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Aurora_Bell · May 26, 2010, 10:52 AM

Wow your poor girl sure has a sensitive tummy! I can't say for sure, but it almost sounds like indigestion. Kind of like heart burn for humans. I'd be really cautious on introducing any new foods into her diet. Does the fish treats specifically say what type of fish is in them, or does it just say fish?

There is products on the market to help with firming up their poops, look for a product called pet flora (or flora pet, I can't remember :) )

There is no chance of a blockage of some sort is there?

mftaylor2 · May 26, 2010, 01:16 PM

I'm holding off on the treats for now. The only ingredient is whitefish and whitefish is one of the ingredients in her dry salmon food she's eating now.
I do have some powdered medicine from the vet for diarrhea from a previous visit. I may start giving her that again for a few days.
I don't think she could have a blockage. She's been to 2 different vets in the last year and been seen at least a dozen times. They would have checked for that I assume.
She has done this before on occasion (just not to this degree) so I'm hoping it goes away and it's nothing serious.

Aurora_Bell · May 26, 2010, 04:01 PM

Well hopefully the white fish is Cod or another deep sea fish. It's the deep sea fish that have all the rich omega fatty acids. Thanks for coming back and keeping up updated. We worry about the ones who don't ever come back and tell us how they are making out.

JudyKayTee · May 27, 2010, 06:18 AM

We had grilled salmon two nights ago. My GSD LOVES fish and had a nice portion.

She had diarrhea yesterday and my husband and I are fine. My other dog didn't eat the salmon, she's also fine.

Don't know if this is at all helpful but for whatever reason fish gave my dog a problem.

Aurora_Bell · May 27, 2010, 11:12 AM

Is she used to eating the salmon Judy? Or were there any spices on it that may have upset her tummy?

mftaylor2 · May 28, 2010, 06:20 AM

Ok now what?
I stopped giving her the new fish treats but she's still dry heaving. She generally does it over night and morning. It eases off and I don't hear her doing it as the day goes on. Could it be something with her food or the fact that's it's dry food? I give her both wet and dry just as I always have. I don't like to mix them because then she doesn't chew the dry at all, everything goes down whole. I'm also giving her 1 tbsp of plain, organic, non-fat yogurt every day as well.
Judy, I'm giving her the fish flavoured food and no grains to see if I can find out what's she's allergic to. Supposedly fish is a good choice to start with for allergies. She's been on this type for a month now, slowly introduced of course. This is the third food she's been on in the last 4 months, I don't know if I should switch her again yet. I want to keep her on it alone now for 6-8 weeks to see if the allergy sympotoms go away. So far some have lessened but that has happened before with other foods as well.
Back to the dry heaves. Is this something to worry about? Should I book a vet appointment if it keeps up? I just feel like all I do is take her to the vet and they don't really do much.
Also, I seem to be having so much trouble finding her good quality dog food and trying to find out what she's actually allergic to, would I be better giving her human food I prepare myself, such as salmon and rice only for several weeks for example. I'm starting to wonder if she's reacting to some preservative or something else in the food. I use to always give her cooked food plus her dog food because I was afraid she wasn't getting the right nutrition, then my vet didn't agree with giving human food, dog food was better. So we went strictly dog food. Any suggestions or advice on this, and if I keep switching her food is that going to cause her problems as well?

Aurora_Bell · May 28, 2010, 12:37 PM

Is it actual dry heaves, or does it sound like she is inhaleing really deeply, and making a retching sound? (A reverse sneeze)

Dry heaving accompanied by persistent coughing is usually a sign of respiratory illness. Does your dog spend time in the woods? Walking etc...

Dry heaves may indicate that your pet has internal parasites, internal infection, food allergy, bloat, liver dysfunction or has swallowed and ingested a poisonous substance (such as bone meal fertilizer).

It could definitely be something in the food that she is eating that is causing this. You may want to consider the allergy test at this point. Is there a veterinarian college near you guys? How close are you to St. John's Nfl?

Dry Heaves

2labsmom · May 28, 2010, 01:39 PM

When our lab was younger he went through stomach issues, vomiting, diareaha, heaves and itching. He was being fed science diet puppy by the breeder so that is also what we were giving him. Our vet suggested Nature's Recipe, its made for food allergies and his stamach isuues and some of the itching stopped. After a year we put him on Nature's Recipe healthy coat and that helped more with the itching(our dog is a chocolate lab so he is more prone to skin irritations) but then we started putting a raw egg on his food twice a week. Now his stomach and skin are in good shape. I'm not a vet or and expert but just like different people are sensitive to different things I'd think dogs are the same. Just a thought but do you have well or city water and what kind of water was she drinking before? The chemicals or minerals in the water may play a role.

mftaylor2 · May 28, 2010, 01:39 PM

Ok, I've been watching videos on-line of the reverse sneeze, that's not what's she's doing. I can't find any for dry heaving that look like what she does. It's also not kennel cough because she had that last year when we first got her and it's not the same.
It looks and sounds exactly the same as when she gets sick and vomits, except there's no vomit. She'll get up do it once and lie back down, but she'll do it a good 6-8 times through the night and/or morning mainly. It seems like she retches 2-3 times and then opens her mouth to vomit and there's nothing.
I think I'm going to take her to the vet, only thing is I won't get into until next week now. I'm not near a vet college but I am close to St. John's.
She has also stopped eating her breakfast in the mornings now. I feed her twice a day and now she may not eat until late afternoon or evening. I'm thinking she doesn't really like the salmon Canidae because she usually eats in the morning unless she's not feeling well, and those are the days that she has a gurgly belly, vomiting and diarrhea, which she hasn't been having. Is it too much to switch her food yet again, gradually, or should I stick with this one for a while?

Aurora_Bell · May 28, 2010, 02:05 PM

Playing around with her food again, may cause more issues. But it really is trial and error to find a food that will work for your girl. You don't want to wait until this food is completely gone to switch over, so it might be a good idea to switch now.

With the dry heaving I would want to contact your vet again, especially since she isn't eating normally. She is eating something that is upsetting her tummy terribly. The only other thing I can think of would be a preservative allergy. You may want to consider the BARF diet.

mftaylor2 · May 29, 2010, 10:49 AM

Thanks for all the advice, but I just can't go the BARF diet. I'm not fully comfortable that raw meats are a good idea, especially where she's older and has some digestive issues.
I did decide to switch her food again. I really believe she doesn't like the salmon Canidae. She wouldn't eat it yesterday at all, not even later in the day for supper but she ate her yogurt and the canned salmon dog food fine. I tried her again this morning and she wouldn't eat again but when I gave a piece of the new food she ate that no problem. I bought Nutro lamb and rice. I'm thinking maybe the fish is not for her. I have the dry dog food, canned and dried lamb lung treats which I will slowly introduce.
I know it's trial and error but I'm starting to feel like nothing is going to work. I did call my vet and can't get in until next week, unless it's an emergency of course. I'm keeping an eye on her just in case.
I will admit that she's not vomiting, having full diarrhea or having a gurgly belly, but that has stopped for times in the past as well and keeps coming back. Also she just doesn't seem herself lately. The dry heaving has me concerned, the lack of appetite and she's shedding even more if that's possible, and she's still have very wet poops on a regular basis. I did read on a few review sites that some dogs got wet poop and shedding when on the Canidae food so that's another reason I decided to switch from that one.
I'll keep everyone updated on her condition. Hopefully we will have good reports.

Aurora_Bell · May 29, 2010, 10:52 AM

Thanks for keeping us posted. I hope this new food works for you. Keeping my fingers crossed for you guys!

mftaylor2 · May 30, 2010, 10:19 AM

Update for Charlotte:
She was up ALL NIGHT last night, coughing and retching and some vomiting. Now I think it is kennel cough. I took her to the vet and he thinks it may be kennel cough but he did some tests because of her age and heart murmur and says her heart is enlarged as well, but her lungs were clear and blood work was good. She's on pills for the cough and we have to go back later for heart meds. So, right now the allergies seem to be the least of my worries. On the bright side she's on steroids now which should help with some of her allergy symptoms.
Again, thanks for all the advice.

Aurora_Bell · May 30, 2010, 10:29 AM

Oh my! Sorry to hear all of this. I hope she has a speedy recovery. My dog has a heart murmur too. Your poor girl sure is having a rough go!

mftaylor2 · Jun 1, 2010, 12:25 PM

Can they week get any worse?
Had to bring Charlotte back to the vet. She was up 2 nights with coughing but last night she started breathing rapid and heavy. It continued through to the morning. Also whenever she lies down she starts coughing so she wouldn't lie down. She's so tired now she 's falling asleep standing up and then waking as she tips over. She's still coughing but now water is dripping from her mouth when she does.
So the vet says now that it looks like congestive heart failure. She's filling up with fluid and that's why her breathing changed. She has 4 meds to take now and got a shot out there. She's pretty pitiful to see. I'm wondering how I can get her to lie down and sleep. She's exhausted but won't lie down. I guess she finds it harder to breath lying down too. Also she's not eating anything. The meds I have to give her tonight are suppose to be with food. What should I do there? I'm cooking chicken and rice for her to see if that will entice her.
Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Aurora_Bell · Jun 1, 2010, 02:08 PM

I know my dog Lady has a heart murmur, some days are worse than others, but it really affects her when she laying down and when she first gets up. The vet suggested this bed that is on an incline, I made one because they were ridiculously expensive, but Lady won't go near it.

Did your vet say it was okay to give her meds with cheese? My dog always likes cheese. What about another meat product? Like hot dogs or beef? I know you don't want to play around with her food because of allergies, but at this point getting her meds into her is most important.

Michelle, I am SO sorry about Charlotte. You must be pulling your hair out right about now. I am going to post your thread in our chit chat thread, and ask for more help.

mftaylor2 · Jun 1, 2010, 03:12 PM

Right now not worried about food allergies at all. I cooked up the chicken and rice and veggies but she only ate the chicken so I poked pills in that and hand fed her. She wouldn't even eat pill pockets or yogurt which she usually loves. I don't know what I'll do in the morning because she's not usually a morning eater. I'll try cheese if she won't eat the chicken.
Thanks again

Emily94 · Jun 1, 2010, 08:15 PM

I'm sorry to hear about Charlotte :( would she maybe lay down with you laying down? I know you don't want to try the raw meat diet but.. My grandparents dog refused to eat, and she also needed pills, they fed her handfuls of raw hamburger. She wouldn't eat it just out of a bowl. You could try feeding her out of your hand (you may or may not have tried this). I'm really sorry if none of these help but I'm thinking any suggestions may help!
I hope she feels better soon, just try to make her as comfortable as you can (which seems hard.. )

Lucky098 · Jun 1, 2010, 08:29 PM

What has the vet diagnosed with this dog? She sure has a lot going wrong with her...

You said she was a rescue, correct? I hate to say it, but her being sick is probably why she was in a rescue in the first place.

The only thing I can think of is not a very good outlook. My moms dog, who died from cancer of the bladder and kidneys, became a very sick dog for a lot of things. She would throw up food randomly throughout the years. We had her on a special diet for about 6 months and she did OK on regular food afterwards. The vet said she had a reaction to the preservative in the dry food. We thought maybe it was just a bad batch, but after the cancer showed up everything made sense.

Has your dog been tested for any type of cancer? The vomitting, lethargic behavior, not wanting to eat rings a lot of bells. Either her known conditions are effecting her that bad, or its something else.I would almost lean on something else more so then what is going on right now.

I would strongly suggest to test for cancer. Her symptoms keep changing.

I am so sorry your dog is sick, I truly am. I know its hard to watch them wilt and you not having a clue what's wrong. My heart goes to you :(

mftaylor2 · Jun 3, 2010, 08:25 AM

Thank goodness, Charlotte is improving. We've had a few sleepless nights but last night she actually slept in her bed from 1-6am. It was great. We had been lying down with her, but when she'd start to drift off she'd end of coughing or have more trouble breathing and have to get up, but she's coming around.
She kept eating the chicken if I hand fed her so that's we did for a couple of days to get the meds in. Now she's eating a bit more.
I knew she would probably have problems because we got her at an older age. The SPCA did say that due to her age we may just be inheirting someone else's problems. She's 12 now and I'm not expecting her to be perfect health wise, but this was a big scare.
When she gets better from this I think I'm going to start making her food myself. I'd rather be feeding her high-quality foods that I cook myself then commercial dog food. I have to admit that all the horror stories I have read on-line regarding certain dog foods killing or making pets ill did enter my mind when she got sick so fast. Also she doesn't seem to really enjoy the dry kibble very much so from now on cooked salmon and chicken and veggies, etc. I'm going to have to check on-line for good ideas to ensure she's getting good nutrition.
Thanks for all the good wishes