Leigh, how is Badger doing? Update please

Yes please. Jackie

Badge is still holding on :-)

Things are looking up at the moment, but I don't want to tempt fate by saying to much. The last time I said he was better, he suddenly got much worse :-( So bear with us and keep your fingers crossed, and I will keep you updated as to his progress.

He is whinging his head off again now, so he is obviously feeling better in himself :rolleyes:

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Message for Christine:
He loves the pumpkin :D
Early days, but if this is what it *appears* to be at the moment, my vet is going to need to do some very fast talking.

Leigh, can't find the post where you said what Badger's symptoms were. From what Phil told me it sounds a bit like the problems Ruari had, and though we lost him, in retrospect some things would have been better done differently. Don't know for sure that what we learned is relevant to Badger, but it might be, so could you link to the first post please?

Sharon,

I can't find the original post, so can only assume that I posted it in Idle and it has now been deleted. Here are the only two other links I can find:

4 Leigh

~We need your help please

All information is most welcome :-)

Hi Leigh, unfortunately does sound a bit like Ruari. He started with episodes of diarrhoea that didn't worry us much because they cleared up, then went on to much longer and more severe bouts where the diarrhoea was sometimes no more than brown water. Later on there was sometimes blood in the diarrohoea, and to confuse things at different times it was bright red (ie from low in the intestines), black melaena (blood mixed with the stool from high in the gut) and occult blood only identified by testing. Throughout the whole thing he was ravenous, but steadily lost weight, and although he was a big fit dog to begin with he didn't have any excess weight to lose. Near the end he was getting pressure sores, sometimes couldn't get up unaided and though he would even snatch food (something he'd never done) whatever he ate came straight through, sometimes visbily recognisable as what had been eaten. Although he was obviously a very sick dog, rafts of blood tests, searches for parasites/infections, tests for pancreatic insufficiency, X-rays and ultrasounds all came back more or less normal although most were repeated several times. He was reluctantly started on steroids quite early on by my own vets, because it seemed to be some form of colitis. We also talked at length about an anaesthetic so that he could have biopsies taken from his gut but decided that was too risky for a dog that was so sick, and was already bleeding from the gut. The whole thing went on for six months and worst of it was that he had good periods, when, although he never actually regained any weight, he seemed better and his bowel movements were more normal: it was one step forward and two back all the way. The retrospective mistakes were probably in the way we used the steroids (trying to 'balance' the dose against his condition), and in not having the biopsies done fairly early. If that sounds anything like Badger, let me know and I'll write in more detail.

There are many similarities Sharon. Would you mind if I emailed you?

Hi Leigh, you're more than welcome to.

Still thinking of you Leigh. Love to Badger.

Joan
Take the rough with the smooth

xxxxxxxs for Badger, keep going boy :)

Thanks Leigh I'll try not to bother you. Ja:)kie

You weren't bothering me Jackie, honest :-) I really appreciate your concern and support. It's just that I feel like I will jinx things if I say to much. The last time I said he was better, he proved me wrong :-(

So in this instance Leigh 'no news is good news';):)
Pleased to hear it:)
Anita

Ok, update .....

Badger has been on a four day course of antibiotics. For four day's he had mainly formed, soft stools. The anti's finished yesterday and the diarrhoea has now returned. He has been sick again. Apart from that he is his usual pain in the butt self and if he doesn't shut up whinging at me, he won't need a silver bullet, because I will wring his bl**dy neck anyway :rolleyes:

I will get back to you if we make any headway.

Thank you for your support :-)

Hi Leigh, hmmmmmmm, these symtoms are ringing distant bells somewhere in my head, from a past experience. Have any tests been done regarding Badgers Thymus (sp?) gland? Have any of his stools got a pinkish tinge to them?

No and no Philippa. I think Badger is in closer line to what Sharons Ruari had at the moment. I will let you know :-)

Leigh,

I wish you all the best with Badger and hope you are able to make some headway soon.

Karen

Whinging Leigh ???, isn't that what GSPs do best, thinking of you. Ingrid