Any vets or anyone who has had a dog with pancreatitis please help!

Kimenem

Kimenem

Cathlete
My little Jax has a case of this per the ER clinic. He was totally fine yesterday morning, running around, chasing stuff like usual. Then he stopped and vomitted. He did it a few more times but this time it was red so I snatched him up and off to the ER we went. They did lab work and said they've seen a lot of this lately and dx'ed him with pancreatitis. They felt around his abdomen and he wasn't in pain and seemed fine all the way to the clinic, bouncing all over the place. They kept him overnight to give him antibiotics and pain meds if needed, and fluids. I called a few minutes ago to see when I could pick him up and they said he was doing "okay" but was still having bloody diarrhea which I didn't know he'd started having. They're going to keep him and re-evaluate at 5pm to see about him coming home.

1. I have NO idea what he could've eaten, unless something he found in the yard. Maybe cat food? He isn't overweight AT ALL and his food is organic with a 14% fat content. He does get treats but they are Greenies and some other generic brand that he's eaten for at least a year or more. B/f did buy some new peanut butter cookie dog treats on Fri and he ate a couple of those but decided he didn't like them. He hasn't had any significant amount of people food of any kind in the past several days.

2. I'm wondering if this could be something else, like a perforation in his bowel or stomach and am going to demand an x-ray.

3. We have a new puppy (got her Fri afternoon and he got sick Sun AM. Could she be the cause? She's up to date on shots (9 wks old) and so is he, but he was very stressed about her being here. Did I do this to him?

Everyone, this dog is my baby. I'm sitting here trying to control tears because I can't lose him. If this IS pancreatitis, I don't know how to keep it from happening again because I don't know what caused it this time.

I'm wondering if I should take him to the University hospital where our other one has had 2 successful back surgeries. What do you all think?

Thanks,
Kim :( :( :(
 
{{{Kim}}} I don't know anything about pancreatitis but just wanted to send you some hugs. I'm sending your little guy healing thoughts.
 
There is lots of info about feline pancreatitis if you google it. Are they sure that is what he has? You said he is at the ER. Do you have another vet you normally visit. If so I would get him there. His bouncing around and being active etc doesn't sound like P. when they usually become lethargic. Could it just be stress related because of the new dog? My friend's dog had a terrible case of bloody diarhea after they got a new dog. They thought he was dying but the vet said it was stress related and he recovered. Wishing you the best and hope Jax makes a full and fast recovery. I am not a vet but I would want my regular vet to see him.
 
If I were you I'd ask for an x-ray and do it fast. Particularly since you mentioned that he had bloody stools and that his treats are Greenies.

There have been some serious problems with those treats, if you google it there will be a whole bunch of incidents coming up. My vet advises to stay away from Greenies as they can cause serious harm.

I hope your pooch will be okay. Please keep us posted.
 
I saw "cat food" and thought you were posting about your cat! Yes definitely watch out for those greenies. But also like I posted before my friend's dog went thru the same thing and it was stress related. It was so bad that when she came home there was blood all over house and she panicked. Again the best of luck and hope it all gets straightened out.
 
it sounds sorta familiar to what my cat went through. because of diarrhea(may) she had a bacterial infection in her stomach,though there was no blood.she acted normal.5 months later she had uti.he said there was alot of blood in her urine. again she was still playful.the first pills had no effect so he took an exray. i wont know til next wed if the new pills have worked. i am very upset also. she has so many problems. i wish i had pet insurance! figure this,she has weighed exactly 11 pds for 5 yrs. so i guess shes not overweight.

laura
 
((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
If he is not in immediate danger i would go get him and bring him home and get him evaluated at your normal vet in the morning. I am sure he is under great stress being away. I agree with the other poster..he should be lethargic etc...sometimes dogs just get funky issues and they pass normally. If he's on antibiotics that might be giving him the loose stools. Mary Sue sometimes has blood in her poop..it goes away on its own.
In any case, try not to put him through more then he needs to be. Peggy
 
Kim, I know how scary this is, I've been through similar things myself many times. With our dog Dancer the bloody diahreaa and vomiting resolved after being on Flagyl for a while; it turned out, more than once, to be a Clostridium infection. These are also very common now and can arise easily in dogs who are vulnerable, for no reason that anyone can find. I also took Dancer off of ALL treats of any kind, and let her eat only her high-quality natural food (California Natural). This cleared her up but did return off and on, always clostridium bacteria. She was severely ill and with more than one of these infections, we were afraid she would die. I would also suggest, if you have a pure-bred, find out if there is an on line forum for that breed. For example, we have pembroke welsh corgis and belong to Corgi-L. The people there are invaluable as sometimes, diseases can be very unique to a breed. Also while the folks here are fantastic, they may not all be dog-owners. You can do a google search for a group for your breed. I hope this helps and you and Jax will be in our thoughts and prayers.
 
Kim, my 6 year old boxer has been diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis. One day a couple of years ago she wouldn't eat, wouldn't even take her favorite treat. She then started licking at the air and would vomit. Her stomache made a lot of noises. There was blood in her stool. She spent a couple of days at the vet and when she came home I could only feel her lean hamburger and rice (boil the hamburger, fix the white rice then mix it together). After a week or so I was able to feed her canned Science Diet I.D., gradually moving on to the dry. Now that is all she can eat (according to her vet...though I'm looking to find a holistic vet).

The point of my post is that my baby has been able to live with it for now. I have to be careful that she doesn't eat table scraps...OR the cat's food. My vet said to be especially carefull regarding fried foods and pork. Every now and then she'll have a bad spell. I can tell when one is coming because she stops eating, then the tummy noises begin. I keep a prescription of Centrine on hand for the nausea. So far she's back to normal a couple of hours after she takes the centrine.

I also wonder if stress can trigger an attack. I'm careful with what she eats (almost paranoid) but have noticed that when I'm gone for a longer amount of time than usual, or my son's dog is here over a couple of days (I sometimes dogsit for him) she'll have an episode.

Good luck. I'm another that thinks your baby would probably feel more comfortable at home. I'd take him to the same place he had the surgeries. Sounds like you would be more comfortable with that. I can't think of anything else at the moment. I understand your fear. My baby is like my child. She's spoiled rotten:cool: I would be devastated if anything happened to her.
 
Well I went and got him and we drove him 3 1/2 hrs to the University. They were great and are keeping him overnight and will redo the blood work and do some additional tests tomorrow. He was still a little dehydrated. I REALLY hope it's not the new puppy because I don't want to give her back but I wouldn't want to put his health at risk either. I would think he would eventually get used to her. The university vet mentioned that his WBC and platelets were low as well. She said a whole list of things could cause that. His temp was normal and she said he seemed like he felt well. He hadn't vomitted again or had any more diarrhea (I think that only happened twice-once with blood) as far as I know...at least he didn't on the way to the new vet. IF he gets through this okay, he already has his yearly appt with his regular vet on the 16th so that can be a follow up as well. I'm throwing all the Greenies away and he will get nothing but his organic food (which the vet said they'd look at to see if there is something better). I'll feed him whatever they tell me too. Thanks everyone.
 
If it is stress related I am sure he can get used to the new dog with lots of love and attention. I cook for my dogs and would suggest you look into some homecooking for pets that may even have suggestions for pancreatitis or sensitive stomachs. I have no faith in commercial pet foods and feel that vets in general have very little nutrition knowledge. That is just an opinion. Commercial pet food is a particular rant for me.
I just want to say all the best to you and Jax. Please let us know how you make out with the hospital.
 
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I am glad you brought him to the university. I would love to know what the recommend for dog food. I would not think any of this is from the puppy. Sending more good vibes. Peggy
 
Kim - Keep us updated! This happened to Cheyenne 2 years ago and we almost lost her. She started having awful diahrea one day and by that night she looked like she was on her deathbed. We rushed her to the vet and they said she was so dehydrated that she wouldn't have made it if we had waited any longer. They told us that the little breeds can go downhill fast. She spent 2 days in the hospital (while I complained and whined on this very forum about my baby being at the vet's). When she came home, the other 2 came down sick as well so it was not a good week at our house. We think it was from some turkey they got ahold of at Thanksgiving. The vet told us there's no telling what they got into though that caused it (stress was also mentioned). She's never had that problem again though. I'll be keeping Jax in my thoughts and prayers!!! (((HUGS)))
 
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