Tasha is Sick

Poor Tasha, lets hope that this vet manages to sort things out its so sad seeing her in such a state and not knowing what to do :-(  Very worrying 

Tasha is now in another veterinary hospital and has been diagnosed with acute renal failure. Her urea levels were so high they could not be measured. She has also been xrayed and there is no blockage in her system - I was so hoping that was the problem even if it meant an op. I have been told that in an older dog it would be a death sentence, as it is, her youth is the only thing she has going for her. She will be on dialysis for two days, while they try to find out the cause - could be parasitic, could be genetic (this I doubt), could be several things. My thoughts on the original vet are murderous - we have wasted three weeks of possible treatment that could have made all the difference. They told me only last night that all her blood and urine levels were normal. I can't say more right now, I feel so sick.

Oh I'm so sorry! I don't know why I didn't think of that, my old dog had kidney failure. He was diagnosed when he was 6 and lived to the age of 13. He was part of the IAMS recall, it was horrible. 

Causes for kidney failure can be lyme disease, lepto, poisoning, shock, bladder stone obstruction, rupture of the bladder or urethra and heart failure. If you really doubt genetic disease, you can probably rule out heart failure, but we're still back at square one for what cause it - she still could have been kicked by a pony, gotten a tick and lyme, contracted lepto... 

Read up on kidney failure in dogs and talk to your vet about diet. For a very long time they were recommending low protein diets for animals with kidney problems, but the study that concluded that was done on rats. Many vets now are suggesting the exact opposite, high protein diets. If you can afford it, a raw diet might be the way to go when she comes back to you. 

Have you spoken to the other vet? I would call them up and let them know... they may even refund you some of the money you spent there... my old vet did when Sadie had to have surgery to remove bladder stones that they missed for 3 months.

I like you Jenny can not understand how the other vet missed this, I am so angry with them. I really hope the dialysis does the job and we can get the poor girl back to good health.  

Oh my word, really how could this have been missed,its awful. I would strongly complain. The main thing now though is that Tasha has been diagnosed and being treated, poor girl no wonder she felt so poorly.xx

I went over to a friend tonight, as I didn't want to be alone, and came home to a message from the vet. He had finished the analysis and microscopic blood exam and Tasha does have a tick-borne disease, though he did not say which one. I am going in tomorrow morning and will find out more, but hopefully that will be treatable, if it has not gone too far. It is strange though, she has always been frontlined or advantixed. But I feel more positive.

I am stunned that the original vet missed this for so long. Thank goodness you went for a second opinion. I hope they can figure out a treatment course for her now you know about the tick.

Poor Tasha. It's so fortunate you went for a second opinion! that it's treatable and she's doing better really soon!

Fingers crossed Jenny, now they have found something lets hope they can sort it out  

I went to see her this morning, and she was like a different dog! Alert, so happy to see me, and she gobbled up the chicken pieces I took her. She has the tick-borne disease, anaplasmosis, and is on doxycycline for 30 days. She has so far had 24 hours of dialysis to clean out her kidneys and is responding very well. But the crunch will come when she comes off dialysis, to see if her system can function without the drip, or if her kidneys are damaged. The vet says he will take her off it for a test tomorrow or Saturday, and if she tests Ok for 24 hours she can be allowed home for 6 days, when they will test her again. I phoned the previous vet today and told them what was happening, but I only got the receptionist, not the vet, so she will tell him. Whatever, I shall change vets, this place is 30 minutes' drive away as opposed to 15, but is a brand new facility with everything onsite, and the three vets there really know their stuff. Tasha is in a lovely cage that she can walk about in and there is a lawn outside to walk the dogs. Xray, ultrasound, blood testing is all done there so results are immediate. Yesterday the vet brought me her xray and full analysis for blood and urine in 30 minutes. So cautious optimism tonight as opposed to desperate worry.

great news! Hopefully she will continue to improve.

Oh that does sound optimistic! Sending

Sending you huge, huge vibes, I really hope that Tasha pulls through this, very odd, my grandad started his dialysis today and he is feeling a lot better already.xx

She is home! And I have my car back, so this weekend has made some huge differences. I was told she would be in the hospital all weekend, and I heard from the garage in England to come and get my car so I went over on Friday night, asking a friend to go and see Tasha on Saturday. When she went in the vet said Tasha was off dialysis and it would be better if she could be at home. So my friend took her home - she is experienced with dogs but does not currently have one, so Tasha had lots of attention and a quiet environment. I picked her up this morning when I came off the ferry and she is very glad to be home, though I am having a job getting her to eat anything but chicken pieces. She will go back for a vet check on Tuesday, when they will monitor her blood and urine levels again. The vet is still reluctant to give any long term prognosis. But everyone is so happy to have her here.

Two pieces of good news - Tasha home and your car back!

I must say after seeing Tasha this afternoon she is looking so much better, everything crossed that she continues that way

 I am so pleased that you have your car back and that Tasha is home, I really hope that Tasha continues to improve, I think she will be just as happy that she is home with you.xx

Sadly, Tasha had a relapse last night and this morning was unbalanced, apathetic and refusing to eat. She is back on a drip in the hospital. The vet now says she has peroplasmosis, probably the nastiest of the 'tick fever' diseases, that is almost invariably fatal according to the research I have been doing on it. Her kidneys are not functioning and the vet says that if there is no improvement by Saturday then he thinks there is nothing more he can do. I am frantically trying to see if a dog can live with renal failure - there are no transplants for dogs apparently. Research is divided as to whether cats can get it, some articles say yes, some say no but there are no case studies on cats. I will go to the hospital every day to see her, and just hope for a miracle.

Oh no.... Praying for a miracle

Oh hun   I am so, so ever so sorry, just terrible. I just hope that she does pull through this.xx