Pyometra & Stump Pyometra - Page 1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyometra
Pyometra is a disease of the uterus most commonly seen in female dogs , but also seen in female cats (queens), rabbits, ferrets, rats and guinea pigs. 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 if left untreated. It has been compared to acute appendicitis in humans, because both are essentially empyemas within an abdominal organ.

[edit] Symptoms
The most obvious symptom of open pyometra is a discharge of pus from the vulva in a Female that has recently been in heat. However, symptoms of closed pyometra are less obvious. Symptoms of both types include vomiting, loss of appetite, depression, and increased drinking and urinating.[6] Fever is seen in less than a third of female dogs with pyometra. [1] Closed pyometra is a more serious condition than open pyometra not only because there is no outlet for the infection but also because a diagnosis of closed pyometra can easily be missed due to its insidious nature. Bloodwork may show dehydration, increased white blood cell count, and increased alkaline phosphatase. X-rays will show an enlarged uterus, and ultrasound will confirm the presence of a fluid filled uterus.[4]



Stump Pyometra
Stump pyometra is a serious health condition that may occur in female dogs that underwent Ovariohysterectomy (spaying). In this condition, the remaining stump of the resected Uterus becomes infected and filled with a purulent fluid. The symptoms are similar to those of true pyometra. The risk of this condition is significantly reduced if no uterine or ovarian tissue remains from the original ovariohysterectomy. Diagnosis of a stump pyometra may be challenging as pyometra is often discounted as a possibility if the bitch has been previously spayed.

I had no idea that a spay female could still get Pyometra. Its gotta be very rare. Is is caused becasue the spay was done incorrectly or a bacteria in the vagina?

Has anyone on this board had an experience with this?

Thanks for posting this.
My Vet told me that Spaying removes the threat of this condition....

Not that I have any confidence in her..  


I had a German Shorthair Pointe bitch live to be 16, she was intact, Never bred either.  Debated but it never happened.

Spay is pushed very hard by vets over here.

Not just vets, so many people seem to get mad if you want to buy a purebred puppy instead of going to the pound or SPCA.

I think that was my Vets agenda.  Spay, Spay, Spay.


Granted she is 7, but a very young 7, run and hunted hard...acts and looks 3.  Not slowing down yet at tall.

I know there is an infection but its treatable.  And I indicated I really wanted to breed next heat, studs been selected.

these infections can spread to other parts of the body.  because of proximity, the spine is vulnerable and can lead to spondylosis. 
pjp

Not only the spine, everything in the abdominal cavity can be affected. The infection just jumps from organ to organ, and if that happens there isn`t much you can do. My 10yo had it  two years ago, and we spayed her. I mean, it wasn`t really a big deal for me to decide, she wasn`t a breeding dog anymore.
And yes, for a breeding dog you could deal with it with antibiotics untill the next heat and then breed and get healthy pyppies, but there is always the risk of complications and that something could go wrong. Personally I wouldn`t spay if the infection would respond well to the therapy in the first 4-5 days. Byt if it persists for longer, I`d definetely spay. Of course this is for open pyometra, with closed pyometra you wouldn`t even have that choice, most times you`d be lucky if you can just save her life. In most cases you`d really have to know your dog to notice that something is wrong, in our case, she was sleepy and drank heaps of water and everything else was normal.
Anyways, that`s just my opinion, and any desision I`d make, would be only with my dog`s best interest in mind.
                                                                                                                                                                           Regards!

Thanks!

What dosage would you go with on the Baxil? (sp)

The other anti biotic....thats not Ceph, which is what we have used twice.  Costing $300 for 2 visits.  Dog is 60lbs