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My pup is miserable. Vet says it's nothing.

8K views 67 replies 22 participants last post by  bomary 
#1 ·
Haven Mae is 10 weeks old. We've had her since she was 6 weeks old. She's had her Shots - just got the 3rd today. She's my road dog. I take her with me everyday. I'm self employed and am able to do it. She is super spoiled and we love her.

Im noticing some problems health wise now that I look at the big picture. I took Haven to the vet about 9 days ago. Her stomach looked like a ball and she just wasn't being herself. Over the past week Here are things Ive noticed:
•she seems to not be able to get comfortable.
•Curls up in a tight ball
•Gets up and stretches every few minutes
•bites feverishly at her paws and mainly back hip like she has fleas but there are zero fleas. She will be looking around and sort of wimpering. Then start trying to bite and chew on anything in sight. Not a playful biting more of a anxious gesture or irritated
•when laying down trying to sleep -every few minutes she will start to swallow and smack her lips
•she will get up and walk to the other side of the couch and appear to be choking or going to puke - gag about 6 times and cough but produce nothing.
•sometimes her stomach and chest area will start expanding and contracting. Possibly a hiccup episode but makes a hollow thumping sound not like that of a hiccup. When it's real bad I can hear the squishing of liquids.
•she has started to lick the floor.
•she will suddenly sit up out of a calm sleep and throw her leg open and lick her private area like it's irritating her.
•to me she feels real bony and her skin is real elasticity like
•sometimes I swear she has a fever because she will be abnormally hot to the touch

So I took her to the vet because I can look at her and see how she is acting and tell she does not feel good. I take this girl to work with me daily since we first got her. She sleeps right next to me. She has always had a super alert playful personality mixed with some mischief. Typical Dobe. She's always smiling. She is either alert and doing what dobes do or she's asleep recharging.

The vet said she was a little dehydrated. She also had hookworms. They kept her for the afternoon and gave her some fluids. They sent her home that evening with 4 cans of science diet and some powder to put in her food. I was told that she had an upset stomach and to feed her the science diet for a couple of days because it was bland then start her back on her regular food (orjen large breed puppy)

Well 9 days later and this isn't the same puppy that I've known. All of the symptoms I listed above have multiplied and become worse. Once a playful pup she now is more sedentary and slow. Always preoccupied with one of the things I've mentioned. There have been a few instances where something grabs her attention and she will be her old self again but something is up. When she is like this I can see it in her eyes that she does not feel well. She was real dazed like this morning and groggy So my gf took her to the vet again today. I explained to the vet via speaker phone as to what is going on with her and then I left it with my gf to handle as I had to get back to work.

My gf calls me and tells me that they found slight trace of worms still and that she has a "bacterial infection" in her stomach so we have antibiotics to give her. Then she said the vet said for me to stop googling stuff and she is "fine" all of the things she is doing are what puppy's do. I nearly drove my truck off a bridge! This puppy is miserable and I don't know how a vet (highly recommended clinic at that) can't see this.

It's 3 am now. I'm in the kitchen and she is awake laying on the couch watching me but won't come in here. Two weeks ago I have to watch every step because I will step on her she is right by my side. I damn sure couldn't go anywhere near my kitchen or dare rattle any type of paper because she's right there jumping up and down smiling barking and moaning wanting a treat or to be fed. Now nothing.

We were feeding her 4 smaller meals a day of orjen and boiled chicken breast. The vet today instructed us to feed her only twice a day. Not sure how that will work out since it looks to me like she is bony already.

I'm afraid something is seriously wrong. I know something is up but I'm new to all this puppy stuff. Any help or advice is much appreciated. I just want to do the right thing so she gets better.

She had another hacking episode that I was able to get on video just now. I'll try to post or link it.

https://youtu.be/aSvN6fHbiiY


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#3 ·
I second finding a new vet. For one a 10 week old puppy should not be fed only twice a day. To me that's asking for trouble.
Have you contacted the breeder?
Rerun the fecal testing?

Puppies get itchy, my girl will occasionally snap to attention and give the offending area a once over, not necessarily a cause for concern unless it is constant.
 
#6 ·
I'll be the third to suggest a different vet. Recheck a complete fecal--if she had or still has hookworm she may also have whipworm which can be harder to detect. Run a complete blood panel and maybe both X-ray and ulrasound looking for partial blockage

And have you talked to her breeder?

I don't think two meals a day are appropriate for a 10 week old puppy. I'd still be feeding three times at that age.

Orijen is highly rated food but from what I keep hearing it is sometimes just too rich for very young puppies--I'd discuss that possibility with your vet too.

The breeder let you take her at 6 weeks? Not a good idea--in many states it is illegal to place puppies younger than 8 weeks. Has she had all these symptoms from the beginning?

Good luck with straightening this out...
 
#17 ·
I'll be the third to suggest a different vet. Recheck a complete fecal--if she had or still has hookworm she may also have whipworm which can be harder to detect. Run a complete blood panel and maybe both X-ray and ulrasound looking for partial blockage



And have you talked to her breeder?



I don't think two meals a day are appropriate for a 10 week old puppy. I'd still be feeding three times at that age.



Orijen is highly rated food but from what I keep hearing it is sometimes just too rich for very young puppies--I'd discuss that possibility with your vet too.



The breeder let you take her at 6 weeks? Not a good idea--in many states it is illegal to place puppies younger than 8 weeks. Has she had all these symptoms from the beginning?



Good luck with straightening this out...


No she hasn't had these symptoms from the beginning. Where it all started from was I was watching her when she would stand up and walk and she arched her back like a cat. So I googled it. Then I was watching g her eat and saw her holding her back up high like that and it scared me. That's when I took her to the vet the first time.


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#19 ·
She loved it but then again she's a puppy and it was wet food. They only gave us four cans of it so who knows. That's the other thing - I have to ask how to feed these cans to her because no instruction was given. Just sent me home with 4 cans. Wtf?


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#8 ·
I may be way off here but In the video she looks very sleepy. A puppy at that age usually still is spending a good amount of the day sleeping. If she is with you most of the day I wonder how much of the time she is either being woke up when she should be allowed to sleep and how much just like a child is afraid to take a nap because they are afraid they are going to miss something. Some of these symptoms would either be called normal or not really extremely abnormal. If you are having a trust issue with your vet you should seek another vet regardless. Running these other tests that some have recommended may if nothing else at least set your mind at ease. You may be right and there be something there. You are with the pup most all day every day. Which would allow you to notice patterns others would miss. On the other hand because you really love the pup and haven't been through all of this you are concerned at things that may be ok. Just like a first time parent when they see something they haven't seen before doesn't know if it is a normal thing or not. But remember this, you will seldom go wrong by taking your pup to a vet or getting a second opinion on anything. Please let us know what you find out. And of course you can PM pretty much anyone here who you feel comfortable with and asking for private advice.
 
#18 ·
Thank you for this. We do love her very much and she is such a huge part of our life now and I just want her to be ok. I probably am very overprotective of her but what can I say? Shoot me. Lol. Because of that though I pay very close attention to her all the time and I can tell when something isn't right. For a vet to give word to my gf to tell me to "stop googling stuff" is a bit of a kick in the face. I'm only trying to learn and the only reason I researched anything is because I felt something was wrong. Low and behold I was right because she had an infection. What is a bit discouraging about this is that I have a few breeders that are customers of mine. I asked them each to refer me to the best place to get her ears cropped. Both breeder told me the same place. These women are both very good at what they do. I see the wall of awards they have from their dogs winning. So I researched this clinic before going there and nothing but rave reviews. I have since dug deeper into finding out more about the place. I'm very good at uncovering the dirt so to speak- I swear this place pays one hell of a bill to a online reputation firm or they really are this good because there isn't a slight hint of even a trace of gnat **** on their record. Folks drive from all around to bring their pets here. Puzzling it is.


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#30 · (Edited)
My rescue has a bacterial infection that almost killed her. It ate away at the lining of her intestines and now she's on limited ingredient food for the rest of her life.

OP, here are things I noticed when my 10 week old pup had a gut infection.

• she was very bloated right around the middle of her ribcage.
• the infection caused her skin to itch and she had demodex outbreaks on her snout.
• she had energy to play in short bursts, but that was it. She was so tired that she had to lay down to eat.
• lots of mucus in her poop, and lots of discoloration. It shifted between almost lime green or completely black.
• she cried a lot. Like constantly whining and crying. She was obviously uncomfortable.
• it took 3 rounds of antibiotics and a prescription grade allergy med to finally beat the infection.
• she loved to lay on the tile because her skin was inflamed (and feverish a lot).
• her colon was extremely inflamed, as was her entire GI system.
• she was very gassy. Like... those farts were constant and unholy. They actually made me throw up once.

My initial vet didn't take me seriously until she started pooping nothing but bloody mucus. They said it was Parvo and just wanted to put her down. I got a second opinion, and we managed to save her because it wasn't parvo, but it almost killed her.

Please, see another vet. Get xrays.
 
#20 ·
Just because a place can crop ears doesn't necessarily mean they are ace at everything else that matters. I know how difficult it is to find a truly great vet, after many years I finally found mine. He's an exotic animal vet as well and takes care of zoo animals too, he saved my little leopard gecko who had a very large tumor on his eye. Where do you live? Perhaps someone on here lives close by and can give you a second recommendation.
 
#25 ·
Well that's the thing this place is the go to place. Not just for ears. I simply wanted the best ear cropper because I'm new to all this and I wanted give her the best chance to look right. I've seen a lot of bad crop jobs iMO I wanted to avoid that. Just so happens to the place of the one was recommending is also the place that they take their dogs who aren't dobermans. The place has rave reviews but I don't know what all the fuss is about. First time I went in she had your March they didn't give me the medication for her the second time I took her in they said she had an infection in her ears still did not give me the medicine. My girlfriend took her in for the third time she ask the vet about the medicine for the ears and he said he did not see anything on her chart about it. Well of course she did and if they didn't write it down and didn't give me the medicine. Little things like that turn me off about a place just get me to wondering. I live in Cypress TX.


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#21 · (Edited by Moderator)
It does not matter about what kind of reviews a clinic has if they are failing at helping your puppy. Find a new vet before it is too late. I too suspect a problem with blockage. Have x rays taken immediately. This is very abnormal behavior and signs of serious stress. Now you will see why a good breeder would never let a puppy go at 6 weeks then to have said they were vaccinated when they are not I am betting you are on your own. Have you tried to talk to the breeder??? How many puppies were in the litter??? How are they doing??? What health testing has been done?? So many things that go into producing a happy healthy puppy. Sending prayers your way and please keep us posted on how the little one is doing. I would caution you on the importance of finding a new vet.
 
#22 ·
What was your puppy eating when you got her? Did these symptoms show up when you changed food? What do her stools look like?

I agree with Atomic that rave reviews for a clinic or vet does great crops doesn't always mean they'll be great with everything. I spent years going to a vet who was a great diagnostition but he and I both knew he couldn't crop his way out of a paper bag--the vet who did most of my crops was top notch at that and ordinary general veterinary medicine but for diagnostics--not so much.

The fact that the clinic didn't give you instructions about feeding the wet food is just one more reason to at least get a second opinion.

It's also a very good idea to ask if you are given something (like food) and you've never dealt with it before--what you do--how much to feed, how long to feed it, etc--our clinic not only gets special instructions from the vet who saw the pet but it is repeated by the tech or assistant when they hand over the meds or special food AND instructions for meds, food and/or exercise limitations are included on the invoice/reciept and handed to the client before they leave.

When clients don't ask questions it's all too easy for the vet or assitant to asume the client knows what to do with thing like a prescription food which is intented for specific short term use.

Good luck--I hope your puppy is feeling better.
 
#23 · (Edited)
HavenMae--GO SEE another vet. NOW. You need another opinion. The vet you have currently is not listening to you...he is not running appropriate tests to get to the bottom of your pup’s problems. He is not using the proper vaccination protocol.

Three reasons your current vet is not meeting your needs...or your puppy’s; judging from your comments, there are probably more reasons I’m not listing. You MUST go see someone else.
 
#24 ·
I would also suggest a different vet for a 2nd opinion - not one at the same practice! None of this stuff is normal. Yes they sleep a lot but when awake should have energy and want to be with you. I would also recommend the 3 meals a day for awhile. I would soften the kibble - their baby teeth can have a hard time with hard food - soak for about 15 minutes with a little bit of warm water before feeding. The kibble is good, but is maybe too rich? Just guessing.
 
#27 ·
If you don't go to a 2nd Vet, no-one on DT is going to help you. It doesn't matter if you have drive for 3 hrs to get to one, JUST DO IT!

Your puppy does not sound well at all and many many Vets are no good with dobermans - they don't believe the stuff that a dobe will eat or the fact that they often get partial blockages.

I would be screaming all over looking for a better Vet if I were you.

Quit complaining about reviews that don't seem to stack up and go someplace else.

Dobermans have been the hardest breed for me to raise - so many potential things to go wrong - I didn't realize until I added another breed (that by comparison is easy). You have to know the issues they can get and be on top of stuff from the get go.
 
#28 · (Edited)
I'm in the Katy area. You should make an appt at Grand Park. Specifically request an appt with Dr Bowen. She is only there on certain days. This is my vet. I see her often. Neither she nor the techs (Jeff and Lexi are my favorites) have ever made me feel like I'm crazy.
They're on Mason in Katy. 281-392-3127

If u want a vet to run every test under the sun, make your appt with Dr Brown. She will happily do that.
 
#29 ·
FYI-Grand Park is owned by Dr. Ginanna Crouch DVM. Though she typically only does cropping these days, as a long time Doberman breeder the majority of their client base is Dobermans. She is especially generous to the local Doberman rescues with regards to deep discounts on medical care. She sees a lot of their really tough cases. Most of the Doberman owners in the Houston metro area use Grand Park exclusively. There is no other vet as familiar with the breed in our area.
 
#34 ·
WEll, i can confirm that there IS indeed a second location in Brookshire. I've only been there once since the Mason office is only about a mile from my house. However, I do know that the Brookshire office is where the boarding runs are and when I inquired about boarding at the Mason location, it was strongly suggested by Jeff (who has cared personally for all of my dogs for well over 10 years now) that I board them at the Brookshire location. I know Jeff very well. I know how hard he has worked for me and my dogs. How he calls to check on them and has always had every question I had, even after hours, answered quickly. So, I don't believe he would tell me to board my dogs at the other location if he did not feel it was on the "up-and-up." Secondly, considering our city is highly sensitive to all animal issues, if there was a story for the need to pick up I think they would have already done it.

Make an appointment with Dr Bowen. She's an excellent diagnostician. She will be up front with you at all times. She will not run unnecessary tests. As I said before, she is my personal veterinarian for all of my dogs and I respect her and her knowledge very much.
 
#35 ·
I find normal GP vets know nothing about lots of things which isn't a routine problem and you need to usually find a specialist vet who knows a lot more.

We had to change our vets a few times as they were only GP and eventually found one which is awesome just out of town from us who is a specialist vet who knows almost everything :), helped us with our 10 year old GSD, glad I found him.
 
#36 · (Edited)
Update: Ok took her to the vet. She has two obstructions one in her colon and one in her intestine. She was running a fever when I took her in. (So pissed at the other vet that I told all these things to and basically was brushed off as nothing. I knew she felt hotter than normal) Vet was very thorough and helpful. We have her on a bland simple diet of rice and boiled chicken. She was super happy when I arrived home to see her. I was at ease as well . . .

Fast forward to 11pm and she starts heaving again and looks sick. Nothing comes up. She wants to curl up in a ball and wedge herself into my side. I hear her tummy rumbling and she darts off the couch to the corner to try and vomit. She's done this all night. 5-6 times. The last time some yellow liquid came up. She's pawing her head a lot and licking her lips. She won't drink water. She's now chewing on a bone (safe one) like there's no tomorrow. She was biting me pretty hard when I was by her like she's biting in frustration of something. The vet said nothing about vomiting though so I'm worried. He said she should pass the first obstruction today and the other should move through in a couple of days. He didn't mention this was part of if though. My gf said she did eat some grass when she got her home. I've contacted them but it's 5 am so in waiting on a call back.

We have puppy proofed the entire house and yard. This Dobe will eat anything. I took $3.22 from her total in various coins she was trying to swallow. She will eat rocks, socks, wood, metal it don't matter. So we have quite the task at hand keeping her from swallowing things.

Any suggestions on this ?

https://youtu.be/RDkNFfQg6z8


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