Friday, November 18, 2005

Echo goes to the vet

We couldn't get an appointment until 3 o'clock this afternoon. In the mean time, Echo seemed to be doing fine except maybe a little quiet.
I explained to Dr. Whitworth about the stickers. He looked in her throat. They took her temp (normal). He said she should be ok, dogs can even eat glass, and be alright as long as it stays between the mouth and the stomach. The problem happens when it gets past the stomach into the intestines that stuff like that causes a real problem. (so it's a good thing that it is vomited back up) But he was concerned that the mucus was pink this morning meaning that she probably does have scratches in her throat and even maybe in the lining of her stomach.
He gave her an antibiotic called metronidazole to take twice a day for 10 days. He says that the scratches in her throat and stomach may make her susceptible to a bacteria called clostridium which is common in the soil and even in the gut of some animals. If they become infected, it can cause a serious gastroenteritis.
Since she normally eats dry food ("crunchers", my friend used to say) I asked him if I should put her on canned food for a few days. He said "I would" it's not really required and the food is pretty moist by the time it is swallowed, but if it was his dog he would put it on canned food for a few days. So, I will too.
We just need to watch for any vomiting or diarrhea and call if that happens, otherwise to call on Monday to let them know how she is doing.
Here's my promise: I'll watch her and I'll call, and I won't ever let her go in the sticker patch alone again--ever!

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