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Starting HW TX and have question

540 views 3 replies 2 participants last post by  Magwart 
#1 ·
We adopted a 2 year old GSD whom we were told was high HW positive as we were walking out of the door, after 3 days of visits and his neuter. The shelter will treat for free. We take him for the injections, then take him home.

Inquires to area vets range from $1,300 and up for tx, but it includes a blood work-up, xrays and hospitalization. I am thinking we will do the shots at the shelter, then drop him at vet on those days for observation should anything go wrong.

I am wondering if we should pay for a workup at the vet before the shots begin? He is healthy otherwise, and shows no outward symptoms. Has anyone here adopted and gone with just the shelter shots, or have you also had the labs done? I know this treatment can be rough, so want what is best for him.

Thanks for any advice!
 
#2 ·
I've done HW treatment many times in dog rescue. The radiographs are useful to know how many worms there are, but my understanding from the vet is that they don't really change the treatment -- as long as he's not caval, whatever they see isn't likely to matter...so we often skip them.

Bloodwork could go either way. There are a few values that are always "off" in HW+ dogs, so finding that out isn't very useful either. If the dog is asymptomatic, there's an argument that it's not strictly necessary, and shelters nearly always skip it.

Boarding at the vet is different--that's important and 100% worth doing. I actually like them to stay overnight at the vet clinic, after getting a shot, if the clinic has someone there 24/7. If not, you might as well take the dog home and sleep right next to the dog. You also will need the vet to script out some pain meds for the days after the shots. Those shots HURT, and the dogs are in pain for several days (bad enough that some of them can hardly stand up). They should also be scripting out some prednisone (that has a lot of side effects, but it's an important element of the treatment, and lowering the risk of a fatal embolism).

Ask the vet to instruct you how to count resting breaths and what rate is "good," what rate is "reason for concern," and what rate is an "emergency."

Find out where your nearest 24/7 emergency clinic with an ICU (with an oxygen crate) is located, and map your closest path there. Not all emergency clinics have an ICU with oxygen! I don't want to scare you, but this is important. If there's a bad complication, getting them into an oxygen crate quickly is how you may save the dog's life -- it's about minutes, not "let's see if the dog's better tomorrow." Grab the keys in the middle of the night and rush over there, if you have to. I've had to make a few 3AM trips to the state vet school's emergency clinic to get HW treatment dogs into the ICU, so it's not just a hypothetical risk.

Most dogs sail through the treatment, with just a little boredom. Good luck!
 
#3 ·
Thank you so much for your informative reply. I'm very worried and hate the previous people who owned him and let this happen. I will take him to vet for pre-tx exam and x-ray, as I want to know how many hw. Will skip the bloodwork. This vet does operate an ER hospital after hours so is open 24/7. Will inquire about oxygen cage, prednisone and respiration rates. He took Doxy for 30 days in June and then we set his appt. with the shelter in July. They cancelled 2 days before appt bc they ran out of immiticide. Now we have an appt. Wed. for the initial injection. I gave him a heartguard in July per our vet and the shelter.

Thanks again, and thanks for the well
wishes. We will need it. This dog has no off switch and cannot be still for a moment, so he will have to live in his crate through this tx. This has me the most worried. I cannot wait until he is well so he can exercise and play.
 
#4 ·
He will feel lousy for the first few days after the shot. It's totally normal for them to be lethargic and mopey for a good 3-5 days.

From there, you just need to have a plan of things to do that don't require physical activity. Google "crate games." Find some online videos of how to train tricks, or order a book from Dogwise. Find some quiet places you can drive too when it's cool (like a lake), just to sit (early AM/late PM), so that he can get a change of scenery. It's doable.
 
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