Had a scare
 She turned 11 this month, and has been showing her age gradually over the past year...moving a little slower, being a little reluctant about stairs, occasionally seeming a bit disoriented. On Wednesday night though, very suddenly, she partially lost the use of her back legs. She was under the dining room table while we ate dinner with guests, and when we got up to move to the couch, she was stuck down there and had to be helped out. Once on her feet she could stand and walk, but any time she sat or laid down she had to be lifted to get up again. First thing Thursday morning we got her in to the vet. X-rays showed a very small amount of displaysia in her right hip, and a some slight signs of arthritis, but really not anything to explain what was going on. The vet said her weight was "perfect", and that her vitals were very good, especially for her age. He did a lot of tests, most of which had to be sent out...so we wont get the results till Monday, but the one test he went ahead and did in-house was for a UTI...and sure enough she has one (not her 1st, she's for some reason prone to them). So, she's on antibiotics and Rimadyl. Today is Saturday, so she's been on the meds for only 2 days...and its like she's a different dog!  She's cheerful, active, no sign of hesitation getting up, or even climbing the stairs! (Ive put up a gate to stop her now, in fact!  )I'm hoping that the infection is all that's wrong, and maybe we have this licked, but there are a bunch more tests that we will find out about on Monday. I'm scared to death that maybe the Rimadyl is just masking pain, and that there is something else going on. Cross your paws for us please!  |
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 Our fingers are crossed. Hope the tests come out fine. We'll be thinking of you and Miss Abby. Lisa and Frankie |
| The Rimadyl isn't masking pain. It's an anti-inflammatory. My vet has me keep it on hand for just such occasions as you have mentioned....until I can get to the vet. We used it recently for a few days on Isaac when he injured his knee trying to get out of that deep snowbank several weeks ago.. and again for a few days on José when he injured his neck muscles. If used properly & correctly it can ease the pain not mask it. It isn't something I'd want to necessarily put my dog on for long term usage. At least not at this point yet. I try to give them the lowest dose possible & always with food. After a couple of days I start decreasing the dosage. Mainly because my guys have sensitive tummies. Let us know what the test results say. It gets so scary especially when they get this old. |
| Poor Miss Abby. All paws crossed here. |
| It's quite possible that the pain of the infection was enough to make her not want to move, especially if she's not a dog who is used to pain. (I don't mean extreme pain or anything, but if she's been pain free all along then sometimes pain that isn't horrible is enough to make them stop completely. Our Portage was like that...healthy as can be for most of his life, and his first broken toenail laid him up for a week. His brother Theeps had health problems his whole life, and was so tough as a result that I'm sure he wouldn't have fussed if his leg fell off.) Here's hoping it's just a reaction to that pain and all is well (and will stay well)! Sheepie hugs and kind thoughts to you all. |
| Hoping for good news on Abby's lab work. UTI's are nasty things, they can even kill you. |
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| Fingers and Paws crossed. I'm glad she seems to be doing better though. Poor girl. Hugs from us!!! |
| Laurel~~~ how is Abby today??? for good news today!!!! |
All fingers and paws crossed here... and big hugs to you  |
| I hope Abby is on the road to recovery. I'll be hoping for good news. |
| Poor Abby, I hope she is doing better. |
| Poor Abby! Sounds like the meds are doing the trick. As CHSheepdogs mentioned, Rimadyl is an anti-inflammatory that is reducing inflammation, not just blocking pain. Please watch Abby closely while she is on this for signs of tummy distress. Even if you aren't seeing any overt signs, as a precaution, you might want to give her Pepcid AC while she is taking the Rimadyl, to help prevent stomach ulcers. We lost our first sheepdog, Quincy, when he was five years old to perforated stomach ulcers. He showed no signs of any tummy trouble until four days before he died. Though I can't get anyone to tell me with any certainty, I am convinced that Rimadyl and/or Deramaxx contributed to his death, as ulcers are listed as a potential side effect. I am sure that Quincy was in considerable pain, but my stoic sheepdog never showed any symptoms of distress until the very end. (Quincy had elbow surgery when he was 18 months old, and took Rimadyl or Deramaxx, another anti-inflammatory, for arthritis.) If Rimadyl helps Abby, just talk to your vet about adding famotadine (Pepcid AC). It just recently became available in generic form, so it's much less expensive than brand name Pepcid AC. Hope Abby continues to feel better. Laurie |
sheepieshake wrote: Laurel~~~ how is Abby today??? for good news today!!!!She's still acting like there was never a problem! In fact, she's perkier than she's been in a really long time, and keeping her from overdoing is a challenge...she want's to run everywhere, wrestle with Bert, climb and jump all over her people, etc.I'm feeling just awful: how long was my dog feeling sick and in pain, and I didn't notice??? Thank you Laurie, Ill talk to my vet today about the pepsid!  Its still early in the AM here, so no word from our vet yet on the other tests. I'll update when they do. Thanks for all the good wishes! |
| All fingers and paws crossed for Abby . |
| Scary! I'm glad she's feeling better. |
The rest of the tests came back fine!  She's to stay on the antibiotics and the Rimadyl for a while, and then we will have more testing to see how everything is doing. The vet said we could even stop being so cautious about her activity, since it looks like her hips and back legs are actually ok...so we went for a short walk with our usual dog-walk friends, and she did just fine  It's so good to see her being her old self again!  |
| Good news! |
ChSheepdogs wrote: Good news!What she said! Kristine |
| Yes - more good news too!! Hugs to Abby girl  |
| Great news, wonder if it had anything to do with Abby being stuck in a snow bank, I think you posted that happened so likely just a soft tissue nagging problem with the rimadyl will help ease the naggys there. Hoping her UTI clears up quick too, hard when our babies get into that elderly age bracket we do tend to wrap them up in cotton wool as they say but Miss Abby is still a whiper snaper and full of it which is wonderfull to hear. Give your princess a hug from us in upside down land. Go abby life is still full on enjoy princess.  I remember the first time Kelsey went down on me and splayed out on the floor, no fun so sad and scary all at the same time and a hard time getting her up without causing more hurt. Abby sounds ok at the moment for her age. |
That was one of my thoughts too Lisa^^^^(about her getting stuck). She may also have already been feeling weak from the UTI at that time In hindsight, I can remember several times when she seemed to just not be feeling well over the last few months. Poor Abby, you can bet I'll be watching her like a hawk from now on!  |
| Glad all is well....Kathy |
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