Diesel the Weasel

Thanks persephone, that is kind of what I thought, but having never had my own dog before, especially not a sick one, I just wanted to check that this is normal recovery behaviour. I have brought him in to work today and he has been showing periods of interest in things (I am a teacher and last time he came to school he had more teenagers giving him attention than he knew what to do with!). I think he is remembering this as a fun place, so showing a little more energy. He has eaten three small meals so far today and kept them all down which is good. But he is only eating roast chicken (no bones of course!) which is what the vet was using to get him to eat. I know this is not nutritionally balanced, but he is not interested in dry food and rarely interested in the wet stuff. Is there anything I can add to the chicken to boost his energy and nutrition levels until he gets his full appetite back?

Well he has pooed (about 5 in a row actually when I had guests over for dinner!) But he vomited again last night, and he is sleeping ALL the time. He is showing no interest in any of his toys - not playful at all. Is this normal for recovery? I would expect him to sleep alot, but thought he would show some puppy playfulness in between naps. Am I expecting too much at this stage? We are going back to the vets this afternoon to get his stitches out.

I did the hot water bottle wrapped in an old woollen jumper of mine (for the smell) and left the radio on very softly (talk back radio was great!). Never heard a peep out of mine even the 1st night i had him!! (He was in the laundry from day 1).

He seems a little happier today - stlll sleeping alot and not interested in his toys, but I think he is more comfortable with being home! He has been eating quite a few small meals and has kept them down, but nothing coming out the other end yet...... I am waiting for a big one!!

Well he is home now! He has thrown up once, but think that was because he guzzled water too quickly. He has kept down some food and water since. He is pretty tired, but I think also a little unsure of everything. I think he had decided that the vet's must be home, and now he has been thrown into a 'new' home with a 'new' person. I guess he will settle down in a few days, and the energy will come when he puts a bit of weight back on. I have tried attaching a photo, but says the photo is bigger than my post or global limit?? (didn't know I had one) Anyway around this?

Diesel is coming home this afternoon!! The vet called me about an hour ago and I can come and pick him up in about 15mins! I am so excited - in the last 2 days, he has made such massive improvements. He hasn't vomited since yesterday morning and I can see signs of his normal cheeky personality again! He was even barking this morning! Thankyou so much for all your advice and support over the last 10 days! (Can't believe it has been that long!) Puppy Party!!

Such good news! I went into see him this afternoon, and he was off the drip and playing with the nurses! He actually ran (sort of) down the hall with his tail wagging when he heard my voice! It is amazing the difference since this morning! He is still vomiting a little, but did his first solid poo in a week, which means some of the food has been finally getting through! If all goes well and he stays off the drip, he may be able to come home on the weekend! I can't believe that after 8 days at the vets and being told that there was a good chance he wouldn't make it, that he has made such a huge improvement in one afternoon! Thanks all for your good wishes! I will keep you posted when he gets home! (time for a puppy party I think!)

Thanks Arby! I know I was putting human emotions onto the way a dog is acting, but I miss his attention!! ( Does that make me a human with dog feelings maybe??)

He appears to be quite hungry, but not keeping all the food down yet. Still, it is an improvement, and he is going for longer periods of time without vomiting which is good. Went in to see him this morning - he is still very flat and no energy. I think he may even be annoyed with me for leaving him there so long! maybe he was just tired and didn't want to be disturbed!

Thanks for your encouragement guys! It just seems to be moving sooooo slowly - I guess I had hoped I would be able to see some improvement (even if it was small) every day. When he doesn't seem to be getting even a little better, I become pessimistic about the outcome again. I miss my baby heaps! It is a week tomorrow since he has been at the vets. My house is so quiet without him ;) I have tried to find some info on the recovery time for rota virus. Heaps on skin kids (about 9 days to recover if anyone is wondering) but nothing much on the effects in dogs. I guess the internet is only as good as what people think is important to put on there!

Still no change this morning. He wants to eat and drink, but still vomiting. ;) I am starting to worry that there may be permanent damage to his digestive system...... He looks so skinny and unhappy.

My pup was chewing the corners off my wooden coffee table, so sprayed it with the $15 bottle of 'no-chew' that the pet store sold me. He loved it! Licked it off before getting back to the chewing. I found putting some tiger balm on the corners worked a treat! He didn't like the smell at all, so stays away now!

Here is a photo of Diesel before he got sick. Hope I get him home soon!

Latest Diesel update: Couldn't keep food down, but eager to eat and drink. They have avoided giving him food again, but letting him drink some water. He is even vomiting up the water, but the vet thinks some of it might be getting through. It is a good sign that he is keen to eat - means he is feeling a bit better. Just need to rehabilitate his digestive system now. He has had nothing going through it for 5 days, so the vet thinks that eating and drinking now is a bit of a shock to the system. Vet is the most positive he has been about recovery since I brought him in last Wednesday! So, more likely now that he will survive this, but it looks like it will be a slow process.

Another slight improvement this morning. He actually stood up and wagged his tail when I came to visit! The vet is now fairly certain it is a severe gastro caused by rotavirus (about the only one there is no vaccine for!!) He is actually appearing to be feeling hungry today, which is fantastic. Before this he would actually pull away from food and water. The vet is going to try and get him to keep a very small amount of food down (he has been vomiting again over night). They are going to feed him a special prescription diet for dogs with intestinal problems, and his meal size will only be a teaspoon of food. If he can keep something down by tomorrow, then they might take him off the drip. So, he is still very sick, but things are looking a bit more positive today. Lets keep hoping for continued improvements! Thanks so much Arby and Gretel for you good thoughts. It has been so helpful to have your support here!

Thanks Gretel! The vet called this morning - apparently there is a very slight improvement this morning (he stood up momentarily when the vet came in to the room). He said not to get too excited, so still not out of the woods, but I guess slow improvements are a good sign? Better than getting worse anyway! He will call again this afternoon with another update. Fingers crossed for another slight improvement! They all add up to getting my baby back home!

Yours is so cute! Diesel is not worse and not better. The vet is giving him 70% chance. Please keep those good thoughts coming.....

My parents dog has a heart murmur and she is now 12 yrs old. The only difference it made was that we couldn't take her on long walks, but other than that you wouldn't notice anything wrong with her.....

Bindo - yours is so cute! How old is he now? I tried to attach a photo, but it won't let me. (I am not feeling very computer literate at the moment....) I hope I will be able to show you photos of him when he is home! He is not out of the woods yet.

Thanks Arby and Gretel. Sorry about your little boy, Arby. That must have been horrible to watch. It is horrible watching them suffer and they don't understand why they are feeling like that. It is good to know that there are pups out there that have recovered fine from major surgery. He has been on a diet of pal puppy food - dry and tinned (this is what the breeder was using). I have since changed to supercoat (dry) for pups, but still mix with the tinned pal. I give him a chicken neck most mornings when I go to work - keeps him busy for a little while! I hope that this diet is not what gave him the gastro.....

He is out of the surgery - they didn't find the infolding in the intestine, but think what was showing up on the x-ray was a very hard piece of poo. The intestine was really gassy and full of goo, which they have squeezed out. He is awake from the anaesthetic and is apparently looking a bit more lively than this morning. They will keep him there on a drip until he is over the gastro. Thanks all for your good wishes - please keep them coming until he is home again!

Thanks! I think he will need all the good vibes he can get. He is a tough little boy, but he just looks so weak and miserable. I think today is going to be a very long day.....

Really bad news..... He is worse this morning. Poor little thing just stands there with his head down and vomit coming out his nose and mouth. They did another x-ray and the vomiting has caused his small intestine to fold in on itself (like a telescope). So they are putting him on a drip for a couple of hours then operating. The vet is not sure if he will make it. I can't stop crying

I usually watch him pretty closely and take away anything that he shouldn't be chewing. He loves stealing my bras , but maybe that is why he swallowed whatever it is so quickly! I am really hoping it is not a lacy g-string ;) ......... Someone suggested getting bucket loads of paraffin oil down him and maybe it would just slide out? Anyone used this method before? I would like to avoid surgery if I can.....

Just called the vet - they suspect there is a blockage as they have done a barium x-ray. They are going to do another one later today to see if the barium has still not moved - if is is a blockage, then he will need surgery. Vet thought it looks like something soft such as a sock. Not sure that I am missing any, but if it is i would love to know how he managed to eat a sock without choking?? Don't reckon I could gag one down! He is only 13 weeks - how safe is surgery at this age? I know there is no choice, and I will do anything to make him better. Just wondering what the risks are? Has anyone had puppies with bowel obstructions before??