hi,firstly, i want to say how good the pdsa are! basically,ive had problems with my 7yr old sheltie for a year now(dioreha(sp!),constipation,lack of appetite etc) i have not been able to afford vets fees,so have been panicking recently.i contacted the pdsa,who gave me a number for a 'petaid' centre.i rang up,and within an hour,i was on my way to the vet! i didnt realise you could be eligible for help!!! the vet was so friendly,and diagnosed my dog with large colon colitis.i was so busy thinking how impressive they were,i forgot to ask what it is,hows it caused,outcome etc.she was sent home on medication and to be back in a week?

I am glad you have been able to get him seen as a year is an awful long time to let this go on :(

I would be interested to know how they came up with this diagnosis just on one visit :) Did they not suggest tests etc as it could be a few things :) Lets hope you get it sorted soon :)

Lucy
xx

Colitis is a symptom really, treatment will settle it down but it will flare up again if the cause is still present.  Finding the cause is often difficult and sometimes impossible, generally you learn to manage the condition by trial and error, finding a food to suit and minimising stress if that appears to be a contributing factor.  By careful management it is possible to keep it to a minimum, my old terrier suffered from it from a very young age, so bad at the time that I felt she would not reach a year old but by discovering what foods did not trigger it (pretty limited really :)) we managed to minimise the incidents enough to allow her a healthy life to over 15 years of age :)

thanks for the advice,the vet suggested a wk on med and go back and check her again! poor thing has had to have an ant-inflammetry as she has sore blocked anal glands,which are being emptied in a week.i had her checked by a private vet who said her symptoms were just her glands???! then i waited 6 months,still no change,and with no money or confidence in the private vet.thats when i phoned pdsa,so it wasnt a year without checking her,as such!

Whats the signs of colitis then?

Warm regards Susan

my sheltie had constipation,dioreah,occasional sickness,gradual weight loss and loss of appetite on occasions.

Hi Rachel, Colitis is really a generalised term for a set of symptoms but not a diagnosis of the underlying cause.  Symptoms can of course be treated but without knowing what causes the condition to flare there is every likeliehood it will keep coming back.  Often it can be diet related or a combination of environmental factors so it's not always easy to keep under control.  Hopefully your dog will improve considerably between now and your next appointment and then you'll have a clearer head to ask the vet how he feels you should manage this problem :)  He may have dietary suggestions for you, things to remove from your feeding regime rather than add in, and sometimes it's worth keeping a written log of when the condition flares up and trying to analyse from that what factors have been different which may have caused the affects - whether that be isolated meals, titbits, stress, scavenging etc.  Good luck and keep us posted when you've had your next appointment.  Regards, Teri :)

Very much as racheljr says, Susan, another feature though is when the stool is passed it is often covered with mucus from the lining of the bowel.  If the shedding of the lining is prolonged or severe it can lead to ulcerative colitis and blood may also start to appear on the stool.  In very bad cases the bowel can bleed profusely. The good news is the cells on the surface of the bowel are, together with the mouth, the fastest replaced cells in the body so once a flare up settles it can very soon repair itself.

Thanks isabel.

Warm regards Susan