Heartworms Part 2

[Jennifer]

I thought I would start another thread since this one is taking a long time to load.

Well, Betty is at the vet as we speak. I can't stop thinking about her and worrying about her. Thanks to the good advice I have gotten here, I came prepared with a written list of questions this morning, so I at least feel very knowledgable.

The vet told us that we get to pick her up tommorrow afternoon. I thought she had to stay overnight two nights, but I guess I was wrong. We are not going to leave her alone on Thursday and Friday at all and have arranged tag teaming working at home, so that someone is home with her at all times. Then we have to weekend, so we can make sure that someone is around to watch her.

I'm a little nervous since she is coming home the same day she gets the second injection, but the vet said he prefers for them to recover from home.

I worry about her being at the vets and being scared. She was at the pound for 10 days and has only been at our house for 3 weeks, so I worry that she is going to think she is being given away again. She has 2 blankets with her (one that is hers and one that is Oscars - thought the familar smells would make her feel more at home) and she has her favorite turtle toy. The poor girl has been through so much in the past month - got stuck in the pound, then came to a new house for a week, then got spayed, then back to the new house for a week, and now this. Poor Betty girl

I'm going to call the vet in a few hours and find out how she is doing.

The vet said that we don't need to keep her contained in the house, that she can have free run of the house. But based on what I've heard from everyone here, running victory laps up and down the stairs would be harmful. That kinda confused me that the vet said that. I think I am still going to keep her confined while in the house and definately not let her run up and down the stairs.

Thanks again for everyone's support and for letting me continue to post about this. It really helps to "talk" about it and most friends and family dont'really understand or care about all the details.

Jennifer

[LisaH]

Best wishes to Betty for a speedy recovery! It's great that you'll be home with her for a couple days.

[TessieMom]

Best wishes to Betty! Pablo is still doing fine, but Kibby was in bad shape when I got up this morning so she is back at the vet's after night number 7. She was fine last night when I went to bed at 11 PM, but at 6 AM this morning she had had the runs in the night, would not eat or drink, and her lungs were congested... so I dropped her back at the hospital. Take care and watch out for day 7! Rena

[Jennifer]

I'm sending healing rayz to Kibby. I really hope she's OK. That is good to know to keep a close eye on them that just cuz things start out fine, that doesn't mean you are out of the woods. I'm glad that Pablo is still doing well. Keep us posted on Kibby.

Jen

[Penny's Aunt]

Penny is sending healing dachsie rayzzz to Betty. She also said to mention that large amounts of cheese & a whole roasted chicken would probably make her feel better. (yeah, sure)

Maybe running loose in the house wouldn't hurt her, but it's such a simple thing to do, why chance the worst?

[TessieMom]

I know Kibby appreciates the thoughts! Will update you when I know more. I am glad I kept her crated and I will continue to do the same for Pablo, although he thinks he should have the run of the house. After this morning, I wouldn't chance anything because it changed so fast. The vet had told me to keep them from running in the backyard and I told him they would be crated which he approved of. Good Luck and dachsie rays to Betty! Rena

[Jennifer]

I just talked to the vet and they said that Betty has already had her shot for the day and that she is doing fine.

Rena, I think I'm going to follow the advice of keeping her contained, especially based on your experience of it changing so fast. If there are complications, I definately want to know that I have done everything I can to keep her calm. She's such a ball of fire and can get into a full run in such a small area.

I think that Betty will agree with Penny, especially about the lots of cheese. She just loves cheese. I haven't given her chicken yet, but based on how much she loves food, I doubt she'll turn her nose up at Chicken.

[Maggie Aggie]

<IMG SRC="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1239520&a=9154221&p=29720085&Sequence=0&res=high" border=0>

Maggie and Betty's stories are really similar! Maggie also came home the same day that she got her second injection. Betty will probably just be a little sore, so be extra careful with her.

Maggie was at the pound for one week, so I was also worried that she would think she was just being dumped off again when I left her with the vet. She was fine though. Just focus on how happy Betty will be when she sees you again.

Maggie had all the same stuff to deal with as Betty ... spaying, heartworms, being at the pound, etc. I gave her so much extra love and attention then that she has continued to expect it now ALL the time. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/biggrin.gif

I think you're definitely doing the right thing by confining Betty. It's better for Betty in the long run if you act more cautiously right now.

Best wishes,

Vicki and Maggie

[Maggie Aggie]

Hope Kibby starts feeling better too!

[sillysadie]

I brought mine home that first day too. One night at a vet kennel is enough if she just came from the pound. They are so needy those first few weeks after being rescued. Keeping all the heartworm babies in my thoughts today. Just keep listening for any congestion like she has a cold or fluid on her lungs- like Rena's experience- it comes on pretty quickly

Shelley

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by sillysadie on October 03, 2000 at 04:51 PM</font>

[Jennifer]

I just talked to the vet and Betty had a good night. She ate all of her breakfast and hasn't been sick. They said that she is being calm and not barking (which she is very good at) and doesn't seem to be too upset about being at the vet.

Vikki - Maggie is so cute!!! She is really good at the L@@K. You are right, their stories are very similar. And they even look very similar. Betty is the same color and about the same size. That's good to know that Betty will be sore the vet didn't mention that to me.

Rena - Any news on Kibby? She's been in my thoughts alot the past day and I'm hoping she is just fine and at home begging for treats real soon.

Shelley - You're right about them needing so much attention when they are first rescued. Betty just wants to be near you and be loved. Luckily, we are more than happy to comply with her requests. <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm5.gif" border=0> That's a good point about continuing to check her lungs for congestion even after it seems like she is out of the woods, like it seemed with Kibby.

[TessieMom]

Kibby is much better today and should be coming home tomorrow (which is good because Pablo was very upset about her not being there with him last night. He is still doing well, but depressed about the crate and being confined and missing Ms Kibby horribly.) The vet said she may send tranquilizers home to try to keep her from being as active as she is (she's the quiet one... Pablo is the active one!).

That is very good news about Betty, just watch day 7! Rena

[Maggie Aggie]

I'm glad that Kibby and Betty are doing well. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/circle.gif

Yes, Maggie definitely has the L@@K down! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/lol.gif She continues to send her best wishes to Kibby, Pablo, and Betty. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/wavey.gif

Vicki and Maggie



<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Maggie Aggie on October 04, 2000 at 02:57 PM</font>

[Jennifer]

I'm really glad that Kibby is doing better. I know that both you and Pablo will be happy to have her home. That is wonderful.

Well, I picked up Betty this afternoon and she is definately not feeling well. She is very lathargic and is not interested in the treats I tried to feel. I took outside on a leash to do her business and she didn't even want to walk the 20 feet to the grass, she just laid down on the driveway and laied on her side. Her back is really sore and she screeched when I accidently touched it when I carried her in since she didnt want to walk. The vet said that was normal and not to worry about that (her back is actually swollen) She has been very thirsty. She was having a hard time getting comfortable, but I finally got her comfortable in her favorite spot on the couch (she's just laying there, so there's no danger of her jumping down and running around).

She hasn't shown any of the warning signs that the vet told me (vomitting, fever, coughing, short of breath). And the vet said that her feeling so bad and lethargic was normal for a bad case of heartworms. So I"m trying not to worry, but are going to keep watching her really close. I didn't expect her to be so lathargic when I picked her up.

The vet told me to give her one baby asprin with each meal for the next 3 weeks. He said that it will help with the heartworm treatment. Has anyone heard of that before?

[Maggie Aggie]

Hang in there. It's going to be a tough, slow process for a while.

I'm sure Betty will seem to perk up a little as the soreness of the injection wears off.

The poor thing has been through a lot in a short while. She needs your love right now more than anything. Just continue to monitor her and don't hesitate to call the vet if you have a question about anything.

Vicki

[sillysadie]

Have not heard about the aspirin. Betty seemslike she is taking the treatment like Lobo did..he was really sore and he cried. He was also very lethargic and did NOT eat during the whole 2 months. He had to be hydrated often at the vets office. It is tough but hang in there. Lobo is now a healthy, happy boy and he just had a terrible time with the treatment.

Shelley

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by sillysadie on October 04, 2000 at 06:26 PM</font>

[Jennifer]

Thanks so much for the support. I really needed it.

She ate breakfast this morning!!!! Yeah!! I was really happy. I slept with her right next to my chest so that if she had problems breathing I would wake up, she was fine throughout the night. She's still very lethargic and very sore (still crying). When I took her out, she did wag her tail when her brother came up to her, so that made me happy.

The aspirin thing makes sense since they have people who are at risk for a heart attack take an asprin a day to prevent a heart attack, so it must do the same thing with dogs.

The director of the rescue I work with told me that I need to try to be upbeat around her because she is going to sense my worry and that will make her worse. So, that's a good point and I've been trying to keep that in mind. I think I"m doing worse than her with this.

Thanks again everyone for the support and the information. It has made this alot easier.

Rena - Any news on Kibby? Is she still coming home today?

[twix0699]

Jennifer,
<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm12.gif" border=0> <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm30.gif" border=0> <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm1.gif" border=0>
We are so happy!!! I am glad Betty is eating. I know you were pretty worried about that last night during the chat. PLEASE keep us updated. Will be keeping you in my prayers.

Teresa and Twix

PS: Twix is still sending rayz!

[Maggie Aggie]

Good girl, Betty!!!! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/hapfac01.gif

[dutchman]

Aspirin can act as a blood thinner. I suspect the idea is that should a buildup of dead worms start to occur in an artery the aspirin will reduce the risk of a blood clot forming. I know that is why it is recommended for human heart patients. That is it reduces the risk of a blood clot forming causing a heart attack when arterial flow is reduced due to plaque build up on the artery walls.

Good luck,

Tom and the boys (Frank & Tanner)

[TessieMom]

I am so glad to hear that Betty is doing well. Kibby would be home today-- she is doing great -- but I have a house full of sick dogs. Tess started throwing up, now Stinker and Lucy are refusing to eat, which is absolutely unheard of. Tess is the great huntress (birds, squirrels, bugs, pecans), so the vet thinks she may have found something and shared it... will know more later today. At any rate, Kibby doesn't need that now. Pablo, on the other hand, has the enthusiasm and energy of 10 dogs! Rena

[Krista]

I ran into this article on heartworms: what they are, prevention, and treatments. I thought some of you might be interested.
http://www.peteducation.com/parasites/heartworms.htm

Get better Soon Dachsies!!!

[Jennifer]

Krista - Thanks for posting the article. That was the first article on heartworms that I have read that was written for "real people".

Rena - Wow, sounds like you have your hands full. Sending healing rayz to your crew. I think it is wonderful what you are doing - helping dachsies when you already have so many of your own. Hope Kibby gets to come home soon.

Tom - Your asprin explaination makes a lot of sense. Betty likes them cuz she gets them in Cheese. Yummy!!

Betty is doing better and is acting less lethargic. She's startin wag her tail and give kisses. However, I'm really realizing how important and hard it's going to be to keep her quiet. Yesterday I carried her outside to do her business. She saw the dog across the street and she got excited. She immediatley started breathing really heavy, panting and shaking. If she has problems breathing with just a little excitement, it's going to be a long 6 weeks. I immediately took her back inside and waited to my neighboor brought her dog inside.

Betty and I both thank everyone for the encouragement and support.

[Maggie Aggie]

Maybe you should keep her on a leash when you take her outside to go potty. That should help keep her calmer, because then she knows that she can't go running off after other dogs. Just a suggestion.

Glad to read that the tail wag is back. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

Vicki and Maggie

[Penny's Aunt]

The lethargy is probably from a combination of poor blood circulation (red blood cells carry oxygen to the body), & interference of the worms with the heart & the lungs.

I agree that the baby aspirin is probably being used as a blood thinner, to prevent any clots from forming, & to maybe help the blood flow more freely.

Penny is sending healing rayzzz your way, & she said not to forget cheese for "medicinal purposes".

[Jennifer]

That's intersting to know what's causing the lethargy. I was thinking it was just because of the medicine, but it makes sense that it would be due to lack of oxygyen.

Vikki, I was actually carrying her and had a leash attached to her when she got excited. Her little feet never even touched the ground when she got excited. She just started "talking" to him and that made her breath heavy. I've definately been taking her outside on a leash, she is very socialable and would go "visit" everyone in the neighboorhood.

[Maggie Aggie]

Okay. Sounds like you're doing everything that you can. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

[TessieMom]

Hope Betty is improving. Kibby is back home with 20 times the energy she had before the treatment. She is acting like a puppy now... and seems to be completely over the hump -- at least for now. She and Pablo have settled down to snooze in their crate. My other kids are all doing well also, so the only sickly one is me with a sinus infection. We are all sending those dachsie rays to Betty! Rena

[Jennifer]

I'm so glad that Kibby is doing better. YEAH!!

Betty is feeling much more like herself. I am so happy!! Her back isn't sore and she's interested in everything going on around her again.

She's not real happy about being confined, but she's doing OK. She seems to prefer being on a leash inside the house than in her crate. So if we are sitting somewhere (eating, on the computer, watching TV, or in a specific room), we'll teather her on a leash and she'll sit calmly.

We are watching her real closely. Especially with day 7 coming up soon.

Jennifer

[TessieMom]

That is great that Betty is doing much better! Kibby and Pablo are sending lots of rayz for her to get through day 7 without any problems. The crate offers lots of opportunities for practicing the L@@K! Pablo has become an expert. Since we are at day 10, I have actually let them out of the crate to lay around in dog beds with the other kids and they seem much happier until bedtime! Take care... Rena and the gang

[Jennifer]

Rena - Glad everyone is doing better at your house. Hope you feel better!!

Betty's not feeling as well today. She woke up with congestion and wouldn't eat her food. And she was being lethargic again. So, she got a trip to the vet. He said she has congestion, but it is a normal level for a heartworm treatment dog. He said that since she didn't have a fever, to just keep watching her and to try to get her to eat. He said that heavy investation heartworm dogs have good days and bad days, so be patient and keep watching her.

So, I followed Penny's advice and gave her some cheese. She said that Penny sure is smart and ate the cheese.

[WOTANSMUTTI]

<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm37.gif" border=0> Rayzzzzz for you rescuers and those puppers who are lucky to have you...

Sonja

[TessieMom]

I am glad that Betty is fine. Kibby and Pablo are too full of energy. But they finally settled into a nap in the crate. They have been getting some out of crate, TV time in the evenings (5 dogs and 2 people on a couch) and that routine seems to be working as long as they can keep me in sight during most of the day. More rayz to Betty! Rena

[twix0699]

Just a note to let you two know I am thinking of you. I am so glad the doggies are doing well. Please keep us updated on how things go. Give those pups lots of love!! They deserve it after going through all this.

Teresa and Twix

[wildpsychochick]

all of this has been helpful, i have a 2 year old (approx.) she tested positive for heartworms a few months back, we live in a hot area, so vet suggested we wait until now to have the treatment started. they haven't done an exray though, will ask about that at next visit. am very apprehensive, we are so attached to her, am afraid she won't survive the treatment, very concerned. her name is Jasmine, we call her Jazzy, she is cinnamon/red in color and very small. when we first got her she only weighed 7 pounds, is around 11-12 now. that is her target healthy weight, she is a very small dog.

[dutchman]

Hello wildpsychochick, interesting name. Please realize that if left untreated the heart worms will kill your dog. Yes the treatment is rough and some do die from complications but remember you are doing what is best for your dog and they only thing possible unless you either want to put it to sleep or watch it die a rather ugly death.

Please don't think I'm trying to preach to you when you read the following. It's just that you sound like you may be yound and you and haven't had time to experience too many of life's ups and downs. Any time we face a life or death undertaking with someone we care about regardless of that someone being animal or human it is scary. With age and maturity you realize facing these hard times is something we all have to do. At some point unless we die young we all face the loss of parents, possibly siblings, friends and coworkers. Not everyone will die at a ripe old age some will die young. It's the courage to do what we can to help others through the rough time regardless of the outcome that makes us stronger. It also makes us appreciate those around us that much more and if we support others well we gain the respect of our friends.

Good luck with your little one. Let us know any time you need our help or just a shoulder to lean or cry on.

Tom and the boys (Frank and Tanner)


<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by dutchman on October 13, 2000 at 04:49 PM</font>

[~Jen~]

Hiya Wild ... Glad to see you found your way over ... you will find the ppl over here to be most supportive and very kind. Hope you stick around. Keep us posted about little Jazzy's condition. Good Luck you have my thoughts, prayers and Dachsie Rayzzzzzz!!

Jen (aka. DJ from the acme board)

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by ~Jen~ on October 13, 2000 at 03:15 PM</font>

[TessieMom]

Let me add to the statements others have made. Although the treatment has been rough on Kibby particularly (Pablo just goes with the flow), the other option is to let them die a slow death from the worms. Our vet did an extensive work up (Blood and x-rays) to evaluate the extent of the disease before he decided on the treatment. I don't think I could live with myself if we hadn't tried the treatment. Rena

[Jennifer]

I totally understand being afraid that Jazzy will die going through the treatment. But if you do not treat her she will definitely die and it will be an awful death. I am currently treating a dog I adopted from the
shelter for a very bad case of heartworms. Yes, I was scared and still am scared that something will happen to Betty, but if something does happen then I will know that I have given my little girl every chance at having the long happy life that she deserves. I know that if I were a dog with
heartworms, I would want the chance to live than definitely not to live. I felt that being afraid wasn't a good reason for not doing the right thing.

As you can tell from reading through this thread and the other posts, going through the treatment has not been easy on either me or Betty. Yes, I have cried many times the past 10 days. Yes, I am exhausted from being up several nights holding Betty since she couldn't breath well. Yes, my kitchen stinks from cooking liver cuz it's the only thing that she'll eat. Yes, my coworkers think I'm nuts for burning my vacation time to stay home with my sick doggie. Yes, it is very hard to see someone you love not doing well. But I know that the many long years of happiness that she will give me is going to make these 2 months more than worth it. I had to make the decision again of weather to treat or not, I would definatley decide to treat it without hesitation. And as Tom said, my husband and I have actually learned a lot about ourselves and grown a lot stronger through this.

Some dogs die, but a lot don't die. I think the figure I found in an article was about 5 percent don't make it. The treatment has been improved dramatically over the past few years, so some of the stories that you hear of dogs not making it were on the old treatment which was riskier from what I understand. My vet treats about 2 dogs a week and says that he hasn't lost one in 5 years. From talking with people, it seems like the ones that don't make it are the ones that have very heavy cases, aren't confined properly after treatment, or
old/sick/weak when they started the treatment. Sounds like Jazzy is young and in good health.

Some dogs have complications, but some dogs don't (like Rena's dog Pablo that is currently going through treatment). I have talked with a lot of people that have gone through this with their dog and many have not had one lick of problems. Seems like their is a higher likliehood of complications if the dog is heavily invested (like Betty or like SillySadies Dog Lobo). And the likliehood of problems decreases if you keep them as quiet as possible and take them to the vet as soon as you spot problems.

This board is a wonderful wonderful place. It would be a lot harder without the advice, information and lots of support that I have gotten from everyone.

Best of luck to you and Jazzy. I will help you in my thoughts and prayers and let me know if there is anything I can do to help. Please feel free to post as you are going through this. I know that posting updates as really helped me.

Jennifer

[wildpsychochick]

thanks for the information everyone, she is probably healthy and strong enough to go ahead with the treatment, she went into heat yesterday, we do want to have her spayed, but vet suggested that we wait until after the heartworm treatment for the surgery. today our focus is to make sure she isn't let outside alone, people around our neighborhood let their dogs roam and we defineitely need to avoid a pregnancy!!!! i know the treatment is better than the alternative and it has really helped reading over all of the information and stories on this site, great to have a place to turn for support!!!!! anyone know how long the heat cycle last? (she is swollen and lightly bleeding)