Tummy Upsets-Vet Visits -Rosie Update

Hi

I shall cram a few comments into one post .Firstly over the last eight days all four have had upset tummies and have therefore been on a chicken and rice diet with pet Kaolin and Canikur tablets to help and finally on Thurs it all seemed to have cleared so we started to gently ease them all back onto their normal food ,but Pops decided otherwise and at 3.15 am this morning it was clean up and bath time after sloppy poops .And as Poppy ,Rosie and Lily were due their boosters ( only got them because of a condition of Axa insurance otherwise would not have ) we all trooped off to the vets at 8.30 am with no appointment so had to wait a bit .We took Daisy along as well and trying to control all four ,with Luke's help ,in a small waiting room with a parade of assorted dogs and cats was certainly challenging ,daunting and amusing .Poppy just wanted to greet and kiss anything that moved while poor Rosie was fixed firmly behind my legs and Lily was shaking on my lap and noisily telling all she didn't want to be there and Dangerous Daisy was talking, singing and grumbling for the whole sixty minutes we were there while poor Luke just looked embarrassed by it all .The three had there boosters and weight ,eyes ,heart etc and anal glands checked and were all fine and the vet said for Pops that her temperature was fine so to just continue with rice and chicken until her tummy settles down .
Rosie is doing super and is going well on her walks and now I let her walk up the stairs which she does with ease and then jumps on the bed but I still try and control on walks and do not let her gallop after the others ,so no more Races for the time being ,she finishes her Rimadyl and Gabapentin tomorrow, so I phoned Martin at Chestergates twice yesterday as he instructed me to but he did not return either call which I found very bxxxxx annoying considering shes doing so well so I shall certainly chase him down tomorrow or latest Monday for further instructions .The vet today when I mentioned Rosie's patella problem advised to leave her as she is as she is managing it fine yet her boss one of the partners indicted an operation so I am a bit confused here but if we go ahead with surgery it will be when I am off for two weeks at Xmas so a bit of time for more thought on that one .

Brian; So sorry your pups have been having stomach problems to add to your worries about Rosie. I can just picture all of you at the vets. CHAOS!

Glad that only Poppy is still not over stomach woes and hope that you reach Dr. about Rosie.

Heather R

Oh Brian, you definitely have my sympathy. It's bad enough when our one Cavalier has diarrhea (yes, the bathing of the petticoats & tail . . . :grnyuk: are not fun!), so I cannot imagine how it was for you with four dogs.

I hope they are all on the mend. Please give them hugs from me.

I'm so sorry to hear they've all been poorly Brian, that's horrid. I always tell them we're having Whippets in the future when they get upset tummies and I've had enough of washing their trousers and tails LOL

Hope Poppy is full recovered now.

Did you manage to get hold of Martin?

Personally I would still go ahead with the patella surgery for Rosie if it was my dog, having had the experience of Peaches [whose surgery was left for a while on the vet's advice, then one knee was operated upon successfully, her MVD deteriorated dramatically and we were unable to proceed with the other knee and she was PTS at only 7 due to pain and stomach issues concerned with the pain killers ]

Don't forget that the pain medication will have been masking the symptoms anyway





BTW for future reference, always wait until they are fully recovered from anything like this [at least a week] before giving booster injections, the injections are a huge load for their immune system which obviously would be weakened by dealing with an illness anyway.


Also check the terms of your insurance - many have a clause that states they need to be vaccinated according to your vet's advice, which means you should be able to get them over to the schedule suggested in this thread,

http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/showthread.php?35684-Current-vaccine-advice

rather than annual injections which really are too much for them [and which were introduced to make sure everyone took their dog for an annual check up ]

You may also find that your insurance will not cover you for conditions you do not vaccinate against, but only for those specific conditions. IE if they develop parvovirus and you have not vaccinated against your vets' advice, then they would not cover treatment for that, but would still cover for MVD etc.


I have personal evidence [and there is considerable anecdotal evidence] of the effectiveness of homoeopathic nosodes so actually dispute that part but it is up to everyone to do their own research in terms of homoeopathy.

Remember that Chestergates is a referral and emergency hospital and open 24 hours a day, so the duty staff are on-call and often in the building for long hours, and then have days off when they stay away from the place. So if you called Martin on his day off he wouldn't be ignoring you, he just wouldn't know about it!

Glad Rosie's doing so well.

Kate, Oliver and Aled

Hi Kate

Its just me being a bit grumpy and concerned for Rosie .I actually spoke to him 10 mins ago and he did get my messages but he forgot as he was doing a couple of scans .Rosie is fine so he wants me to finish her tablets and just keep and eye on her in the future ,and I will be having her patella operation done as indicated over Xmas.

Thanks for your comments Nicki, Pops ,Rosie and Lily did have their boosters on Saturday as the vet after giving them all a general inspection and checking their temperatures decided they would be OK to have them .After thinking they were all fine yesterday Lily decided she wanted the loo at 4.00 am this morning so it seems the tummy bug is still around ,so apart from what I am already doing is there anything else anybody can suggest.

Treating the symptoms rather than the cause (which does make life easier!), I find a teaspoon of ordinary cornflour mixed in their food does help to firm up what's coming out! When I have a similar problem myself, I find the classic World Health Organisation remedy of lots of water with sugar and salt in it works wonders - but I'm not sure that you'd persuade a dog to drink it!

Chestergates is such a busy place!

Kate, Oliver and Aled

Hi Kate

And thanks for reply ,what I would do for myself is just sips of water only when needed but no food ,But what can I do when the four just sit side by side looking at me ,give them an empty bowl:yikes I couldn't so I think its back to the rice and chicken /turkey .I will have to get some little flags made with their names on so when they all trot outside in the early morning hours they can all put a flag in and claim their own poops so I know I am treating the right Cavalier ,you see I cant go out with them very earlier cos I will either be arrested and jailed or frighten the life out of the neighbor's as I don't wear pyjamas and the security lights could come on with me standing in the middle of the garden wearing absolutely nxxxxxxxx ,what a horrible thought for all .:yikes:yikes

Sorry you have got squidgy tummy problems! Sounds like it is a bit of a stinky problem!

I wonder what your flower cavs say about you!

Hugs and kiss's to your lovely girlies and hope they feel better sooon :razz:

Hi T

Just to clarify as you have been awol for a few days its the girls with squidgy tummy problems or at least one of them ,its not me I am still the same trim Brian ,though when I was in The Timber Trade one of my colleagues used to use the expressions
" Mens Sizes " when refering to clothes sizes and he was a trim 5'8" and 28 stone .:yikes

No offence Brian :fool:

I wasn't suggesting you had a squidgy tummy. I was simply having an idle thought about aromas you may or may not exude and it crossed my mind the thoughts of your girls. Feel free to fill in the thought bubble :jmp2:

HI T

The only appropriate comment is to plead the " Fifth Amendment " and to advise the white flag went up right after my last post .:neutral::shock:

Brian,

I really needed that post. It made me laugh imagining Poppy greeting everyone (thought of Ella) then all the different personalities your four have. Then I can just see your son laying in the chair with his head shaking embarrased. You have a way with words. I am so glad that Rosie seems to be doing better.

ROFLOL brilliant cartoons Tania, Rosie is SO talented [the human one as well as Brian's!!]


I hate it when you get this recurring tummies like this - just keep on with the very bland food, plus something like Diarsanyl or Prokolin paste. IF you do establish it is just one dog, then it might perhaps need further investigations...


Be extra careful with promptly cleaning up poo, sterilising everything used for food preparation and their bowls - including the water one.

Cut out ALL treats and supplements until things settle down - if they must have something give them a tiny bit of human rice cake, they are very bland but most dogs love them.

Have you changed something you have been giving them? I think you are pretty good on keeping the right balance of bone to meat, so it's unlikely to be that. Obviously root veg firm up poo, above ground veg soften it.

It's not really the right time of year, but is there any possibility they've been walking on or eaten grass that has been treated with something?

Have got into something they shouldn't have done?

Have they had something very rich like turkey skin?

This is the most wonderful website with photos of diarrhoea - I do hope you're not eating :grnyuk:

http://www.provet.co.uk/health/signs/diarrhoea.htm

It may give you an idea as to what is happening, and is helpful for giving descriptions to the vet

Is there any really distinctive odour to the poo [beyond the normal! - does it smell like tomatoes or anything?]

If the poo is light coloured, greasy and soft, you *may* possibly be dealing with Giardia - http://priory.com/vet/giardia.htm

Obviously if you are feeding chicken and rice, it's going to be light coloured...but is the rice well digested or can you see grains?


Have they been wormed recently?

Sorry this is turning into 20 questions just going through things in my mind.


If it continues I think you need to have poo samples analysed for possible parasites.

I do hope that they are getting better though.

Brian Your humour always makes me laugh. But I am sorry to hear your four have tummy problems. Hope things improve soon. Get Dawn to buy you a pair of Pyjamas.

Hi Sabby

If we can have a smile during the day thats good ,and anyway I blame Tania for winding me up with those superb cartoons .Nicki thanks for your guidance I have loads to research and its all so use full for the future and fortunately in my Cav medicine chest I do have those products .I have a four tier glass shelving unit and three of the shelves are just full of Cav medicines and assorted teeth cleaning products but am very careful on checking the dates and throw out loads that are there just in case but often never used before the expiry date .After this mornings poop parade glad to report that Lily and Rosie were 80 % solid but collapsed a bit at the end ,Poppy is getting there as there is a distinctive shape to the mass and Daisy was still thinking about it and walking up and down and round and round ( last night she did that for ten minutes the just settled down and had a wee :x) and cant see any grains in any product . So I think tonight will continue with rice and turkey and if they still progress will slowly ease them back to their food as from tomorrow .

Nicki said:

This is the most wonderful website with photos of diarrhoea - I do hope you're not eating :grnyuk:

http://www.provet.co.uk/health/signs/diarrhoea.htm

Click to expand...

Very interesting, thanks!! :yuk:
But seriously, it gives a good indication as to where the problem lies.

Hope the girls continue to recover Brian. 4 portions of poop at a time is bad enough, but when its diarrhoea I wouldn't like to be the pooper scooper!

Glad things are getting better Brian.

Ease them back onto their normal diet with tripe - it's a natural probiotic and I find it very effective!! Obviously raw pet tripe, not the washed stuff from the butchers! Don't cook it - it stinks :grnyuk:


So pleased you liked the website Charlifarley - I'm sure everyone will think I am completely
poo obsessed and obviously beyond h*lp, but I have one for chicken poo too!!


http://chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0

isn't that just even more entertaining? :w**h**id you even realise that chicken poo came in so many varieties?


Sorry Brian slightly OT here but hope it's made you laugh!!

Hello Nicki

Well at least today I learnt something new after reading the Chicken Poo website and I do use it on my garden .

On Saturday they are all off for their bath and groom (every 9/10 weeks ) I would normally apply their Frontline and give them a Drontal/Plerion tablet after they have been do you think its OK to do so or shall I leave it for a week or so .

Do they need Frontline at this time of year? I would only use something like that if there was a major issue - but that's just my humble opinion.

Worming - perhaps leave it a week or so to give their stomachs time to settle down - it works by poisoning the system so might be best to wait.


If you think they have worms you can get a faecal sample checked by the vet.


Glad you liked the chicken poo website