[Dori]

Hi Akari. Sorry to hear about Ginger’s fall. She’ll need taller steps if she’s going to be on your mother’s bed. I have to have a four step stairs by our bed for the girls because the bed is so tall. Three step stairs I have by the different sofas.

Reason for my post to you is that I want to make sure that you do not have to feed her a breed specific or size specific food. They are pretty much marketing ploys and probably could be more expensive than a regular All Life Stages Food. I’ve never fed any of my toy dogs a toy food it’s really not necessary. Feed her a good all life stages food and add glucosamine/chondroitin to her diet once a day. They are chewable and you should not give it to her in her food as it loses some of its efficacy. Just give it to her as a treat sometime during the day or evening but a few hours in between a meal. Also, even if you buy a food that says it contains glucosamine/chondroitin it does not contain enough to really be of any substantial benefit to a dog suffering from arthritis, old age, accidents, joint issues, etc.

[Akari_32]

When I put the steps in moms room, I put them to the night stand. They are the same height, but the night stand provides Ginger and Bentley that extra room to get up on to the bed, rather than a shear drop from the bed to the stairs. Moms bed is 31 inches tall, which we couldn’t find any stairs to reach, so we decided the night stand was a good height. It is for Bentley, but just a bit too tall for old Ginger. I’ll be finding a rug and a bit of 4×4 to make an extra step on the night stand, and make the surface non-slip (again, not a problem for Bentley, but a problem for Gingers short little legs and old bones).

I actually bought the Toy Breed for my almost 12-year-old, 60 lb retriever mix, Haley, because it’s high in calories, and she doesn’t like to eat much. Got a bunch if 2 and 4 lb bags free with coupons, along with the Wellness Senior cans :p Having only $10 a week budgeted for now three dogs (12, 60 and 130 lb), a cat, and various fish and reptiles, I’m oportunistic with my pet food coupon deals (but not so much so that I’ll buy food of questionable quality– I still have standards, which works out for me with the great Wellness deals I get). I typically buy puppy foods because of Haley, but the protein and calories on this line were where I wanted them for the most part, and is figured variety is the spice of life LOL

Also, the small kibble size seems to be working well for Ginger because of her teeth. They are just so gross, and I imagine they hurt to some degree. I don’t think this dog has ever seen a bone of any kind in her life. I do plan on seeing how she does on other foods I’ve got stashed away that have larger kibble sizes though. I’ve got one 6lb bag of Pro Plan small breed puppy (only cost my 3 bucks!) and about 15 lbs of Nutro Natural Choice puppy that all have larger kibbles (and of course my bunches of Wellness Toy Breed lol). I’ve got some EVO in the freezer, but those are like as big as her eye, so I think that’s out of the question…

[Akari_32]

Just giving you guys a little update.

I took Ginger to the vet with me this morning and we did a urinalysis on her, and the vet did an over all general exam. Despite her nasty teeth, and the good 10 or so fatty tumors, she’s in good health. We did what we could through a make-sift muzzle with her teeth (we used a bit of gauze tied around her mouth as a muzzle so we could get at her teeth with out her biting, and “cracked” off what tartar build up we could), and her pee came out looking good. The tech said one day, when I’m rich and famous, I should get her teeth done for real, but we both know thats pretty unlikely lol

I was concerned with a kidney problem because she had pee’d just straight water last week on the floor, and I can’t ever see how it looks in the grass obviously, but the tech didn’t find anything suspicious in there today, and I’m not going to pay for blood work if we don’t need to do it. If it persists, then I’ll worry about it, but she seems fine, and going off what I’ve told them, they don’t seem worried about it either.

When we were doing her teeth, she started on one of her canines, and said it was too loose for her to feel comfortable with doing much to, and that it would likely fall out some time soon. And poor Ginger just cried and cried when we were done with her teeth. Hopefully getting some of that junk off her teeth will make her mouth feel better, though. I’ll give her all canned food tonight so she doesn’t have to crunch on the kibbles.

Anyways, she’s as healthy as she’s going to get at the moment, which is good. I’m looking into some joint supplements, and hopefully that’ll help with her biting when getting picked up, once those start to kick in, and help relieve some of that pain, as well. The vet sent me home with a script for chewable amoxicillin to help with her mouth situation, and gave me two refills for when its starts getting bad again. Free antibiotics is the best I can do for her teeth and mouth at the moment and he knows it. If we were to do anything beyond that, it’d be knocking her and pulling all her teeth (or at least a good majority of them), which I can’t afford, and would like to avoid if possible, anyways lol At this point, he’s just happy to see her in a home thats caring for her, and I’m sure Ginger feels the same way.

[Bobby dog]

Very nice update! So glad you got her in for an exam and to care for her teeth. You really should give brushing her teeth a try. Sometimes it’s easier than you think it would be. I used to brush this grumpy old Chi mix’s teeth for a friend of mine because she was afraid of being bitten. You would imagine she would bite your hand off as grumpy as she was, but it was just the opposite she would just try her best to taste every bit of the paste.

When my JRT reached her senior years I just gave her some of my horses joint supplement. Joint supplements are expensive and it’s cheaper that way when you have a zoo. I use mostly Uckele and the Natural Vet products, some Vita-Flex and Select the Best also. My favorite supplement for my entire zoo is MSM. Pure MSM is very cheap to buy at tack shops or feed stores. I would look for a supplement with glucosamine, MSM, chondroitin, and hyaluronic acid (HA). Devils claw and yucca is good too.
http://equine.uckele.com/Canine/joint

Here’s a brief article on herbs for animal arthritis:
http://www.animalwellnessmagazine.com/articles/top-5-herbs-for-arthritis/

[Akari_32]

I’m not sure how cleaning her teeth would go. Perhaps once the antibiotics are done, and her mouth isn’t as painful I will try with one of the human tooth brushes laying around in the bathroom (before buying all the doggy stuff). I’ll see how a plain toothbrush goes over, but I don’t have very high hopes LOL

I did find a glucosamine supplement that I really think is doing very well for her. Its just the Publix Greenwise brand, but its 1000 mg of Glucosamine and 500 (?) of MSM per three pills. I’ve breaking one pill a day open for her. She’s definitely got more spunk in her, and seems to be less grouchy when getting picked up. I took Bentley to get his rabies shot today (yuck!) while I was doing my internship, and forgot to bring my money so I brought him home and switched him out for Ginger and walked back to pay, and she basically ran and bounced the whole way. She was literally acting like a puppy most of the walk, its was so cute lol At one point, she stopped to sniff something that must have been extra good because it took several calls and leash tugs to get her attention, but once I got her attention, she did that crazy everything-is-just-so-exciting-I don’t-know-what-to-do-with-myself sideway bouncey gallop that puppies do LOL Crazy dog XD She’s still limping and sore, but she’s in really good spirits. Most of the time she sleeps, but when she’s awake and moving, half the time she’s running (which is actually an awkward little hoppy thing LOL).

Oh, and I was really mean and tested her today. I was eating mac and cheese on the couch (you know, like an adult *roll eyes*) and she hobbled up the stairs and was trying to get a treat out of me. I told her no, and she stayed over on the far end, so I put my empty bowl down, right in front of her, and wouldn’t let her touch it. She was so good, just waiting patiently, looking at me like “can I lick it yet?” I didn’t let her have any, because she either pukes, almost pukes, or gets explodey butt after eating people food, but you know lol

[Bobby dog]

Awwwwww! That’s good news. I am not sure joint supps kick in that fast, but without a doubt the grooming, dental care, and antibiotics are making a positive impact to her quality of life. Love and attention from a new family (and the annoying Bentley) can’t hurt either! I was just trying to get some info together for the cat thread. So be on the lookout. 😉

[Akari_32]

We started the glucosamine over the weekend. Not sure how quickly they take to act. She’s been on the antibiotics for 5 days, as well. I can’t help but wonder if she still had a bladder infection from before I got her, because she never finished her antibiotics then. For sure with that cleared up, she’d be feeling 1,000 times better.

Tonight she was eating (pretty quickly, but it really shouldn’t have caused a problem) and she just started choking and coughing and “reverse sneezing” (as the vet calls it— not sure if that’s a real thing or not lol), and she almost threw up. I’m glad she didn’t, because I hate cleaning up doggy puke. Little brat tried to go into my room on the carpet, too! Thankfully she doesn’t walk very fast, especially not when she’s hacking her guts out. Anyways, the whole episode lasted a good minute or so. She was also snoring very loudly when she was taking her pre-bedtime nap, and it didn’t really sound too great. It was real gurgley. She also does that reverse sneezing thing when she gets stressed. Just something else to keep an eye, I suppose.

[Bobby dog]

Bobby reverse sneezes every now and then; they have videos on Youtube of dog’s doing it. I posted a video of a dog that reverse sneezes like Bobby on one of Naturella’s threads about Bruno recently. Dr. Becker has an article about it and a video with a dog reverse sneezing too.

[Dori]

Oh Akari. I’m so happy that Ginger is feeling a little spunky now and then. Definitely feeling better health wise and also feeling lots of love. How sweet to hear about the changes in her. Love these type of stories. I know she’s a senior so it’s extra special that she gets whatever time is left to be in a real family situation with love and kindness. Love that she’s acting like a dog sniffing around on her walks. Good for you to put the time in with her.

Hannah does the reverse sneezing thing. Actually she’s been doing it for years but more so in this last six to eight months. With her it’s a bit of a trachea issue (toy dogs get that a lot) and reverse sneezing due to weather. She was doing it a lot in the Spring then it stopped and now it’s recently started again with the Fall weather. I think aside from the trachea collapse issue is that since she’s so small and always sniffing everything on the ground that it’s her more trying to clear her throat. It always stops on it’s own. She’s never thrown up. Sometimes when it goes on longer than I’m comfortable I pick her up and take her outside really quickly just to distract her. Other times I’ll life her up and blow into her nostrils and that has also stopped it immediately. Other times I’ve gently rubbed her throat area, that stops it too.

Excitement type stress can cause it also, almost like they get so excited then just can’t contain themselves. As to the snoring, most dogs as they get on in age will snore. You wouldn’t believe how loud Hannah snores sometimes. Between her and my husband’s snoring I’ve actually taken my pillow and slept on the sofa just to get some piece. Not sure which one snores louder. It’s funny but not so much at 4 in the morning.

[theBCnut]

Angel does that nasty cough from tracheal collapse any time anything touches her throat and reverse sneezing about twice or 3 times a year.

[Bobby dog]

Here’s a link to the thread where I posted a Maltese reverse sneezing and to Dr. Becker’s site discussing it. It’s towards the bottom of the page:
/forums/topic/cooked-bone-problem-please-help/

Bobby only seems to do it when he’s running around the house all excited then runs up the stairs and jumps on my bed. It doesn’t last long; he isn’t bothered by it and resumes his activities afterwards, I just wish he didn’t do it.

[Akari_32]

That’s similar to what Ginger does. Only it’s much more exaggerated and she sucks her gut in so much that she’s all ribs and bones, and they last longer, like several seconds each time, and whole episode lasts for a minute or more. Hers seem stress related, though what set her off last night while she was eating, I couldn’t say. Just got too excited, or maybe inhaled some food or something. Either way, the whole situation bothers her. Could be her dementia that causes her to be bothered by it (confuses her, maybe?), or could actually be bothering her in some way.

I just took her out a little bit ago, and she squatted to pee, but I don’t think she actually did anything. Not sure if its a behavioral/dementia sort of thing (like the vet tech I’m shadowing thinks her excessive drinking is, based on the uninalisis not turning up anything) or if there’s something going on that couldn’t be picked up by the uninalisis. Something to tack on to my list of things to watch. Hopefully she was peeing and I’m just taking her out so much that she only went a little bit. God, I hope that doesn’t turn into anything serious >.<

[Akari_32]

Popping in for an update! Gingers been doing really good as far as health and peeing. I’ve been unable to walk her since just before I started her on glucosamine, and it seems to be taking a huge affect on her mood. She’s been grumpy and restless at night, and has gone after both Bentley and the cat on two separate occasions (both at night, in dim lighting). I took her on her first walk in a while last night, and she was so excited she ran pretty much the whole way. We just went around the block because it was about to storm, and it actually poured just minutes after we got back, but it was something, which is better than nothing.

I finished my day off at the vets with bringing Ginger in for a check up because I’ve been worried about her hips. Some times she’ll just be standing there, and her back leg will just give out. Vet checked her out and said he could feel some arthritis, but no hip, knee, or back problems. He just guesses that she puts her leg in a position where after a while it starts to slip inwards and once she starts to fall, she’d rather just fall than scramble to catch herself and the arthritis hurt because of the sudden movements. Her reflexes were good and everything, and we didn’t even muzzle her and she didn’t snap at him or anything out of pain, so as long as she’s not bothered by it, I’ll just leave her be. She’s been in great spirits other than being antsy and grumpy at night, and she ran to and from the vet today. He’s surprised at how well she gets around at her age and with the care (or lack of) that she was given before I got her.

All that said, I think her aggressive reactions toward things really are just learned for the most part. Who knows if I’ll ever recondition her to not tense up and sometimes bite at being picked up or touched in certain places. But I can safely pick her up with out getting bit when she’s grumpy, and that’s all that really matters. I just don’t pick her up if I don’t have to. She goes just about anywhere when guided on leash, so I tend to use her leash to get her down from places and out of her comfy spot on my floor.

So over all, she’s doing really good, and I’m very happy with how much she’s come along. I especially love that she runs on her walks and has so much fun on them 🙂

[Akari_32]

So I’m transitioning Ginger on to the newest mix of food: 8 lbs of Nutro Natural Choice Wholesome Essentials Puppy, 4 lbs of Nutro Natural Choice Wholesome Essentials Young Adult, and 6 lbs of Purina Pro Plan Small Breed Puppy, all mixed together evenly and shared with Haley and Dweezle. She doesn’t like the larger, Coco Puff sized pieces of the Young Adult. Spits them out. Its not a “This hurts my mouth” for of spit, its a “what the crap is this garbage??” sort of spit LOL She only spits it out when she gets to the end of her meal and slows down to have to work at the stuff stuck to the bottom of her bowl, so at least she doesn’t pick through her whole meal (Bentley used to do that, the little brat). The Small Breed Puppy is obviously nice small pieces, and the Wholesome Essentials puppy is about the size of a dime, and flat, so both of these she eats just fine.

Also, I think I’m making head way on getting her comfortable with being picked up. Since Tuesday, I’ve picked her up several times, both awake, and just woken up, and she’s only once protested mouthily (thats a word, right? It is now! LOL), and really she didn’t even try to bite me, it was more mouth open, and head turned back a little, like she was ready if she thought she needed to. She wasn’t happy, but she wasn’t going to outright protest it. So, I’m very happy with that! She even seems to enjoy being held, at times, as well. And I’ll rub her cheeks and ears and she’ll put all her weight on my hand as I scratch– its so cute lol And she’s been in really good spirits during the day, despite being extra grumpy at night. Not sure what the night-time grumpiness is all about, but I’ll take the running through the house, and the coming over for pets when I put my hand down, and face-to-face, tail-wagging greetings with Bentley (he’s really obnoxious, but she’s learning to accept that, and even like him, even if its just a little bit! LOL)– that last one in particular makes me pretty happy lol

I’ll be leaving friday and not coming home till monday for a cruise, and leaving the dogs and creatures in the combined care of my room mate, sister, and neighbor. This is apparently how many people it takes to do what I do for my animals every day for the weekend LOL I hate to leave them, especially Ginger, but the tickets are past their fully refundable date, and its the wedding of a very close family friend, so I’m obligated to go lol It’ll be fun though! So if you guys don’t hear from me, thats where I’ll be. I’ll have my phone, though, so maybe I’ll be able to internet from my phone… :p

[theBCnut]

Yes, mouthily is definitely now a word!!

Does she have vision issues? That’s the first thing that comes to mind when I hear about a senior being grumpy at night. She may need time to realize it’s you and not some unruly strange dog. Try putting your hand right up to her nose first when you approach her so she has time to realize it’s you before you pet or pick her up.

The kids will be fine for the weekend and they will appreciate all you do for them even more when you return. Have a great time!!

[Akari_32]

Oh good! My computer doesn’t think so lol

Yes, she’s got just a little bit of cataracts going on. She’s fine during the day, and in bright enough light, but it took a good two weeks to get her to even go pee outside at night. Thats some of her problem, but I think she really just needs her beauty sleep, as well. Her best moods are when she’s just woken up, or when anyone has food lol She’s fine with any human contact in the dark and when she’s sleeping, but she doesn’t want the other animals around her in the dark, especially when she’s settled in and trying to sleep. I wonder if the dogs she used to live with bullied her into giving up her spot or something. Other than that, she’s been doing great. I don’t pick her up if she’s not aware of the fact that thats what I want to do. She usually runs at first if she’s on the floor, or kind of recoils when she’s on the furniture, but she’s learning that its really not as bad she makes it out to be. She’s a bit of a drama queen– you should hear her when she wants to be let out of my closet LOL

Thanks Patty! It should be fun 🙂

[theBCnut]

I haven’t met a Dachshund yet that didn’t learn that the best way to get their own way was to be a drama queen. She probably was bothered and possible even hurt by other dogs, so she feels a need to be defensive.

[Akari_32]

Too bad for her being a drama queen doesn’t get her anything except a squirt in the face with the cats spray bottle LOL I guess she won’t ever grow out of it if it’s a dachshund thing to begin with. Oh well, I kind of like it. Her braying is a heck of a lot nicer to listen to than Bentleys squealing and yapping when he wants let out of his cage XD

[Dog_Obsessed]

Just found this thread, and I just wanted to say THANK YOU for taking in a senior pup! I have volunteered with a local senior dog rescue, and I just love the oldies. There is also a great Facebook page called Susie’s Senior Dogs, that posts senior dogs up for adoption along with success stories and resources: https://www.facebook.com/susiesseniordogs

One question for Dori about the glucosamine supplements, I give the stage 1 version to Lily for mild luxuriating patella. I did not know that it was good not to give it with food, is that only for advanced care? Thanks!

[Naturella]

Just to throw that in there – I heard my name and Bruno’s by Bobby dog – and I think what happened to Ginger was reverse sneezing – nothing crazy, although Bruno also looks very miserable while doing it.

And props on saving Ginger – I’ve been reading this thread since the beginning and you’re doing a great job on her, Akari! 🙂

[Akari_32]

Aww thanks guys! ^///^ I couldn’t just leave her there to be put down after the vet couldn’t find her a home in three days. He was thrilled when I told him mom wanted to keep her.

I’ve heard of that group! Should have known they had a FaceBook page lol I’ll go check them out 🙂

She’s starting to do that reverse sneezy thing more often, and with no provocation. She did it twice the other day for no reason! I don’t like it :/ I mean, at her age, and state of over all health, there’s really not much we can do about anything that isn’t immediatly life threatening or anything that may cause more harm than good. I’ll have to look into it and see what the Internet has to say. I’d love to ask the vet I’ve been interning with that’s seen her for the last year and a half, but I just got an email that they closed over the weekend 🙁 I can go back to my other vet (been going there for… 15+ years?) but not until I decide if it’s something that needs attention or not, because I don’t have the money for it >.< Besides that, he doesn’t know how demon-ish she can be lol

Anyways, we’re on our way home from the port, and I can wait to get home and snuggle all my babies :3 Just a few more hours!

[theBCnut]

Some dog do the reverse sneezing because of the cool dry air.

[Akari_32]

It’s still in the 90’s and humid as crap here.

[Bobby dog]

Akari:
Welcome back! 🙂 The Vet you were interning for is closed for good? Or just over the weekend?

[Akari_32]

Heya, Bobby Dog! I’m Happy be off that stupid boat. There’s nothing to do on the ship if you don’t drink, and I can’t even stand the smell of alcohol. I sat in the room most of the time and read the first book and half of the Harry Potter series, and played a good 1/4-1/3 of Pokemon X (one more gym and the league to go!). In three days…. LOL Night before last I did eat an entire pizza by myself, though. That was quite the accomplishment XD Wasn’t bad for frozen cruise pizza :p

They closed down for good. They bought the practice from a terrible vet, and filed a law suit against them and everything. They were actually doing pretty good, but all the legal crap from the other vet dragged them down. Plus he wasn’t a very good business manager and bought equipment they didn’t need and stuff. All in good intention, but you can’t do that when just starting out, and under a bad name already, at that! He did a great job with his clients, though and most of them will follow him wherever he goes. I probably will if I ever figure out where he’s going next and he’s close enough! I really did like him. He’s very nice and cares so much about his patients and their owners. Turns out, the crappy vet is coming back. I will tell everyone I know not to go to that place! I did not like the reviews I read about him on line. Not a single good word has been said about that guy!

So after some looking around, her reverse sneezing probably an allergy thing (she normal sneezes when we go out side, but not inside other than a few little huffs every now and then) or her breathing in random stuff due to her small size. Everyone is having terrible allergies around here right now, and even Bentley on his no-carb raw diet is back to chewing his feet and itching. I’ve been living on sudafed for the last three weeks, even lol Anyways, I guess it’s not something to worry too much about. Still don’t like it, though…

[Dori]

Akari. I’m so sorry to hear about the vet’s closing or whatever. Mostly because you are losing your internship. What will you do about that part of your education? Really am sorry to hear about this for you. Soooooooo glad you were able to bring Ginger home before any of this happened otherwise who knows what would have happened to Ginger. Again, Ginger is so lucky that you came in to her life. Timing?? It’s everything.

BC. Hannah has doing the reverse sneezing, trach opening attempt, for most of her life but in the last three or four days she’s doing it more often than not. I’m getting concerned because it’s no longer a dry sound. It’s beginning to sound to me very phlegmy. I’m wondering if it has coincided with the Himalayan Dog Chews that she is obsessed with. I took it away and hid them all and see if it clears up. Mind you Hannah has never been allergic or intolerant to anything ever in her entire 15 years of age. Or do you think this warrants a vet visit? I don’t mind taking her to the vet if you think I should. I don’t have an issue with funds and the vet is literally caddie corner to my back yard. Thanks for any guidance you can give me. Her reverse sneezing and attempts at clearing her trachea have never once scared me, it’s part of having toy dogs BUT…..this is causing me some concern because of the phlegmy sound.

Anyone else that wants to chime in I’d welcome thoughts.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Dori.

[Akari_32]

It does suck 🙁 I really loved working with the staff and I learned a lot. I do believe that everything happens for a reason. Had I not been interning there, who knows what would have happened to Ginger. She’s such a sweet girl, but like me, you just don’t cross her lol Probably why we get along so well! We’re both naturally vicious :p

Thankfully, my 40 hours needed for school are long gone, but I would still like to remain in a vets office and getting experience while I wait on being excepted in to the vet tech program. I actually checked on the program admission last week or so, and it’s only online right now for next semester, and I’m not taking important, biology type classes online. Noooo thank you!

Thankfully Ginger still makes dry sounds when she does it, so I wouldn’t be able to tell you anything. Let me get some links I just looked at, for you. Maybe they’ll help you some.

[Dori]

Thanks so much Akari.

[Akari_32]

Here you go!

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/12/03/reverse-sneezing.aspx

[Dori]

Thanks for Dr. Becker’s reverse sneezing thread. I’ve seen it before and that’s typically how Hannah sounds. I’m used to it with her since she’s always done it but the last couple of days or so the sound is much much different. She doesn’t have a runny nose or eyes or anything. It’s like I can hear the phlegm now when she’s doing it. That’s my concern. I’m wondering if it’s some sort of intolerance to the Himalayan Chew even though she has never had an allergy or intolerance to anything. This is very puzzling.

[DogFoodie]

Hi Dori,

Bella, my Cavalier, does the rare reverse sneeze. She also sounds very congested and has for a few months now. She can be a very noisy breather at times. I took her to the vet recently to get her checked out because I worry about MVP and CHF since she’s a Cavalier, but the vet said that her chest and heart sounded fine. Because of her heavy snoring, she was checked, under general anesthesia, to see if she needed a palate resection; but her airway was clear, and she thankfully didn’t need it. She was sitting on my lap last night and doing some snoring and when I lifted her up, her little nose was running (clear, thin discharge). I’ve been giving her half a Clairitin daily, but so far, it hasn’t made much difference. Bella has, and has always had, watery eyes. I feel like it’s something that’s being aggravated by an enviornmental allergy, but to what?

[Akari_32]

Not Dori, but it could be pollen, dust, dander from other animals… You’ll probably never really know unless you get her tested. Ginger’s heart and lungs also sounded good when we went to the vet last week, but doesn’t appear to have a runny nose like your Bella does.

Appeareny dogs with squishy noses (like Cavaliers), or very long noses (like Dachsunds) are more prone to reverse sneezing.

[Bobby dog]

Sorry your Vet closed, but at least your internship was completed. Hope he opens up a place near you in the future. 🙂

[theBCnut]

Hi Akari, are there classes that you can go ahead and take to get out of the way? When I went through the vet tech program, there were a few regular classes that I did ahead of time and then I didn’t have the 18-20 credit hours that some of my classmates had. On the east coast of FL, we actually had 2 cool dry days. I got giddy! But, yeah, the heat and humidity are back in full force. It has been a really bad year for allergies and asthma.

Hi Dori, if the sound of her normal reverse sneeze has changed and it doesn’t get back to normal quickly after taking away the Himmies, I would want her looked at. It might just be gunk in her throat, but it could be a sign of congestive heart failure. Better safe than sorry, and CHF is definitely something you want to catch early. I’m hoping the chew removal fixes it. Milk and some cheeses make me gunky and I’m not reactive to them at all otherwise, maybe that’s the case with her.

[Dori]

Thanks BC. I’m hoping Hannah’s issue is, as you say, gunky stuff from the chew. If she’s still like this tomorrow then off to the vet we’ll go. I never even considered CHF. Thanks.

Thank you to everyone else that has posted to my please for advice and guidance.

[DogFoodie]

CHF was the first thing I worried about with Bella. Even though she had recently had her annual wellness exam in March, I know it can come on quickly, so I didn’t think twice about having her checked again six months later. My vet gave her heart a very long, intent listen and seemed satisfied without any further testing. I was relieved and am sure Hannah will be fine also.

[theBCnut]

Angel gets sticky mouthed from the Himmy, so we’ll hope that’s all it is and it’ll be better by tomorrow.

[Dori]

Thanks everyone. I think I’ll take Hannah to the vet tomorrow for a quick check up regardless of whether she sounds better or not. At 15 years of age with lung and bladder cancer even though asymptomatic I’d better not take any chances. She doesn’t show signs of anything wrong with her as far as cancer is concerned so we tend to forget (denial ?) that she has it. Thanks for the heads up everybody. Hoping she’s better by tomorrow but think I’ll have her checked out anyway. Thank you for all the good thoughts coming her way.

[Akari_32]

Let us know how it goes!

[Dori]

I’ll post when I have some news. She was okay earlier but has started gagging just a moment ago. She seems to be better lying down. As soon as she lifts her head or starts moving around it all starts up again. Taking her to her vet in the a.m. Thanks Akari.

[Naturella]

Dori, good luck with Hannah – fingers crossed it’s nothing serious!

[Dori]

Thanks Aleksandra.

[Dori]

Well, for some reason I can’t find the thread on the Himalayan Dog Chews. Thought that was where I should post since my erroneous conclusion to Hannah’s health issue was that she was maybe getting gunked up due to the yak and cow milk. I was wrong.

I had Hannah at the vet early this morning. Blood work, chest x-ray, ultrasound, urine sample. Culture of the back of her throat and nasal passages. The blood work will be back tomorrow but she’s pretty positive that what Hannah’s got going in an upper respiratory infection and/or sinusitis with some very thick post nasal drip. Her feeling, and mine, is that Hannah should have an antibiotic injection called Convenia. It lasts for 14 days. She does want to hold off until she gets all test results back. Because Hannah has multiple cancers (bladder and lung lobe) and she is 15 years old, her immune system is quite compromised hence the infection. Whether the chew added some gunk she said it’s pretty hard to think it’s that because she hasn’t had one in three days and she’s still as bad if not worse then she was yesterday which already was pretty bad. The timing was coincidental she feels. She’s still eating, drinking, peeing and pooping. That’s my girl!!! Nothing stops her. Other than this congested reverse sneezing (you can actually hear the congestion and gurgling) she acts just like her jolly old self. Her heart and lungs are all looking and sounding normal. The tumor in her stomach has not changed in size since she was diagnosed. Lung lobe mass is still the same size also. So that’s at least a little or a lot good news. I’ll post again when I have anything new to report. Again, thank you to everyone who has had Hannah in their good thoughts and prayers. I thank God for this site. You all keep me somewhat grounded. As grounded as I’m ever gonna get anyway. You all help me so much with your kindness, compassion, knowledge, experiences and great sense of humor. Love you all!

[DogFoodie]

Hi Dori,

I was eager to hear back from you! I definitely choose to view this as good news.

Keep us posted/

Hugs to you and Hannah!

[Akari_32]

Glad it’s something some antibiotics can fix, and nothing serious!

[Akari_32]

Thought I’d share a picture of Ginger getting head rubs and showing off her new harness :p

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/D28657BB-AF80-49BE-908F-CB20A97D855C_zpspd2vnuls.jpg

They only had pink, blue, black, and red. Her leash is black, and Bentley already has blue, so black it was lol Beside that, pink doesn’t really go very well on a red dog lol

[Dog_Obsessed]

Awww, she’s so cute!

[theBCnut]

I agree, pink is not her color. And she is so cute!

[Cyndi]

Akari, love seeing pics of Ginger. She’s adorable.

Dori, Sorry Hannah’s not feeling well, but so happy she’s doing well otherwise. Hopefully she’ll get that infection cleared up and she’ll be her happy self always. 🙂

[Akari_32]

Thanks guys! We’re actually going through a bit of a tough time right now. All because I haven’t been taking her on walks. It’s strange how something so simple can cause a dog to potty all over the house and have major attitude issues. I’ve decided to absolutely make it a point to walk her every day, be it morning, noon or night. I can’t have her pooping and peeing everywhere, and growling at the other animals and people in the house. Hopefully we’ll make it past all this. I’ve got my Tuesday’s and Thursday back at home now that I’m not at the vet any more, so hopefully that extra time with her will help.

[Author]

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