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Emergency Room

4K views 30 replies 16 participants last post by  Stevenzachsmom 
#1 ·
Hi all, I recently posted about finally getting my 7 month old puppy Winnie and her doing well. I took her to the vet shortly after getting her and the vet said she was in excellent health overall.

Unfortunately, on Sunday she was crated for 3 of hours in the afternoon and somehow through her wire crate was able to reach some clothing which she shredded and ate some of. That night at 3 am (on Monday) she threw up a good amount of shreds and afterward seemed fine as she ate, drank, pooped, etc. as normal. Yesterday I took her out in the morning and she pooped seemingly normally and I went to class for 3 hours and returned at around 2 in the afternoon at which point I took her out to go potty again. She pooped blood/diarrhea and then several times after that in the evening/night pooped what seemed like just blood.

I gave her a bland diet of boiled chicken and rice soaked with a good amount of water, but she threw it up a couple hour later. I stayed up all night watching her and taking her out potty but she continued to poop small amounts of blood so this morning I took her to the Emergency Vet.

They did an ultrasound on her and said there was something suspicious going on in the intestines (I think) but they couldn't tell if it was inflammation, a foreign object blockage, or maybe some food. They gave me some medications for her including antibiotics and a supplement to help with the diarrhea and told me to update them tomorrow morning. If she hasn't improved or has gotten worse, I will need to take her in for a Barium Series and if she does have a blockage will require surgery. She also had decreased from 31.7 lb to 28.5 lb although I think that may just be from throwing up/general distress.

I am so broken hearted right now. I've had this little dog for only a couple of weeks but I love her so much. I cried all day yesterday and didn't sleep at all last night. I did have an emergency funds saved up for her of around $700 but with today's visit and the barium series tomorrow, I will definitely have used it up and I don't have money to pay for surgery. Euthanasia is out of the question for me as she doesn't seem to be in pain or discomfort and is still alert and peppy and besides this problem, very healthy. I will do anything to save her, but I just don't know how right now. My boyfriend has suggested a gofundme and the vet suggested applying for grants from places, but I am at a loss right now.

Thoughts, prayers, and advice would be much appreciated, thank you in advance.
 

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#4 ·
Is there a vet school near you with a small animal clinic? If your current vet can't help, maybe a university will be able to offer you a payment plan for whatever is needed. If your dog has a blockage, it probably won't wait for a GoFundMe page. Have you considered asking family or friends for a loan?
 
#5 ·
Try calling your regular (non-emergency) vet and see if they can do the same surgery more cheaply than the emergency vet clinic. You usually pay a premium to do surgeries at the emergencies places.

As an absolute last resort, some vets will also allow you to relinquish a dog to them in these circumstances. They may get the dog healthy and eventually rehome to a different, good home (one with the means to cover the cost of whatever care is needed). It sounds harsh, but if the alternative is euthanasia, it might be an option.

I agree that getting Care Credit or some other form of credit should be part of your plan here.
 
#6 ·
Hopefully, the issue will correct itself, but if she does end up needing surgery here are a few nonprofits that I've heard may be able to help with the cost of unplanned/emergency treatment (The Pet Fund, Frankie's Friends, & Paws 4 A Cure). They all have their own requirements and I have no idea how quick they move, but they might be worth checking out. I also second talking with your regular vet and checking out alternative payment methods like places with payment plans or carecredit. I hope Winnie feels better!
 
#7 ·
Thank you for the responses! I am currently looking into Care Credit as per the advice of you guys and my vet, but the hospital itself doesn't take payment plans. I would much rather have to go into some credit card debt than give her up. She's my baby and I may have only owned her for a short time, but I love her so much. I ended up making a gofundme page and people donated enough to cover today's visit and overnight hospitalization so I'm taking things day by day.
 
#8 ·
I know all E-vets are not the same - some excellent/some not so much. My young dog (hound mix), decided to eat pieces of his blanket. I took him to my local E-vet, where they ran all kind of tests, to rule out other things and x-rays. I knew the problem was the blanket, because uh - he ATE it. But still all the tests. Then they wanted to charge so much for an endoscopy and if that didn't work, surgery. I finally said, I'll take him to my own vet.

First thing my vet said was, "Did they mention inducing vomiting?" Nope. My vet induced vomiting - nothing. Ironically, even though he was able to vomit and go to the bathroom, there were little pieces of that blanket still inside. They just stayed in there - until we drove home. My hound gets extremely car sick. He threw up all of the blanket, on the ride home. If only I had taken him for a ride, instead of taking him to the e-vet.

I pray your pup does not need surgery. I also agree with Maggie, see if your regular vet can handle this. My regular vet did so much better - inducing vomiting, keeping the dog for observation, doing additional x-rays and it still cost a fraction of what the E-vet cost.

Please keep us posted.
 
#9 ·
They didn't mention inducing vomitting because it not recommended for possible linear
foreign bodies.

Glad it worked for your dog, but...
 
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#10 ·
I don't know what 'linear' foreign bodies mean. What I do know is that my vet owns the practice and has been a vet for a lot of years. He's probably close to retirement age. He thought inducing vomiting was worth a try. Induce vomiting? Crack the dog open? Seems like a no brainer to me.
 
#14 ·
A linear foreign body is an elongated foreign body, often string, or fabric such as a blanket, that can stretch through segments of the intestine and cause it to bunch up and cause damage over a larger portion.

Vomiting is not indicated in an intestinal obstruction because it's not going to do anything. The object has long since passed through the stomach. It's also usually not indicated in a patient that is clinical for an obstruction, again, usually the object is already out of the stomach and stuck in the in intestine, or stuck in the pylorus of the stomach and unlikely to come up. The only thing vomiting will usually help with is increasing the chance of aspiration pneumonia.

We only make patients vomit if they've ingested something very recently (within 4 hours) or we can plainly see it in the stomach on xray, and only if its something we feel they can safely pass it without worries that it will become stuck in the esophagus.

Other diagnostics are still important even if you know the cause of the sickness. Bloodwork and urinalysis to not only check for pre-xisting problems like kidney or liver failure, but checking eloctrolyte balance, level of dehydration, etc. There are often times results that tell us to change the rate or type of IV fluid, or add in supplements for missing electrolytes. Xrays, again even if you know, to not only look for pre-existing conditions, but to give us a good idea of what the object is currently doing. I've saved owners THOUSANDS by snapping a second or third set of xrays right before going into the OR. Oh look, that object has moved, the gas pattern has changed. Let's hospitalize overnight on fluids instead and try to push this object out.

Best level of medicine, any suspicion for an intestinal obstruction should be hospitalized and put on IV fluids, to give it the best chance of moving through the intestines. If the pet still needs surgery in the morning, at least they have been stabilized and are in a better place of health for the surgery. Obviously money can be a huge concern and hospitalization is not always realistic. I hope whatever is stuck moves through with medical management and doesnt require surgery.
 
#15 ·
Not here to argue or take away from the OPs thread. Obviously, in the CASE of my dog, the blanket was still in the stomach (10 hours later) and he threw it up. I'm sure he would have thrown it up sooner, if the E-Vet had not given him meds. to keep him from throwing up. But this is not about me.

OP, really hoping for an update on your pup.
 
#16 ·
Jaesthetic, how is your dog doing? I hope he pulls through and you are not left with too much debt, but that is part of deal I'm sorry to say. My daughter's horse was once kicked by another horse and ended up with a fractured leg. We saved his life, but he had a very slow recovery and it cost over $10,000.00 in vet bills and rehab. You might consider pet insurance going forward. Good luck.
 
#18 ·
Steven I don't think anyone is arguing or questioning your vets judgement.... when induction of vomiting is mentioned - clarification and education is obviously necessary on a public board where anyone can be mislead into thinking a bottle of peroxide will do the same things as a vet visit for a heck of a lot cheaper. in your case it worked out, in many cases it's not advisable, for the reasons mentioned. I think it's important information.

a dog at my job threw up a sock two weeks after being kenneled with no access to socks. an object living in the stomach for 2 weeks is rare but not unheard of. 4hrs... 10hrs... it's a best practice / judgement call.
 
#19 ·
I was actually surprised when they induced vomiting when Batman decided to eat close to 20 peaches. We were all very surprised when 2 days after they induced vomiting at the vet, he threw up more. I did call them the second time and they advised to induce again, which I did and I felt comfortable with the total number of peach pits that came up. We are not sure why they stayed where they did on the stomach, but it was a good thing and pretty much pure luck they didn't move and become an obstruction.
 
#21 ·
I went through a similar situation with Russ when he was that age. He chewed a corner of an upholstered chair. We ended up doing exploratory surgery because they saw "something". Turned out that his intestines had telescoped back into themselves about 10", and they had to remove 3". Scary stuff can happened when they chew up things!

I hope your puppy gets through this quickly and comes home soon.


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#22 ·
Dear God people, will you please drop it about my dog. I took him to the ER vet AND my regular vet. He had tons of tests and multiple x-rays. It cost me $1100.00 for his combined treatment. My vet induced vomiting after additional x-rays and with keeping my dog in his office for observation. I did not pour a bottle of peroxide down his throat.

I'm done. Hope the OPs dog is doing well.
 
#30 ·
Which is great, except you brought up your dog's case in a thread about with a similar problem and wrote about how the ER vet wanted all these expensive tests but your regular vet induced vomiting and saved you all this trouble and money.... In a thread where op had her dog at an ER vet and was worried about money.

Another poster gave some very insightful advice about why inducing vomiting can be problematic and all the sudden we're not allowed to discuss what you brought up?

Yea it worked for you, but it can be dangerous for others. And that's important to discuss.
 
#23 ·
Hello all, great news! I got to bring Winnie home from the ER yesterday evening with a positive prognosis from the Vets.

The barium series of xrays showed that things (barium) was able to pass through her meaning that a blockage from whatever she ingested is unlikely. Did did vomit a good amount of cloth on Monday so I think most of it got out then and the rest seems to have either passed through or isn't really blocking anything. So even though there is something wrong with something in her gastrointestinal tract, she at least shouldn’t need surgery! Despite having been dewormed, she did come up positive for hookworms so this, combined with having ingested a foreign object likely caused irritation, inflammation, and disruption in her intestines and possibly a cut. The veterinarians have prescribed her 5 medications to hopefully help her recover and stop the pooping blood, diarrhea, and vomiting and I have to monitor her closely to see whether or not she is getting better or staying the same or getting worse. She seems pretty chipper though and never really lost interest in food or water so I'm hoping for the best.

ER bills were expensive came out to about $800 for both, the first visit and then second visit where she was hospitalized overnight plus transportation (~$80). I took her to a vet farther away that had good reviews rather than a couple of the closer ones with bad reviews and I think that made a huge difference. They were extremely kind and understanding and even waived her overnight fee and donated a subcutaneous fluid bag for her while she was there. It was expensive but 100% worth it to make sure she was okay. I can make my money back, but I cant replace Winnie.

For now, Winnie is home and getting a lot of rest and love and I will continue to update you on her progress!
 
#26 ·
Thank you both! She was already tiny (32 lb) at almost 8 months but lost another 4 lb from this so I'm hoping she gains it back fast. She's so cute though it melts my heart.
 

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#27 ·
She looks like a coatie. That is very small though. And I am calling the werewolf a teacup GSD, and she is 53 pounds at 11 months, LOL.

Glad she is home and hoping she continues to improve.
 
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