Looking for some advice - about Baileys my dog

[Melanie]

Richard and I are having a disagreement at the moment so im looking for an impartial point of view on this.

First I'll give you some background. Our Bull mastiff Baileys is 5 years old and since the day we got her she's had one health problem or another. She had cancer in her womb when she was still just a pup and needed a hysterectomy, she had a growth that needed radiation treatment after it was removed, all her fur fell out because of a blood disorder, those are just a few of the many problems! But we dealt with each one and got her through them. Some of the things her insurance paid for, others we had to cover ourselves, we did it because we love her and if im perfectly honest because she kept me above water at a time in my life where i could have given up and ended it.

For the last year Baileys hasn't been right, she's seen vets here and im not sure whether they are taking the mick out of us because we are English or whether they genuinely cant help us and are trying their best. It doesn't help that even when you find an English speaking vet you still have a few lost in translation problems.

She goes through stages of constantly throwing up, im not talking once or twice but up to 30 times a day. Its either yellow bile or what disgustingly looks like it should be coming out of the other end. What ever it looks like it always smells absolutely vile. We've tried everything the vets have told us, we pay a fortune for special food, we give her the prescription vitamins, free feeding and then when that didn't work we moved to restricted feeding and a million other things that have made no bloody difference at all. Its happening at the moment and I've been counting, since 8pm last night until 10am this morning i have cleaned up sick 24 times. I love her but seriously this has been happening at least every couple of weeks and the time between the attacks which last anything from 25 hours to 4 days seems to be getting shorter and im getting to the point where its really hard to cope with especially when the vets just dont seem to be able to help.

Now for the problem. Sometime in the near future we are going to be moving back to the UK and that move will include a £2500 transportation cost for Baileys. The company are probably going to pay it but its a lot more than they expected (because shes a big dog) so they are trying to wriggle out of it. That aside our real problems are 1: There's a huge chance that if the day we fly she is having this puking thing then there's no way she would be allowed to board a plane and we'll be screwed. 2: Its highly likely that unless we see a different vet who is unaware of her problem then she wont get her fit to travel page signed in her passport. 3: Nothing we do is helping her and this cant be normal, she is so distressed while its happening.

Richard thinks its time we started to think about having her put to sleep but even just thinking about it breaks my heart. I understand his reasoning but it just seems so bloody heartless. I get that if the company wont pay her travel cost then £2500 is a hell of a lot of money to pay for a dog who obviously has something wrong with her, even if we get half the costs covered its still a lot of cash. He keeps pointing out that Baileys is so distressed when its happening that she isnt her normal laid back self which worries him when Thea is around. He also keeps telling me that surely this has to be a symptom of a bigger underlying problem and if we cant get a vet to help us sort it out then surely we are being cruel letting her suffer (and i admit when its happening you can see she is suffering).

All that makes sense but shes my dog, shes my baby and for the longest time she was my lifeline. The times in between these attacks she's just Baileys, happy and lazy lol. I know the times are getting shorter but surely while they are happening at all shes OK?

I guess what im asking is what would you do? Would you carry on and hope she is OK to get home or would you have her put to sleep so she isnt going through this anymore?

If you made it through that essay you deserve a medal!

 

[Sherlock]

Firstly, have the done a blood work up and taken xrays of her stomach and digestive tract?

If so how long ago was this, what showed up and could they do it again asap?

Bile is never a good sign, and vomiting like this is worrying but there are a number of possible reasons for it. Give me a while and I'll ask a vet nurse friend of mine to tell me what she thinks of your post ok She is long experienced and might be able to throw some possibles out there.

My one thing so far would be for them to check her liver.

Bile vomiting is often an indication of liver problems. Xray, blood test and a biopsy can confirm if its a tumour of the liver or some such problem.

I know it sounds awful, but please consider that large dogs, especially heavier breeds often do have a much shorter life span than smaller/lighter dogs. That she is only 5 is not old, but for a Bull Mastiff thats approaching middle age.

Is there any way one of you can drive back with her? European travel with a pet passport and all that? I am not clued up if Hungary is considered a safe country if she is vaccinated against rabies. I'd consider that option if it were me. That way you could take a couple of days, stop when needed etc and not have the hassles with flying or being refused. Also you could then get her back here and hopefully to a vet who would be able to diagnose and hopefully treat her.

Hang in there, don't despair just yet

 

[Sherlock]

There is this for possibles also

Dog vomiting problems

And this page on common Bull Mastiff illnesses

 

[Melanie]

Hungary is a safe country and she has her UK issued pet passport and up to date rabies blood test etc, but the issues with driving are similar to flying 1, it costs the same because it takes at least 2 days but normally 3 and that gives us an issue with her tick and worm treatment as it must be done by an approved vet no more than 48 hours before she sets foot on British soil. We would also have to travel through at least 3 other countries all of which have there own entry requirements.

She has had xrays, blood tests you name and they have been repeated and repeated over the last year The last ones were only about a month ago. She's had tests done on her liver but like i said the whole language barrier thing means we are not always sure what she is being tested for.

I need to go to the vets armed with facts and what i want testing for i think but i read and read on the net and everything is just so vague it doesnt help

 

[purple13]

oh hon...

i'd definitely want to make sure that i'd exhausted all possibilities for treatment before making any big decision on baileys' future. maybe wait and see what sherlock's friend advises - is there another vet you could get another opinion from?

i do think you might have to start getting your head around having her put down too its the worst thing to have to contemplate but (having done it recently for both my beloved dog, and my wonderful horse who i'd had for 16 years) as much as i wanted to keep going at the time, in retrospect i've had a lot of peace from my decision.

 

[Sherlock]

Hmm its a tough one

It could be diet related, I recall one German Shepard ate the remains of a seagull once and became ill. For the rest of its life it had bowel problems of massive proportions and it eventually became unfair on the dog as her quality of life was non existant as she could not go anywhere without her bowels giving out on her. Nor could she eat most food, so her diet was very strict.

My thinking would be, if you can get her back to the UK then do so. By hook or by crook. So long as its not 6 months down the road you are moving and she is still having a decent quality of life, then its worth a shot. She is much loved and like you, I'd be wanting to give her that one chance if it might help. If she deterioates too much between now and the move, I think you are better saying goodbye to her there and not letting her suffer more.

If you can get her back to the UK, take her to a recommended vet and have her assessed, get the full work up of bloods, xray and so on and see what they say. I'm sure her medical records will help them also. Give her the chance to possibly be cured. If they really cannot offer a solution then I'd say it might be time to think about how this is affecting her and if its fair to continue, but you know you would have given her every chance and would not then live with the possile guilt or distress that you ended things too soon.

However, having recently had to have a much loved dog put to sleep, I must confess to being one of those who believes in making the desicion sooner rather than later. My dog was 14 going on 15, never ill and one day developed rapid heavy breathing. Vet checked him out, xrays and bloods and he was diagnosed with bronchial disease and a slightly enlarged heart. Prognosis was good with medication to control it. However, he never improved, just stayed the same and started sleeping a lot more and so on. When one day he seemed a bit worse, I took him to the vet, said we would try one other treatment and see how it went. Those drugs if they had worked would have shown an improvment within 2 days. Alas on the morning of the third day I came downstairs and for the first time in his life he didn't get up to greet me. He just laid there and wagged his tail feebly.

I knew it could not continue like this, his quality of life was not improving and while not distressed, he was tired and wobbled when he walked, picked at his food for those two days and I could not bear to see him go on like that. I picked up the phone and made the call. 3 hours later the vet was at my house, checked him over and agreed with me. My darling Bowie had one last cuddle with me on the sofa and died peacefully in my arms.

Even now, almost 2 months later I still miss him. I cried for days, I mean sobbed, as that dog was my shadow for years and I was his whole world. But I picked up the pieces and while I miss him still, and find myself teary wrting this, I know I did the best thing for him. It hurt like hell but I know that keeping him going would only have been for me and my delaying the pain I knew would follow. I could not have done that to him. So better a bit sooner before things got so bad, than too late and he began to really suffer.

 

[grace]

oh dear, im so sorry for you

i can understand the reasoning in your OH's contemplation of getting her put to sleep but that must be so hard a decision for you.

the fact that when shes not having the attacks she is her normal happy self would make me want to try EVERYTHING before it came to putting her down. although, if these attacks are making her truly miserable i would think it best that i helped put her out of her misery.

definately wait to see if sherlocks friend can shed any light.

 

[Krystal]

aww thats such a hard situation you poor thing

Only thing I can think of is before you come back go to the vet but have you thought about taking a translator with you, someone who is a proffessional so is fluent in both languages? Least you might get some answers and be more confident you understand your options properly then you may be able to make a decision from that.

Poor you, my dog is my baby too and I know this must be hard for you

 

[Fluffy Bunny]

Gosh what a hard decision Mel, I totally feel for you.

For me it would have to be about quality if life. Is Bailey the bailey you know and love or is whats happening to her overshadowing your beloved girl? Would you still take her to the park and play ball? Does she jump round excitedly when you come home? Does she still do the things she did before the sickness started?

For me I would do what some of the other girls have suggested - take an interpreter along to your vets or maybe try and source an English speaking vet working in a practice out there?

How about trying somewhere like this http://www.univet.hu/english/ and seeing if they have any British vets who could help you?

From a little reading I've just done on the net, it seems that the vets you have out there aren't as well trained as vets back here? Don't know what your though is on this? If this is the case I can see your reasoning for getting her back to the UK for more detailed examinations. Maybe it is the case you put her through the travelling to get her treated back here. If you do this, then I guess you have to ask your self how Richard (and yourself) would feel if you put her through the travelling, got her back to the UK and found the news wasn't good and you had to make that tough decision anyway?

Sorry, don't seem to have answered your queries at all, just rambled on, I think initially you should ask yourself are you keeping Bailey with you just for your sake, just because you can't make the decision to put her to sleep? If the answer is no, then you keep on with the vets, if the answer is yes then its time to say goodbye

Good luck, let us know how it goes

 

[SarahH]

We used to have a Cavilier King Charles spaniel and everything you have described is what he used to do with regards the vomiting..... it turned out that Sparx was allergic to wheat which is in a hell-of-a-lot of dog foods...

Has your dog been tested for that?

Once we cut wheat out of his diet - he was honestly like a different dog - so happy!

 

[Melanie]

I've just been on the phone to a Veterinary professor at the university here and she is willing to see Baileys herself. I spoke to her on the phone and her English is perfect and she did tell me she has worked all over Europe and has had extensive further training in Germany and the Netherlands so im a little more confident she can help. I have to call her to 5.30 this evening to make sure she is still free and if she is she will see her tonight.
Keep your fingers crossed for us!

 

[Fluffy Bunny]

Really please for you, keep us updated

 

[Lou]

Good luck

 

[Babylicious]

could be something as simple as an acid problem as thats what my cat has. she's sick loads but we've now found a food that she can digest and the flare ups are less regular

 

[Sherlock]

Fingers crossed for you that she can help.

Its so hard to know what could be causing it, anything from diet to goodness knows what.

Keep us posted as to what she says

 

[mrs_tommo22]

Brilliant Mel, I really hope she will be able to shed some light on what os wrong with Baileys, I really hope she is able to find out for you. Keep us all updated

 

[Melanie]

Well Baileys is in the car with Richard on her way to the University surgery now. He's had to take her on his own because Thea is sound asleep and he had to go as soon as i got off the phone.

 

[mrs_tommo22]

Hope it all goes well Mel and Baileys is as right as rain as soon as

 

[Melanie]

Richard just rang, he is on his way home now.
He said that the vet was really good, much better than anyone we have seen before.
She gave Baileys a complete physical, and a couple of different concerns arose from that but Richard didnt go into details about those on the phone. She's taken bloods for 12 different tests and some took some fluid from a small lump that we didnt even know was there (in our defence it is just between her anus and the underneath of her tail)! Richard said poor Baileys had 5 different injections given ontop of the bloods she had taken. She also has to go back to the office in the morning for a full body scan and depending on what that shows she will have any biopsies etc needed then too.
I feel much more confident that we will get some real answers this time.

 

[Sherlock]

O that sounds like something more positive She sounds like she knows what she is doing and taking bloods to run is always good as no end of things can show up in them.

I think a scan will be good. A fresh pair of eyes might pick up something others haven't. Also the lump, if considered a possible problem can be biopsied (many lumps on the surface turn out to be harmless so hopefully its nothing to worry about), most important thing is its been found and can be checked out.

Fingers crossed you are able to find out the problem and treat them