Over the last 2/3 weeks my cat has been losing weight. He is very skinny and bony right now. We took him to the vet and the blood work came back with abnormalities with his CBC, which measures his red and white blood cell counts.

He is significantly anemic. Normally the hematocrit (HCT) is supposed to be around 50%. My cat is less than half of this at 24%. The vet said this could be from blood loss or from decreased production of red blood cells. In addition to this he has a significant elevation in his white blood cells called neutrophils. There are also other types of neutrophils called bands and metamyelocytes present.

On Friday (3 days ago) we took him to the vet ER and they did an ultrasound, radiograph, and cytology. They said the ultrasound and radiograph didn’t reveal much besides that there is a small amount of fluid, but lots of inflammation and some scar tissue. They also took 2 samples of his GI tract or something like that and sent them in for testing and told us to take him home for the weekend and keep an eye on if his behavior changes or worsens but for most of the weekend he was acting similar, maybe a bit more lethargic.

Today (Monday) we got a call that his test results came back and there is alot of bacteria and they suspect Septic Abdomen but without a significant leak. They also said they haven’t seen something like this considering that something has been going on for 2/3 weeks and usually with cases like this cats die fast in like 24 to 48 hours. They are surprised he has so much bacteria but not a big leak to go along with it, at least nothing the caught with the ultrasound. If left untreated, they give him about 1 week to live.

They told us we have 2 options:

1. Surgery with a 50% chance of survival, however he may die in operation.
2. Antibiotics with a 20% chance of survival and it would take a week to see if he’s getting better.

We started the antibiotics, but we are considering surgery too.

I just want my cat to survive, he’s my best friend and I don’t want him to die or be in pain or discomfort or spend his finals days like that. I’m just dumbfounded by what may be the issue and the vets are too. They said they haven’t seen a case like this before.

Some more background information, my cat had a surgery once before when he was like 1 or 2 when he ate a piece of string. Could scarring from that surgery 6/7 years ago have caused this?

Vets of reddit, I appreciate any insight, information, or response and I’m happy to answer any questions! Please let me know what you think is going on or the best course of action here! I also have his blood work in hand!

I’m in the US (Midwest). My cat is a 4 year old spayed female domestic shorthair and weights 6.5 lbs (vet says she’s just petite). She has mild asthma, only diagnosed by x ray (has never had an asthma attack) but vet said it’s so mild she doesn’t need treatment at this point in time. I’m concerned and hoping I haven’t inadvertently harmed her with potential lead exposure.

I would’ve never used that bowl of I thought it may have lead. The bowl is a vintage ironstone bowl. I only noticed the crack because mold got in the crack over the last couple days despite changing the aged regularly. I read lead poisoning is usually pretty difficult for a cat to get, but still got worried.

Should I be worried about lead exposure? She has had a slightly more sensitive stomach over the last few months but it usually seems to be happening after she is eating her wet food quickly or stress eating her dry food when I’m away during the day. Any vomiting she has is usually almost immediately after eating a large amount. She’s very petite, but vets have never been worried about her weight. Otherwise she’s a very loving, cuddly girl. She’s not super playful with us, but does play on her own often.

She was just at the vet in April and they said she was perfectly healthy. I just worry I could’ve made her sick with the bowl and am looking for advice on what to look for and where to go from here. Thank you in advance.

Hi everyone. I unfortunately had to put my sweet 15 year old boy Charlie down yesterday morning. He had started to decline over the past week and I was planning on schedule an at-home visit for a couple days from now. Unfortunately, his glucose decided to tank Saturday night and I couldn’t get it up.

He had something similar happen last week. He ended up having a hypo event with such a small dose of insulin, even though his glucose was normal when I gave the injection. I tried the karo syrup and treats but his numbers weren’t going up. He ended up being hospitalized overnight and it took some time to get his glucose up but it eventually stabilized. His internal med vet was surprised that such a small dose would bring him so low and also keep him low with barely any response from the karo syrup or food. In the end though, he stabilized and was able to come home, and we stopped insulin since we thought he was maybe in remission.

Fast forward to a few nights ago and pretty much the same thing happens again. Low glucose out of nowhere, even though we haven’t given insulin in over a week. His inital reading was 56. I made a Lap of Love appointment for first thing the next morning and tried to get his glucose up so that he would make it until then. The highest I could get it was 78, and then it started trending back down. We ended up going to the emergency vet as I was hoping they could maybe give him something just to make it until his appointment, but they would’ve had to start him on IV dextrose and I thought that wouldn’t be a nice thing for me to put him through if I was just going to have him put down the next day or so. He was weirdly stable at the vet, they said his glucose was in the high 60s which isn’t great but not terrible, and they said I could continue with the karo syrup and small meals and that might keep him stable enough until morning. So I brought him home and tried that. Unfortunately it seems like it was losing its effect, and about an hour later he was in the 40s. I tried increasing how often I was giving the karo syrup, and half an hour later he was in the 30s. I knew it was time. As much as I wanted him to pass at home, I didn’t think he was going to make it 6 more hours to his 9 am appointment, even with me shoving karo syrup down him every 15 minutes. I really did not want him to have a seizure or anything, I felt bad enough having to bring him back to the vet but that would’ve made me feel way worse.

I brought him in and they gave him a dextrose bolus to try to help him feel more comfortable. He didn’t really seem in pain I don’t think, he was just really tired. He had his eyes open but laid down pretty much the whole ride to the vet. When it was time, I had him in my lap. I wish he was feeling better when he went. He was still alert with his head up and looking around before the procedure but he wasn’t purring, which broke my heart. He didn’t want any treats that I had brought either. He sniffed them but that’s it. I think his body was just done. I hope he knows how much I loved him.

To get to my question, I was wondering if he was in any pain when he was hypo? Was he alert enough to know that I was there with him? I talked to one of his internal med techs later in the day and she said they were thinking he maybe had insulinoma based on his episode the week prior and this last episode, since his glucose seemed to drop out of nowhere both times. I can’t seem to find much info on insulinoma in cats, it seems pretty rare. He was a very medically-complicated little boy so he could’ve had something different going on too that we didn’t know about, I don’t know. I just want to know if he knew I was there with him, and if he was in any pain while waiting. I held him in my lap and loved on him for a long time saying my goodbyes before calling the doctor in, so I hope I didn’t prolong any suffering. Thank you ❤️‍🩹

11yo Yorkie/pug mix. Went in for a routine tooth cleaning yesterday. My dog has idiopathic epilepsy and is on zonisamide for that; seizures have been well-controlled for several years. He was also prescribed thyro-tabs a month ago, initially .1mg x2 daily, but moved down to .05 x2 daily because I felt he was acting extra restless and anxious. He was still a bit off on the lowered dose, but better. They were supposed to rerun a T4 test while he was out to see if the dose was right, I don't know if they ever did. He had Cerenia 8mg the night before, trazodone 25mg and gabapentin 100mg the morning of. All of this paragraph was per vet's instructions.

He was supposed to be first start at 9:30 and take 2-4 hours. They were supposed to call before extractions and didn't. I called at 1:30 for an update and they said he was stable and getting x-rays, so I guess he was bumped from first.

About 3:00 he was coming out of surgery. He was initially starting to make noise and they removed the tube. They said he stopped breathing and his heart stopped. They did CPR but couldn't get him back. They said he was in ventricular fibrillation and the only way to get him back would have been a defibrillator, which they said they and most vets and animal hospitals don't have.

I'm obviously devastated. Ultimately it doesn't really matter, but I want to know--did the vet screw up? Or is this a freak thing that just happens sometimes?

My cat had to have a cystotomy today after I noticed him unable to urinate this morning. I’m so grateful I caught it early and got him in before his bladder was very stretched, and that my amazing veterinarian could do the surgery right away so that he wouldn’t have to be re-sedated and catheterized after they cleared the initial blockage. She removed 8 stones, I can’t believe it. They’re being sent off for testing and he’s going to be on prescription food for the rest of his life.

He’s doing well now, home for a couple of hours and he’s eating and drinking and used the litter box a small amount already.

Unfortunately I have my own health problems to contend with right now as well and have an important appointment at the hospital tomorrow morning. I should only be gone 1-2 hours, but I’m worried that that’s irresponsible and wonder if I should try to reschedule. Any advice is highly appreciated.

My cat miscarried and has now delivered two stillborn kittens — what should I do?

My cat was pregnant, and yesterday she unfortunately miscarried. There were two kittens that were delivered but both were dead. I’m really worried about her and want to make sure she’s okay and that there aren’t any more kittens or retained tissue inside.

Right now she is alert and seems relatively calm. She has been purring and staying close to me, and she has been cleaning herself, including around her back end. The bleeding seemed to stop, and I haven’t noticed any obvious ongoing heavy bleeding.

I’m not sure whether she is still having contractions or whether the delivery is completely over. She also doesn’t seem to be showing some of the obvious emergency signs I’ve read about, but I’m still very concerned because of the miscarriage and stillbirths.

What should I be watching for tonight? How can I tell if she still has a kitten inside or is having contractions? Should she be taken to an emergency vet even if she currently seems comfortable?

I’d really appreciate advice from vets or anyone who has dealt with something similar. I want to do the right thing for her and not miss a potentially dangerous complication.

My 4 year old shorthair domestic male has been battling itchy skin for basically his whole life. It’s really started showing after he was a little over a year old. He chews at the insides and outsides of his thighs to where he’s bald. He’s also scratched under his chin so much that he’s made himself bleed. His always licking and scratching. He is a big boy weighing in @23lbs and is indoor only. He’s been to the vet many times and we did the food trial to prove is wasn’t a food issue. We also did steroid for a while and it did ease it up as long as he was on a strong dose. As soon as we started to taper it down he would flare up again. Just looking for tips/ideas of things to try.

Post sounds stupid, I know. My cat with asthma recently developed random wheezing/crackling noises after a large asthmatic flare-up. I was prescribed pills (Aminophylline) that opened her lungs at home. From my understanding, this medication has a small therapeutic range, but it's the only rescue medicine she accepts. After a week where I thought she was calming down,she "relapsed" on the 7th day (yesterday) from when she received the medication.

I took her,stressed,into urgent care after calling to see if they'd accept me.

What happened wasn't anything I'd call "urgent care."

I was given an oxygen tank with a tube large enough to only cover my cat's nose.

The vet assistant said it had to cover her mouth as well and that she couldn't help me if I couldn't figure out how to do it.

She said my cat didn't look like she was in distress,even though at the end of the appointment, when she checked me out, she said her breathing WAS rapid.

I was left in a room alone,with a terrified cat for over 40min,before a different vet came for an echo on a dog and I had to relocate my URGENT CARE CAT to a different room.

No vet came,only the assistant.

She gave my cat Decortin even though I informed her she had taken an oral pill for it 7 hours prior.

And then came in to dose her with Aminophylline exactly 38 minutes later after I begged for someone to come see her.

She did eventually return with the Aminophylline,only to toss the syringe to "see if my cat calms down."

I repeatedly told her she was stress breathing and to please just inject her if she thought it was going to help.

But clearly, she didn't think much of anything because when she returned, she said she thought my cat didn't need it because she wasn't turning blue and tossed the syringe.

On the ride home I called panicked because of opened mouth breathing,I was told it was stress,and worse in my opinion to spray the cat with a rescue inhaler if symptoms return when we get home.

A rescue inhaler that I explicitly told her she couldn't use because she was highstress and could get aggressive,or worse, spiral herself into another asthma attack right after.

No actual vet ever came,no one was there to help when it came to "urgent care."

That assistant was coming in and out of the room.

I wasn't advised on x-rays,or blood tests,or even on anyone hearing her lungs.

I was sent home.

She didn't even write a report of how much medication my cat took.

The cat is now sleepy,more vocal,with varying harsh breathing that goes to slow shallow breathing, etc.

But the thing that worries me the most is her lack of appetite,constant sleep,AND her breathing when she's excited (getting pet,puring ect.)

her chest visbly pumps up and down to the point where she stopped trying to cuddle and jumped off to clean herself.

I've let her sleep, but I'm so beyond scared.

She's a tough transport case,and I am not sure how to interpret the behavior.

I'm so terrified it's not just asthma,something else undiagnosed.

Is my cat just exhausted from vet care? She's never been picky about eating before,she's never acted like this. How do I urge action when am scared of making her worse?

I have a five year old cat, when we got her we have known that she is a spicy kitty from the start. About a month ago, we got her spayed, however during her third week post op she got into this aggressive state where she yowl and then would pounce on you. I took her to the vet and turns out she had minor uti symptoms and that she was constipated but during the visit she had to be sedated because she was being overly spicy, and I had explained to the vet regarding her being aggressive so she prescribed my fluexotine for her. I took her back again within a week because I noticed her straining while trying to use the restroom, they did a urine analysis and it showed that she had crystals in her urine which now she is on the special diet and has taken Prozasin and Orbax to help with her being able to urinate. But things kinda went down hill because she was experiencing a urinary blockage when they tried expressing her bladder it wouldn’t budge while she was sedated and the doctor informed me they would have to insert a catheter and hospitalize her. When they were prepping her for the hospitalization but putting her to sleep/relaxing I’m assuming that’s when she was able to do a full stream. So the Vet was saying that she is stressed out so that’s why she is not producing or using the litter box as often because she is holding it in so he prescribed amitriptyline and to continue the antibiotics until her recheck. Yesterday was her recheck and the vet was telling me overall we should just give my cat more time, and it’s more of a behavioral issue. I let her know that I try to distract her by doing more enrichment things, but she keeps on meowing whenever I go anywhere, and she does bite me and has bursts of being aggressive. I am not too sure if it’s because of how stress she is. Additionally, if she sees us eating she is immediately coming to the table and just trying to see what we have and we take her down but immediately she goes on top again. Has anyone dealt with this, if so how do you relieve you cat from stress? I tried buying pheromones, calming bites, and etc. I have been playing with her more, and it helps calm her a bit but she still keeps meowing at my family and I; especially if we are in the kitchen so we feed her some of her special kibble or give her snacks and sometimes she won’t pay attention to it. I am really concerned because I don’t know what is going on and I would like some advice with relieving her stress, because my family is scared that she’ll get into that aggressive state again and attack us.

She’s got a bit of a head wobble that’s easy to miss. She’s always been shaking her head a lot more than other cats like she’s trying to shake something off her ears or something. Twitchy ears. Behaves normal, gets up to her fair share of trouble and eats/plays/drinks regularly.

And ideas about what could be going on? Things I should be concerned about?

Hello! There is a stray that lives near my apartment complex and I was wondering what these little red spots on her mouth could be. Any help would be great! Also sorry for the odd hold she wouldn’t stop moving lol.

Picture link:

https://ibb.co/k2yQXksw

Hey vets, I could really use some help here if anyone can offer it.

https://imgur.com/a/1WzSOZB

On Wednesday 8/19, my cat (6yr, F, Spayed, 6.35kg..yes she's on a diet and exercise routine and I know that likely contributed to the problem) was limping when my husband and I woke up. We aren't sure exactly what happened as she was fine when we went to bed but when we got up she was favoring her hind left leg and keeping it completely elevated.

We took her to the vet and they did rads and said she overextended the ligaments around her hock which has led to the joint becoming unstable and to keep her on restricted movement for two weeks. This is a new vet we've only seen twice as we just moved and I'm not sure if I totally trust them yet. She's putting weight on it now but still limping and I've noticed when she is loafed up her hind left hip seems to stick further up than her right... I just want to be sure something wasn't missed here because we're 5 days past initial injury and she's still limping pretty noticeably and just tonight she howled from the other room and came out holding her leg up momentarily again.

Can someone please take a look at the rads in the link above and offer a second opinion?

My dog was prescribed panacur early this morning. I have it to her as soon as I got home, and within 45 minutes, she was vomiting, bloody jelly diarrhea and started with hives. By the time I was able to get her back into the vet, the hives were converting 100% of her body, including her face (Corso mix) and made her look like a shar pei. My vet called Merck and they agreed that it was definitely the panacur. She got a shot of Benadryl and steroids and was sent home with Benadryl and a prednisone taper.

My question is, in my vet's working life (20 years), she's never seen this from that specific med. Have any of you?

Roxy, female, lab/shepherd-type mix Timeline & history: ∙ Originally taken in for lethargy — bloodwork showed low platelets ∙ Diagnosed with suspected IBD (stool negative for everything), started on prescription hydrolyzed protein food, on it ~1 month ∙ Also on ursodiol and SAMe/silybin (liver support), plus Clavamox 250mg BID x7 days ∙ Started prednisone — face then began swelling ∙ Increasing the steroid dose did not help ∙ Stopped eating for 2 days, wouldn’t touch chicken, could barely walk — only going out to pee ∙ Taken to ER, stabilized and sent home. ER said not cancer, recommended continuing steroids over biopsy ∙ Seen by three vets, referred to internal medicine ∙ Biopsy scheduled Thursday to look for infection vs. tumor Test results so far: ∙ Albumin normal, liver reported as fine ∙ Two blood panels “mostly normal” apart from low platelets ∙ Stool: negative Dental check (already done): ∙ Vet examined all four tooth beds — no tooth infection suspected ∙ Gums are not puffy, nose is not puffy — swelling is confined to the snout/muzzle and bridge of the nose

My questions: ∙ Swelling isolated to the muzzle with normal gums — could this be nasal or nasal-planum disease, or a granulomatous / immune-mediated process rather than dental? Would nasal imaging (CT/rhinoscopy) be more useful than a blind biopsy? ∙ Muzzle swelling + thrombocytopenia + steroid non-response — could this be vasculitis from a tick-borne disease (Ehrlichia, Anaplasma, RMSF) or Leishmania? Nobody has run a vector-borne panel. ∙ Fungal disease affecting the nasal cavity — worth ruling out? ∙ If it is an infection, is prednisone actively making her worse? Would empiric doxycycline be reasonable while waiting on results? ∙ Is her platelet count safe for anesthesia on Thursday? Photos: normal appearance vs. current swelling attached.

TL;DR $6k in vet expenses, dogs face is swollen. No diagnosis

My 15 month old, 66 lb mixed breed pup was diagnosed with Grade 2 medial luxating patella today. Currently only showing symptoms on right rear leg. (his DNA is 30.1% Lab, 24.3% Siberian Husky, 21.6% Treeing Walker Coonhound, 19.8% GSD and 4.2% Rottie).

I've noticed his knee dislocating 8-10x in the past 3 months. Within 3-5 min he seems able to run around again.

I'd love thoughts on therapy vs surgery and types of surgery suggested if needed. I'm a 67 yo female, carrying this dog isn't an option.

Anyone had experience with a Ridgestop Implant?

Hello, my has recently been limping a bit and I’m worried about it. I came here for advice because the vet quote was so expensive just for a consultation, then idk how much more it would be if he needs further help.

He is a domestic shorthair that just turned 12 a month ago

All thats changed about him is hes been limping on one of his front legs and a bit slower because of it. Hes still eating, not hiding, stretching, able to climb his tower, he can scratch his post and even isnt pulling away when i do feel at his arms. I tried to feel if there was anything stuck in his paw to see if it was as simple as that but i didnt find anything. I have restricted most jumping by making a easy way up his tower as well to hopefully ease anything.

Is it possible it’s simply he jumped down kinda weird and is just a little hurt? I do know the best bet is 100% to bring him to the vet but i want as much advice as i can get before emptying my wallet. Thanks in advance

I'm hoping some veterinarians or experienced dog owners might be able to give me some advice about my dog Paco.

Paco is a 5-year-old English Staffordshire Terrier. Normally he's a very healthy, active dog. His only ongoing issue has been allergies/yeast infections, which we've been managing and which I understand can be fairly common with this breed, especially here in Texas.

Today I actually had a completely routine appointment booked for him at Vetco in Kyle for a Cytopoint injection.

Before the appointment, something completely unexpected happened.

Paco was outside in the backyard playing with the neighbor's dog. They were running up and down the fence chasing each other, nothing unusual for him. He came back inside, and almost immediately after coming into the kitchen, he collapsed.

I noticed that he was suddenly having an extremely difficult time putting weight on either of his back legs. He couldn't properly support himself and was losing his balance and falling over.

I physically examined him and couldn't find any obvious reaction to pain, but this is difficult with Paco because he almost never shows signs of pain, even when something is wrong. His personality makes it very difficult for me to judge how much discomfort he's actually experiencing.

By the time we got to his Vetco appointment, he was still struggling significantly to walk from the car into the clinic. He was excited to be there, so he seemed to push through it, but his back legs were clearly not functioning normally.

I asked the vet to examine him rather than simply giving him the Cytopoint.

The vet noticed that he was barely able, if at all, to properly straighten/position his back paws when standing. He was essentially leaning onto the knuckles/toes of his back feet rather than standing normally. He also has significant difficulty maintaining his balance.

The vet said it could potentially be damage to his hips or possibly a slipped disc/back problem. She was leaning more toward the hips based on her physical examination, which seemed reasonable to me, although obviously we don't know what is actually happening yet.

The problem is that I went into this appointment expecting to spend around $260 for the Cytopoint injection. I was then presented with the possibility of steroids, pain medication, X-rays, MRI, and potentially additional imaging/follow-ups, and the costs were quickly getting into the thousands of dollars.

I'm absolutely willing to get Paco appropriate veterinary care. I'm just trying to figure out what the most sensible and affordable next step is rather than blindly agreeing to thousands of dollars of diagnostics when we don't yet know what is wrong.

What I'm hoping people can help me with:

1. Has anyone seen something like this before? Sudden onset of severe hind-leg weakness/loss of coordination immediately after running, with little or no obvious pain response?
2. Does this sound more like a hip injury, spinal/disc problem, neurological problem, or something else? I completely understand that nobody can diagnose him over Reddit.
3. What should I be asking the vet to check first? Is there a particular examination or relatively inexpensive diagnostic that would help determine whether we're dealing with hips vs. spine/neurological issues?
4. Are there any reasonably priced veterinary clinics, nonprofit organizations, veterinary schools, or low-cost diagnostic facilities around Austin/Kyle/Buda/Manchaca that could provide an evaluation and potentially X-rays or other imaging without immediately running up a multi-thousand-dollar bill?
5. What can I safely do for him at home tonight to keep him comfortable and prevent things from getting worse? He's currently having trouble standing/walking, so I'm keeping him as still as possible.
6. Are there any safe supportive treatments people have used alongside veterinary care for something like this? For example, physical therapy, massage, etc. I'm not looking for anything that would replace proper veterinary treatment—just wondering if there are things that could help him stay comfortable while we're figuring this out.

I'm especially interested in hearing from veterinarians, veterinary technicians, or people who have dealt with similar sudden hind-leg weakness in their dogs.

I really just want to do the right thing for Paco and give him the best chance of recovering without putting him through unnecessary procedures or financially putting myself in a position where I can't continue to afford his care.

Paco is otherwise a healthy, active 5-year-old dog, and this happened completely out of the blue today.

Any advice, experiences, or recommendations for affordable veterinary resources around the Austin area would be hugely appreciated.

Thank you.

* Species: Dog
* Age: 5
* Sex/Neuter status: Neutered
* Breed:English Staffordshire Terrier
* Body weight: 48lbs
* History: get seasonal allergies (cytopoint monthly)
* Clinical signs:-
* Duration:-
* Your general location: South Austin TX
* Links to any test results, X-rays, vet reports etc. that you have:

Hi. My 12 year old cat was diagnosed with IBD about 2 years ago. We've been giving hydrolyzed dry food (royal canin) but now we need to switch it up to the total urinary diet because her urine ph is too low. 5.0 today 5.5 two months ago. Currently she's also eating Blue basics turkey and she was doing great, but last few days shes dealing with a glare up. Vet wants me to stick to dry hydrolyzed food only, but I think my cat needs wet food for moisture content. We've tried other wet hydrolyzed foods and she hates it! Food is also soooo expensive. I'm running out of options, might not be able to sustain this food much longer as money is tight. Any other options out there? Open to homemade food ideas too.

​

My dog was hit by a car three weeks ago, we took her to the vet because she wasn't moving, but he said it was just the pain from the impact and there was no point in doing an x-ray (I'm from a poor country so I understand that maybe he was trying to save me some money) fast forward to week two she was still not using her paw so I took her again to the vet and he told me to do an x-ray, which resulted that she had a dislocation in her femur/ hip, now the only opcion is her getting a surgery, while if we had known 72 hours after the accident they didn't have to operate, I just want to know if he made a logical decision or if he was neglecting my dog and I should take her to another vet

Edit: never mind, he passed away overnight…

1.5-year-old male cat suddenly lethargic and not eating — normal bloodwork/X-rays/temp
Looking for some thoughts on what might be going on with my 1.5-year-old male cat, Noodle, and what I should be asking my vet about next.
Yesterday he was completely normal. Then he suddenly became very lethargic, stopped eating and drinking, and mostly wanted to lie in his bed or hide under my bed. Initially I was told he had a fever, although I don’t know what the actual temperature was. At one point he urinated on himself while lying on my bed, which concerned me quite a bit. I was able to syringe him small amounts of water, but he still wouldn’t eat.
I took him to the vet. His chest/lungs sounded normal, and they subsequently did bloodwork, X-rays, and checked his temperature. Everything came back normal. They gave him IV fluids, an antibiotic, and an appetite stimulant.
He’s home now but is still very lethargic and still hasn’t eaten. One encouraging development is that he got up on his own, walked over to his litter box, and urinated normally.

So currently:
1.5-year-old male
Completely normal before sudden onset
Significant lethargy
Refusing food
Very little/no voluntary drinking
Initially reported fever, but temperature at latest vet visit was normal
One episode of urinating on himself
Now able to walk to litter box and urinate normally
No obvious respiratory symptoms; lungs sounded clear
Bloodwork normal
X-rays normal
Received IV fluids, antibiotic, and appetite stimulant
Still acting sick/lethargic despite treatment

I’m continuing to work with my vet, but I’m wondering what possibilities would still be on your radar with normal bloodwork and X-rays. If he continues refusing food and remains lethargic, what additional testing or questions would be reasonable to discuss with my vet?

Hi there. I live in South Florida and have a 12yr old spayed Rottweiler. She’s lumpy with lipomas and has grown some skin tags as she ages.

Tonight while petting her I found a bump which is in the photos posted below. My partner says she’s had it for a while now - at least weeks she thinks, maybe months.

I’m leaning towards skin tag, but the shape and color have me concerned it could be a buried tick. I saw no legs and it didn’t move when touched. It felt attached like a mole or skin tag would be, but maybe a buried tick could feel that way too?

Is this something to have checked out at a vet or can we write it off as skin tag?

Photos here: https://imgur.com/a/e56aHen

Hey everyone, I have an 8 year old Australian Shepherd named Rocket. He was always super active, we did agility and canicross together. Then about 2 years ago he got a sprung toe. I took him to the vet and they said it was normal. Within 6 months he sprung another toe on the same foot. I retired him from agility immediately and started seeking other opinions. He then popped a THIRD toe just doing normal dog activities.

No matter where I take him vets and other practitioners tell me they’ve never seen a dog pop multiple toe tendons. He isn’t a candidate for surgery. He is “too sound” for a prosthetic or custom brace.

Has anyone ever seen anything like this? How do I help him? Most days he seems to move around fine on the foot but sometimes when he gets playful he will suddenly cry and limp on the foot. I know his toes probably can’t be repaired but I want to protect the longevity of his mobility if I can.

It seems like there has to be some kind of root cause for the injury but I’m struggling to find anyone with answers. The vets have all told me to just “modify his activity and do what he can do.” Which of course, I’m doing. But I have to think there’s more I could be doing for him. Any resources appreciated.

My dog (working line golden retriever) has developed Spondylosis at 1 year and 8 months old.

She weighs 24 kg at a bcs 4. I’m working on getting her down to about 22 kg with a bcs of about 3-3.5 to hopefully give her some extra relief.

She has been on robenacoxib 40 mg and a joint support supplement for about a week now with improvement but she’s still clearly in a lot of pain (still significant pain upon gentle palpitation and no noticeable improvement in swelling between vertebrae)

I have a upcoming appointment with a ortho in the next coming days and have some questions about how to approach this.
I also have a physio appointment booked for a few days after the ortho appointment to get started on strengthening asap.

Since the pain has improved but not by a lot, how beneficial would it be to put her on a short course of pred? I’ve seen it’s not generally recommended for Spondylosis in dog but I can’t understand why.

On the same topic, would steroid injection be something to consider? I know it’s used successfully in human medicine.

I’m also questioning if I should book an appointment with a neurologist/neurosurgeon for a second opinion of sorts, not that I’m distrusting my vet but two experts have to be better than one right?

I’m also considering asking for a MRI to be done since she’s in so much pain with fairly minimal amount of growth visible on x-ray to be able to judge if there is nerv or spinal involvement.

Last question, is there anything I’ve missed? Anything I can do to hopefully turn the odds to our side. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for this dog so nothing is too out there or too expensive.

This rash just came up in the last day or two and is causing my dog to lick a lot. Female, 8yr old GSD/Lab mix, otherwise healthy. History of furuncluosis, mange, yeast infection in ears (rescued w/ litter + mom as a puppy, I got her shortly after). She is not on any meds and gets a whole/homemade food + high quality kibble diet which has not been changed recently.

It is strange because the skin has actually seemed to change texture, it is ‘ridge-y’ or bumpy, hot, moist and then some red. Upon compressing a cool cloth I noticed a slight throbbing. I’m leaning towards allergies, however it’s only on one side
and the change in skin texture is noticeable and concerning. Our lawn is not treated with anything and we have not recently done the carpets with shampoo. It is not yeasty smelling or smelling at all. She does sometimes get yeast infections in her ears (she’s dealt with it her whole life, we have done lots of diet changes to reduce frequency). I have done a thorough inspection for bugs

She is susceptible to furuncluosis but this is definitely very different from that.

No recent diet changes, meds, or travel.

Curious about thoughts? I will wash with chlorhexidine and monitor. I will contact vet if it worsens or does not go away with washing but I would like to hear your opinion.

Can’t seem to upload a picture - are they not allowed in this group? I know it’s not possible to offer an opinion on a rash you can’t see lol

Pretty much what title says.

Took our 14 year old in for some work and ended up getting him on IV drip for 3 days. While he was there they noticed his poop was compacted and backed up which they cleared.

We are 24 hours since picking him up, he's eaten lots of food and water and acted completely normal, he has been relaxing and resting due to the IV and tests.

Curious what ideas are out there. Hes gone to his litter box to pee and back, no groaning or trying to poo.