Dog folks- I have a question

Fran

Former desparate mom
Little Miss Elizabeth is sneezing and sneezing. Her eyes have drainage. It's been going on for about 3 days.
I assume she has a cold. She is eating well and just a little less active than normal. Is there anything someone does for dog colds?
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
Fran, dogs can get anything from 'kennel cough' (they don't always cough, but the vaccine is not super effective), to one of the various adenoviruses, to actual swine flu. The latter seems to be occurring more in cats and ferrets than in dogs.

In all honesty? Since the symptoms you describe could be from so many different things, and since dogs can go into pneumonia incredibly quickly--I'd advise a quick call to your vet.

Ask him/her if you should bring the dog in. It's possible that there's a "bug" going around that s/he is aware of.

Meanwhile, try to keep her quiet, make sure she is well hydrated and try to keep the air where she is staying moist.

Isolating her from the other dogs is probably useless at this point as most of this crud spreads by air and the other dogs have already been exposed.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
Is she eating and drinking normally? Is there a discharge from her nose? Bubba has sinus infection of unknown origin. For three years now. His nose is really snotty. The $4,000 answer to that question is that if it's snotty, there's something wrong. If there's clear discharge it's probably ok, but not thick stuff. It started with Kennel Cough, but he was vaccinated. Was Elizabeth at the groomers or at a kennel recently? That's really the only way to get it.

Hope she's feeling better soon!
 
K

Kjs

Guest
Have you considered allergies? Chloe has allergies and in the spring she sneezes non stop. Then she usually has a hot spot. I was told to give her one benadryl, however the dosage depends on the weight. Chloe has hypothyroidism and was on special food to help lose weight. We ended up on steroids, which totally threw the weigh watching out of wack. The allergies are no under control. One spring/summer was especially worse than all others. Allergies could be from food..to the things she would smell. Benadryl right away helps.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
I would hold off on the Benadryl until you talk to the vet. Benadryl does help with sneezing and watery eyes, but it does so by thickening secretions.

In this case, unless the vet says to use it; you are probably better not using the antihistamine. You don't want to thicken secretions, have them build up, and have ME wind up with a sinus infection.

Again, talk to the vet. I do a lot of home-doctoring on my pets, but I am by no means a vet. I sure as heck wouldn't prescribe for something like this.

Another thing that may help, if she'll drink it, is warm chicken broth. It is soothing to the membranes and may help her get rid of more of the crud in her nose as it thins secretions.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
Benadryl can help, but one is not enough to do a thing for a dog as large as Fran's!

Bubba's 65 pounds, and he gets 4-5 benadryl per dose. He used to get at least twice a day, but when he got that stomach crud, we stopped and have just been living with the snot. The dosage is 1/2 mg to 2 mg per pound, and the caplets are 25 mg each. I think Elizabeth is a Great Pyranese, and probably at least 85 lbs, so a dose for her would be anywhere from 45 mg on the low end (two tablets) to 170 mg (seven tablets).

Fran is probably right to call the vet, though. Just don't spend $4,000 on it unless she seems sick in other ways too!
 

Fran

Former desparate mom
Thanks guys. I appreciate your advice. I was thinking benadryl too.

Miss Elizabeth is about 95 lbs. I'm very cautious about medications GN. I seldom medicate children, husbands or dogs without a Doctor's input. I have a very healthy respect for the power of medication and would never want to do anything to hurt those that I love.

Witz, her nasal drainage is clear. Her eyes are more obvious. She has white fur and the drainage is really evident. I'm secretly hoping that I don't get hit with big vet bills again. I still cringe at the expense.

Kjs, I don't think allergies but who knows.

It really helps to ask you guys. Thanks.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
Fran, if it is just a clear watery discharge, it might be something so mild as allergies. For the tear stains I find that you can wipe them away with a very mild baking soda solution.

If you are worried about getting it in her eyes, you can get some sterile saline like used for contact lenses, and wipe away the tears with that.

I wouldn't worry about a huge vet bill on this one. The OP is right on Benadryl dosing. It's a good example of how the same medications are dosed differently in different species.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
Fran, glad to hear it worked out so well. Is Miss E being good about the eye ointment? My GSD HATES the stuff.

Back in his working days (he was a tracking dog) he used to get very irritated eyes from dust and pollen and I had to use eye ointment on him.

Good as he is; I had to straddle him and pin his head with my thighs in order to get the stuff into him. He's the same way about having his ears cleaned. Did you know that a German Shepherd's ear can hold something like a "gallon" of liquid?

Sure looked like that as it went spraying all over me, the floor, and the walls.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
Well I think it was good he (vet) gave you benadryl (Casper takes 6 a day) we found it at the Dollar General and he's got major allergies. Keep in mind that it will make her drowsie. She may sleep more than usual and be a little bit crankier than normal.

Has there been a change in something like what you wash their bedding in? What shampoo they are washed in? Their food?? Household cleaners? Air fresheners? Household things like candles, misters, scented sprays? A new plant in or outdoors? Something that is blooming where you live? Carpeting that you recently had put in? House addition with work dust like saw dust? A new perfume or cologne you or husband use? A new snack or food?

All these things are a consideration. Also - if a sick animal crossed their path? It could have left it's germs somewhere. I mean it's so hard to tell. Shared toys at the dog park. Could just be dust. Really hard to tell.

I'm glad she is on the mend. You're a good furry Momma. I mean....your a good Mom for furkids. ;)
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
Bubba's skin has been really dry lately, and in hindsight I'm sure it has to do with a new laundry detergent which smells wonderful that I washed all of his bedding in. Oops. I hope that the new unscented clear liquid will be better for him.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
What are you feeding Bubba? In my experience the dry skin is very often dietary in nature. I've had good experience with the pre-made raw dogfood blends (I use Nature's Original Lamb).

Since putting him on this, his horrible skin rashes, dry skin, dandruff, all of that have cleared up and he has a beautiful shiny full coat of hair.

The diet is VERY expensive so you might want to look into adding Biotin and Omega Fatty acids to his diet.

Foster and Smith sell both and I'm sure you could order them from other suppliers if you seek a better price
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Witz, could it just be a seasonal thing with Bubba's dry skin? My dogs have it too and I think it's because of having the heat on the the air in the house is dry. Mine gets that way in the winter too - no matter how much lotion I use, my hands are still rough and dry.
 

Fran

Former desparate mom
Lizzie's eyes are improving. There is less drainage. Thanks for asking. She is on the patio, chewing her raw bone. I put a pink bow in her hair. LOL. It's so cute.
She isn't losing weight so I am going to have to work harder on decreasing the amount of food she eats. I feel her pain.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
Bubba's skin is beyond dry. He gets spots that scab up and clumps of hair falls out. The spots are about the size of a pencil eraser, mostly. It does not itch. He never licks or chews. It doesn't seem to bug him at all. For now, we are trying a couple medicated shampoos that we have used for foliculitus and yeast infections in the past. If we can't see some improvement from that, we'll see the vet, I guess.
 
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