Recurring HGE

[tien]

I wanted to post to see if anyone has had issues with recurring HGE. My little one, Napoleon (8yo) has been dealing with this for a while. Back in April he started vomiting with and having bloody diarrhea. We took him to the vet and he was diagnosed with HGE, his PCV or hematocrit was 60%. He stayed there overnight on fluids and was otherwise fine. Now just 2 months later, we are back at it again.

On Thursday morning I took him out before work and his stool was normal. My family let him out middle of the day and he peed and was otherwise normal as well. I came home about 8pm and it was a mess! He was scared to be in trouble but there was diarrhea and vomit everywhere. I took him to bathe him off and he lost control in the bathtub and had diarrhea and vomiting in there too. It mostly looked normal. After I finished cleaning up, I took him outside again to go potty, and that’s when the blood started. It was almost just a stream of bright red and he looked to be struggling a lot.

Thankfully I still had some meds from the April visit and gave it to him with plenty of water and some plain canned pumpkin to try to help. The next more we went to the vet, and this time his PCV/hematocrit came back at 67%! They kept him overnight, more IV therapy, more flagyl, some cerenia anti nausea meds, and we did a pancreatitis work up and some xrays in-case. Everything came back normal, his every seemed fine and he was discharged Friday night with propectalin, flagyl, and Purina EN.

He did fine at home and drank lots of water, ate on Friday night, Saturday, and by Sunday we had soft stool again instead of liquid and it was brown! No more blood.

Suddenly on Monday, he stopped eating. He wasn’t drinking. I had to beg him to eat and hand feed him his food and sneak the meds in. He seemed skinnier and just overall down. By Tuesday morning he still wasn’t eating his food but would try to eat grass outside. I didn’t want to be an alarmist but I took him back to the vet again Tuesday morning to follow up. His PCV is still high, 62%, and this time we did an ACTH stimulation test to see if Addisson’s disease could be causing the recurring tummy troubles. It came back normal, so we don’t have any cause really. I also opted for an ultrasound which we should hear back about tomorrow. I feel at my wits end at this point because I just don’t know how to make him feel better. The vet said his energy was up there and he ate all his food. But tonight he won’t eat and hasn’t been drinking again. Maybe I should give it time but I’m just worried. He’s 8, turning 9 this year. He’s a small guy about 6lbs so I worry if I don’t react quickly, especially with what I read about HGE, that it could be fatal.

I’m boiling chicken and rice tonight to see if he’ll eat any of it, perhaps he just doesn’t like the Purina EN anymore. I tried giving him his usual kibble (Wellness Core for small breed) but he wasn’t having it either.

What are your thoughts? Has anyone else had recurring issues with HGE with their fur baby? Any stories or advice would be appreciated.

[ladyjane]

HGE is frustrating because they don't know the cause...it is also scary. I have a pup who had a few bouts of it. She is now on RC White Fish and Potato kibble. moderate calorie, with a bit of RC vegetarian canned food mixed in. She has multiple problems but that food and meds are finally keeping her stable.
You might want to ask the doctor about changing the protein to see if that helps.

[ladyjane]

Also, ask your vet if sending her blood to A&M for that GI panel they do might reveal something.