Liver Ultrasound and Biopsy Complete! Annual Opthamologist Appointment Complete!

Last Tuesday, May 17th, Dinglehopper had an appointment with an Internal Medicine Specialist at the VEC. It was a bit weird to be back at the VEC after so long. Weird in the sense that it brought back all the memories of Dingle's knee surgeries... but good because we were able to not go there for years.

The Internal Medicine specialist was amazing. So amazing. Dingle has a bunch of good vets, but I think this appointment goes on my list of the best. She spent close to 45 minutes taking Dingle's history, consulting with us, explaining the possible liver problems, drawing diagrams of the liver and different conditions, etc.

I opted to stay at the VEC and wait for Dingle, rather than going home. I figured it would be better worth my time, as it can take me a while to TTC it to the VEC and back. I was wrong. I ended up waiting about 3 hours and then they came out and said that the ultrasound was done. I made the mistake of assuming he would be going right in to the ultrasound after his consult... and didn't think about other pets being 'in line'.

The biopsy had not been done at that point. The specialist said that Dingle's liver looked normal - it had good blood flow and there were no obvious problems (no shunts, etc). His kidneys also looked normal and with one possible liver condition she'd have seen an underdeveloped/small liver and large (from compensating) kidneys.

She asked me if I wanted to go ahead with the biopsy and when we talked out the benefits and risks we decided to go for it, so we could totally rule out any of the possible liver problems.

About an hour or so later the biopsy was complete. She took 2 pieces from the liver to snd away to the pathologist for testing. The specialist said that Dingle's liver had bled during the biopsy (which is common) and so they wanted to keep him overnight just to be safe which I appreciated because I am a worrier and would have been scared to sleep - wondering if he'd be bleeding badly internally and die (okay, perhaps I'm a bit more than just a worrier)

This is the sign that was on his kennel:



Dingle isn't totally blind and the specialist knew that, but she wanted the sign on just to be on the safe side. She didn't want anybody caring for him overnight to open the kennel and expect to him to step into his arms and have him miss. I appreciated the extra caution. Dnigle probably liked the extra attention.

Perhaps the sign on his kennel should have said "Caution: HIGH"



Dingle was drugged, which was good because he wasn't in pain. He wanted out of the kennel, but eventually he settled down and laid down:



I stayed with him for quite some time. By the time I left the VEC I had been there for about 7 hours total.

The next day Razzleberry had an appointment with Dingle's opthamologist - because the pigment in her eyelid was changing color. Turns out she'd been scratching the hell out of her eyes.

Dingle likes attention and so I decided to pick him up from the VEC after Razzle's appointment so that he wasn't interfering with Razzle's appointment by demanding to be held or in the spotlight.

By the time I got to the VEC he was ready to go - they'd checked on his liver throughout the night and that day and there was no signs of continued bleeding or fluid in the belly. Yay.

I paid my $2,423.18 bill and called a cab because I had had enough TTC travelling - especially because Razzleberry barfs like crazy from motion sickness.

Dingle was happy to get home, as was Razzle. She was sporting her new e-collar and seemed pissed. I kept thinking "welcome to Dingle's world":



He was also happy to get the bright pink bandage off his leg. He spent the next 30 minutes (following the bandage removal) licking his patch of bare skin.

After he was satisfied that his patch was clean Razzle and him curled up on the couch and slept:



Clearly they have bonded and love each other.

On Monday I removed Dingle's stitch. He had one small stitch, even though they didn't cut him open at all (but rather stuck a big needle through his skin and info the liver). I was not looking forward to doing it myself, but it was most of the way out and it was easy to do.

Since Monday was a holiday the specialist said it might take until Wednesday to get the biopsy results.

I called yesterday morning and heard back that evening. The results were in and I was thrilled that we got positive results. Dingle rarely gets good news.

HIS LIVER IS COMPLETELY NORMAL!

Yup, all healthy. I really couldn't believe it. Given Dingle's track record I was still (even after her saying on the ultrasound things looked good) expecting bad news.

So, since Dingle's bile acids have been high compared to most dogs, he's considered "abnormal, normal'. Any other dog the elevated levels may indicate problems, but with him they do not.

The plan is to put him back on the Zentonil (which he was on in September and October 2010) just to be safe. He will get it once a day, I think forever... I will have to double check that when Dingle sees the regular vet next.

Since his ALT was high in September we are going to check his liver values (not his bile acids, which are the most expensive tests) in 3 months. Then we will do it again in 6 months and then yearly with his shots/check-up as long as his ALT comes back normal.

We will only check the bile acids (since compared to the general dog population they will likely always seem abnormal) if he starts looking clinically unwell, which we think is unlikely.

Yesterday Dingle also had an appointment with the Opthamologist.

It was his annual check-up and we got more good news. Dingle's eyes look good (translation: as good as can be for a dog with KCS and PRA).

The vet thinks that Dingle's day vision has remained the same in the last year, which is good. Perhaps he may always keep some day vision. I believe his night vision is getting worse because Dingle has never been afraid of fireworks, but when we were out walking this weekend he seemed hesitant to move, with the fireworks going off. But we kept walking (with some resistance) so he could work up that confidence.

After getting not 1, but 2 pieces of good news today Dingle should look happy. Instead he looked irritated when I took the picture below. He was mad because Razzle always jumps on the bed and steals his food. That little girl has quite the appetite.



Above all things are looking pretty good for Dinglehopper.

Hopefully we can continue with this lucky streak (and hopefully he will pass it along to Razzle).

The Liver Issues Continue. Next Step: An Ultrasound and (perhaps) a Liver Biopsy!

Last week we got the results from Dinglehopper's most recent liver tests. While his ALT and enzymes were within normal ranges, his bile acid levels (pre and post) are not. They aren't crazy high, but they aren't normal. The vet wanted to consult with a specialist and get back to me on what the next step was.

On Tuesday night Razzleberry had an appointment at the vet for her third and final set of boosters. Here she is chilling out, waiting for the vet:



Though the appointment was for Razzle, we spent most of the time talking about Dinglehopper as the vet had consulted with the specialists.


Our plan is for Dingle to see an internal medicine specialist at the VEC.

Yes, back to the VEC - where Dinglehopper had his luxating patella surgeries and was seen for various other issues when his normal vets were closed.

The specialist Dingle's vet spoke to said that we should do an abdominal ultrasound - to look for vascular problems within the liver. We also may be doing a liver biopsy, which would require a clotting profile prior to it. Poor Dingle. I hope that they can see enough on the ultrasound so that he doesn't have to be put under anesthesia for the biopsy and have to deal with the risks associated with that.

The vet said that while these tests may be expensive (I can only imagine - any guesses as to what the total bill will be?) in the long run it will probably be cheaper than doing the liver tests (which run about $300) every few months to monitor the bile acids. True.

I'm really hoping that there isn't anything really major going on with Dingle. I hope that we just have to do a diet change or monitor him occasionally.

Our appointment is next week - Tuesday the 17th.

Why Your Liver is Important...

Back in February when I was waiting for the results of Dingle's most recent liver tests I got an Email forward from my Grandpa (who is in his 90's and yes, uses the computer) about the importance of the liver.

Here are some of the pictures from that liver, which explain why the liver is important.

Again, these are from an Email forward - no copyright infringements intended:





















So those are the reasons I am hoping that Dingle's next liver tests (May 3rd) come back okay.

Luckily Dingle doesn't drink... so that's one thing he's got going for him.

Dingle's very happy with his new sister, Razzleberry, and I want him to be carefree - with no daily liver meds. The eye drops are enough medications as-is!

Changes

It's been a few months since I have last written. This time it hasn't been because I forgot. I needed some time to adjust to the craziness in my life - which has been full of changes the last 2 months or so.

But before we get into all of the changes, let's back track a bit.

Back in February Dingle went to the vet to get his liver re-tested. We had noticed elevations in his ALT back in September when he had his dental, but luckily the levels had gotten back within normal ranges after a month and a half on medication. Our plan, at the time, was to keep him off medication for a few months and see if those ranges could stay within normal without the liver detox meds.

The results from February's test came back and there were still elevations seen. Not extremely high that he needed medication again, but high enough that we were going to re-check in 2 months to keep a close eye on them.

Dingle was supposed to go on Tuesday, but we had to postpone. Last Friday morning I came home to dog puke everywhere. All over my couch, bed, floors... sooo much barf. He was fine (eating, playing, drinking, happy) when I got home but we decided to postpone the tests for two weeks just incase the massive vomit fest threw his system out of whack. Plus I didn't want to spend over $400 on extensive liver testing if there was a chance that his sickness or whatever made him puke (I think it was from chewing a stick that night) could lead to inaccurate results. Dingle's appointment is set for May 3rd.

Onto the changes...

Liver stuff isn't all that's been happening in Dingle's (and my) life. There've been a lot of changes since February. My 6.5 year relationship ended and Dingle went from having two doggy companions in the house to being by himself. He had Sasso (the pug/beagle mix) as a friend since Dingle was 5 months old. I didn't live with my (then) boyfriend at the time, but the dogs were always together when we were hanging out prior to living together.

I could tell that Dingle was very lonely, especially when I was at work and he was on his own for about 12 hours. As a side note I am kind of glad that his steriods (crotch meds) back in December made him pee so often that we needed to give him pee pads, because now being inside for 12 hours while I work he needs them. It wouldn't have been fair for me to expect him to hold 'it' all night if he needed to go.

The timing of the break-up 'worked out' I guess you could say in terms of Dingle getting a companion. A breeder I have known online (and met a few times), also named Michelle, had a litter of pom puppies. There were 2 in the litter. The breeder was planning on keeping 1 of them and at the time of my break up the second didn't have a concrete home in place. Dingle and I were chosen to be the new owners. Okay, maybe it was more like I was chosen.

On March 26th Dinglehopper and I welcomed the new puppy home.

Keeping with my past of crazy/unique/whatever pet names, I named the little girl Razzleberry.

Meet Razzleberry:



Or I guess I should have said "Meet Razzleberry... what you can see of her".

Here is Dingle with Razzle only hours after she came to her new home. Unfortunately it's a crappy Blackberry picture:



I was off for 10 days after I got Razzleberry to be home with her and Dingle.

For the first few days Dingle wasn't sure what to think. I honestly believe at first he didn't want much to do with her because he didn't know that she was his new sister... he might have been wondering if this dog was going to leave too (like his other two friends/my exes dogs).

I got the pom mostly for Dingle. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want a second pom (or third, fourth, etc) for a long time. But seeing Dingle so depressed and 'needy', I knew he needed someone. The first few days Razzle was home I was worried that I made the wrong decision, but luckily on day 3, I think it was, Dingle started playing with the puppy.

Now, weeks later, they are best buddies. Razzle looks up to Dinglehopper and follows him around the apartment. Speaking of apartment - two weeks after Razzle came home I moved to a new apartment for a 'fresh start', so to speak.

Of course I worried about Dingle adjusting to a new place with his failing vision, but things have been fine. A bonus is that I no longer have a 2 level apartment - no stairs for me to worry about with Dingle or the new pup.

Dingle is a good big brother and spends hours play fighting.

When Razzle came home she was just under 2.5 pounds. Dingle is anywhere between 8 and 11 depending on the vet visit and particular weigh-in. At first I was worried that Dingle would hurt her, by accident, while playing. Now I'm not. She's one tough pup and she can hold her own. She clamps onto Dingle's face, bites him, etc. and he has never once gotten aggressive with her. He loves his sister.

Here's a video of them wrestling in one of the many dog beds that fill my apartment. It's not a particularly interesting video, just a few minutes of them doing what they do best. Dingle is making the high pitched noises, Razzle the Gremlin-like ones.



Razzle loves food more than anything in the world. I've been feeding Dingle on my bed (not the best idea, but whatever) and guess what the newly 3 pound Razzle did two days ago? Took a flying leap onto the bed for Dingle's food. I was shocked, even though my lovely Ikea bedframe isn't that high off the ground. But I'm not impressed with her newly aquired skill because being able to get on the bed means the possibility of falling off.

Luckily Razzle is in an exercise pen when not supervised, including when I'm at work. Now that we are somewhat settled in to our new home after the April 9th move we are in a routine. When I work they sleep at night, have a few hours of playtime when I get home and then we all sleep.

That's been the last few months in a nutshell. Remember, life can change so quickly...

Another New Bed!

Since November I have bought Dingle 3 beds.

He now has 4 beds - 2 in the bedroom and 2 in my work area, also known as "Dingle's area" as he's baby gated in there when we aren't home.

I am most excited about his newest bed. I saw it on the Southern California Pomeranian Rescue's Facebook page.

As soon as I saw it (with the cutest rescue pom laying in it) I went on EBay and ordered one for Dingle.

It arrived today.

Dinglehopper loves his new Sock Monkey bed:







The Sock Monkey bed stacked on one of his other beds:

Cold Weather

It's been very cold lately and Dingle hates the cold.

The other morning I took him out to go to the washroom and he pooped, but got too cold before he was able to pee. I kept encouraging him to go pee, but he just stood there staring at me, on two legs (because his paws were cold), half leaning on a snowbank for support.

Dingle's paws get very cold from the snow and sore from the salt. We've tried boots (at least 3 pairs that I can remember), but he refuses to walk... so it's a lose-lose situation.

I end up carrying Dingle back to the building a lot.

We don't have the heat on in our apartment because it's soooo hot in here.

The digital thermostat says 80 degrees. 78 if we have the livingroom window open (which we do often). The ventilation in here is so bad... while the rest of the apartment is sweltering the bedroom is cold (not cold enough that we use a little portable heater, though).

Dingle likes to snuggle up in our bed and keep warm, especially lately when it's been extra cold in the mornings:

"Why is there a pill in the bed?"

Just when I thought Dingle's crotch was back to normal it turns out it wasn't.

Dingle is on Clavamox, an antibiotic, as we believe he may have an infection causing discharge of the penis. Gross, I know.

So Dingle has been on Clavamox since last week.

A few days ago I made a comment on it seems like in the last 5 years Dingle's been on a bunch of medications. I can shake a pill bottle and Dingle comes running. I said that Dingle was so good with taking his medications.

Well, last night didn't Dingle prove me wrong.

As my boyfriend was going to bed he says "why is there a pill in the bed?"

He dropped it in my hand and sure enough it was one of Dingle's Clavamox pills.

I thought "little buggar - must have spit one out" and I thew it in the garbage.

Hours later I get into bed and by my pillow is a second Clavamox pill.

I have no idea when the pills got there - sometime in the last week.

When I give Dingle the pills I watch him for a minute or so to make sure he doesn't spit them out.

On the rare occasion when he's being feisty I put the pill in the back of his mouth and gently hold his muzzle until he swallows.

Yet somehow Dingle has managed to secretly hide away the pills, without swallowing them, until I turn my back (or he runs away)... when he then proceeds to spit them in my bed.

Oh Dingle.

Christmas Chaos Video...

I finally got around to uploading one of the videos we took at Christmas when the dogs were opening their presents.

Here is the chaos...



The camera died right at the end, but what transpired afterwards is pretty much the same.

Final 2010 Totals Are In...

In another post I said how I had been keeping track of all of Dingle's vet costs since the beginning of the year.

The total was $3,244.94.

Last night I got an Email confirmation from Trupanion stating that my last two outstanding 2010 claims had been processed and cheques mailed.

Of the $3,244.94 I spent at the vets $1,302.94 was covered.

Trupanion does not cover the vet consulation fees, or routine care. So Dingle's shots, dental cleaning, etc. weren't covered. But 90% of anything related to accidents or illnesses (Dingle's Progressive Retinal Atrophy and KCS care, for example) is covered.

That means that I paid $1,942.00 for Dingle's vet care last year.

Not as bad as I thought.

But let's see if we can do better (meaning less out of my pocket) in 2011.

Dinglehopper and Pickles

Meet Pickles the pug/bulldog mix:



Pickles is one of Dingle's 'brothers'.

Dinglehopper hates Pickles...

They are opposites.

Pickles is wild and unruly. Dingle is gentle and calm.

Pickles wrecks things. Dingle does not.

Pickles gets into and eats anything and everything. Dingle, for the most part, does not.

Pickles is very interested in the hamster when it is in the hamster exercise ball:



Dingle runs away in fear:

First Vet Visit of 2011 - Complete

Dinglehopper had his first vet visit of the year.

Our appointment was at 2:40pm. Far too early for my liking as I worked last night and didn't get to bed until 8am. I usually book our appointments late in the evening (like after 9pm), but the vet we wanted to see was only in until 3pm so I had to drag my ass out of bed.

Despite being overtired and feeling like I had been hit by a truck, it was worth getting up for.

I'm happy to report that we've started off our vet visits of the year on a positive note.

Dingle's crotch problems are over with - Dingle's 'thing' is back to normal.

Dingle had/has a huge mat behind his ear from wearing the E-Collar. I wanted to ask if cornstarch was okay if licked by dogs - because I use cornstarch to get Dingle's mats out and whenever I do it I'm always paranoid he'll scratch himself, lick his paw and get sick.

Cornstarch works miracles for matting - I just rub it into the mat and it combs out fairly easy.

When I mentioned the mat the vet offered to use clippers to get rid of it. I said that we once tried using them and Dingle freaked out about the noise. So the vet used little scissors to cut the mat in half instead - just to make it even easier for me to brush out after the cornstach. I'll deal with the mat after I wake up from a long (read: 6 hours) nap.

Dingle's vet costs in 2011 so far: $55.82

Now Dingle's just chilling out with (or perhaps babysitting without pay) his friend the disabled handicapped hamster:

Happy New Year/Dingle's Total 2010 Vet Costs

Happy New Year Everyone!

I think Dingle's goal for this year should be to get a job... to contribute to his vet bills.

In 2010 I decided to write down each vet visit and the cost - to keep a record of all of our visits so that at the end of the year I could see how much money I spent at the vets.

The total?

$3,244.94

I'm still waiting on 2 pet insurance claims from December... and then I will add up the amount that ended up be covered by Vet Insurance/Trupanion and determine how much actually came out of my pocket.

Now that 2011 has begun so have the vet appointments.

Dingle goes to the Downtown Animal Hospital tomorrow afternoon for a crotch re-check appointment.

Too Bad I Didn't Buy One For Him.

Dinglehopper likes Pickles' new bed...





It was only $20 at Winter Woofstock! My boyfriend tried to convince me to get Dingle a pink car bed. I think it was a Cadillac. I didn't get him it because everyone tells me that people confuse Dingle for a girl so I need to avoid buying anything that would make it even easier for them to think he is a girl.

I hope they have them dog beds at the summer Woofstock.

(Well, I'm off to go and buy Dingle a pink dog bowl online. Ha ha)

Christmas with the Dogs

I meant to send Christmas wishes yesterday, but fell asleep on the couch before I could.

So Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and Happy Holidays to those who celebrate other holidays...

We celebrate Christmas - and the dogs (Sasso, Pickles and Dinglehopper) love Christmas.

They love it so much so that on December 21st, while my boyfriend and I were at work, they took it upon themselves to open most of the presents that were under the tree...



When I came home I said "oh shit" out loud as I didn't know what my boyfriend had under the tree and instantly had images of myself lugging 3 dogs to the Veterinary Emergency Clinic if they had gotten into something toxic.

After I realized that they had not gotten into anything toxic (as they had mainly opened their presents) the situation was kind of funny... for a few, brief, moments.

I swept up the wrapping paper and as I went to get a dust pan Dinglehopper went over, lifted his leg and pissed all over my newly formed mountain of wrapping paper.

Then I was somewhat mad - though I knew Dingle was on Vanectyl P which makes him pee A LOT - so I should have took the dogs out for a pee before cleaning up the mess.

On Christmas Day prior to opening presents the dogs posed for a few pictures.

Dingle had his Christmas party collar on, Sasso had his tie on for the special occasion, but Pickles had nothing.

To ensure Pickles didn't feel left out my boyfriend dug through the dog drawers in search of an outfit.

However all he could come up with was boots and a Hallowe'en hood.

You can tell he was miserable:



As I just mentioned the dogs opened most of their presents before Christmas. I re-wrapped most of Dingle's presents... my boyfriend did not re-wrap the stuff for his dogs... so in the mountain of presents for the dogs...



...Dingle had the most (including one of the large ones):



For Christmas Dingle got: lots of dental treats, Old Mother Hubbard Cookies, A skunk ball, a toy that doesn't have stuffing (they seem to last best with our dogs), and a bed.

The dogs open their own presents. It was cute and funny until Sasso got carried away and ripped open Dingle's new bed while taking off the wrapping paper. A video of this may follow, if I review it and determine I did not swear my head off when I watched Sasso rip into the bed.

Due to the unfortunate event of Sasso ripping Dingle's new bed he didn't actually get the bed until today, after I repaired it as best as possible.

Luckily it only cost me $9 at Winter Woofstock... and it wasn't so much of a bed as it was a mat... that matches his other new bed (see entry below).

My boyfriend bought a light up ball for his dogs.

Dingle loved it - I couldn't believe how interested he was in it.

Dingle has no use for toys (and yet I continue to buy them), but he was mesmerized by the ball.

After thinking about it for a bit I have come to the conclusion that he likes it because it's really bright and he, with his eyesight deteriorating from Progressive Retinal Atrophy, can see it very well.

My boyfriend bought that ball at Woofstock... I am going to look into getting another one for Dingle... and if any other light up toys exist I would be interested in those as well. I'll check EBay but if you know of any other place to get light up toys please let me know!

Dingle spent quite some time guarding that ball from the other dogs.

Or shall I say he was guarding it from Pickles (Dingle hates Pickles...)



At one point he sat on it like it was his egg:



The boys had their doggy friend Lexi over to help them celebrate Christmas:



After dinner when Lexi (and her owner) left the dogs zonked out...

Here's Sasso the sleepy old man (he's 10)...



And as I mentioned I fell asleep as well... far earlier than I normally do.

That was our Christmas...

After the liver issues came... a bunch of drama with Dingle's crotch and GI tract (Warning this is quite descriptive)

Just days after I had thought we were finished with the vet visits for the year, and sent a Christmas/Holiday card to the vet thanking them for all they have done for us in 2010, we started a series of vet visits.

December 12:

On December 12th I took Dingle out for a pee in the morning. Dingle's hair was really long and I was looking forward to him being groomed on the 14th. Since his hair was long he sometimes got urine in it. So after going out to pee I used a Pampers wipe to clean off his belly fur. While wiping him off I noticed that his 'thing' appeared to be swollen.

At least I thought it was swollen - I barely ever look at his crotch and even though I wasn't totally sure there was something going on I made an appointment (for that day) at Downtown Animal Hospital. I figured that if they told me there wasn't anything wrong maybe we could do his shots/check-up a month early.

We got to the vet and it was confirmed that Dingle's penis and 'sheath' was swollen and irritated. The vet wondered if perhaps Dingle had a urinary tract infection that was causing the redness and irritation and so she wanted to get a urine sample. That meant he would need to be catheterized. Poor Dingle.

I waited about 40 minutes while they got a urine sample and tested it and the results showed that there was no UTI. We have two other dogs in the house and on occasion Dingle likes to try and hump the other dogs to try and establish some sort of dominance. Yeah, sure Dingle - you the dominant one? We *think* that the humping could have irritated him... and I also think that the long hair may have meant that urine stayed on his penis, irritating it. In the end we don't really know for sure.

The vet trimmed the hair around his crotch area, gave him a shot of Metacam for the inflammation, and sent us on our way.

Diagnosis on the pet insurance form: "Penile Inflammation"

We had talked about going home with Metacam, but I mentioned that I was concerned about him having anything that could harm his liver, seeing as we had just gotten over liver issues. The vet decided that we'd stick with him receiving 1 injection of it and then re-evaluate things the next day - if I thought he needed Metacam at home I could pick it up.

When I got home Dingle was mighty pissed off. He didn't want to walk - he would take a few steps and sit right down and stare at me. If he did take more than a few steps it was on 3 legs - and he used one of the rear legs to scratch his crotch. I figured maybe they had shaved (as opposed to trimmed) his crotch hair and that's why the area was itchy...

Do you know how dogs go crazy after a bath - rolling around on furniture, making crazy noises? Well Dingle was doing that most of the night - you could tell he was frustrated... probably from having a tube shoved up his penis into his bladder.

About 4 hours after we got home Dingle needed to pee. I was initially shocked to see that he had urinated blood. I could see it in the snow and on the Pampers wipe when I wiped his fur.

By this time the vet clinic was closed and I made the decision to call the Veterinary Emergency Clinic. I figured the blood was probably from being catherized, but wanted to get some reassurance. By reassurance I meant have someone besides my boyfriend tell me that I didn't need to go to the emergency clinic and drop $500 at the door.

I was glad I called the VEC and shocked as the receptionist was nice. We've been to the VEC several times over the last 5 years - for both ER appointments and for all of his luxating patella surgeries. 99% of the time the receptionists (one in particular) have been awful. The lady that ngiht was very nice and said that it didn't sound like I needed to bring him in - that the bleeding could have been from being catheterized and to watch him and follow-up with our clinic in the morning if there was still blood in his urine.

December 13th

The next day there was no blood in his urine. However Dingle was still extremely pissed.

In addition to scratching his crotch he was trying to chew "it" off. He was making it even more red and swollen than before.

I called the Downtown Animal Hospital and the vet said to bring him in. Now he was scheduled to be groomed the next day and so we arranged for him to be boarded after the visit until his grooming - so I didn't have to make 4 trips in a 3 day period.

When we went in the vet checked Dingle's 'dingle' and agreed that he seemed frustrated and that he was making things worse. She said she'd give Dingle an injection to help calm things down. Not Metacam, but Dexamethasone.

December 14th

I picked Dinglehopper up the following day, the 14th, after his grooming... and he had an E-Collar on. Story of his life.

The vet techs said that he hadn't been scratching himself, but he was trying to lick it - hence the need for the E-Collar. I thought that we had made progress, seeing as he apparently wasn't scratching himself, but as soon as we got home (and I set him down) his foot seemed to be glued to his 'thing'... unless he was sleeping:



Then the next issue started...

December 15th

That night Dingle pooped around midnight. I noticed it was a bit runny, but chalked that up to the fact that he had been given canned food while at the vet. I told them to give him wet food because I knew he'd eat it - and he needed to eat because he wouldn't eat the night before.

Well didn't I wake up at 5:55am, after going to bed at 4am, to the smell of poop. Before climbing out of bed I used my Blackberry to light up the room and saw diarrhea all over the floor. My boyfriend was sleeping and so I didn't turn on the light - I cleaned it up in the dark.

Dingle got a brand new bed at Woofstock:



When cleaning up the floor I discovered that the bed was covered in crap.

Which meant that Dingle had stepped in it and tracked it into his bed.

Which also meant that Dingle had laid in the crap that he tracked into his bed... like 12 hours after I picked him up from his grooming appointment that set me back $50 plus HST. FML!

But wait that's not it...

At 7:35am Dingle starts whining to go out.

We made it downstairs to our livingroom and Dingle had explosive diarrhea all over the place.

But wait again, it wasn't just diarrhea - it was BLOODY diarrhea.

I just about had a heart attack.

I cleaned him and the floor up and waited 30 minutes until the vet opened and instantly called them. The vet returned my call at 10:49am. He said that it was possible that the bloody diarrhea was a reaction to the meds he received the day before. After reading up on the Dexamethasone I learned that Cyclosporine can make the side effects worse. I figured that they probably meant oral Cyclo and not the eye medication Dingle gets, but I suppose the bloody diarrhea could be attributed to a reaction? *shrug* I don't know.

The vet told me to hold off on feeding Dingle for the whole day and to give him a dose (1/4 of a tablet) of Pepcid AC. That wouldn't help the diarrhea, but it would help his tummy seeing as he wasn't going to have anything in it. He said based on my description he didn't need to come in right away, that we'd hope he was done with the diarrhea. I would later learn that he was no finished with the diarrhea.

As for the penis - he asked if I had any Surolan. I did - because Dingle has had many ear infections. He said to put the Surolan on his crotch as it is also a topical anti-inflammatory. So I think "Hm... okay".

After getting off the phone at 11am Dingle got his Pepcid AC and at 11:20am he got his crotch Surolan-ed up. Then I laid down on the couch.

I managed to go back to sleep (with Dingle on the floor by me) until 12:14pm and then Dingle got bloody diarrhea again. By this point I'd given up on trying to get him outside and put puppy pads down.

At 5:35pm, long after I had given up trying to sleep, he had a really bad episode.

It was more solid than earlier, but at the end it was straight blood. It was all over his bum (again, after the grooming, but that was not my concern at the time) and when I wiped him with the Pampers wipes they were covered in blood. I had to go to work and I was so scared to leave him alone - my boyfriend was at his staff Christmas party. Luckily the neighbour agreed to check in on him.

Dingle got more Pepcid AC at 5:45pm and more Surolan at 6:05pm. I left at 7pm for work.

Dingle made it through the night and into the next day with no more diarrhea.

December 16th

He was very hungry when I got home from work at 6:30am and he was ready for breakfast.

I fed him a small amount - 1/4 of a cup - with the Pepcid AC.

I took him outside wondering if there'd be diarrhea - there wasn't. While out there I saw the area/snow pile that he had pooped on at midnight on the 15th. Lo' and behold there were signs (remember it wasn't totally solid, so there was a bit of a mess left behind) of blood in that poop. That meant the blood didn't start at 7:35am on the 15th - it started the night before. The diarrhea I cleaned up in the dark at 5:55am on the 15th was also likely bloody - I just didn't see it.

At 7:26am he got Surolan on his crotch and I headed for bed... expecting to be woken up to diarrhea.

I was not woken up by Dingle...

All that day (when I was awake) I waited and hoped for a normal poop.

Nothing... but at least there was no diarrhea.

I continued with the small meals and Pepcid AC for the rest of the day

At this point it had been 5 days after our initial crotch vet visit.

Dingle still had not crapped. I thought about being worried, but figured he hadn't eaten for a 36 hour period and so of course his pooping would be off.

I spoke to the vet (not the original female vet, but the male that we usually see) and said Dingle's crotch still looked irritated. We decided that Dingle would be given Vanectyl-P - to help with the itchy crotch.

The vet said it *shouldn't* (and it didn't) contribute to bloody diarrhea.

The vet said when I came to pick up the meds the following day I could bring Dingle and he's take a peek at his crotch free of charge. Yay.

There were no poop episodes - irregular or regular, that night.

December 17th

On the way down to the vet Dingle started turning in circles - doing his 'pooh dance' and I was relieved to see a firm, poop, free of blood.

When we got in the vet saw that Dingle was preoccupied with his penis and agreed that the Vanectyl-P would be a good option. Sasso, my boyfriend's pug/beagle, was on Vanectyl-P - and one of the side effects is excessive thirst and urination. I knew the puppy pads would be sticking around for a while.

While at that appointment the vet pointed out that Dingle's penis was sticking out (of the sheath) a bit. The vet said I was to go to the drug store, buy "lube" (yeah, that kind of lube) and lube 'it' up. (Awkward). If 'it' was dry and sticking to the sheath that could contribute to the irritation.

December 18th

On December 18th we started the lube and the Vanectyl-P... he got 1/2 a pill twice a day on the 18th, 19th and 20th. On the 21st he got 1/2 a pill once a day... same with the 22nd and yesterday. Today he doesn't get any - he will get 1/2 a pill every other day until we are finished.

December 18th was also the day when my mom came to Toronto to celebrate Christmas with me - as once again this year I work all the holidays because they fall on my scheduled days of the week.

We decided to make Dingle's E-Collar a little more festive... we have a million E-Collars and this one will remain his winter themed ones:








December 19th until today, the 24th

Dingle was using the puppy pads for the diarrhea - probably because I ran him over and planted him on them. Do you think Dingle seemed to remember what they were for when he started peeing every few hours? Nope. I'd bring him over to it and he'd lay on it, thinking he was supposed to sleep there. Finally after several attempts and lots of "Dingle go pee on your pad" (with me tapping it) he peed on it. He won't do it on his own... only with coaching, but at least I don't have to go outside every 2 hours, which is a relief when I'm sleeping.

Dingle has been free of the E-Collar since Monday and is less occupied with his crotch - likely because the meds are reducing the itchiness.

Dingle's 'thing' is no longer as red and swollen as it was. I think it still looks a bit abnormal, but I'm not sure if it is - I feel like I've spent the last 6 days with my eyes glued to his crotch area and don't even remember (or know) what it used to look like before all of this. I guess we will wait until he's off the Vanectyl-P and see if it still causes him irritation. If it does, we'll go back to the vet and have them decide if Dingle is back to normal.

Oh the life of Dingle...

Dingle's Liver Concerns - September and October

Okay - so once again it's been a long time since I've updated.

I thought about updating many times since my last entry, but when it came down to it I didn't feel up to it because Dingle's liver problems were really stressing me out and upsetting me to the point where I didn't want to write about it. It's not that I was in denial abut the liver problems - far from it - just that I didn't feel like sitting down and putting it all out there.

Now that those concerns seem to be behind us (*fingers crossed*) I do feel like I can write about the drama over the last few months.

Dingle's Liver Issues

As I wrote in my last entry Dinglehopper had a dental cleaning on September 8th - his 5th birthday. When doing the pre-surgical it was discovered that Dingle's ALT levels were high... the ALT was 265. Normal is between 5 and 95.

Dingle was put on medication (Zentonil) for 3 weeks and when we re-checked his ALT on September 28th it was 143... which showed that there had been an improvement, though the levels were still not within normal range.

I was happy to see that his levels were going down.

I believed that Orijin, the high protein food that Dingle had been eating for years, may have played a part in his liver issues. So I switched him to another food. Unfortunately we didn't stay on that food long as I believe Dingle may have had an allergy to it... or it didn't agree with him. Now we're on Performatrin... but anyways....

When Dingle started having liver problems I started doing research on high ALT levels.

My research led me to a Yahoo Group for dogs with liver problems.

I joined the group and upon reading the information provided and other people's experiences I learned that many of the members gave their dogs foods such as watermelon and plain yogurt.

I started giving Dingle some yogurt on his food - he loved it. He got pieces of watermelon on occasion, as a treat.

In addition to the food change and the yogurt/watermelon Dingle continued on the Zentonil until November.

On October 31st, about a week before his Zentonil was to run out, Dingle had an appointment at the Downtown Animal Hospital to have a full liver profile. The previous blood tests were just ALT tests - they didn't check bile acids (which were also high on September 8th's liver profile).

To do the full liver profile he had to be fasted for at least 12 hours prior to his appointment.

Our intentions were to get the liver profile prior to him eating then feed him a full meal.

After the meal they were going to draw his blood again and re-run the profile to see his ALT and bile acid levels after eating.

The vet decided to draw the blood both before and after the food... but to hold off on sending the second one (after eating) until we got the results from the first.

The plan was to not run the second test if the first came back normal.

I was excited to hear that on October 31st his ALT levels were 57 - within normal ranges. His bile acids and ever other level included in the liver profile test was normal.

So the vet decided to just throw the second vile of blood out and not run the second test.

When I posted my 'good news' on the Yahoo Group I was told that it wasn't actually good news - someone said that we needed to run that second blood test (after eating) and compare the numbers to get a true sense of how his liver was. Hm.

I decided to not ask the vet about what the group member said.

Our plan was to do another liver profile in January when he was in for his shots... to see if his ALT levels remained normal after being off of the Zentonil.

Our plan has changed as Dingle has had problems since the liver stuff (I will write about that later) and we have to postpone the liver profile until February.

In February I think I am going to ask them to take blood after fasting and after eating and to send both in, even if the first is normal.

Okay, now that I write all of this out it doesn't sound so stressful as the experience actually was.

I gues in waiting so long to write this blog entry I have missed a lot of details. That and I know he's okay and therefore I'm unable to fully articulate just how worried I was at the time.

Since October 31st I've thought about this ordeal and in one of the many conversations I had with the vets it was mentioned that Dingle's blood test wasn't actually drawn on September 8th as I thought it was. It was drawn on the 7th when he was admitted to the clinic the night before his dental... as the blood results take a while and they wanted them by the morning when he had his surgery.

Before I took him to the clinic on September 7th I fed him.

He ate right before we left.

I wonder if it's possible that his ALT of 256 was that high because he had just eaten.

I don't know the 'normal' range for ALT after eating...

Our September 28th ALT test was also done without fasting...

Did we get a true picture of his ALT levels from the beginning?

Was all the stress I put myself through actually necessary?

*Shrug*

Happy Belated Birthday Dinglehopper!

Oh my - yesterday when I wrote I totally forgot to mention that not only was Wednesday September 8th the day of Dingle's dental cleaning, but it was also his 5th birthday (yeah, vet schedules made it unavoidable - I tried to book a different day)

HAPPY (NOW BELATED) FIFTH BIRTHDAY DINGLEHOPPER!

There were times when Dingle was dealing with so many challenges that I sometimes doubted that Dingle would make it to his 5th birthday - but he did!

All Dingle wants for Christmas is his two front teeth?

If so... it's not happening.

Poor Dingle - this past Wednesday Dingle had his annual dental.

Yes, annual.

Dingle has had a dental cleaning every September for the past 3 years as despite dental food, dental treats, dental toys, teeth brushing, dental stuff for his water, $90 Leeba spray etc. Dingle's teeth are disgusting and his breath smells like he's got road kill trapped in his throat.

Every year it's been routine - just a cleaning and he's finished - no teeth extractions or anything like that.

Well, not this year.

When I called the vet to ask how Dingle was they told me that they needed to pull his two front incisors - the bottom ones. The vet said that the x-ray they showed that they detached from the bone, were loose and a pocket had formed under the gums.

That's not all I was told...

I was also told that when they ran the pre-anesthetic blood panel his ALT liver enzymes were high - 250 (normal is around 50). The vet said that while this could be related to those teeth that were pulled (the pockets forming under the gums could have been a breeding ground for infection), but it most often incidates that a dog has 'gotten into something' toxic.

Dingle has not eating anything he shouldn't have - at least that I have seen - and he had not shown any signs of having gotten into anything - no nausea, vomiting, etc.... absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. She said that perhaps Dingle had walked through something, licked his paws and ingested it that way.

I asked if perhaps it could be related to Dingle eating Orijin, a food very high in protein, but she didn't think it would be - said that would affect kidneys as well? At least that is what I think she said.

It's a mystery as to why his kidney enzymes are elevated.

I was told not to worry too much now - that all of the other liver levls are fine.

So the plan is for him to be on liver detoxifyer (Zentonil Advanced 200) for the next few weeks and then we'll check his levels then. Hopefully they have returned to normal.

Dingle is doing alright now. When I first brought him home he was high as a kite though and could barely stand. I guess that was from the hydromorphone pain injection more so than the anesthesia because he's been under anesthesia... ugh... at least 8 times now... and has recovered quickly.

Up until last night Dingle was getting Codeine gel rubbed into his ear for pain - but he's now finished that.

He is still on antibiotics (Antirobe aquadrops) and will be on them for a total of 10 days. They taste like crap and Dingle's face is pricess when I give them to him... but he takes them well.

So since Wednesday I've been busy with meds... which isn't all that uncommon as there's always something up with Dingle.

After his walk and feeding at 6:30am (on days I work nights) he'd get his Tears Natural II eye drops, the Cyclosporine eye gel, the antibiotics and for those 3 days the codeine.

Then later I'd sleep for a few hours and get up and give him the liver pills, which have to be given on an empty stomach.

The pamphlet in the pills said that they are 'palatable' - meaning they should taste good. But Dingle spit today's pill out 9 times - even when after I covered in peanut butter. This I found very, very strange. Dingle has been on pills so often that I could shake a pill bottle and he'd come running with excitement. So for him to not want one it must be repulsive.

After the liver pill I'd go back to bed for a few more hours and before work we'd start the morning routine again - eye drops, codeine and antibiotics.

The morning after the dental he was feeling well enough to eat. I think it was mainly because I allowed him to have Little Cesar wet food - he doesn't get wet food and so he scarfs it when he sees it... that and he hadn't eaten for such a long time since he couldn't eat after midnight the night before his surgery.

The night after the dental I was adding water to his kibble so that by the time my boyfriend fed him the food would be mush but Dingle spun in circles indicating he wanted the food right then and there - and he ate the hard kibbles fine.

He seems to be himself again - my usual Dingle... now with a gap in his front teeth.

In addition to being worried about his liver levels I'm (for some reason) absolutely devestated that Dingle had to have his teeth removed.

I once met a pom owner before I had Dingle and she made a point of saying "my dog has only 4 teeth left" (like that's something to brag about) and I said "oh, how old is your dog?". I expected her to say he was really old, but her response: "4". Holy shit lady - he's only 4 and only had 4 teeth left? Ugh.

I vowed to take care of Dingle's teeth so that he didn't end up like that pom and I know I've done everything I could have to help his dental health and I know that little dogs can be prone to bad teeth. Despite that I feel absolutely horrible that Dingle had 2 teeth pulled. Extremely terrible.

He's still got stitches in his mouth and I know losing two teeth doesn't seem to affect him, but for the last few days whenever I've seen him with his mouth open my eyes are drawn to the gap and I feel like shit.

Perhaps it's just a matter of adjusting to the fact he had teeth pulled?

All I know is I'm more concerned that Dingle just lost two teeth than I am affected by the damage to my bank account on Wednesday.

The damage? $1,063.32.

Yup - and not covered by insurance (well the liver meds may - I need to discuss this with the vet at our follow-up).

Oh Dingle.

Swimming Dingle? Nope.

If there's one thing I miss about living in the small town I grew up in it's the beach. My mom moved away when I went to University, but is still in the same general area, right on the lake.

Though it's never really nice beach weather when I come up to my mom's. Dingle and I did manage to get to the beach briefly yesterday night.

He surprised me by running right up to the water - and in slightly:



But then he decided he was in too far and left:



So I "helped" him:



Poor little ratty:



There were other families with dogs down there and they were going crazy swimming - swimming far out into the beach for sticks, toys, etc. Then there was me trying to get Dingle into the water... I think they thought he was pathetic.

One thing that did irritate me is that when we first got down there Dingle (on a leash) was heading over to another dog and she was like "oh, keep him away, my dog has kennel cough". Cool lady, excellent idea to bring your sick dog to the dog area.

Dingle is on vacation!

Really, when is he not on vacation? He's a dog.

That said, a freshly groomed Dingle and I are on a vacation from the city.

We are up at my mom's house - in a small town in Huron County.

We got here last night and will be staying for 8 days.

We have come up every year for the last 3 years I believe.

I'm hoping the weather will be nice (today it is not and every other year it's been somewhat crappy weather) so that Dingle can go swimming at the beach.

Though we haven't done much of anything today aside from going for a fairly long walk Dingle is exhausted.

He's taken upon himself to patrol my mom's house - going room to room checking on her Conure and Love Birds (really looking for dropped seeds) and watching the door for intruders.

Yesterday on the way up we stopped at my dad's place in the country and Dingle was exploring the wide open fields... running around like crazy until I heard/saw an eagle (or was it a hawk... I don't remember) and got all paranoid it was going to fly down and snatch him up and ended his free roaming time.

He was really tired when we finally got here - sitting in a car is exhausting, apparently.