luck she recovered in about a weeks time but had to have two rounds of antibiotics.

In my case we had the same issue with her not eating the first two days, the good news was once she started eating she seemed to be on the road to recovery.

I am a little shocked about you taking her home at night but I understand if there wasn't anyone at the Vets office after hours (not the case with me, Sophie Kate stayed in the hospital for four days).

Keep up posted and I will keep you in my prayers.

Oh wow, I hope your baby is better soon. Hopefully the new meds will get him on the road to recovery.

2 months old? My goodness, just a baby. He's too young. But regardless of that, poor little guy. I agree with the oxygen cage. Funny I was pre-med and whenever there was a possible pneumonia case for a pediatric, he or she would be given antibiotic dosages in an oxygen tent. So, that, in agreement with Ellie May, needs to be addressed with your vet.

I'm thinking there is more here then simply pneumonia. Like the other posters said, since he's so young, most breeders don't give pups away that young and I"m questioning his previous living conditions that would have possibly attributed to these problems.

Whatever the case, I'm sending prayers for you and Riley. I hope he starts feeling better. Keep your hopes up, and try to see if you can get him to a specialist, or a vet that's all day care. This current vet doesn't seem aggressive enough.


Licks from Gizmo too!
Keep us updated!

Was this pup given kennel cough (aka bordetella) vaccine? If yes, this vaccine can actually cause kennel cough - which can then progress to pneumonia, esp in puppies. KC/pneu can take several weeks to treat in a puppy. Pneu in puppies is very concerning (as you've seen) bc it can be fatal. If you think your vet is not treating this aggressively enough - I'd go to another vet where they have 24 hour care, in case he needs to be kept there.

Really glad to see his appetite is back, as that's so important! Please, keep us posted on this little guy.