All dog health issues welcome

[palehorse]

Hello,

No matter what ails your dog, post the problem here, or comment on other peoples problems with their pets.

This is a relatively new forum, and as such I have only these four forums. I thought it might be a bit overwhelming to have a forum for each breed, but after the community grows I will be breaking it down some. I will be looking for suggestions too when the time comes.

[MiniDoxies3]

I have a mini Dachshund male who is almost 2 and is up to date on shots. He was fine Tuesday AM and was in his kennel with the girls until 4pm when the kids got home. They let him out, he walked out and to the door and was in for the evening however he just sits and stares or walks around moping (kind of like they mope around when in trouble). He whines when you pick him up, he won't eat and he is shivering slightly. The girls are fine. He has a little coughing type sound. No vomiting or diaharrea. We are in AZ so it is not -10 degrees or anything. He just is not himself and we are unable to figure out why or what he would have gotten into as he was confined in the same place as them and they are ok. We will probably have him in to the Veterinarian today if he shows no signs of improvement shortly. Was just wondering if anyone else had experienced this or anything similar. Thanks in advance!!

[sbrmbr92]

My 14 year old dog is having problems getting up and down. It appears it either hurts or his joints are really stiff. Is there an over the counter drug safe for me to give him to allievate some of the stiffness or joint pain. I don't want to give him steriods. I did that with my last dog and it ended up more harm then help.

[clewis78]

Our dog, an eleven year old boxer mix, started acting funny the past couple of days. She wants to go outside, but then doesn't want to come in. She will just sit (even though it is in the single digits temperature-wise) and has to be carried in. Inside, she has become very clingy (won't leave our side), pants a lot, and shakes. Any clues from anyone will help. Waiting for Veterinarian to open to make an appointment to take her in, but would like to hear advice in meantime.

[bitterrootbullies]

Originally Posted by sbrmbr92

My 14 year old dog is having problems getting up and down. It appears it either hurts or his joints are really stiff. Is there an over the counter drug safe for me to give him to allievate some of the stiffness or joint pain. I don't want to give him steriods. I did that with my last dog and it ended up more harm then help.

Ah Ha! Arthritis is my specialty .

Start him on glucosamine/chodroitin. There is a huge variety of brands available on line. I personally like Glyco-flex and Countrywide Pet Supply online is where I've found the best prices. The dosage is on the bottle, and depends on the weight of your dog. This supplement helps repair the cartilage that is worn out as a dog ages. This is a natural product and has no side effects. I even have my 2 year old on it already since he's already had a problem with his knees.
Some people will give their dogs the human brands sold at the grocery store. There is nothing wrong with this, but I've found that the dog brands work better for dogs and the price really isn't much better on the human brands.
It will take about 4 weeks of continuous use before you see any improvement. And the product has to be given every day forever, if you stop using it, the dog will go back to the way he is now.

Depending on the severity of your dog's arthritis, I would recommend asking your Veterinarian about NSAIDs. These are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs so they reduce the pain and inflammation without the side-effects that steroids have. Again there are a number of these, Rimadyl, and Deramaxx are the two most common, but there are also Zubrin, and Etogesic. My Sydney (in my avatar) has used all these at one time or another. She's had arthritis since she was 2 years old and is now 10 years old. Some dogs will have side effects such as stomach upset, but if that happens changing from one drug to another may help. Syd never had any problem with any of them. Long term use of NSAIDs can cause liver problems, but at 14 years old, quality of life is more important that quantity. Regular (6 months to a year) blood tests will help you keep an eye on the liver to make sure there aren't any problems.

There are a lot of horror stories out there about Rimadyl and Deramaxx, but there are many thousands of dogs that take these drugs for years with absolutely no problem. Definitely talk to your Veterinarian about these for your dog, it is amazing to watch them be puppy-like again after they've been so stiff for so long.

Sydney is currently on Etogesic along with another drug called Tramadol. Tramadol is a narcotic and is probably much more than your dog needs at this point, but again with Sydney its definitely a quality of live over quantity of life issue. She's had 9 orthopedic surgeries in 8 years resulting in the nickname "the bionic pit bull" for good reason. She's got more metal joints than real joints. So she is a special case.


NEVER EVER EVER GIVE YOUR DOG HUMAN NSAIDS SUCH AS ADVIL- THEY ARE DEADLY TO DOGS AND CATS!
amanda samantha sydney murphy foster and kipling

[pakfam]

Im sort of a newb with dogs and i got a new puppy and it whines allot and its not really moving allot but it comes out some times but it looks really tierd most of the time it just stays there and while it sleeps it has spasms and i have no idea why i need help

[pakfam]

now its moving around and shaking in different spots and whine
can some one answer me asap im scared

[Whizzy]

More information please. How old is your puppy? What breed or mix? Are there any other symptoms? Does puppy urinate normally? Is it eating/drinking? Have you noticed any vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, sneezing, runny nose? Do you have a fat little puppy, or a skinny puppy with a fat, bloated belly?

One thing I can comment on, though. Those spasms when puppy is sleeping could be shivering because he's cold, or they could be the normal movements puppies make when they dream. When they're dreaming they will tremble, their legs make running movements, their ears twitch, and they might whine, yip, bark or growl. One way to tell if puppy is dreaming is to look at his eyelids. If he's dreaming you can see his eyeballs moving around under the lids, like he's watching a movie or something.

[gailandmax]

hi all...
first time posting
my eight year old maltese just had surgery to remove these stones...he has been taken off his normal food and i must switch him...slowly to either royal canin or hill's pres. s/d....etc...last night i tried the royal canin ..just a bit and this morning..he threw up...

i was instructed to switch his treats to carrots and apples...he won't touch them

i will be trying the other dog food in about two days...

my question...has anyone had this problem and if so ..how did they solve it...the new food will enable the stones to dissolve....

the surgery was very expensive and i can't afford to continually have the surgeries...

btw six months ago he had stones taken out also..they were oxalate...different ones....

thank you...gail and max...

[doggluvr]

i'm very worried about my dog anna. she is a jack russel/black lab mix if you can believe it. she is about 8 yrs old. recently she has been having what i would call panic attacks. for no reason she will suddenly become very nervous, start looking around the room like something has scared her and then she will go and hide, sometimes under the bed or table and sometimes she just hides under our legs. this can last for hours or off and on for a few days at a time. and it happens about once a week. also we have noticed a small hard bump close to the opening of one of her ears. we have made a date with the Veterinarian but it isn't for another week. is there any advise.