Uh oh...worrisome vet visit

[Jenni23]

I completely understand your frustration. Are you feeding meatballs for food. our vet told us just let her eat soft food, but the ER vet said make meat balls with her food. I will post pictures her in a second. As far as holding upright, what got me through was thinking this might be the last time I hold her. Harsh, but it kept me a a positive, loving state. There is nothing that heals better than love.

The other thing thay gave us that helped immensley was pepcid. Also, reading about the stomace and stuff. We needed low fat easy to digest food. The concept was low fat creates less stomach acid, easy to digest meant it goes through faster. The other thing to consider is that the food they had me on had salmon oil, and though i loved salmon oil for the vit d content. Many have posted on this site that EBD are sensitive to salmon. So I really looked hard at her food, and began cutting out everything that might cause stomach sensitivity. Only recently have I added back in coconut oil.

Also note that the antibiotics are killing her ability to digest her food so probiotic is important.
You c.an do this. My aunt has a saying 'The people with the most love get the most difficult cases' Hang in there, and enjoy every minute with her, so that she can enjoy every minute she has.
this is the size of meatball 2cups reconstituted dry to 1 can
View attachment 97450

Thank you so much for all this information! Can I ask what kind of food you are feeding? Her vet did mention the low fat diet to me on the phone this morning. I see that you reconstitute the dry food, can you explain how you do that? She is on Pepcid, 10mg tablet twice a day.

 

[Frith]

Thank you so much for all this information! Can I ask what kind of food you are feeding? Her vet did mention the low fat diet to me on the phone this morning. I see that you reconstitute the dry food, can you explain how you do that? She is on Pepcid, 10mg tablet twice a day.

We are using a combination of Fromm and Holistic Select. We went to HS because it has 'digestive aids' in it. To reconstitute it every night we measure out about 2 cups of food (we were doing 3 dry to a can but i read here that people feed 3 cups a day so we reduced the dry.) Then we cover in boiling water and let sit until the water is gone (1/2 hour about) Then we add the can and stir. This goes in the fridge overnight. That is a day of food. We add probiotics when we feed and put her medicine in the middle of a ball. Those get fed first. We let is sit out about an hour before we feed, so it is room temp. play with the ratio to find the best consistancy to make meatballs.

We also feed Frith 10mg pepcid 2x per day.

 

[Frith]

Thank you so much for all this information! Can I ask what kind of food you are feeding? Her vet did mention the low fat diet to me on the phone this morning. I see that you reconstitute the dry food, can you explain how you do that? She is on Pepcid, 10mg tablet twice a day.

I have to add that after two months of being hand fed meatballs and being held and cuddled for 20 minutes afterwards, she IS spoiled rotten. But she also knows the routine. She knows how to stand (we make her stand on the couch now (so she is about as upright as she can be without standing) And she settels down for her afterrmeal nap while we watch TV

 

[Jenni23]

We are using a combination of Fromm and Holistic Select. We went to HS because it has 'digestive aids' in it. To reconstitute it every night we measure out about 2 cups of food (we were doing 3 dry to a can but i read here that people feed 3 cups a day so we reduced the dry.) Then we cover in boiling water and let sit until the water is gone (1/2 hour about) Then we add the can and stir. This goes in the fridge overnight. That is a day of food. We add probiotics when we feed and put her medicine in the middle of a ball. Those get fed first. We let is sit out about an hour before we feed, so it is room temp. play with the ratio to find the best consistancy to make meatballs.

We also feed Frith 10mg pepcid 2x per day.

Thank you so much, this is so helpful! I love that you make a whole day batch, that will save me a little time.

 

[Frith]

Thank you so much, this is so helpful! I love that you make a whole day batch, that will save me a little time.

Good luck! Prayers and thoughts going your way--you can do this.

 

[Texas Carol]

Good luck! Prayers and thoughts going your way--you can do this.

Such great, great help, advice, tips, support & wisdom, honestly, your loving & kind heart
brought tears to my eyes reading your replies to help this bully, God bless you!

 

[oscarmayer]

Is there a support group or forum that promotes the sale/resale of used Bailey Chairs? It seems to me that there would be a need as some dogs will require several chairs in different(larger) sizes as they grow...given that the chairs are size specific. IOW, what happens to used Bailey chairs once they are outgrown?

 

[Jenni23]

Is there a support group or forum that promotes the sale/resale of used Bailey Chairs? It seems to me that there would be a need as some dogs will require several chairs in different(larger) sizes as they grow...given that the chairs are size specific. IOW, what happens to used Bailey chairs once they are outgrown?

I don't know about used Bailey chairs being resold, but on their actual website, they sell an adjustable Bailey chair for growing puppies. I thought about actually calling the makers of the Bailey chair and seeing what the best chair for her would be.

 

[Jenni23]

Her vet called me today to let me know that she had heard back from some specialists about which route they would take to treat Gigi. One specialist said he would surgically fix 3 out of the 4 things related to brachialsephalic syndrome. Then another specialist who is a surgeon, said no way, no surgery in her condition. The last Doctor, who does internal medicine, hasn't gotten back to her yet. So that went nowhere so far. She did say she is wondering if treatment of the megaesophagus is the key to curing the pneumonia, because she may be having micro-aspiration. She said that micro aspiration can occur even when they don't fully regurgitate. So I think she may be hopping on board with the Bailey chair now. Gigi hasn't regurgitated in 3 days. I think that's due to us feeding her elevated and holding her upright after meals. She has had more energy today, so that's a plus!

 

[Frith]

Her vet called me today to let me know that she had heard back from some specialists about which route they would take to treat Gigi. One specialist said he would surgically fix 3 out of the 4 things related to brachialsephalic syndrome. Then another specialist who is a surgeon, said no way, no surgery in her condition. The last Doctor, who does internal medicine, hasn't gotten back to her yet. So that went nowhere so far. She did say she is wondering if treatment of the megaesophagus is the key to curing the pneumonia, because she may be having micro-aspiration. She said that micro aspiration can occur even when they don't fully regurgitate. So I think she may be hopping on board with the Bailey chair now. Gigi hasn't regurgitated in 3 days. I think that's due to us feeding her elevated and holding her upright after meals. She has had more energy today, so that's a plus!

When visiting various websites about ME, know that you either need to really train 'leave it' or consider a muzzel whenever you are outside, Frith is a taster, and has to eat everything in site. We are getting better with the 'leave its' but muzzels may be in our future. Also, I posted a thread about training treats that should help. They require licking, so lessens the chance of aspiration.

 

[My Otis]

I am sending Prayers and Loads of Love and Kisses To Precious Georgia.

 

[Frith]

So many of you who read my EBN introduction, know how I came to have Gigi. She was being treated for kennel cough with clavamox for 14 days. Well by day 10 on her meds there just wasn't enough improvement for me, so I called up our vet and she wanted me to bring her in right away for chest X-rays. We took her on Sat morning. She has a bad case of pneumonia in her right central lung lobe. She was put on an extended dose of clavamox, baytril, and some Pepcid. The X-rays also revealed a very narrow trachea and maybe megaesophagus. The vet thinks the megaesophagus could be due to the irritation from all the coughing she's been doing with the pneumonia, so she put her on Pepcid twice a day. She thinks it may clear up over time, especially since she's not throwing up food.

Everything looked ok on her physical exam except her kneecaps are slightly loose, but they do not luxate.

She goes back in 2 weeks for follow up X-rays. If she's clear, great, if not, more meds.

I also found out that she had a sister at the pet store. They shared a cage and bowls and toys. When my brother went in, the sales person said the sister was quarantined because of a "runny nose". She has since passed away. I know it's not a good idea to ever buy from a pet store like my brother, but I can imagine if he hadn't, Gigi would have suffered the same fate.

So has anyone dealt with any of the above issues? Thoughts, advice, tips??

We are taking steamy showers with her in the bathroom and then firmly patting her right side where the pneumonia is, trying to help it break up.

Thanks,
Jenn and Gigi

I found this a while back, and refound it again today--thought it might help
http://vetneuromuscular.ucsd.edu/publications/Megaesophagus Brochure-1.pdf

 

[Jenni23]

Just wanted to make a small update. I think we may be getting somewhere finally. Gigi is still on all of her meds but the nebulizer seems to be making the most difference. She nebulizes three times a day with albuterol in her crate with towels draped over all the openings. We tried the mask, but it freaked her out a little too much, now she sleeps while getting her treatments. I think we might be making some headway with the food too. We tried to go completely wet like everyone suggested but that wasn't working, every time we would do that, she would get worse. So we are using a mixture of a really small bite kibble and canned food with some pumpkin. We feed her a teaspoon at a time, so she doesn't have to chew, and she eats standing up, with her front paws on my knees while I spoon feed her. Then I hold her in my lap for 20 minutes. I need to explore an inflatable collar for her, for when she sleeps at night, so it keeps her head elevated. I saw a recommended one on the Bailey chair website. Their website is wagtailfarms.com. Anyone ever used them? Or know someone who has? Let me know

Ya know, three months ago I wasn't even in the market for another dog, let alone an English bulldog. I had never even considered one. Now that I've had her, and even after all of the difficulties, I can't imagine my house or life without her

 

[2BullyMama]

Just wanted to make a small update. I think we may be getting somewhere finally. Gigi is still on all of her meds but the nebulizer seems to be making the most difference. She nebulizes three times a day with albuterol in her crate with towels draped over all the openings. We tried the mask, but it freaked her out a little too much, now she sleeps while getting her treatments. I think we might be making some headway with the food too. We tried to go completely wet like everyone suggested but that wasn't working, every time we would do that, she would get worse. So we are using a mixture of a really small bite kibble and canned food with some pumpkin. We feed her a teaspoon at a time, so she doesn't have to chew, and she eats standing up, with her front paws on my knees while I spoon feed her. Then I hold her in my lap for 20 minutes. I need to explore an inflatable collar for her, for when she sleeps at night, so it keeps her head elevated. I saw a recommended one on the Bailey chair website. Their website is wagtailfarms.com. Anyone ever used them? Or know someone who has? Let me know

Ya know, three months ago I wasn't even in the market for another dog, let alone an English bulldog. I had never even considered one. Now that I've had her, and even after all of the difficulties, I can't imagine my house or life without her

great update..... bay steps but it is progress. great job by you and hubby, she will be well and causing havoc soon.

Hugs to you all and sending prayers she continues to improve.

 

[Frith]

Just wanted to make a small update. I think we may be getting somewhere finally. Gigi is still on all of her meds but the nebulizer seems to be making the most difference. She nebulizes three times a day with albuterol in her crate with towels draped over all the openings. We tried the mask, but it freaked her out a little too much, now she sleeps while getting her treatments. I think we might be making some headway with the food too. We tried to go completely wet like everyone suggested but that wasn't working, every time we would do that, she would get worse. So we are using a mixture of a really small bite kibble and canned food with some pumpkin. We feed her a teaspoon at a time, so she doesn't have to chew, and she eats standing up, with her front paws on my knees while I spoon feed her. Then I hold her in my lap for 20 minutes. I need to explore an inflatable collar for her, for when she sleeps at night, so it keeps her head elevated. I saw a recommended one on the Bailey chair website. Their website is wagtailfarms.com. Anyone ever used them? Or know someone who has? Let me know

Ya know, three months ago I wasn't even in the market for another dog, let alone an English bulldog. I had never even considered one. Now that I've had her, and even after all of the difficulties, I can't imagine my house or life without her

Good to hear things are working out. I hadn't thought of pumpkin, might have to add that. Positive thoughts and prayers your way.