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by TorquieGirl on 15 September 2011 - 22:09
If it wasn't for this board, We would have lost Torque. I sent a link to facebook as well.
Like I had said in my update, if I helped just one family through our experience, I will be happy.
By the way Torque is doing really good, she is following me around the house! I guess you could say, that she lives up to her name.
Like I had said in my update, if I helped just one family through our experience, I will be happy.
By the way Torque is doing really good, she is following me around the house! I guess you could say, that she lives up to her name.
by VomMarischal on 16 September 2011 - 01:09
Wow. You deserve a Pulitzer for this report....It will be incredibly useful to countless people going thru the same thing. Nice job, Torquiegirl.
by Sunsilver on 16 September 2011 - 03:09
Sooo glad that things ended well for you and your girl! And no, I never would have suspected things were that bad from the symptoms you gave, even though I've had first-hand experience with pyo.
We did not have such a happy outcome here. When Sarah took her bitch to Guelph on Wednesday, they told her the remaining puppies were swimming in pus, and Story's temp was going up despite the antibiotics. An emergency spay had to be done to save her life.
The vet had to remove the uterus first, to avoid contaminating the abdominal cavity with the pus. She then opened it up, and managed to get out two live puppies, a boy and a girl.
Unfortunately, one of them died during the night, and the other one died this afternoon, despite Sarah's best efforts to keep them alive.
And, just a heads up here. If you ever have pups delivered by C-section, be EXTREMELY cautious about introducing them to the mother! After what she's been through, she may not realized they are her own. Story sniffed the female pup, gave her a few licks, then took her in her mouth. Sarah thought she was going to move her to the whelping box. Nope. She bit down, and punctured the puppy's lung!
Despite the injury, which did not penetrate the skin,* the pup still seemed vigourous and very, very vocal. Sarah even managed to get her to nurse a bit. However, during the night, she began to fade, and passed away sometime in the afternoon.
The vet said in 30 years of practise, she'd only ever delivered one live pup from a bitch that had pyo, and the same thing happened. The pup lived for only a short time. So, the pup could well have been doomed even without the injury.
(*Imagine the lung is like a balloon inside the chest cavity. When Story bit down, the balloon ruptured, but the chest remained intact. Sarah noticed this bubble coming and going as the pup breathed, and that was how she knew something was wrong inside. If the chest had been punctured, that would have been far more serious, and the pup likely would have died right away.)
We did not have such a happy outcome here. When Sarah took her bitch to Guelph on Wednesday, they told her the remaining puppies were swimming in pus, and Story's temp was going up despite the antibiotics. An emergency spay had to be done to save her life.
The vet had to remove the uterus first, to avoid contaminating the abdominal cavity with the pus. She then opened it up, and managed to get out two live puppies, a boy and a girl.
Unfortunately, one of them died during the night, and the other one died this afternoon, despite Sarah's best efforts to keep them alive.
And, just a heads up here. If you ever have pups delivered by C-section, be EXTREMELY cautious about introducing them to the mother! After what she's been through, she may not realized they are her own. Story sniffed the female pup, gave her a few licks, then took her in her mouth. Sarah thought she was going to move her to the whelping box. Nope. She bit down, and punctured the puppy's lung!
Despite the injury, which did not penetrate the skin,* the pup still seemed vigourous and very, very vocal. Sarah even managed to get her to nurse a bit. However, during the night, she began to fade, and passed away sometime in the afternoon.
The vet said in 30 years of practise, she'd only ever delivered one live pup from a bitch that had pyo, and the same thing happened. The pup lived for only a short time. So, the pup could well have been doomed even without the injury.
(*Imagine the lung is like a balloon inside the chest cavity. When Story bit down, the balloon ruptured, but the chest remained intact. Sarah noticed this bubble coming and going as the pup breathed, and that was how she knew something was wrong inside. If the chest had been punctured, that would have been far more serious, and the pup likely would have died right away.)
by hexe on 16 September 2011 - 04:09
I couldn't be happier about this news if she were my own dog. 
There's no reason for you to feel guilty, Lorraine--guilt is for when you've done something wrong. You did something RIGHT--you noticed what wasn't normal for Torque (the discharge), and then you set about finding out what that could signal...and then you acted on it. You picked up on the ONLY clinical sign she was showing--there was nothing else to notice at that point.
Now, one more thing you need to do for her: go to KMart, Wal-Mart, etc., and buy a regular digital thermometer (they're usually less than $10, so it won't strip too much more out of your checkbook, which I'm sure is feeling somewhat naked right now; that surgery wasn't cheap!). When you get home, take a Sharpie pen and write "DOG" on the thermometer itself (don't want to confuse it with the one you use for yourself
), and then put it in your medicine cabinet for easy access. Anytime you wonder if there's something not right about Torque or all the other dogs that will share your life, take a few minutes to get the thermometer out, put a bit of Vaseline on the end of it, and take the dog's temperature. That information alone can tell you a great deal about what's going on with your dog, and give you an idea as to whether this is an emergency room trip issue or if it can wait a day.
She's a lucky girl to have you and Tim as her people, and I'm so relieved that she came through the surgery well and is recuperating nicely!
There's no reason for you to feel guilty, Lorraine--guilt is for when you've done something wrong. You did something RIGHT--you noticed what wasn't normal for Torque (the discharge), and then you set about finding out what that could signal...and then you acted on it. You picked up on the ONLY clinical sign she was showing--there was nothing else to notice at that point.
Now, one more thing you need to do for her: go to KMart, Wal-Mart, etc., and buy a regular digital thermometer (they're usually less than $10, so it won't strip too much more out of your checkbook, which I'm sure is feeling somewhat naked right now; that surgery wasn't cheap!). When you get home, take a Sharpie pen and write "DOG" on the thermometer itself (don't want to confuse it with the one you use for yourself
), and then put it in your medicine cabinet for easy access. Anytime you wonder if there's something not right about Torque or all the other dogs that will share your life, take a few minutes to get the thermometer out, put a bit of Vaseline on the end of it, and take the dog's temperature. That information alone can tell you a great deal about what's going on with your dog, and give you an idea as to whether this is an emergency room trip issue or if it can wait a day.She's a lucky girl to have you and Tim as her people, and I'm so relieved that she came through the surgery well and is recuperating nicely!
by hexe on 16 September 2011 - 04:09
Ach, Sunsilver...so sad to hear that; poor Story, such an ordeal for her, too.
Co-sign on the C-section warning...had that experience once. Long story short, the bitch was subjected to a very intense and violent human altercation in the whelping room at a co-owner's home on day 60, which left her frantic (this was A Siberian husky, not a GSD). Bitch then came to my house, where she'd been raised as a pup (I wasn't the co-owner) and would be more relaxed. She then went a week past her due date, with a litter of 7 in her, and showed no signs of starting labor, so a C-section was ordered. Procedure went well, all pups nursing normally as bitch came out of anesthesia in the clinic. Loaded the bitch and pups up, brought them home and got them settled, all pups nursing and bitch cleaning them up nicely. Half an hour later, the two co-owners arrive to 'see the litter'; I urge them to wait a day or two, they won't. They go into the whelping room and start messing with the pups. Fifteen minutes later, bitch grabs one pup from a co-owner's hand; crushes it's skull. Bitch grabs another pup from other co-owner, punctures skull but doesn't crush it. Within a minute or two, she's nailed 5 of the 7 pups, 2 of them fatally; there's 2 pups with skull punctures, and one with a chest puncture that missed the lungs. Pups removed from bitch, uninjured ones put with a foster bitch, injured pups vetted and then tube-fed. The 2 pups with skull punctures both had developmental impairment and eventually seizures, though both lived as very sweet pets until 3 years of age; the pup with the chest puncture healed and was normal, as were the 2 that were uninjured.
I always refer to that litter as my 'trial by fire' one...I should have stopped the co-owners from going into that room, no matter what it took, and I failed that bitch and her pups.
Co-sign on the C-section warning...had that experience once. Long story short, the bitch was subjected to a very intense and violent human altercation in the whelping room at a co-owner's home on day 60, which left her frantic (this was A Siberian husky, not a GSD). Bitch then came to my house, where she'd been raised as a pup (I wasn't the co-owner) and would be more relaxed. She then went a week past her due date, with a litter of 7 in her, and showed no signs of starting labor, so a C-section was ordered. Procedure went well, all pups nursing normally as bitch came out of anesthesia in the clinic. Loaded the bitch and pups up, brought them home and got them settled, all pups nursing and bitch cleaning them up nicely. Half an hour later, the two co-owners arrive to 'see the litter'; I urge them to wait a day or two, they won't. They go into the whelping room and start messing with the pups. Fifteen minutes later, bitch grabs one pup from a co-owner's hand; crushes it's skull. Bitch grabs another pup from other co-owner, punctures skull but doesn't crush it. Within a minute or two, she's nailed 5 of the 7 pups, 2 of them fatally; there's 2 pups with skull punctures, and one with a chest puncture that missed the lungs. Pups removed from bitch, uninjured ones put with a foster bitch, injured pups vetted and then tube-fed. The 2 pups with skull punctures both had developmental impairment and eventually seizures, though both lived as very sweet pets until 3 years of age; the pup with the chest puncture healed and was normal, as were the 2 that were uninjured.
I always refer to that litter as my 'trial by fire' one...I should have stopped the co-owners from going into that room, no matter what it took, and I failed that bitch and her pups.
by TorquieGirl on 16 September 2011 - 09:09
I can't Believe that I forgot to say everything the Vet did for Torque.
All of Torques tests came back with no problems whatsoever. Other than the Pyro, she is completely healthy, Which is now gone, So once she has finished recovering she will be 100% healthy.
I have a few comments/questions that maybe some of you can answer or even help me to make sense of:
This situation that we were in, could have been a complete tradgedy, Many Thanks to Sunsilver for you quick reply., you litteraly saved Torques life. I could never thank you enough. Also Thank you to everyone who posted information, shared your story with me, and gave me hope.
Having all this happen over the last few days, I started thinking and wondering why, I had never heard of pyometra. My open, you may or you may not agree with me, but I think that more people would have their dogs spayed, if they new about pyometra, because it seems to me that people are more concerned about the dog population than they are with pyo. I believe they are just as equal as each other.
Why is there no information out there about pyo? Sunday was the first time I had ever heard of it, and that was on this forum, it was just sure luck that I stumbled on this site..
I have never seen a sign anywhere (SPCA, Pet stores.......)
talking about pyometria. I see signs saying to spay and neuter your pet, so there are no unwanted pregnancies, but their should be signs that read something llike:
- Removed her Uterus, both ovaries, and Fallopian tubes.
- Did a complete blood work up, to make sure that none of the infection had spread.
- Did an ultrasound to check Heart, Lungs, Kidneys.....etc
- Clipped her nails.
- Did a full check up, once the surgery was complete.
All of Torques tests came back with no problems whatsoever. Other than the Pyro, she is completely healthy, Which is now gone, So once she has finished recovering she will be 100% healthy.
I have a few comments/questions that maybe some of you can answer or even help me to make sense of:
This situation that we were in, could have been a complete tradgedy, Many Thanks to Sunsilver for you quick reply., you litteraly saved Torques life. I could never thank you enough. Also Thank you to everyone who posted information, shared your story with me, and gave me hope.
Having all this happen over the last few days, I started thinking and wondering why, I had never heard of pyometra. My open, you may or you may not agree with me, but I think that more people would have their dogs spayed, if they new about pyometra, because it seems to me that people are more concerned about the dog population than they are with pyo. I believe they are just as equal as each other.
Why is there no information out there about pyo? Sunday was the first time I had ever heard of it, and that was on this forum, it was just sure luck that I stumbled on this site..
I have never seen a sign anywhere (SPCA, Pet stores.......)
talking about pyometria. I see signs saying to spay and neuter your pet, so there are no unwanted pregnancies, but their should be signs that read something llike:
by TorquieGirl on 16 September 2011 - 09:09
Got cut off again - continued.....
I would love to see signs like this, anywhere that sells pet supplies, Vet's offices, and Adotion shelters.
Please be responsible
If you are not intending to breed your dog, please Spay or Neuter them.
Spaying or neutering your pet is not just to control the pet population; it is also for health reasons.
SPAYING YOUR FEMALE COULD SAVE HER LIFE
Females that have not been spayed are in danger of developing pyometra. Pyometra is an infection of the uterus, Ovaries, and fallopian tubes. Pyometra is a result of hormonal and structural changes in the uterus lining.Pyometra only occurs in Females that have not been spayed. Pyometra is an important disease to be aware of for any dog owner because of the sudden nature of the disease and the deadly consequences, a female is more susceptible eight weeks after her heat cycle has ended. The most obvious symptom of pyometra is a discharge of pus from the vulva accompanied with a fever. The most important part of pyometra is quick action and, an emergency spay to remove the infected organ. UNLESS you absolutely must breed her, then you MUST have a successful breeding session during her next heat, or the pyometra WILL come back.
It is a lifethreatening and painful illness that rapidly makes your dog go downhill, and possibly end in tragedy.
If I had known about pyometra when we got Torque, we would have had her spayed ASAP, but we didn’t know about it, because there was no signs or verbal information given to us about it.
Most people automatically assume that you spay your pet to stop unwanted puppies, not because they may get pyometra.
Next Questions:
Is Pyometra contagious?
Is it hereditary, and passed down through the bloodline?
Also sometimes people don't have the money to have their pet spayed.
Are there vets that will spay or neuter a pet for a discounted cost or just simply donate their time?
I hope nobody minds be babbling away about Pyometra. It gave us a big scare.
Well off to bed its 3am here now.
I would love to see signs like this, anywhere that sells pet supplies, Vet's offices, and Adotion shelters.
Please be responsible
If you are not intending to breed your dog, please Spay or Neuter them.
Spaying or neutering your pet is not just to control the pet population; it is also for health reasons.
SPAYING YOUR FEMALE COULD SAVE HER LIFE
Females that have not been spayed are in danger of developing pyometra. Pyometra is an infection of the uterus, Ovaries, and fallopian tubes. Pyometra is a result of hormonal and structural changes in the uterus lining.Pyometra only occurs in Females that have not been spayed. Pyometra is an important disease to be aware of for any dog owner because of the sudden nature of the disease and the deadly consequences, a female is more susceptible eight weeks after her heat cycle has ended. The most obvious symptom of pyometra is a discharge of pus from the vulva accompanied with a fever. The most important part of pyometra is quick action and, an emergency spay to remove the infected organ. UNLESS you absolutely must breed her, then you MUST have a successful breeding session during her next heat, or the pyometra WILL come back.
It is a lifethreatening and painful illness that rapidly makes your dog go downhill, and possibly end in tragedy.
If I had known about pyometra when we got Torque, we would have had her spayed ASAP, but we didn’t know about it, because there was no signs or verbal information given to us about it.
Most people automatically assume that you spay your pet to stop unwanted puppies, not because they may get pyometra.
Next Questions:
Is Pyometra contagious?
Is it hereditary, and passed down through the bloodline?
Also sometimes people don't have the money to have their pet spayed.
Are there vets that will spay or neuter a pet for a discounted cost or just simply donate their time?
I hope nobody minds be babbling away about Pyometra. It gave us a big scare.
Well off to bed its 3am here now.
by Sunsilver on 16 September 2011 - 12:09
Torquegirl, some vets will spay pets at a discount. Local humane societies often have low cost spay/neuter clinics. Some vets will also allow you to pay over time, if they know you are a responsible person.
I'm not sure of the answers to your other questions.
The reason pyometria doesn't get much press is because the overwhelming majority of female dogs are spayed at a young age. One of my friend's biggest frustrations has been trying to find really knowledgeable veterinarians who are able to treat her bitch when things go wrong. Very, very few vets have either the knowledge, equipment or drugs availble. Most of the time, she has to go to the veterinary clinic at the University of Guelph (Ontario Veterinary College, or O.V.C.) Of course, that is not only more expensive than a regular veterinarian, but also involves a long trip.
With Story's first litter, she seemed to have finished whelping once we got up to 4 puppies. We'd been told to expect a small litter of only 2 or 3. Sarah asked the breed founder (Tina Barber...this was a Shiloh shepherd) what to do, and Tina said to take her to the emergency vet clinic and have her examined and x-rayed to make sure there were no more pups in there. She called the clinic, and the receptionist asked if the bitch was in distress. When Sarah said 'no' she said, "Well you'll have to wait a couple of hours, becasue we are REALLY busy!"
Sarah asked if she could talk to the vet. "No, he's too busy."
She asked if the vet could call her back. "Well, maybe, but you'll have to wait quite a while."
So, we lost the last two puppies. And the regular vet had refused to give us oxytocin (which helps stimulate contractions when the bitch gets tired from pushing) so we had nothing available to help Story out.
The ultrasound was, of course, completely wrong. There were NINE puppies in there! Seven survived.
All this leads to another complaint: the competence of the local E.R. vet clinic.
Last year, we had a small dog that had been attacked by a much larger one. Of course, this had to happen on a Sunday night. I sat in the clinic for HOURS with this poor little animal.
Now, as a health care professional (nurse) I know about triage. The vet takes the most urgent cases first. Patients are not seen in the order in which they arrive. So here I am with this little dog that may have serious hidden internal injuries, and has several large skin tears and puncture wounds. The receptionist books us in, helps me move the cage Molly's in to a spot where we're not in the way, and leaves us to wait. She does not have anyone look at the dog to see what its injuries are, or if it's going into shock, or has broken bones.
They take in a dog that's recovering from anal gland surgery, which arrived after us.
They take in a dog that's suddenly developed a limp (unkown causes, but not due to a serious trauma.)
There was another non-urgent case that was taken in before us, but I don't remember what it was.
By this time, I am fuming, and have TOTALLY lost any faith I had in this clinic! Just imagine if your dog had bloat symptoms!
I'm not sure of the answers to your other questions.
The reason pyometria doesn't get much press is because the overwhelming majority of female dogs are spayed at a young age. One of my friend's biggest frustrations has been trying to find really knowledgeable veterinarians who are able to treat her bitch when things go wrong. Very, very few vets have either the knowledge, equipment or drugs availble. Most of the time, she has to go to the veterinary clinic at the University of Guelph (Ontario Veterinary College, or O.V.C.) Of course, that is not only more expensive than a regular veterinarian, but also involves a long trip.
With Story's first litter, she seemed to have finished whelping once we got up to 4 puppies. We'd been told to expect a small litter of only 2 or 3. Sarah asked the breed founder (Tina Barber...this was a Shiloh shepherd) what to do, and Tina said to take her to the emergency vet clinic and have her examined and x-rayed to make sure there were no more pups in there. She called the clinic, and the receptionist asked if the bitch was in distress. When Sarah said 'no' she said, "Well you'll have to wait a couple of hours, becasue we are REALLY busy!"
Sarah asked if she could talk to the vet. "No, he's too busy."
She asked if the vet could call her back. "Well, maybe, but you'll have to wait quite a while."
So, we lost the last two puppies. And the regular vet had refused to give us oxytocin (which helps stimulate contractions when the bitch gets tired from pushing) so we had nothing available to help Story out.
The ultrasound was, of course, completely wrong. There were NINE puppies in there! Seven survived.
All this leads to another complaint: the competence of the local E.R. vet clinic.
Last year, we had a small dog that had been attacked by a much larger one. Of course, this had to happen on a Sunday night. I sat in the clinic for HOURS with this poor little animal.
Now, as a health care professional (nurse) I know about triage. The vet takes the most urgent cases first. Patients are not seen in the order in which they arrive. So here I am with this little dog that may have serious hidden internal injuries, and has several large skin tears and puncture wounds. The receptionist books us in, helps me move the cage Molly's in to a spot where we're not in the way, and leaves us to wait. She does not have anyone look at the dog to see what its injuries are, or if it's going into shock, or has broken bones.
They take in a dog that's recovering from anal gland surgery, which arrived after us.
They take in a dog that's suddenly developed a limp (unkown causes, but not due to a serious trauma.)
There was another non-urgent case that was taken in before us, but I don't remember what it was.
By this time, I am fuming, and have TOTALLY lost any faith I had in this clinic! Just imagine if your dog had bloat symptoms!
by djc on 16 September 2011 - 14:09
Gosh! Glad things worked out well for torque and so sad about Story!
First, let me help with the questions:
No Pyometra is not contagious per say. I suppose if 2 females were housed in a small area together where one could sit in the other's discharge it might be. But that's just a gross thought!
No I don't believe it is genetic, unless there is predisposition to immune system problems, making them prone to infections of all types.
Yes there are discounted spays and neutering. BUT I would not take a chance on them.
That being said.. I was a vet tech for 6 years and of course have known about pyo's for a very long time. They are Very common in older in tact females. Normally your vet should give you a full list of reasons why a spay or neuter is beneficial with pyo being one of them at the top of the list. Don't know why your vet had not warned you about it. But it is good that you are now letting others who may not know, learn also.
OMG don't even get me started about Animal Emergency clinics! It makes me sick.... to make a long story short...if I had had no knowledge about how things are suppose to go and etc. The Emergency Clinic in my area would have put down my prize puppy! ( He was 5th best puppy at nationals!) At 5 months old I came home to him not greeting me and huddling in a corner. Upon initial triage, all I could see was that he seemed to have abdominal pain and in looking at his gums they were normal, but as soon as I touched his mouth, his lips were so hot they seemed on fire! Upon taking his temp it was 105.2!!! No other symptoms. My vet clinic had just closed (I was not working there) and sent me to the ER. I did all the usual things to bring his temp down and when we got there it was 104.3. They did palpation and he showed no pain or swelling anywhere, so they did an X-ray. No vomiting or diarrhea just lethargic and a fever. The X-ray showed a small piece of metal in his stomach. So they suggested exploratory surgery to remove the metal. I gave the OK. No sooner had she opened him up, she came back out and said that he was bloating and had she known that she would have sent him to the local vet school to do the surgery, and gave me the spiel about the chances of survival and reoccurrence and added the question about just putting him down!! I said NO WAY! SAVE HIM and while you're in there tack the stomach! The ER was small so I could hear everything that was going on.... the vet had to ask the tech to get her abdominal surgery book!!! Then kept asking for certain kinds of suture and other things that the tech kept answering "we don't have any of that" ! I am now pacing and getting VERY VERY upset!! About an hour into surgery the vet comes out and says that she can not tack the stomach because that will take her another hour and half and she didn't think he would survive that much longer being under!!!! OMG!!!! I am totally baffled, shocked, upset, ANGRY, crying, because this incompetence will make my puppy have to go through another surgery down the road to tack his stomach! It just HAS to be done!! I can't even imagine WHY it would take an hour and half to do it either!! I am just bawling now and pacing... finally it is done and things look pretty good. The piece of metal was nothing significant but was aluminum so that may have been what was gong on as aluminum can be toxic. OK I wait until 8 am for my vet clinic to open pay half the bill and head straight to my vet. The ER Vet faxed the history and was already there when I got there. ..... cont.
First, let me help with the questions:
No Pyometra is not contagious per say. I suppose if 2 females were housed in a small area together where one could sit in the other's discharge it might be. But that's just a gross thought!
No I don't believe it is genetic, unless there is predisposition to immune system problems, making them prone to infections of all types.
Yes there are discounted spays and neutering. BUT I would not take a chance on them.
That being said.. I was a vet tech for 6 years and of course have known about pyo's for a very long time. They are Very common in older in tact females. Normally your vet should give you a full list of reasons why a spay or neuter is beneficial with pyo being one of them at the top of the list. Don't know why your vet had not warned you about it. But it is good that you are now letting others who may not know, learn also.
OMG don't even get me started about Animal Emergency clinics! It makes me sick.... to make a long story short...if I had had no knowledge about how things are suppose to go and etc. The Emergency Clinic in my area would have put down my prize puppy! ( He was 5th best puppy at nationals!) At 5 months old I came home to him not greeting me and huddling in a corner. Upon initial triage, all I could see was that he seemed to have abdominal pain and in looking at his gums they were normal, but as soon as I touched his mouth, his lips were so hot they seemed on fire! Upon taking his temp it was 105.2!!! No other symptoms. My vet clinic had just closed (I was not working there) and sent me to the ER. I did all the usual things to bring his temp down and when we got there it was 104.3. They did palpation and he showed no pain or swelling anywhere, so they did an X-ray. No vomiting or diarrhea just lethargic and a fever. The X-ray showed a small piece of metal in his stomach. So they suggested exploratory surgery to remove the metal. I gave the OK. No sooner had she opened him up, she came back out and said that he was bloating and had she known that she would have sent him to the local vet school to do the surgery, and gave me the spiel about the chances of survival and reoccurrence and added the question about just putting him down!! I said NO WAY! SAVE HIM and while you're in there tack the stomach! The ER was small so I could hear everything that was going on.... the vet had to ask the tech to get her abdominal surgery book!!! Then kept asking for certain kinds of suture and other things that the tech kept answering "we don't have any of that" ! I am now pacing and getting VERY VERY upset!! About an hour into surgery the vet comes out and says that she can not tack the stomach because that will take her another hour and half and she didn't think he would survive that much longer being under!!!! OMG!!!! I am totally baffled, shocked, upset, ANGRY, crying, because this incompetence will make my puppy have to go through another surgery down the road to tack his stomach! It just HAS to be done!! I can't even imagine WHY it would take an hour and half to do it either!! I am just bawling now and pacing... finally it is done and things look pretty good. The piece of metal was nothing significant but was aluminum so that may have been what was gong on as aluminum can be toxic. OK I wait until 8 am for my vet clinic to open pay half the bill and head straight to my vet. The ER Vet faxed the history and was already there when I got there. ..... cont.
by djc on 16 September 2011 - 14:09
I was put into a room right away and started telling my story while the vet read the history. When I was done she looked up at me with a puzzled look and said that the history from the ER vet said nothing about bloat and in fact said there were no signs of torsion! OMG!! At this point I am totally bewildered. Probably even more so after being up all night! She went on to say that all the history said was that exploratory surgery was done and did not find anything but a small piece of metal in the stomach. We discussed malpractice etc. and of course she was pretty reserved about that, but agreed there seemed to be a case. At that point I was just concerned about getting my puppy well and back on his feet. Later I wrote a letter to the clinic's board, fully detailed in all the things they did not have on hand as well as the incompetency of the vet. I told them I had given them half and was NOT paying any more. I never heard back. He recovered very nicely and is the dog pictured in my avatar. No thanks to the ER!!!!!! Sometimes I think that ER's tend to have the incompetent vets who can not handle their own practice. But that is probably not true, at least in general terms. Still sick over it 6 years later..... Looking back, I think probably what the ER vet saw was my dog's stomach twisted when they rolled him over for the surgery and was not bloat at all of course. Lucky to have him!
!
Debby
!
Debby
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