Senior Beagle Health Problem

[grayshark1956]

Okay, here goes another topic, I'm really keeping this forum busy! My senior beagle, unknown age, was stray, white face, signs of aging, has MVP and I just did a physical assessment and found grade 5-6 heart murmur from mitral valve, and previous sx are still coughing, panting, sleeping more, increased thirst, decreased activity gradually. He vomited last night, dog problems always occur at the most inconvenient time (vet closed) tomorrow is a holiday, now is resting, good sign but vomiting has me concerned. He is not in acute distress now but I'm debating when to euthanize because he has been acting pretty normal with the exception of last several days of some GI distress. He is acting normal right now but I am worried about the next several days. Will call vet Tuesday to get her opinion, I do not want him to suffer and/or find him dead here. Anyone ever have a similar situation? I do have pepcid for him but no diuretic (it did not have any effect before). I've had many beagles and other dogs but none with a heart condition. If anyone has anything to add I'd appreciate it, thanks for reading all this.

 

[phoenixgsd]

sorry to say but a few weeks ago my dog was panting and drinking lots, i knew this is sign of heart failure but i put off taking him to the vet as it was a sunday, monday morning he died, putting off calling the vet on that sunday is something i now have to live with, please call a vet

 

[grayshark1956]

sorry to say but a few weeks ago my dog was panting and drinking lots, i knew this is sign of heart failure but i put off taking him to the vet as it was a sunday, monday morning he died, putting off calling the vet on that sunday is something i now have to live with, please call a vet

Yes I am calling Tuesday morning, good news is: my beagle's lungs are clear, no increase in abdominal distention, ate food a while ago, is resting, has been panting only at intervals, and is fine even on a short walk after dinner. I will not wait about euthanizing, family has asked me to postpone this but I won't if I think his condition is worse by Tuesday. Its so darn hard to say goodbye to a family member, I've been thru it before and its never easy. We do anticipate his condition to change and have been thru an extremely costly emergency with previous dog who died from a medication that is still in use,I did everything to save her, she died in the ER on a weekend, her symptoms gradually got worse within 2 months, but her death happened suddenly with little warning (long story). She had had stomach surgery several years prior that was unrelated but now we are dealing with a family member's illness that may be life threatening and we will know more this week. So, I have 2 problems at the same and my aquarium hobby is helping get my mind focused elsewhere while health situations are being monitored. Hope this helps, thanks for your advice, too.

 

[grayshark1956]

sorry to say but a few weeks ago my dog was panting and drinking lots, i knew this is sign of heart failure but i put off taking him to the vet as it was a sunday, monday morning he died, putting off calling the vet on that sunday is something i now have to live with, please call a vet

Yes I am calling Tuesday morning, good news is: my beagle's lungs are clear, no increase in abdominal distention, ate food a while ago, is resting, has been panting only at intervals, and is fine even on a short walk after dinner. I will not wait about euthanizing, family has asked me to postpone this but I won't if I think his condition is worse by Tuesday. Its so darn hard to say goodbye to a family member, I've been thru it before and its never easy. We do anticipate his condition to change and have been thru an extremely costly emergency with previous dog who died from a medication that is still in use,I did everything to save her, she died in the ER on a weekend, her symptoms gradually got worse within 2 months, but her death happened suddenly with little warning (long story). She had had stomach surgery several years prior that was unrelated but now we are dealing with a family member's illness that may be life threatening and we will know more this week. So, I have 2 problems at the same and my aquarium hobby is helping get my mind focused elsewhere while health situations are being monitored. Hope this helps, thanks for your advice, too.

Forgot to mention my sister had a dog with same symptoms, illness, had to be euthanized, she still owns 6 dogs (2 are my mom's who went into assisted living)and she works with her humane society and rescues dogs on death row. I do the same thing, too. But having both situations now are difficult to accept but I will handle them since I understand both outcomes.

 

[phoenixgsd]

i work with poundies too, very rewarding, if i can transport one staffie (and they usually are) to a rescue then im happy

 

[grayshark1956]

i work with poundies too, very rewarding, if i can transport one staffie (and they usually are) to a rescue then im happy

I'm happy to hear that, there's nothing that makes me feel better than helping an animal or person. The beagle is resting now, just came in from outside, can give him pepcid for any more GI disturbances, and he'll be offered a nice dinner tonight (as usual). I'm just glad I can be home with him all the time. Our newer younger dog is an absolute joy! She will miss our beagle I'm sure.

 

[grayshark1956]

Update on senior beagle: He is going to vet in 40 minutes to assess his cardiac condition, will ask about Lasix or drug to make heart contractions easier and decrease any cardiac overload. He is acting normal right now, no new symptoms. Lungs still clear in spite of coughing. Will see what I can do to save him before his mitral valve gets worse. Too old and costly to have heart surgery, they would not recommend that anyway, but I'll see what I can do for him. Thought I'd let you know. Wish me luck, and him, too!

 

[Flute]

Sounds very similar to my elderly colly X rescue. She's in early heart failure and was initially struggling like you've described, especially with the coughing as her lungs were filling with fluid. She's on medication for it now, and as long as we keep her calm (sadly she can't go for proper walks any more), she does really well and is very comfortable, and is her usual happy go lucky self.
Keeping my fingers crossed that something similar can be done for your old boy

 

[grayshark1956]

Sounds very similar to my elderly colly X rescue. She's in early heart failure and was initially struggling like you've described, especially with the coughing as her lungs were filling with fluid. She's on medication for it now, and as long as we keep her calm (sadly she can't go for proper walks any more), she does really well and is very comfortable, and is her usual happy go lucky self.
Keeping my fingers crossed that something similar can be done for your old boy

I'm glad you wrote, your dog sounds just like mine. Mine is now on 2 heart pills plus Lasix, he is coughing less and acts just as normal as if he had no problems. Because he is old, he is slower but still gets excited over after dinner walk. His appetite is good, and I know when to recognize resp distress or possible arrhythmia. But, its worth it to make him feel better since we don't know how long he will be with us.

 

[Flute]

Saxon is on Frusamide (which I think is actually the same thing as Lasix?) for water retention, Corvental-D for congestive heart failure, vasotop which is another for heart failure as well as Thyroxin for an under active thyroid gland. She's like a walking pharmacy! lol!

She started having problems about a year and a half ago, the Vets had trouble in diagnosing what was wrong, but they sorted everything out and got the medication levels right, and she's now doing really well. I'm realistic and know that we probably wont have her for another 5 years, but I'm hoping that with how stable she is now with the medication, that we might have a few more years with her. She has improved a lot and isn't struggling or in discomfort, but as I've said she can't handle any walks at all now. It is sad because she does get upset when I take our GSD for a walk and she has stay behind, but at the end of the day it's kinder for her.

So it is something you can have control over for a while, and it's definitely worth a go

 

[grayshark1956]

Saxon is on Frusamide (which I think is actually the same thing as Lasix?) for water retention, Corvental-D for congestive heart failure, vasotop which is another for heart failure as well as Thyroxin for an under active thyroid gland. She's like a walking pharmacy! lol!

She started having problems about a year and a half ago, the Vets had trouble in diagnosing what was wrong, but they sorted everything out and got the medication levels right, and she's now doing really well. I'm realistic and know that we probably wont have her for another 5 years, but I'm hoping that with how stable she is now with the medication, that we might have a few more years with her. She has improved a lot and isn't struggling or in discomfort, but as I've said she can't handle any walks at all now. It is sad because she does get upset when I take our GSD for a walk and she has stay behind, but at the end of the day it's kinder for her.

So it is something you can have control over for a while, and it's definitely worth a go

We are definately in a similar situation! I'm so glad your dog is doing well and yes, we both can't save them for another 5 years, I'm realistic, too. Our beagle is on Furosemide (Lasix), Enalapril, and Vetmedin and is coughing less, still goes for a walk when its cool outside, sleeps alot (bored and old) and has a great appetite! Probably diabetic plus has doggie-dementia. Our newest dog, a husky/shepherd mix is 2, a cruelty case, and since I've worked with her extensively she has made a turn around, still does not trust people (I wouldn't either) and she is lucky because she is well taken care of, just put Frontline on her last week, fleas must be active. Huskies are picky eaters and she is that! I've tried more food with her than any dog: all kinds of meat, fish, chicken, cheese, eggs, milk, cottage cheese, ice cream, etc plus she has dry and canned food plus treats in the evening. Our previous all time favorite family dog died 2 years ago, very long story, had multiple health problems, surgery, meds, you name it, then her death was caused by a pain pill called Rimadyl, which caused her to bleed to death, hospital could not save her, it happened suddenly, transfusion would not have mattered, and this drug is still used today. I contacted this drug company to complain and ofcourse, no response and no listing of any administrator. Very sad, and I'm still sad, I try to not think about her. So, our new dog is her replacement. Thought you might find this interesting, glad to hear from you! Write again!

 

[Flute]

It's lovely to hear from someone else who put as much effort as possible into them and who are as daft as we are to spend so much money on so many medications! They're completely worth it though
Many years ago we had a labXcolly who in her older years was on a ridiculous amount of medication. She had a minor heart murmer, so was on meds for that, she was epileptic, so meds for that, then the really expensive stuff was her insulin. Her diabetes was pretty severe and she had to be injected every morning and it took a long time to get her blood sugar to safe levles. She was blind by the end of it, but still the happiest wee lass going :3

Bless your Husky mix I can never understand how people can be so cruel to any animals, especially dogs. Saxon was so frightened of men when we first got her about 5 years ago- her previous owner had been very cruel and had treated her terribly. It's amazing how they can over come such terrible experiences though and go on to live completely happy lives. Once you manage to sort their issues out, they very much live in the now, compared to us.

I'd not heard that husky's can be picky! Shepherds are awful for having gammy stomachs too, so I bet that's not a fun mix

And that's absolutely terrible what happened to your other dog It's quite scary that they can get away with not even replying to complaints. Who knows how often situations like yours occur?

And I definitely found your post interesting- I could talk about dogs all day

 

[grayshark1956]

It's lovely to hear from someone else who put as much effort as possible into them and who are as daft as we are to spend so much money on so many medications! They're completely worth it though
Many years ago we had a labXcolly who in her older years was on a ridiculous amount of medication. She had a minor heart murmer, so was on meds for that, she was epileptic, so meds for that, then the really expensive stuff was her insulin. Her diabetes was pretty severe and she had to be injected every morning and it took a long time to get her blood sugar to safe levles. She was blind by the end of it, but still the happiest wee lass going :3

Bless your Husky mix I can never understand how people can be so cruel to any animals, especially dogs. Saxon was so frightened of men when we first got her about 5 years ago- her previous owner had been very cruel and had treated her terribly. It's amazing how they can over come such terrible experiences though and go on to live completely happy lives. Once you manage to sort their issues out, they very much live in the now, compared to us.

I'd not heard that husky's can be picky! Shepherds are awful for having gammy stomachs too, so I bet that's not a fun mix

And that's absolutely terrible what happened to your other dog It's quite scary that they can get away with not even replying to complaints. Who knows how often situations like yours occur?

And I definitely found your post interesting- I could talk about dogs all day

I could not agree with you more! So your dog had a heart murmur, epilepsy, diabetes! Good grief, and really if you knew the grade of heart murmur that would be helpful, you'd need to know the dose of epilepsy med and was it the same used for humans with a vet type name? How often did your dog have seizures? Did the drug at prescribed dose work? And wasn't it difficult with the insulin? and diet? feeding times? You had your hands full. But, like you said, I don't understand how people can be so cruel to animals, I actually think higher of animals than many of the people I meet in public. Dogs are smarter than alot of people realize, not only are their noses 100x better than ours, but they also understand words, recognize tones in your voice, have memory of many things. I could go on forever about what I've heard with regard to dogs. And, I am happy when I hear anyone's story of how hard they worked at caring for their dog. Our previous dog that bled to death was such a tragedy, and I was the one who was with her 24/7 for months! I'll never regret what I did for her, she was worth every minute like all of my dogs are. And I did read on the internet about the drug for pain that was killing some dogs, they still use it today, and maybe like people, everyone responds differently to medicine. My older sister is a volunteer with her humane society and has 6 dogs! She had a past like yours, dogs with heart problems and diabetes, too. We both feel the same way about dogs. I rescue dogs that are hit by a car when I see it. Last time, the owner bought me a gift for saving their dog. But, yeah, I'd do anything for a dog or any furry critter. I even feed our resident mole! LOL Isn't that a riot? Oh and chipmunks, too. Write anytime, and I'm glad you shared with me, I feel better knowing others love animals like I do!

 

[Flute]

Aye, she was a hand full! It was many years ago when I was in my teens that we had her, so I wasn't so involved with her medication, like I am with Saxon's now, so I don't remember the details of her meds. Thankfully the heart murmur was never a huge problem, she had a couple of massive fits, but after she was placed on medication for it she never had them afterwards. With the insulin, she was injected every morning before or after breakfast (can't quite remember) and was always super excited to have it done, as she knew she'd get loads of cuddles afterwards. Dad would take her to the vets every week at first so they could monitor her blood sugar levels (when she was first diagnosed her levels were nearly 40!!!! They're not supposed to be over 7!), and after that every 2 weeks. Being a lab cross, as soon as we got her spayed when she was young, she piled on so much weight, and it was really difficult to shift it. By the time she became diabetic at about 12, we had managed to get her weight down quite a bit, so I think that helped. She was diagnosed with diabetes in the summer, the vets said "oh, you'll be lucky if she makes it to the end of summer." Then it was "You'll be lucky if she makes it till Christmas"...she lived a full year longer than they expected, happy and still active until she died, quite peacefully in her sleep. My only regret was she died in kennels whilst we were on holiday- broke my heart.

I think if you know that you have done absolutely everything you could possibly do for them, it does make their passing a bit easier for you. We lost one of GSD's to cancer with no warning, and it took a very long time to get over that, it was so traumatic. She was fine in the morning, we went out shopping for a few hours, came back and she was practically comatose. She was taken to the vets where they took her into theatre, opened her up to find her liver riddled with cancer, which had burst and she bled out. She showed no signs of having the cancer, bar maybe she lost some weight- which was a cruel irony really, as we had been trying to get her to loose some weight anyway (she had very shallow hip sockets, so it was to try and make it easier on her back end as she got older). She died 3 days before Christmas, at the age of only 9. It was so hard to get over.

I'm the same as you then XD I get on with animals a lot better than I do with humans sometimes XD And they are so much smarter and more aware than people give them credit for, definitely!

I suppose you're right about the medication- a small minority can always react badly. Still, you think they would have responded to you It's the least they could have done, considering how traumatic the whole thing must have been for you.

Aww, your sister sounds like she has my dream job XD And that's really lovely that you care enough to stop and help animals Thankfully we don't see dogs hit by cars here very often, mainly just wildlife and the occasional cat. I don't really understand how someone could hit an animal and then not check to see if there's anything they can do. Obviously it's understandable if it's on a motor way or something similar, but I'd be so upset and annoyed with myself if I hit something and didn't go back to check if it was still alive or not.

And lucky mole! I often look a complete idiot running around the garden after our cat to get what ever she's caught off of her. Thankfully Codie, our GSD is amazing at charging her and making her drop anything. He doesn't hurt her, just makes her jump a bit so she forgets about her prey. She loves him to bits anyway and always gives what she's caught to him, which makes it easier to rescue little critters XD

How's your beagle doing by the way? I know it's early days yet, but hopefully he's a bit more comfortable?

Sorry for the monster post, it's just lovely to talk to someone else who loves animals ^^ If you want to chat about them any time, feel free to PM me

 

[grayshark1956]

Aye, she was a hand full! It was many years ago when I was in my teens that we had her, so I wasn't so involved with her medication, like I am with Saxon's now, so I don't remember the details of her meds. Thankfully the heart murmur was never a huge problem, she had a couple of massive fits, but after she was placed on medication for it she never had them afterwards. With the insulin, she was injected every morning before or after breakfast (can't quite remember) and was always super excited to have it done, as she knew she'd get loads of cuddles afterwards. Dad would take her to the vets every week at first so they could monitor her blood sugar levels (when she was first diagnosed her levels were nearly 40!!!! They're not supposed to be over 7!), and after that every 2 weeks. Being a lab cross, as soon as we got her spayed when she was young, she piled on so much weight, and it was really difficult to shift it. By the time she became diabetic at about 12, we had managed to get her weight down quite a bit, so I think that helped. She was diagnosed with diabetes in the summer, the vets said "oh, you'll be lucky if she makes it to the end of summer." Then it was "You'll be lucky if she makes it till Christmas"...she lived a full year longer than they expected, happy and still active until she died, quite peacefully in her sleep. My only regret was she died in kennels whilst we were on holiday- broke my heart.

I think if you know that you have done absolutely everything you could possibly do for them, it does make their passing a bit easier for you. We lost one of GSD's to cancer with no warning, and it took a very long time to get over that, it was so traumatic. She was fine in the morning, we went out shopping for a few hours, came back and she was practically comatose. She was taken to the vets where they took her into theatre, opened her up to find her liver riddled with cancer, which had burst and she bled out. She showed no signs of having the cancer, bar maybe she lost some weight- which was a cruel irony really, as we had been trying to get her to loose some weight anyway (she had very shallow hip sockets, so it was to try and make it easier on her back end as she got older). She died 3 days before Christmas, at the age of only 9. It was so hard to get over.

I'm the same as you then XD I get on with animals a lot better than I do with humans sometimes XD And they are so much smarter and more aware than people give them credit for, definitely!

I suppose you're right about the medication- a small minority can always react badly. Still, you think they would have responded to you It's the least they could have done, considering how traumatic the whole thing must have been for you.

Aww, your sister sounds like she has my dream job XD And that's really lovely that you care enough to stop and help animals Thankfully we don't see dogs hit by cars here very often, mainly just wildlife and the occasional cat. I don't really understand how someone could hit an animal and then not check to see if there's anything they can do. Obviously it's understandable if it's on a motor way or something similar, but I'd be so upset and annoyed with myself if I hit something and didn't go back to check if it was still alive or not.

And lucky mole! I often look a complete idiot running around the garden after our cat to get what ever she's caught off of her. Thankfully Codie, our GSD is amazing at charging her and making her drop anything. He doesn't hurt her, just makes her jump a bit so she forgets about her prey. She loves him to bits anyway and always gives what she's caught to him, which makes it easier to rescue little critters XD

How's your beagle doing by the way? I know it's early days yet, but hopefully he's a bit more comfortable?

Sorry for the monster post, it's just lovely to talk to someone else who loves animals ^^ If you want to chat about them any time, feel free to PM me

I was so glad to get up early and see you had written, your story is so similar to mine with our previous dog that bled to death. Her story is still a nightmare for me and I had to get another dog soon after, not only did I want one, it was my best and only way to shift my focus from her to a new dog. I love your monster post, in fact, I don't know the limit to writing, but everything you wrote was helpful and you explained it well. Our beagle is doing better, coughing less, he is not more playful (his age) exactly but I can tell he is obviously feeling better. He still eats alot, gets a nightly walk, often sits and stares, grabs at pieces of meat like a great white (doggie dementia) and most likely has diabetes, but due to income and circumstances at home with people's health, we can't afford as much as we'd like. I care for my husband with his MS, but he can't walk well at all and crawls thru the house. I leave the house only when he is in a chair, he is oriented and knows to stay in the chair. However, there have been many times I've returned from the store to find him on the floor or sideways in the tub. Dealing with his personality is upsetting and understandable but I am here by myself to care for him, both kids are in college all day. He is uncooperative about using wheelchair in the house. I could write forever on the effect his attitude alone has had on me, causing me nausea for years and insomnia but otherwise he gets along with the family and the kids understand his quirks. The last few years since he retired have been the hardest, I make excuses to leave the house, "oh, we're out of toothpicks, I better go to the store" that type of thing. Thru counseling I've learned how to deal better. Having pets, which I have always had, takes my focus off him, which is good for me. He has worked all his life and since retirement is at home all the time and bored, which I understand. He is on his 3rd new drug and these drugs have adverse effects like death, so I still must observe his health (has leg edema, cough, depression, low BP, sleeps alot, moody, etc). But, back to pets, I thought you'd get a kick out of feeding our mole! My sister is a retired teacher so she devotes her time to animals, like me. When my kids move out our new dog will be my main companion and replace them in a sense. I try and keep busy due to husband, kids moving, mom with health problems, trying to find work, keeping up with house/yard since husband can't, helping my sister take care of my mom (we live 2 hours apart) as she does not know medical stuff and I do, so I help her out. She helps me deal with things here, we are very close. Oh,I ran out of room to type, better sign off, can write again, write anytime, love your stories! Thanks for cheering me!