Dec 12, 2016
Talked to three vets today…..
…Carmeh is not well and was in great pain this morning. For some reason I have been calling her problem gastritis but it actually is pancreatitis. I now have her on Tramadol for pain and need to get her on an anti inflammatory but I only have oral Metacam. She needs food in her tummy to have oral Metacam but she can’t eat right now so I can’t give it to her.
Our vet back home in Kelowna is on call to us 24/7 at no charge. Today she told me to try and get injectable Metacam or Onsior which can be given on an empty stomach. So that had me calling two Mazatlan vets. One had the Onsior but refused to sell it to me as in his opinion that is not what she needed. He wanted us to bring her in for a few days of IV therapy first. The other thinks he can get the injectable Metacam. However his contact is away till tomorrow afternoon. We have been on the phone back and forth with this last Mazatlan vet and our vet at home. A very trying and unsettling day for all of us.
So we continue to fast her. She was better later this afternoon and wanted food. We will wait till the morning and after much deliberation have decided to give her one tablespoon of rice mixed with one tablespoon of her canned food. However we will give her only one tablespoon of the mix and wait one hour. Then we will give her the second tablespoon of the mix and then her oral dose of Metacam. Hopefully that food mix and timing will be enough to coat her stomach yet not irritate her gut.
This is a very difficult time for us.
We had a wonderful time with friends last evening and many outstanding moments. That will be my next post. Today is the celebration of the Virgin de Guadalupe and the blasts of noise as the locals celebrate are upsetting the girls. This has been going on all weekend. So we are wondering if there was an exceptional amount of these noise makers set off last evening which caused Carmeh stress which brought on the pancreatitis.
We have a long night ahead of us and can only hope that Carmeh will settle over the next week. We really hope to have a few more months with her.
If anyone has any suggestions they are more than welcome.
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So sorry about Carmeh – Pancreatitis is very dangerous for dogs. It is also very very painful! One of my dogs almost died because of it. It is caused in part by fat in the diet. The inflammed pancreas can actually “digest” itself and that in turn can result in a dog developing exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) where because the dog no longer has a pancreas she cannot digest her food so it comes out in a nasty liquid diahrrea. The 1 vet is correct – she probably needs fluids to help keep her hydrated and sustain her blood pressure. She needs to consume liquid (the IV will help)) and significantly reduce the fat intake that is hiding in anything you feed her. I am not a vet, but have lots of experience with this. Google it and check on it at some of the reputable vet info sites. I don’t think that stress causes it — but some dogs are prone to it also. My dog wound up with no pancreas left except for the part where insulin is made but she did have EPI. I know making the right decisions are hard — so sorry for you guys.
So sorry to hear this news about Carmeh. Hope your plan will work so that she can have the medicine. Hugs to all of you.
can dogs have Carafate?
When Cali was hospitalized for pancreatitis, she spent five days getting IV fluids. She also received Buprenex for the pain. Old school thought was to “rest” the pancreas by not feeding, but not it’s important to feed small amounts. If Carmeh refuses the chicken and rice, add some water and blend it up to a think soup and try to find a syringe at a pharmacy or vet office (the ones they give babies meds with) and feed her. It’s very important for her to have some food in her stomach. It’s not “force feeding,” it’s “assisted feeding.” There’s a little gap where you place the syringe in back of the top canine molar, and slowly feed. If you don’t want to have Carmeh stay in the vet hospital, it would probably be a good idea to get her treated with some fluids as an “out-patient.”
Here’s a good video on how to do it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ccgFwP23fQ
The canine test for pancreatitis is SPEC cPL – you might want to see if a vet can perform that test and get the results.
Dogs “do” take carafate by putting the tab in a syringe, and adding water to make a slurry. However, for me I found that Slippery Elm Bark was more effective in coating and soothing the stomach for my dog. I also give famotidine at least two hours spaced from the Slippery Elm Bark.
Some dogs are prone to pancreatitis, and some develop it in their older years. Fat is a no-no, so make sure whatever you feed Carmeh is low in fat. I’m going to look back in your posts to see what you’re feeding the girls. You actually have to do a little math to find out the “dry matter content” regarding fat and other ingredients. Thinking of sweet Carmeh and wishing her a speedy recovery…
Hope she gets feeling better. Had fun Sunday night. Good to spend time with you.
Actually, Carafate could help. I would be uneasy about using Metacam. Please try famotidine 5 mg twice daily. You can get this over the counter-should work better than Carafate, which is a protectant only, as opposed to an acid reducer. Avoid fats-try boiled chicken and rice for now.
Gail T. DVM
So sorry to hear about Carmeh, she has had such a tough time this year.
I know how difficult this is for you and just want you to know that I am thinking of you and hope Carmeh is doing better today. BIG (((hugs))) to all of you.