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Tommy has had pain episodesl

Margaret C

Well-known member
Since last Thursday Tommy had serious bouts of pain which appeared SM related with increased face rubbing, scratching, yelping when touched or when moving etc. The twitching that had been so well controlled by Lyrica and metacam started up again.
He had no sickness or stomach upsets and his motions were as firm as usual.

Clare Rusbridge was away but very helpful as usual in answering emails & giving advice. He needed to be sedated while the metacam cleared from his system and then we started steroids.
Unfortunately the pain episodes did not get any better, he developed an eye ulcer from scratching and I knew that recent blood tests had shown problems with his kidneys.

I decided it was unfair to continue if his pain could only be kept in check by heavy sedation.

I took Tommy to Cambridge yesterday expecting to return without him. Dr Penny Watson, a leading researcher who receives the pancreas tissue samples from the Cavalier Collection Scheme was there to meet us. She was going to euthanize my boy for me.

On hearing that he had very recently been changed to Hills k/d renal diet Penny examined him, found he had a very painful stomach, and felt confident, despite the lack of gastroenteritis symptoms, that the problem is pancreatitis triggered by this newly prescribed high fat food.
She felt the pancreas pain has lowered his pain threshold and made his SM painful too.

So Tom came home again after another sedative injection, with Tramadol painkillers and another change of diet to be gradually introduced.
Penny is checking the kidney results with my vet. If he does have both pancreatitis and kidney problems then he may need a home prepared diet.

Tommy is still quite heavily sedated and he is still yelping occasionally but I find that easier to accept if time and the right diet hold out the prospect of him getting back to a good quality of life.
 
SM really can be a rollercoaster - but it sounds hopeful that it might actually be something else triggering the increased pain. But what a rollercoaster for you too - preparing for the worst (and we all know how traumatic that can be, even when it seems the kindest thing) and then having a (literal) turnaround. What a good thing the right specialist was there at the right time, and hopefully Tommy will be sticking his tongue out at you for a few more years!

Thinking of you,

Kate, Oliver and Aled
 
How terrible that you had to go through this. I will certainly keep you and Tommy in my thoughts and hope that this new diet change will be just what Tommy needs.
 
Margaret,
Im so sorry to read this about Tommy. You know Im quite close to Cambridge and if you need any thing......anything at all then just let me know.

Fingers crossed that he will improve and become comfy again.

Sending love to you both
Mel X
 
Ach - I started crying halfway through your post. First, just because SM is so cruel, second because of what Tommy (and you) were going through, and third, that you were thinking that you were going to lose your boy. And once I started I couldn't stop even when I knew Tommy was coming home with you! And pancreatitis is nothing to sneeze at - but, WOW, he's home with you for a few more of his dog lives. I hope he gets more comfortable and you are able to sleep tonight. Poor baby - poor you. I've said it before but i'll say it again - I hate SM.
 
Margaret, What an experience to go through, I do hope Tommy improves and that a change of food can help him.
Sending you both love and gentle hugs.
 
Oh god what emotional rollercoaster. You were lucky that you mentioned the change of diet. I just hope that all this will help your Tommy. My heart goes out to you SM is not only painful for our dogs it’s also very painful emotionally for their owners.

You and Tommy are in my thoughts.
 
Thinking of you both xx I know it's hard to hear about yet another condition but it sounds like it might actually be good news in this case.

i do hope you manage to get him settled and more comfortable.
 
Thank you all for your concern.

Tommy is better than he was, he is no longer having the bouts of pain with the yelping and frantic attempts to get onto my lap and into my arms, but he still yelps occasionally when he moves, he is sometimes obviously restless and uncomfortable, so I have still felt the need to give him a Tramadol tablet at some time during each day.

He wanted to come for a walk with the fluffies today and he managed well. He is eating a little fish & rice, or chicken & rice, but does not think much of the tin of Royal Canin's special low fat diet.

This morning, for the first time, his poop was a bright yellow/orange colour, which I understand is a sign of pancreatitis, before today his motions had been completely normal. He has never vomited or shown any sign of gastric problems.

His eye is healing very slowly, but it does seem to be slightly improved. Over all I think he is going to be okay but I'm not able to relax yet.

I just thank goodness that it was lovely Dr Penny Watson, an expert in pancreatic problems, that was available to receive us that afternoon.
 
Margaret,
Im so sorry to read this about Tommy. You know Im quite close to Cambridge and if you need any thing......anything at all then just let me know.

Fingers crossed that he will improve and become comfy again.

Sending love to you both
Mel X

Thank you Mel, I do appreciate the thought.
 
Oh gosh...my heart is going out to you and Tommy right now Margaret. It is all not too fair is it? I am so sorry. I will pray for you and Tommy daily and that you, he and the doctors are guided every step of the way. :hug:
 
:updte:

I have not updated before because I have an almost superstitious fear that by saying how well Tommy is doing I will jinx things.

Tommy needed Tramadol for a few days to control the bouts of pain, but they became less and less severe until he was just giving just one or two solitary yelps a day. I think that was because he was still getting twinges of pain when moving or when being stepped on by the little Chins who do like to join him in his bed.

We had a couple of days of unusual sleep patterns for him when he was taking himself off to lie in rooms away from us all or protecting himself by going behind chairs but that has now stopped. He is not twitching, scratching, paw licking, air licking, his back legs are not shaking and he has near enough stopped demanding attention by scratching at my legs ( the most obvious sign of discomfort with Tom )
He is sleeping deeply, and does not seem restless at all.

He was slow to start eating properly but I think it is because he did not really like the Chappie & Royal Canin Gastro Intestinal Low Fat dry food mixture that is now his permanent diet.

He should not have anything that has a fat content more than 10% of the solid content so I have become quite experienced at reading the ingredients, subtracting the moisture from the total and recalculating the percentage of fat to the figure that is left.

I had to do some research on suitable treats, as I did not want him left out when the others had theirs. Fortunately he likes Tesco dental sticks and their low fat chicken strips. Bonios are also allowed.

Tom was mightily perked up by the fact that Faith, who usually lives with my daughter, came to stay here last weekend. He forgot he was an old man & started propositioning her like mad. It delighted me to see him so full of get up aand go but she was very indignant and soon let him know that she is not a girl like that. :eek:

Tom has always been the sweetest dog and now, of course, he is my doubly precious boy.
 
So glad that Tommy has perked up and responded to treatment.

Over here people are being warned off inexpensive chicken treats, ones made in China. There have quite a few dog deaths. Don't want to alarm you but thought you might want to look at the label and make sure the chicken is domestic.
 
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