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ForumsGerman Shepherd Dog > Any ideas? Advice Needed (19 replies)
Any ideas? Advice Needed by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 13:04 |
| I've been a long time lurker on the PDB and have learned many useful things over the years. Now it is my turn to seek advice... Last Tuesday my 4.5 year old male WGSL collapsed while we were hiking. He had eaten some grass, thrown up, then looked at me with a somewhat confused expression and toppled over. He never lost conciousness, and by the time I ran to him he was standing up again and seemed fine. Took him to the vets who listened to his heart did not hear any murmurs, but heartbeat was about 50 and breathing was heavy but no sounds of fluid etc. in lungs. He was given a shot to elevate his heartbeat and he did respond, heartbeat went up to 80 which vet said was a good sign. Next day heartbeat was 80, third day 60, probably averaging 50/60 over the weekend. Gums and tongue have been pink throughout. Bloodwork came back normal except for slightly elevated BUN/Creatine Ratio of 33 (normal 4-27) Sodium 156 (normal 139-154) and Chloride 126 (normal 102-120 ug/dl). Also did an ACTH test for Addisons. Cortisol sample 1 was low .7 (norm 1.0-5.0) Sample 2 two hours later also low 6.0 (normal 8-17 ug/dl) Tried him on a low dose of Prednisone (5 mg 2X day) over the weekend to see if it had any affect, but it did not seem to. He has been on no exercise since this happened, although I have taken pity on him and taken him for short leash walks. He still wants to run but loses energy very quickly. Sleeps comfortably on both sides, breathing deeply, no signs of distress. Eating, drinking, pooping normally. Next step is heart and abdominal x-ray today and referral to cardiologist. I am worried sick about the heart to say the least. I don't think he could have gotten into anything toxic. Wracking my brain and looking back I think he has been getting tired more easily over the last few weeks and panting more heavily. We did not really pay attention to it attributing it to not being used to the heat. Any ideas/ advice would be greatly appreciated. Anything else we could be doing?  |
by Keith Grossman on 21 May 2012 - 13:54 |
| Have you had your vet run the panels for tick-borne diseases yet? |
Keith Grossman by Dobermannman on 21 May 2012 - 13:59 |
| If all the tests are within normal range? I'd attribute it to heat exhastion. Thomas Barriano |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 14:14 |
| Keith, Thanks for your response. All we have had is the regular blood test. Are there any other tests I should request besides Lyme? |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 14:22 |
| Thomas, Thanks for the reply. Could heat exhaustion account for slow heart rate 6 days later? He had not been running very long when collapse occurred on Tuesday. Temperature was probably in the 70's |
by SitasMom on 21 May 2012 - 14:37 |
| what are the bloodlines? |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 15:31 |
| Balko vom Gleisenauer Schloss X Cindia von der Piste Trophe |
by ray lind on 21 May 2012 - 15:47 |
| Bradycardiac arrhythmias such as this can be congenital or aquired by ingestion of several commonly found plants.Lyme disease can also cause heart blocks which will lower heart rate.See the cardiologist ASAP. |
ray lind by SitasMom on 21 May 2012 - 15:51 |
was WBC elevated? was Lyme disease checked? |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 16:19 |
| WBC normal. Had a lyme test and lyme vaccine on 3/27. Lyme test was negative, but since then I have pulled a few engorged ticks off him despite regular use of Frontline. Have an appointment with the cardiologist for Thursday.. trying to get it moved up. |
by SitasMom on 21 May 2012 - 16:45 |
| frontline or frontline plus, or frontline topspot? |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 17:06 |
| Frontline Plus |
by Wookie on 21 May 2012 - 17:11 |
| BTW, last application of Frontline Plus was on 4/30. |
by Vixen on 21 May 2012 - 17:39 |
| Very sorry to hear that your dog is experiencing some health issues. I will just share my experience with you, that you may consider similar or not, and whether to check with your Vet ..... one of my Shepherd's who appeared extremely healthy, was panting (even lightly) when at rest. At first it was hardly noticeable, but then compared to the other Shepherds she was indeed panting when they were not. The heart was the first consideration, but this proved to be functioning well. Without going into further detail, the problem was unexpectantly discovered within her chest cavity. We also had noticed that she was not so willing to sprint fast in exercise. Her panting was initially only slightly obvious, which we thought may be a combination of heat, exercise and her heavy coat. Plus the decline in her vitality when outdoors was gradual too. Posting this information for you to be able to consider if there are similarities to be aware of. (The chest x-ray result was unexpected). Hope your Vet will discover the problem and help your boy to a full recovery. With Kind Regards, Vixen |
by Nans gsd on 21 May 2012 - 20:16 |
| has he been checked for heartworm?? Even on the preventative; they can still get it. BOL N Diabetes? |
by yellowrose of Texas on 22 May 2012 - 00:03 |
LIVER""""""" WHAT PERCENTAGE OF PROTEIN are you feeding in the dog food? Has this dog eaten or chewed for any length of time on a kong, rubber , ball., or plastic?? YR |
yellowrose of Texas by Wookie on 22 May 2012 - 01:02 |
| Feeding Wellness Core with a 34% protein content. He is not really a rubber ball or Kong chewer but does enjoy an occasional cow hoof or marrow bone. Would liver function problems show up on standard blood work? Had a heartworm test on 3/27 as part of his normal exam. Mosquitos aren't out in force yet here so I'm thinking he is still OK there. |
by starrchar on 22 May 2012 - 01:19 |
| My thoughts: If it was Addisons, the pred should've helped. On the metabolic panel was the ALT, AST and Alkaline phosphatase normal? If so, it is unlikely that he has a liver problem. I'd still do a HW check. Has he had any vaccines, HW treatment, flea or tick treatment recently? I'd definitely want a chest and abdominal x-ray. What was his TSH (thyroid)? I'd run a full tick panel (not just Lyme) and see the cardiologist. Your boy is beautiful. I sure hope you can find out what is going on and that it can successfully treated. Please keep us posted. |
starrchar by SitasMom on 22 May 2012 - 01:19 |
the black dog Jovi was on Wellness Core wasn't she? |
by Wookie on 22 May 2012 - 02:34 |
| AST, ALT, and Alk Phosphatase all normal. Total protein level was normal. I don't see TSH only T4 (?) which was normal On 3/27 he had a 3 year rabies vaccine, lyme vaccine, Heartworm/ Lyme test, and titers for parvo/ distemper. Titers came back fine so he did not have these vaccines. He had his Interceptor for heartworm on 5/14 (the day before he fainted) and Frontline Plus on 4/30. Thanks for the advice and kind thoughts. Chest and abdominal x-ray tomorrow, Cardiologist on Thursday. Still scared but hoping for the best... |
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