She's been coughing for weeks, and it's not K.C.!

[SaraMM]

Update on Mona!

Thank you for all the good vibes and advice! I really appriciate it! I called the vet on Friday and told him her cough was not any better after taking the allergy pills for a week, so he told me to give her chidren's cough medicine instead. I then mentioned that she sometimes hacked up a bit of green mucus when she was hacking and coughing, and that seemed to strike a chord with him because he immediately prescribed antibiotics. She has been on them since Friday. He said it would take time for the pills to clear up whatever it is that is ailing her, but I think she is worse. She was up every hour last night coughing and hacking despite the dose of Robitussin. She isn't getting any sleep and we are not either!!

clemtigersc: I find it very interesting that your puppy had to be on 3 or 4 different medications before she got well. I have a feeling that is going to be the case here. I'll keep you posted!

 

[Louie's Mom]

bad

Well since most vets arn't checking for the new dog flu, your dog just might have it, it looks like kennel cough but it's not, and puppies and old dogs die from it because they get secondary infections ( nemonia respritory infections ect. ) because the vets tell people that its just kennel cough and it will clear up on its own. also the kennel cough remedies don't work on the dog flu.
Watch out for that.

 

[a1r1ka]

because i went through such a long process to discover the nature of my pup's cough, i thought i would link to what i went through in the off chance that it might help: http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=72639

maybe do some research and then throw out the term "mycoplasma" to the vet and see if he/she thinks it might be that.

 

[SaraMM]

Update!

I will definately mention "mycoplasma" to the vet if this thing doesn't get resolved soon. We have been giving her the antibiotic pills for almost a week. No changes to note up until this morning. She started coughing this morning, as she usually does, but instead of her cough being not productive at all she coughed up a significant amount of white foamy stuff mixed with thick green mucus. So, I called the vet again and he said that it was a good sign, that the stuff that was clogging her up was breaking apart and coming up with her cough. He also said to start giving her echinacea. I called another vet this morning to get a second opinion though. My current vet just doesn't seem sure of himself and it is innerving. It's mostly the fact that he said it wasn't kennel cough at first, and now claims that it is. Or maybe I just feel he doesn't really care about Mona's welfare, like he is disinterested or something. Anyway, I'll let you all know what the other vet says. She's supposed to call back this afternoon.

 

[mmichaelson]

I am really glad you decided to get a second opinion - I think that's a good idea.
((hugs)) I hope your baby is better soon!!!

 

[a1r1ka]

definitely keep pursuing until you have a healthy dog. . . i was told that it was nothing, that it was KC, that it will clear up with cough meds, that it will just take time, that the white foam was a sign that the cough was breaking up, etc., and it was all bull. we dealt with this for six months (oh boy, do i remember those sleepless nights!), all the while my baby was hacking every morning and after every nap and was always on antibiotics, which was breaking his immune system down. he lost some fur, too, and it's taken months to grow back. . .

x-rays are a great idea, to see if there's something there - it will run you about $150 for two, but i think it's worth it, because that will show you if there's mycoplasma (white spiderweb-like stuff by the lungs).

also, maybe give her some Missing Link with the food, a spoonful of yogurt with every pill, and consider liquid DermCaps as well. . .all of which she will probably love! regardless of the actual prob, it will be great for her overall health.

good luck with your little girl!!

 

[SaraMM]

Heard from new Vet

also, maybe give her some Missing Link with the food, a spoonful of yogurt with every pill, and consider liquid DermCaps as well. . .all of which she will probably love! regardless of the actual prob, it will be great for her overall health.

good luck with your little girl!!

Thank you so much! The other vet called back and she said that based on what I told her it is hard to pinpoint what it could be without seeing Mona for herself and taking some x-rays, etc. So, I am going to finish out the 2 weeks on this antibiotics and if she doesn't get any better or, god forbid, gets worse I am taking her to the new vet.

Also, I wanted to ask what Missing Link is. I have never heard of it. Is it some kind of nutritional supplement for dogs? We feed Mona Natural Balance and she seems to like it, and it keeps her weight at a healthy level. I thought she was getting the proper nutrition from it alone but maybe she does need a little something extra.

 

[a1r1ka]

Missing Link is a brown powder supplement that you sprinkle over the dog's food. I also feed my baby NB Organic, but found that the antibiotics (you saw that list we tried, and that's not good for their bodies) and his high energy level really called for something more, so we started that. He loves the taste and I saw improvement in his coat after a short time. You can get that at any pet store or online for about $10 for 3 month's worth.

Then, the vet suggested an additional boost, so we added DermCaps (oil from a liquid eye dropper out top of food with Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids), so that kicked in after a few weeks and he's bright and shiny and his coat is so much healthier. . .you can get that online at some stores, but definitely from your vet (over the counter) for about $20 for a few month's worth.

Maybe it's one over the other, maybe both used in conjunction, but I couldn't be happier with how he looks and feels.

 

[meatdude1]

coughing

my adrian is 9 and she started this hacking cough a few weeks ago. she has heavy allergies. so the vet thought it was that, and its not K.C. my parents where she stays now since i got married a year ago were up all night last night with her coughing. it has gotten worse..
so long story short went to the vet she has fluid in her lungs and its leaning on her heart and its not beating correctly. they think its lung cancer. they gave her a pill to get the fluid out now she has to pee every 15mins. SO the ball is in my court so to speak Im going there tomorrow. To check the whole situation out. but it doesnt look too good of an out come right now.

 

[SaraMM]

Oh, NO!

Meatdude: I certainly hope that it is NOT lung cancer! Mona's problems with her little cough compared to that are nothing! I sincerely hope Adrian is feeling better very, very soon and that all works out fine.

Well, Mona is about the same. She wakes up each night at about 3 a.m. coughing and hacking away. We give her a dose of children's robitussin and she quiets down until we wake up at about 6:30 a.m. and then she starts coughing and hacking again, but not as severely as she does in the middle of the night. Yesterday we came home to find a bit of throw up on the kitchen rug. It was mostly digested kibble. I thought it was because I had given her an Echinacea pill that morning before I left for work, and she has never had that before. Maybe it didn't agree with her. The vet recommended I start giving her those to help with her immune system as well. She has about a week left worth of antibiotic pills, so I'll keep you posted about her progress.

Please post a message if you think of anything I might want to know! Thank you all, it's wonderful to have such a network of support!