My dog's not doing well

[gsganzer]

He sat out on the patio and watched TV with us last night. We've never been fans of pets on furniture, but both Mason and Minnie got to have some snuggle time in front of the fire. They were quite the pair.

I want folks to realize, he actually has had multiple medical opinions. When he went to the urgent care, that vet diagnosed auto-immune. The follow-up vet (that has 6 vets in the practice) also diagnosed auto-immune. My talk of taking him to another vet is me wanting to make sure I've left no stone unturned and hoping to find the magic bullet that maybe everyone else has missed (probably wishful thinking). I just haven't found another local vet that I think is any more competent then the previous two or if there's a treatment that's any different than the one we're on.

Meanwhile, he gets, loved, spoiled and made as comfortable as we can make him. Trying to find what he'll eat is becoming a challenge. We keep rotating between cooked chicken, meatballs, his food, table scraps etc. He'll like something, then turn his nose up at it the next time. I cooked venison for him last night. It's like he has his own personal chef now.

 

[2manyrocks]

Anyone who has ever loved a dog feels your pain.

 

[Jstpssng]

e keep rotating between cooked chicken, meatballs,... I cooked venison for him last night.

I'm going to start taking my meals at YOUR house!!!

 

[orezok]

Rule of thumb for me, is if the dog is in pain. If not in pain, I owe it to the dog to still take care of their needs, even if its the inconvenience of dimentia, or incontinence. Dogs get dimentia also. Best wishes for your Pup.

Not wanting to hijack this thread, just responding. My Kali has had CCS (Canine Cognitive Syndrome) for about a year. Similar to human dimentia. She’s approaching 15 so not much time left. She’s been on Selegiline which restored her to about 80% of her former self. My Vet was surprised at her recovery as it only works a small percent of the time. Without it she would have been gone by now.

 

[ruffdog]

Auto-immune diseases can be a real pain. Their little bodies start to turn against themselves. Good luck to the OP going forward.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

When our dogs reach the end we sometimes give them tramadol to make them more comfortable. Our vet also does home euthanasia, so when it's time they can go to sleep in peace.

 

[plowhog]

I cooked venison for him last night. It's like he has his own personal chef now.

Such a sad time but I understand. And if there is good news it is that you have had time with him that has been so valuable.

I don't wish to raise any false hopes, as the most important thing is confidence in your vet. But our dog also has an auto-immune problem and he has gone through a *lot* over the past few years. A few times it looked grim only for his troubles to recede and fade away. But then, a few months later, the auto-immune system would manifest in some other pretty awful way. He has now had about 4 in/out cycles like that. It all started when we was 5 or 6, and he is 8 now. Vets are baffled.

I hope for the best and you are taking good care of your best friend. I believe that if the time comes, you will know when that is. Good luck to you.

 

[gsganzer]

In the constant roller coaster, we might have good news!!!

Mason went to the vet again today to have his bloodwork checked and there was no improvement. However, it was a different vet from the practice and she ordered a chest Xray after seeing that the steroids, antibiotics and the anti- immuno drugs weren't working, and listening to his breathing. She thinks he has a fungal infection in both lungs and that's the reason for the labored breathing, loss of appetite, white cell count etc.

I'm not a doctor and I can tell the chest xray looks terrible, of course I'm looking at a cell phone picture of the xray. It's just all splotchy and doesn't look normal at all. She's hoping a 6-month treatment of anti-fungal meds will clear it up. I hope it's not too late. My wife said he's hardly eating at all today.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is something that's beatable. Come on Mason, we're not giving up yet!!

 

[Molalla1]

Keep the faith gsganzer! We are all praying for your pooch.

 

[kf4uda]

Did that Vet happen to say anything about Histoplasmosis? It is a fungal infection. My friend’s dog had it several years back. It took him from the picture of health to almost dead. However, once they figured out what was wrong and treated him for several months, he made a comeback and lived several more years. I hope for the same result for your dog.