Sick Dog Question– help, please?!

[Kipawa]

You are both totally in our thoughts. I having been reading this whole thread so carefully, and I just get a gut feeling that it is not his time. Especially since he is attempting to eat and drink. Basenjis eat (try to eat) the wierdest things. I remember Therese (Kipawa's breeder) telling me this. I believe she mentioned it to me because as Kipawa was our first basenji, she did not want me to freak out every time he 'sampled' something from the backyard, street, etc.

I am so glad that Spencer is in with the doctors now. I'm wishing for the very best news. Please keep us all posted.

[krunzer]

Warm wishes headed your way Spencer! Get better soon little buddy.

[dcmclcm4]

I am glad your vet was able to find the problem and hopefully he will get better soon!

Jennifer

[tanza]

Good thoughts and hugs coming your way… while maybe it should have been caught earlier, at least you know now... Vets are not perfect as we all know and sometimes they really don't listen to what the owners are telling them...... Kudos and hugs for keeping at it and prayers for the best out come!

[Anne-Marie]

Thinking of you both, good thoughts and love coming your way. Hope Spencer will get better soon.
Lots of love and hugs

Anne-Marie
with Joey in my heart

[MacPack]

Fingers and paws crossed for a good outcome. Vets should listen to US, we know our dogs! Waiting and hoping for good news.

[svdreamer]

Best wish for Spencer, Im sorry it took so long to find. I hope he comes through the surgery with flying colors. I have had to pull the strangest things out of Chumley's mouth and I've only had him a month. Let us know how it goes, please.

[ownedbyspencer]

Well, we are home! Thanks SO much for all the positive thoughts, prayers and well wishes! Spencer survived the surgery and was doing okay, so I brought him home. We thought it would be less stressful for him here. He came in and started circling the water bowl, then finally licked some water off my fingers. So victory! Then he went into shock. So back to the hospital we went. They stabilized him, and I just brought him home again. He still won't eat or drink– same behavior; he goes to the bowl and smacks his mouth, but won't take anything. It's just bizarre. Maybe tomorrow his mouth and throat will feel better, and he will be able to eat. It's becoming very problematic, because he has lost so much weight and he has all the Fanconi pills that we just have to get down him. The vet says if he won't eat by Monday, we are at a crossroads. So it's just day by day.

Yes, vets should listen to us owners, even when it sounds sort of off-the-wall. We know our dogs so well that we can pick up on subtle things that even a trained professional may not. In the end, the vet came through, though, and brought him safely through surgery. So I'm grateful! We're giving him subQs. If he would just eat... Thanks again for all the kindness shown! It was so touching.

[bewler]

I too have been reading this thread - this is such hopeful news after all of initial, heart-wrenching posts. I will keep you all in my thoughts. Looks like you have an awful lots of folks here pulling for you and Spencer!

[agilebasenji]

I'm so glad he's home. I hope things are brighter in the morning. Did the vet say what the problem was?
Of course we are all thinking very hard on Spencer's health and well being here.

[curlytails]

I have no advice to give, but I am so heartened to read of how on top of it you are. You and Spencer are in my thoughts.

[ownedbyspencer]

I wanted to thank everyone again for their concern and kindness and update you on Spencer's saga. Today has been a roller-coaster day. He was so much better this morning, then had a relapse this afternoon and is now rebounding again. We are choosing to be optimistic. We don't know for sure what was/is causing all of his problems, but he had lesions on his tongue and large, raw sores on the back of his throat, as well as an abscessed tooth that was extracted. There was no jaw, throat or lymph node swelling, but it's likely that these things are at the root of his mouth pain. We just don't know what caused them and are hoping the antibiotics will speed healing.

Spencer sends baroos and tail wags to his forum friends. You have been so nice that he might want to come live with some of you, since his own family has been so annoying. He has been poked, prodded, stuck with needles and had pipettes, eye droppers and syringes filled with food and Ensure poked down his throat for days and is pretty tired of all of us here. And thank you, Anne, for that tubing idea– we're getting good mileage out of it!

[Chealsie508]

So happy to hear Spencer has at least persevered through the weekend. It's amazing the things dogs can endure. Maybe he still needs healing time from all the sores and extraction…Oakley and I are keeping you in our prayers. Thank you for the update, I've been wondering how he has been

[tanza]

Sounds like you might have turned the corner with him… fingers crossed that is the case... and certainly a bad tooth can cause lots of problems.. Take it hour by hour... you will have set backs.. for sure, but for every set back the rebound is a promise for better days.

[Patty]

I haven't been able to read all the threads for a couple of days so this is my first reading of your posts. i do hope that Spencer has now turned the corner and is on the up side of recovery. I feel for him and you for all that you've had to endure.

I was dismayed at your vet's reaction and I hope that you'll soon find a more iunderstanding vet. I think we usually know (our Basenjis tell us) when it is time to let them go and when to keep fighting and I would have hoped that all vets would listen to us.

Hugs to Spencer.

[krunzer]

I am glad to hear that things have been progressing nicely. An abcess is a really nasty thing, humans have problems with abcesses and then if his throat is still sore from the surgery I can understand why he would still be fussy. Fingers crossed that the hardest part is over and healing is on the way!

[agilebasenji]

Thanks for checking in. I was so worried, but am relieved to hear he seems to be on the mend. I think a bit of a rollercoaster is to be expected. Hopefully you'll be doing 2 or 3 steps forward for every step back.

[Kipawa]

I'm really happy to hear about the improvements. What sturdy dogs basenjis are. That must be quite uncomfortable for him. Hopefully he is now on the mend and the antibiotics will help. Still keeping you in our thoughts though. You don't rid of Kipawa and I THAT easily!

[Terry]

So glad to hear that Spencer is doing better! Poor guy, no wonder he didn't want to eat with all that going on in his mouth and throat!

Our first Fanconi dog developed a condition called "CUPS" - I forget exactly what the acronym stands for, but essentially, she was allergic to her own plaque. She would develop frequent and painful abscesses in her mouth from the allergy, which would then reinfect her because they would become infected - it was a vicious cycle. She wound up having 12 teeth pulled and was slated for another 12 to be removed. We were seeing a doggie dentist. Might be something to find out about when Spencer feels a bit better! Apparently, cats tend to be more susceptible to CUPS than dogs - so it's probably not surprising that our 'cats in dog suits' get it also!

Terry

[ownedbyspencer]

Oh, wow, Terry, CUPS might be the answer! I had never heard of it, so I looked it up online and those lesions are exactly like what Spencer has on his tongue and down his throat. (I can't see them, but the vet took a picture with her camera while he was under anesthesia.) His lesions are very large and raw, and the minute I saw the photo, I just felt sick. No one could eat or drink with those in their mouth! Anyway, I will talk to the vet about CUPS. Spencer has not had a thorough dental cleaning in more than a year, because I have been afraid to put him under, given his advanced age and kidney problems. I do use the C.E.T. gel and doggy toothpaste, but he has been increasingly reluctant to have my hands in his mouth. His teeth were just checked in September, but they did have plaque. Thank you for sharing this! Has anyone else had experience with CUPS?

And a big thanks to everyone for all the help and support. This forum has been both a saving grace and a wealth of knowledge. I feel like you all should send me a bill!

Oh, and Spencer is drinking like it's the water lapping Olympics this morning. I'm still having to feed him through a syringe, but he is definitely on the mend. A little sparkle is returning to his eyes, and his tail is up.

Pamela and Spencer