Help! Help! Help!
 

Hi everyone! I'm new to the forum and I am LIVID! :mad: I just purchased Kobe last month (he's 3 months), and a couple of days later I noticed he had a dry hacking cough. When I took him back to the vet in SoCal, I was told he had a mild case of bronchitis and in a couple days he would be okay ( I was given meds...Clyminax??? ) Once I brought Kobe to NorCal (I attend school here), he still was coughing. Finally I took him to a vet who really pissed me off!! First of all she's over-priced...it seemed she cared more about selling me products then caring for my puppy! Then she's scares the crap out of me, tells me that my dog MUST have a $200.00 x-ray to check for other stuff while he proceeds to sell me more items my dog "needs". Then the x-ray comes back...nothing wrong with him...so she says the say thing I ALREADY told her...kennel cough. She gave me two meds...one is called Torbutrol, the other Zithromax. The first day I brought him home he started having loose stools and I still didnt think that much of it. Well...it's been almost a week and he's still coughing!! I'm terrified!!! And to make things worse, today when I came home from school he was (and is still) acting strange. Usually when I come home (since he stays in a "play-pen") he goes crazy, whines, jumps, and wants to get out. Well he didnt do that, and when I let him out he just lay down. Usually he runs from room to room getting into everything. Can someone please help!!!??? I love my baby soooo much and I really am scared!!! :(

First off, medication will not cure kennel cough. You could maybe help by putting steam on him. The meds are too much for his system and he's not feeling very well on them. He/she sounds like they are just finding ways to make more money. Find a better Vet., even if it's a holistic Vet. or specialist. Do go the medication way for kennel cough. Your baby needs to gain strength and get healthy so his system can fight off this virus.

Thanxs for the reply! Do you think I should take him off the meds and take him to a different vet for another opinion??:confused:

can you bring him into an after hours emerg vet?? i've seen these things go from bad to worse on here.... i'd get him looked at!

No there isn't one anywhere near here...but I could take him to the humane society...but I wouldnt be able to do that until friday! :( Do u think I could hold off until then???

Awww, poor baby:( For sure get him to another vet, and here's how to find a GREAT one. Post on the general board with "Need Vet in *your town*, recommendation? Or something like that, more people read there and you should get an answer that way. The other way to find a good one would be to go to YTCA.org and find the breeder page for your state, and look for a breeder or three that are the closest to you. Call them on phone (their numbers are listed) and ask for a recommendation for a vet. That's how we found ours, he's great!

I hope your darling furball feels better soon, it's so scary when they're ill:(

I totally agree. I went through 3 Vets already, I'm on my 4th.

So if meds don't cure Kennel cough then what do I do??? He's been coughing since like the 7th of January.

Kennel cough can takes a really long time to get rid of. When Sissy had it, my vet gave her a steroid to help with her lungs. That seemed to help with the coughing. I want to say it was 10 day script where she started with a whole pill, then got 1/2 pills for several days, then down to 1/4 pills. She was on an antibiotic as well. It can turn into pneumonia, so don't play around. Get a humidifier (that you would use in an infant/child's room, turn the shower on hot & shut the bathroom room and sit in their with him and rub his neck/chest when he is coughing to help calm him down. Good luck and keep us posted.

Cali had it when I got her and gave it to my Pom, it took over 3 months for them to get over it. I just had them checked occassionaly by the vet to make sure it didn't go in to pneumonia. If he is acting sick it could be the meds but I would want to check it out with my vet.

Hi everyone! I really appreciate the quick responses and helpful tips! Anywhoo, I called the emergency vet and explained the situation...I was told that one of the medicines is sort of like a sedative so it's prob. just kicking in to Kobe's system. I was told to check his gums (they're pink...YES!) and to not give him his meds tonight...if tomorrow he's back to his normal self again,that means that it is the meds and he's okay. If he still acts funny I'm taking him to the e-vet tomorrow...I know I'm being a worry-wort but Kobe is my baby and I lUVVV him! Plus, he's soooo tiny so I have to be careful with him...he only weighs 1lb 15 ounces @ 3 months! Pray for Kobe please! Thanks again everyone! :animal36

first of all.. you are NOT worrying too much... layla was sick this past week.. just diarrhea and throwing up and i was a mess.. so i understand! and second glad to hear you called the e vet.. always nice to get an opinion.. i'll be thinking of your littte guy!! keep us posted!

I have a Yorkiepoo and his name is Kobe too!! He's significantly bigger than your puppy (5 lbs @ 17 weeks)!! However, he has struggled with Kennel Cough since we got him!! It's taken 3 rounds of antibiotics, but his cough has gotten a lot better. Just keep having a vet that you trust check him periodically to make sure it doesn't turn into something worst.

-lsf

Good luck with getting your puppy in good health, they are so worth it.

find a vet you are most comfortable with and i hope everything is better!

Hi everyone! Thanx for all the support, Kobe and I really appreciate it!! :) Well just to give u guys an update, I took him to the e-vet and they told me to discontinue one of the meds since it's a cough med. and if he has kennel cough that it would be best for him to cough (to get the mucus out) and to just keep him on the antibiotic. Well he's been doing a little better so far: He's not "as" perky, but he's eating more, running more, and wagging his tail at least. But now I'm scared again!!! Just minutes ago he had an accident and his poop looks like TAR!!! It's BLACK with the consistency of jelly!!! :confused:
I literally broke out in tears!! He's just a baby and he's sick and I don't know what to do!! :( I called the e-vet back and they were just soooo nonchalent about it...sigh. Has anyone heard of poop that looks like tar??? And again thank ya'll sooooo much!!!!
Hey LSF!!!: That's sooo funny ahahaha!!! Yeah he is A LOT bigger than my baby! Where did u get the name kobe from??? Are u a laker fan too?? :D

It could be an upper respiratory infection. I had these a few times when my girl was younger and yes they make you feel desperate cause you don't see improvement that quick. I always was perscribed Clavamox but it did take about 2-3 months before it got any better. It a real pain in the butt.:(

Hi KobeWoBe! My husband (who's a big sports fan) names all of our pets with sports-related names. Kobe just seemed to fit perfectly for him (plus he's a total trouble-maker, not unlike Kobe B.) :)

-lsf

Sometimes....antibiotics
 

Can make the stool black and tarry.....and then again....I would still keep an eye on it....

Well his poop is back to normal...so it was indeed the meds! But he's still coughing a lot...sheesh...i'm just wondering how long it will take for Kobe to get better. :confused:

LOL @ LSF...My Kobe is a lil trouble-maker too...and u hit it right on the nail..."not unlike Kobe B." hahahaha :)

everyone has given good advice...but just to say it again.....the main thing is making sure it doesn turn into a pnemonia. bella had kennel cough before i had her and i guess it wasnt taken care of by the breeder and it caused liquid in her lungs, etc. a hugeeee mess!!! keep giving him the anitbiotic, and def a new vet!!! also when bella had it my vet told me to put her in the crate and drape a blanket over it with a little hole at the bottom for normal air to get in so it didnt get too hot and put a vaporizer in there....it reallly helped clear her little lungs!!! good luck with your new baby!! :)

So sorry to hear about lil Kobe, poor guy. I would start him on some yogurt to help w/the damage all the antibiotics are doing to his intestines-I buy store brand strawberry seems to have less sugar. Also the vet that over charged, I would tell her how you felt & that the xray & some of the medicines she perscribed were unneeded & made things worse & that you would like some money back since you had to seek a second opinion when her diagnosis & treatment complicated things. See what she says. sometimes I will just go on their yahoo local listing & leave a review w/my rating of them & experience w/them, So that others know. Keep him bundled up good, I think alot of people get pups in the winter & want to show them off so bad that the pup gets over hungary, exhausted & chilled then gets a nasty virus. Are you giving vitamins? I will be thinking of you -Get well Kobe, spring is coming:)

J & B: Do u mean just a regular humifier?? That sounds like a good idea! Is there a special brand that I should purchase??? And they vet told me to him on antibotics for only a week...should I prolong it??

rachelsyorkie: That's exactly what I did and she laughed at me and told me that she can tell that Im a college student! That "I have no concept of the real world" and that "there's no way Im getting any credits for future visits or a partial refund". :thumbdown But I did file a complaint so thats a first step. And as of right now, I just give him Nutra Cal every morning.


Thanks everyone for your support and prayers!!!! :animal36

i just went to walgreens and bought a 10 or 11 dollar vaporizer. i dont know what brand, but i dont think it matters......i am not sure if a humidifier and vaporizer r the same...but i used a vaporizer....:) i dont know how a humidifier works, but the vaporizer blows out steam, which i really good. kind of like how someone else suggested the steam from a shower.... i tried the shower thing, but bella was so little, and even when i closed the bathroom off i still felt like she wasnt getting enough steam.....

yea i reccomend the humidifier especially since norcal can get dry in the winter (i went to school up in norcal too, ucd) and even drier if you the heater on in your apt/room. and be sure to keep him warm. I read on here before using a bottle of hot water wrapped in a towel, heat pad, or heat lamp. my guy has CT so he coughs a lot and these are the things that I do.

poop thing meds, but do keep an eye out .. esp if it start to be diarrhea, the little guys dehydrate easily. good luck and keep us posted!

Yeah that's a good idea! It is very chilly for me up here (im originally from sunny socal) so I keep the heater on all day pretty much, and I know that I get bothered after awhile with breathing and stuff. I will buy one and keep everyone posted! :D