Sick Staffordshire Bull Terrier

[abooody]

Hi,

My 10 month old staffy has been vomiting on and off for the past ten days. The first time he vomited there was blood in the vomit. About fifteen minutes after he vomits he is back to his playful self again and full of energy.

We took him to the vet about a week ago and they put him on a course of antibiotics and something to settle his stomach. It doesn't appear to have worked though as he is still vomiting after he eats (about an hour after generally). We took him to the vet again tonight and he's going back tomorrow for x-rays and blood tests if the x-rays are inconclusive.

He's lost about 1 kilogram over the past week and he is looking a bit skinny, but all the other signs are good. He's got plenty of energy, his coat is shiny, he doesn't have a temperature and he wasn't demonstrating any signs of pain when the vet was poking and prodding him.

I guess things should be a bit clearer tomorrow but in the mean time, does anyone have any ideas on what could be the matter?

Thanks.

Edited June 24, 2010 by abooody

[matilda1]

Staffies have an exceptionally high pain threshold. So where he may not be showing any signs of pain, another breed could potentially be screaming.

Sounds like you are onto the job of finding out what the problem is.

Please keep us posted and good luck

[oakway]

Carn't do much more than you are already doing.

Let us all know the results

[ellz]

Can I just ask what you are feeding?

My Stafford bitch always throws up one particular brand of dry food for no reason...she just does.

[persephone]

Just remember- if there is a foreign body ,like cloth/cork/corncob - it may not show up on ordinary xrays!!

Hope all is ok soon.

[SoL]

Especially rubber/plastic toys - such as Kongs! They won't show on x-rays. How much bone have you fed him? Has the vet checked for a blocked intestine? One of my boys kept vomiting after meals and we found that the dry food and also the amount of bones he had had, were like cement in his gut - easily cleaned out thank goodness.

[megan_]

Just remember- if there is a foreign body ,like cloth/cork/corncob - it may not show up on ordinary xrays!!

Hope all is ok soon.

Maybe ask for a barium swollow? Do they do those with dogs???

If not, they might need to but him open to investigate, as nothing showing up on x-ray doesn't mean there is nothing there.

[abooody]

His stock food is a dry food. I think the brand is Purina. But he also gets vegetables, rice, raw egg, big bones to chew on and scraps from the dinner table where appropriate. Over the past 10 days he's thrown up after eating any food.

There is a possibility he could have swallowed a bit of plastic off one of his toys, or something else he has found playing in the back yard or house. He generally has free reign of both while my partner and I are at work.

Haven't heard anything yet from the vet. Hopefully the little man is going well. He's such a cheerful dog that it's quite upsetting to see him unwell.

[persephone]

When my dog had a blockage ( leaves and small sticks) it did not show on xray.

he was then given little barium balls ( like ball bearings) .. and then xrayed several times as they moved thru. Of course they stopped at the obstruction...so the vets knew 'where to dig'. he recovered 100%.

Hoping your dog has something which is easy fixed!

[Rappie]

Maybe ask for a barium swollow? Do they do those with dogs???

We do, but not all the time.

Liquid barium is very useful to determine obstructions but it can cause complications if you then have to go to remove something as it can cause inflammation around the surgery site if any leaks out. The BIPS (little balls containing barium) monitor passage through the gut and will stop at an obstruction, but do not tell us things that liquid barium can like whether stomach walls are thickened or whether there are defects etc.

I would always consider a foreign body in any young dog with persistent vomiting. It might not always be the reason, but it's always on my list ;)

[abooody]

Just out of interest, how long can dogs go for without food? From what I can tell Buster hasn't kept down any food for the past 24 hours, although he has drunk plenty of water without any adverse consequences, so he'll be sitting at the vet's clinic feeling very hungry at the moment.

Still no word back from the vet at this stage.

[persephone]

Don't worry about food ;) they can go well on very little for a few days .So long as they are hydrated ..and if he is at the vets he may well be on a drip .. he'll be fine for today.

[yellowgirl]

Any news on Buster? Hope the vet has found the problem and the little guy is okay :D

[mish13]

Not sure if anyone else asked but is he pooping?

I hope he is back to his old self real soon

[abooody]

I literally just got off the phone to my partner (I'm still at work unfortunately) who has picked up Buster from the vets. At this stage:

(a) X-rays have revealed that there appears to be a small piece of bone stuck near or in his stomach;

(b) he is slightly constipated; and

© there is inflamation of the wall of his stomach.

They've given him various drugs and liquids to try and wash everything through and the vet is hopeful that this will work. He's going back in tomorrow for further x-rays to see whether the bone has been dislodged. If not, then we are going to have a look at other options.

My partner said that the vet she spoke to at the clinic was very young and really had to be pushed to provide thorough information (i.e. could we attempt to feed him tonight etc) which does not fill me with confidence. Apparently the heaad vet will be in the clinic tomorrow though so hopefully he gets a look at Buster.

I must say, the past couple of visits to the vet have left me thinking I might look at changing the clinic we attend. Apparently this one (which we've previously been happy with) is under new management so this could well be the problem.

On a brighter note, Buster was EXTREMELY popular with the clinic staff and despite his ailments remained cheerful. He's a real bloody soldier is Buster. I couldn't recommend Staffys more highly to be honest.

So I guess we again play the waiting game although at this stage, it sounds like some more serious ailments have been ruled out thankfully.

Thanks for all your support/concern as well. My partner and I have become extremely attached to Buster in a short period of time and we've been extremely worried over the past few days.

[yellowgirl]

So glad to hear that the problem has been found! . Hopefully the bone will have been dislodged by tomorrow :D . Buster sounds like a great little guy!

I've recently swapped vets myself, if you're not happy with the care and/or information you're getting from your current vet then definitely look around for a different one. You've only got one Buster, and he should have the best health treatment possible with a vet you have confidence in ;) .

Hope all goes well tomorrow

[persephone]

Fingers crossed he won't need surgery .

[matilda1]

Just remember- if there is a foreign body ,like cloth/cork/corncob - it may not show up on ordinary xrays!!

Hope all is ok soon.

Maybe ask for a barium swollow? Do they do those with dogs???

If not, they might need to but him open to investigate, as nothing showing up on x-ray doesn't mean there is nothing there.

99% of the time you can still tell that there is a FB of some kind due to the gas patterns.

And YES, they do barium in Veterinary Medicine.

I'm pleased all turned out well

[oakway]

Any news about yesterday's vet visit ?.

Have things moved yet ?.

Hoping all is fine.

[abooody]

Hi all,

Unfortunately, this weekend has proven to be very challenging for poor little Buster. We ended up swapping vets on Friday night as we were not satisfied with the treatment Buster was receiving and he seemed to be going down hill rapidly. The final straw was when my partner rang up to find out if they were going to put him on a drip (as he had not kept anything down for 3 days) and was told that they had tried but "he didn't like it".

An old friend is a vet and we immediately took him to see her. She was extremely worried and sent him straight off to the Animal Emergency Centre. He has now been there since Friday night. After many tests and continued vomiting they decided to operate yesterday. The good news is that there was no foreign object, the bad news is that they still have no idea what the problem is. Essentially, the stomach has not been emptying itself and there has been a build up of gas and acids causing the intestines and stomach to swell.

They have taken biopsies of the stomach and a few other areas. We thought he was improving today, but we received a call tonight to advise that he had started vomiting again. Apparently the issue is that the main exit out of the stomach is thickening, preventing food to flow through. I am clearly not a vet, so this has a more technical name, but you get the drift.

So, he is more comfortable and hydrated, but we are in no better position than before. They have suggested that we will need to see a gastro specialist for dogs. We are also now liaising with our new vet, who seems to be much better.

Needless to say it has been a very stressful weekend, although we are happy with the care that he is receiving. Hopefully he has a night without vomiting and he can either come home tomorrow or at least go to our local vet for care.

We are also thanking our lucky stars we took out vet insurance!!!!

It is a mystery, any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the well wishes