Vegas Bloat Story: On Sunday it was an ordinary day. Vegas ate breakfast and hung out, occasionally following me around as I did chores, etc. The only thing different from our normal routine was my renting a steam cleaner but being as shes not concerned with things like vacuums and steam cleaners, this was a non-issue. She hung out on the couch while I cleaned, went out to potty as needed, and nothing else. Around 4:45-5 we went for a walk to Pacific University like we so often do. She hadnt been for a walk since Thursday evening, but again, not really notable. We either seem to walk often or miss a couple days due to schedule. So around 4:45 or 5, we go for our walk. We power along at a decent clip until we get to campus then she goes off leash and chases squirrels. We headed for home around 5:45 to try and beat the darkness. When we returned home I started to do dishes and a chore or two in the kitchen. She was begging for dinner (normally she would have eaten by then; breakfast was 6 am) worse than usual. Typically I would give her a bit longer before dinner, but this time I caved around 25 minutes after wed walked. She wasnt panting or exerted any longer. She was cooled down plenty. She ate and went to the couch. I did another couple things briefly around the house and left at 6:35 to run the steam cleaner back and take my son to his dads house. That took around 45 minutes and I returned home. She greeted me as normal and went back to the couch. A short while later, as I was relaxing in the living room with Vegas Rose and Leo the Lionhearted, Vegas suddenly got up from the couch and made her way to the back door. I say made her way because she didnt vault up and run. She didnt move quickly. She got up and, in retrospect and the brilliant clarity of hindsight, walked rather hunched to the back door. She went out and meandered to the left of the yard where she often goes to the bathroom in an area sheltered by a large evergreen tree. She seemed to urinate and then stood with her head lowered. I thought she might be going to eat grass but did not seem to. I called her in and she returned with me and lay on the couch. Another 10 minutes passed and she repeated this activity although this time she wandered to the the middle of the yard after venturing to the left. This time in the middle of the yard she sat. At this point I called her in and gave her two Gas X capsules. I was then really starting to worry. I palpated her abdomen. She had a slight belly as if she overate, but nothing significant enough to make it scream bloat. Of course thats where my mind goes if she so much as urps her food. Its an unhealthy paranoia, but in this case it turned out to be warranted. Her abdomen wasnt tender but she was hunching her back a bit. She returned to the couch again and just seemed off. I cant pinpoint what it was beyond these symptoms other than that she had no light in her eyes. She wasnt happy. She wasnt engaging. She was just blah. It pained me to see it. I panicked and called one of the most generous people I know, Rachel, and talked over the situation. Per her suggestion I took her temp and it was normal. Since her gut wasnt overly distended and painful, I started looking at other things. Her color (gums) was good as was her capillary response time. I thought perhaps her back was bothering her. She has had enough back/spinal troubles I figured I could feel around and shed tell me if something hurt. She acted like maybe her neck bothered her as when I started checking things out she got more comfortable - Please massage me, Mom and groaned slightly. She was curled on her side at this time. At this point knowing it wouldnt hurt her gut if that was the ultimate problem, I gave her 2 Tramadol. This was around 8:10 pm. Then she jumped up a third time. This time she went straight out to the middle, back of the yard and attempted to vomit. I dont know if there was anything produced because at that time I panicked, got off the phone, and called her in. She wasnt as quick to return this time but did ultimately come with me. I put Leo in his crate, put a couple things away in the kitchen, blew out candles, and jumped in the car. It was 8:15 pm. I called Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency (at 8:18 pm) and let them know what was going on. They told me they would immediately take her back when I got there and get an x-ray. I arrived at the clinic and got her unloaded, although difficult. She was afraid to jump out of the backseat of the truck, very unusual. I immediately realized something was wrong when I walked through the door and saw brochures for Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency as well as Dove Lewis. I had come to the wrong place. For some crazy reason in my mind I was going to the E-vet and that was the location. Unfortunately I was at Rock Creek Veterinary Clinic. They closed at 10. I explained what was going on and the receptionist went in the back. She was gone and didnt come back, probably a span of 30 seconds, but I left. I headed for the correct place per her instructions. Not sure exactly what time we arrived but somewhere close to 8:45 pm. Ive included the two x-rays they took. The first was upon arrival and examination. After the x-ray was taken I spoke with the doctor. He showed me the image and discussed the bones they saw in her stomach. Being raw fed, this is normal plus shed had some recreational bones the day prior (lamb ribcage). Behind the stomach, hed seen her bladder that looked fairly full and her spleen. Things werent quite clear enough for them to absolutely say GDV was happening. He said it could just be really early. They suggested giving her some injectable pain meds and allowing her to hang out in an exam room with me for a short while. They ended up also hooking her up to an ECG as her heart rate was elevated. I was told resting rate was around 60 bpm and she was up in the low 200s. Over the next little while in the exam room, her BPMs did come down, but then they went back up. The staff took her back again for another x-ray. The second x-ray is included here, not much more telling than the first. However, given how she felt upon abdominal palpation, the 3 vets on that night concurred. Something was wrong and surgery was suggested. I authorized the surgery and they took her back to get a catheter in, etc. I was able to go back and visit with her one more time before they prepped and anesthetized her. Surgery began between 10:30 and 11 and I was notified that she was out of surgery at 12:20 am Monday. Dr. Thomas said there was no way to know what went first, her stomach or spleen, but she was in the process of torsing. She may have untwisted some just by being laid out on the surgery table. Her spleen had some purple coloration whereas its normally dark pink indicating it had experienced compromised blood flow. The organ was healthy though when untwisted so they opted not to remove it. She was tacked and sewed back up. I went back to see her when she woke up. She was covered in 3-4 quilts and wearing socks on her feet. She immediately righted herself upon seeing me, but I was able to get her to lay back down. I spent 10-15 minutes or so and then decided to call it a night. By then it was 1:30 am. Monday morning I called at 7 am on my way to pick her up. The clinic is open 5 pm - 8 am weekdays so the plan was likely to transport her to my local clinic for observation for the day. I spoke with Dr. Thomas who mentioned she was doing well enough he might be comfortable sending her home if I would like to do that instead. In fact, shed been whining and yipping at them enough they took her out of her kennel thinking theyd get a break (on their ears). No such luck. She wanted her mama. When I arrived to pick her up that was the first thing I noticed - her whining. I could hear her from the waiting room and it was the most glorious sound. She came home with me with antibiotics (Cefpodoxime), pain medication (Tramadol), and an anti-inflammatory (Rimadyl). We stopped at Kindness Family Pet Clinic for an inflatable e-collar and settled in at home. Monday was a bit rough. She was sort of just there and out of it, not really sleeping but laying there clearly off as the anesthesia worked itself out of her system. She did want food though, finally drank water late in the day, and was able to get out to potty a couple of times. Her movements were very painful with semi-bowed rear legs and slow progress. This morning (Tuesday), she was back. She snagged a chewy off the floor right away this morning, got up off the couch more comfortably, ate a good breakfast of cooked turkey breast, and took her meds. Throughout the day she steadily improved, moving more freely - even trotting in the yard - barking at passersby, demanding food often, and playing with a toy. If theres a lesson to be learned her, its that there are no rules with GDV. There are basic signs and symptoms to watch for, but know your dog. Know that bloat wont be textbook. It is unique every single time. Know that if they are off and theres nothing to pin it on, dont wait. Go, be seen. Dont wait. Dont risk anything. GDV comes to those it chooses. Mine is naturally reared, raw fed, non-vaccinated, low-stress, and fit as a fiddle. Shes nearly 8 but shes never had a bloat-like symptom in her life. And it happened to us.
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 03:24:34 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015