Its Always Something (kinda long, sorry)

[daisysmomx]

My little guy just can NOT catch a BREAK! FIRST petsmart discontinues our food without notice so Riley had loose stool for WEEKS..vet thought it could even be Giardia because it lasted so long but fecal tests kept coming back negative so I didn't want to take chances over medicating and de-worming "just in case". Sure enough it cleared up in time.

THEN, he comes in from a quick potty outside one evening and starts acting very strange, rubbing against everything..look at him 20 seconds later and his face is HUGE! Eyes nearly swollen shut..jowls huge..the works! So 2 rounds of benadryl later and no difference in his face at all..he goes to the emergency vet for a steroid injection . This in turn gives him sleepless nights for nearly a week waking up every few hours to go potty (hes only about FIVE 1/2 MONTHS OLD at this point!) August 15 we make the 28 hr. roadtrip/move from northwest Illinois to Miami Florida..Riley did great! Except for when he chose a potty spot near a red ant hill...you can imagine what happened I'm sure luckily we had cold bottled water handy to wash them off and hydrogen peroxide to clean the little bites.

Now, Settling down in Florida, I've found this wonderful dog park that I happily drive 20 minutes to nearly every day. Riley made his little friends there (including a TOO CUTE eng. bulldog who's six months also, like riley!) and of course..I have fun watching him have fun..so I dont mind going bc he loves it. However...we won't be able to go back for a while now because Riley has caught (of all things in florida...) BRONCHITIS/RHINITIS! I mean COME ON! the vet even noticed his gums a little paler than average and checked it out..ANEMIA from the other illnesses! SERIOUSLY? now the vet bills...while they are TREMENDOUS..are not even my biggest problem right now. Am I a bad mom or what? my poor Riley is like a walking Med Case..at only SIX months old! I'm surprised the vet hasn't accused me of like Munchausens (sp) Syndrom or something by now! So with the bronchitis..hes on Clavamox (doggy amoxicillin) 2x a day for 14 days and Guaifensn (cough meds) 2x a day for 7 days..

Do you guys think I can cut both down to 1 pill of each a day? He also got a shot yesterday to boost his metabolism right away. Today is the day after he was diagnosed and already the coughing/retching is almost completely gone he's just a bit sneezy and sleepy, I've tried to keep playing to a minimum (you guys know how THAT goes with a boxer puppy!) so he can get lots of rest, I've been taking this time to work on some commands with him (since he's cooped up in one part of the house anyway as not to spread it to the other dogs)


SORRY for such a long post guys but to anyone who got this far..I just want some opinions on what to do next? at only 6 months old hes already been through alot and would obviously like to medicate him as little as possible you know? It's also frustrating because I am a very hands-on mom to him..(my mother calls me a "helicopter mom" ha.ha.ha.) and I'm worried! meh..what can I say....



Kate & Riley

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

Absolutely DO NOT stop or cut the antibiotics no way they will not work properly and you could very well be starting over a month from now. If you want to call the vet on the cough stuff then that I would do as if the coughing isn't bad I wouldn't think he'd need that all of the time but absolutely do not stop the antibiotic.

Hang in there, things will get better. I used to feel the same way with my boys food allergies but once I figure out what they were eliminated the issues and got things under control he's been relatively event free for a year (minus a red pressure sore we can't get rid of), so hang in there, things can only get better right? LoL.

 

[BoxerMom999]

Just wanted to say a few words of support. It seemed that Maggie was constantly ill in her first year. I used to say to the vets that I should just leave my visa card there - it would make things so much simpler.

But she has been relatively healthy since then so things will improve. Take care of your little baby!

 

[daisysmomx]

Thanks for the support! Riley seems to be doing a little better today, still sneezing but less mopey than before. Today I woke up to my moms Airedale (3 y/o) coughing a bit so I made an appt right away with the vet and sure enough..bronchitis! We caught it VERY early luckily, so she didn't have to get the injections and she's just on the Clavamox.

It's just a little frustrating because I am SO careful with Riley on everything (no treats from strangers, petsmart etc..kids wash their hands first before touching (I know, I know..) strict training..) and the one thing I let him run wild with is the dog park, and thats where he caught the bronchitis! So needless to say I'm a little weary of ever going to a dog park again because it's just hard to tell sometimes the responsible owners from the irresponsible ones. Luckily though I met some RESPONSIBLE pet moms/dads at the bark park and exchanged contact info with them so hopefully we can all get together for some SAFE(!) fun one day.

Am I being too crazy about this? Or should I try out the dog park again once he's a little older? I dont know! I'm Torn! Lol I am such a crazy mom I know...a worry wort to the extreme

-Kate & Riley

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

Like with kids, they're going to get sick, unless you keep them in a bubble and then what kind of life is that? I know she's been through a lot and it's hard not to worry, but sometimes protecting them too much isn't healthy either because then they never build up the immunities to things. Yes, dog parks are like human children daycares, it isn't necessarily irresponsible owners, it many times is they simply don't know, they go to the dog park today and tomorrow their dog has symptoms, well dog was contagious yesterday they simply didn't know. IMO there is no need to have people wash their hands before petting your dog, some germs and exposure is a good thing, it builds up immune systems. Personally I don't like dog parks for many reasons that is one of them, but my son pets the dog, his friends come over at least 2-3 times a week (he's 7 going on 8 so all of his friends are in 2nd grade, hand washing probably lacks with most of them), they all play with my dogs, pet them, and the only thing my dog has ever come down with is kennel cough and that was from a dog that I watched as a favor for a friend who had just adopted it 3 days prior from animal control (it was vaccinated but too little too late), he took some meds and was over it in a few weeks.

She'll be fine with the antibiotics. Not too many things running around out there that cannot be taken care of medically (Parvo is about the worst I can think of) and not too many things out there that are downright deadly.

So, IMO she's a DOG let her be what she is as she is very happy being a dog and I think if you let up a little bit on being so protective of her that you will both be a lot happier in the long run.

 

[OscarLolamom]

My Oscar was sick with something first year: kennel cough, then something bit him (spyder or bee) his face was unrecognizable so he got his steroid shot too, then one of his nipple started to grow as grape. I was concerned that was cancer but that was benigh, after that he smashed on of his nails partially and was in severe pain. He went through surgery again to remove the nail. Almost every week he had stomach problems. And on a top of it - mange. Pure breed dogs always have some health problems. Every one called him prince Oscar. You are not alone!

 

[daisysmomx]

Thanks guys! I think once he gets his second round of bordatella (he's only six months so he's only had one and the doc said it's not really effective till the second round) that we will return to the dog park once again.
The nurse that helped us when he was diagnosed with the bronchitis sunday said that here in Florida, all those nasty parasites are just naturally in the soil everywhere. Now I'm from the midwest (just moved here in August) and I never thought that all those nasties would be EVERYWHERE or maybe I just trusted the Midwest more...IDK! Cant explain it!

OscarLolaMom- I hear ya..and its hard not to feel bad about everything that happens but We do the best we can, right?!


BxrMom- Thanks for your CALM words I dont even have skinkids though, he's all I got and to top it off...He's my first dog! (other than growing up all my life with "family dogs") but anyway..I will try to be helicopter mom no more!