Mik is gone...

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Yes, Kathy, they keep us busy.

My biggest disappointment was in skinless,, boneless chicken breasts. I cooked them in olive oil [just a tad] and he LOVED them! I was so excited that I cooked up about 10 of them, sliced and diced, and froze them.

Mik gobbled them up the first few nights, and I went out and bought HUGE bags of frozen chicken breasts.

About the forth night, he decided they were radio active, and has not gone near them since. A mere sniff and he runs.

So, the neighbors got 20 pounds of frozen chicken breasts.

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

I'm almost afraid to mention it--bad luck, you know--but Mik has been doing better than okay. Breakfast has gone from 50 calories to 100-125, and dinner from 150 to 350 or so. Average over 10 days, about 450 calories.

I need to weigh him, but I'm losing faith in my digital scale. My own wt varies 2-4 pounds when I use it minutes apart.

Still, I hold him a lot and can feel more "body" there. The 2 IU/2x a day seems to be working, so I'm also hesitant of putting him through the trauma of vet blood testing. It's twice in one day, and really stresses him.

But I guess I should anyway.

[Roxee'sDad]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

In a very low cyber voice.......I'm almost afraid to respond but glad he is now eating well. Hope all continues to go very well.

John (Roxee's Dad)

[k9diabetes]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

)))))))Yes!!((((((( Even if things turn around for awhile now that you've spilled the beans... they should average out to him maintaining his weight.

Natalie

[We Hope]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Bob,

Congratulations are in order! Just had a look at the start of this thread and see that you've been working with Mik for 6 months now!

I'd believe that Mik has gained the weight because you can feel it.

Kathy

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Kind of good news/bad news/conflicting symptoms:

Mik's appetite is incredible! Even at 4:30 am, he licks down his 1/2 jar of sugar free chicken baby food to get his juices going. Then I put down about 1/4 - 1/3 can of Purina dog food, estimated at 200 calories. So, he gets 250 calories in the am! I used to work for hours to get him to eat that much in a day!

Last night, same thing, he is gobbling down his full 250 calories which should be adding wt. But then I noticed a "skin burn" similar to a floor burn. Ever played basketball or volleyball on a hardwood floor? You run and slip and get a 'floor burn'. It's a kind of abrasion that takes hair and skin, but no blood, just red and raw flesh. It's about the size of a 50 cent piece. The odd thing is that it's in the middle of his back, near his butt. There is no way he could scratch or chew that area.

As I was holding him an putting on neosporin, I could see a few dozen tiny black specks, like coarse pepper, sprinkled down his back from neck to this abrasion injury.

I have no explanation for either. There are no steps or stairs, and he cannot jump onto furniture. No idea how he got them. I brushed out one of the specks and examined under a 10x mag glass, and it's just a tiny black speck of something inert--not living, not moving--no idea. It literally looks like coarse pepper. I tried to brush them out.

I put him down and he went to his day bed. He was so full there was no barking for more food last night, the first time in months. I thought that was a major success. but then I shut down the house at bedtime and left the hallway light on. They both migrate to the light and then to their 'night beds' in my room.

But it took Mik a long time to get there, so I got up to see and he was having a very difficult time walking. It was the drunk walk--take a few steps and then his hind legs would sort of collapse. Then up for a few more steps.

I carried him to his night bed and all was well.

This am. same huge appetite, but after filling the syringe to slightly over 2 IU of Vetsulin, I dropped the brand new bottle and it shattered.

He was also walking funny at times, so maybe all these things combined tells me to make a vet appt for today.

I will call when they open.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Perhaps fleas... are the black specks comma shaped?

Try putting the black specks on a damp paper towel - if they dissolve out to a reddish brown residue, it's flea dirt.

He could be allergic to whatever it is on his back and that's what's making the skin red.

That's scary about the walk though... definitely now a low blood sugar problem?

I'm anxious to hear back about the vet.

We always kept the last bit of insulin from a bottle in the fridge as a backup for the kind of accident your bottle of Vetsulin had today.

Natalie

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Flea dirt? Didn't think of that, but the vet will know. We used to use that green stuff [something frontline?] but vet suggested not using it on Mik this year because of his various problems. Strong stuff, I guess, so he said to just put it on Mak.

I have the house sprayed monthly and whenever they go to the groomer, I let off a couple of those air bombs. Still, you might be right.

I have an appt at 2, but will try the wet paper thing. Under a 10x power glass, I could not determine a comma shape, but was not looking for that.

Low blood sugar? I don't see how. He is eating a lot more but I have not increased the Vetsulin beyond 2 IU 2x day.

Yes, I keep the last bottle with a bit still inside when opening a new one, just in case. But I will get more today.

I might understand flea dirt, but the abrasion has me stumped. It's in one localized spot only and was not there the night before.

[ladysmom06]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Robert,

Mik's appetite is incredible! Even at 4:30 am, he licks down his 1/2 jar of sugar free chicken baby food to get his juices going. Then I put down about 1/4 - 1/3 can of Purina dog food, estimated at 200 calories. So, he gets 250 calories in the am! I used to work for hours to get him to eat that much in a day!

GREAT NEWS!!!!

He was also walking funny at times, so maybe all these things combined tells me to make a vet appt for today.

I will call when they open.

Good luck with the vet. Hoping everything is ok.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Just checking on you. I thought of fleas in part because that's a very popular place for them to hang out and dogs can be extremely allergic to their bites. I think the skin could redden directly from the allergy without him scratching it, though he also could have rubbed it on an object if it's itchy.

When I first moved to California, I didn't know anything about fleas. Not a problem in Montana. Well, my cat quickly taught me a LOT about them. She was so heavily infested by the time I figured out what the problem was. She always slept on my shoulder at night and it was very very difficult to let the poor vermin ridden girl do it between her getting fleas and our getting rid of them. I let her cuz it wasn't her fault her mom was a moron but... ick... it was tough.

Natalie

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Well, much to my surprise and dismay, it was fleas. They must have launched a dual attack on both dogs. Mak had bad open sores this am. Ugly.

Took them both to the vet and they both reacted badly to fleas, although I spray the house all the time.

But he loaded me up with pills, capsules, liquids antibiotics, flea stuff, house spray, etc etc etc. Because of their weight difference, I have to measure for each one.

He gave them both stiff shots and tonight I begin the treatment which includes some really gooey salve for three days, three times a day, plus pills and capsules.

Saturday he wants them fully and gently bathed by a pro [he knows our groomer] and then start it over for another week, followed by another bath next Saturday because this goo is horrible. It builds up and does not wipe off. While they are at the groomer both Saturdays, I have to vacuum the entire house and bedding, blankets, etc,. and then spray everything. Also wash every throw rug and piece of bedding, wait 6 hours and vacuum again.

Of course I have to bag and cover every eating dish, glass and utensil.

And I worried about getting bored!

When Karen was here, we actually did this on a regular basis, and I figured that her hatred\fear of fleas was a bit over the top.

I know better now! But he did agree that using Frontline on just Mak was a good idea months ago because it's strong stuff and Mik was so feeble.

But today he was happy with Mik's appetite and 3/4 pound wt gain, so I have a list of things that begin about five minutes from now.

Cleaning for fleas is a gigantic amount of work for me and discomfort for them, but I am glad the open sores are not from something even more serious.

[Trying to find something positive about this]

more: forgot to add, Mik's BG was 550 at 10 hours. A slight improvement, but considering his newly found appetite and all that food, vet was not disappointed. He wants 2 IU in the am and 3 IU in the pm

[k9diabetes]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Once you go through all that, you'll get a handle on it pretty quickly. The vacuuming really makes a big difference.

The cats are indoor and for the past few years we have used only Sentinel and only on the dog to keep the fleas under control. That's the one that prevents them from reproducing. That has done the job well enough that we haven't had to use a topical. Chris always tolerated the Sentinel well, even when the rest of his body was falling apart.

Natalie

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

Heh, I had to make a check off list for which meds go to which dog and how many pills and/or CC's. I need a spreadsheet because I am bound to forget one of them at 4:30 am.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

I had to spend an hour and a half searching all over town tonight for a tick remover... Apparently it's vermin week around here.

[robertpri]

Re: Mik: 13 yr old Shih-Tzu

OMG, what a mess! Last night was the first round of the new meds, and that went reasonably well. Mak is such a pig he sniffed his dog food laced with the new meds, thought about it, then ate it all.

Mik, of course, was another story. He sniffed the new meds in his dog food and almost ran from the kitchen. I had to force the liquid down his throat, but am getting fairly good at this.

I fill the syringe with 1 cc of the liquid med, and then suck up baby food to fill the syringe. Mik fought it, but swallowed, and then gobbled down a huge dinner.

Then came the new salve. It is god awful messy, and before I knew it, I had completely ruined a perfectly nice shirt and pair of slacks. That stuff will never wash out.

So, off to Target tonight for a cheap bathrobe.

I did make a check off list for last night and this am, and good thing. In my urgency to get all these new meds and salve on the dogs, I almost forgot the most important thing--Mik's insulin.

Wife used to tease me about my obsession with check off lists, but they work for me. [particularly at 4 am when I'm not exactly clear headed.]

But we have a plan, and moving forward. The 3 IU of insulin last night must have boosted Mik's appetite even more. He ate about 300 calories for breakfast.

I have no idea what is the correct amount for him--kinda calculated guessing--but am judging it against Mak. That little piggy is eating less but still slightly gaining wt, but Mik is eating a lot more than Mak.

So Mik has GOT to be gaining weight!

To k9diabetes: A great many years ago, I was hiking in the hills and came home. I had a strange pain in my lower stomach [or on my lower stomach] and went into the bathroom to examine it. I lowered my slacks and saw this HUGE tik sucking away at my flesh which was all red and puffy. In an instant panic, and really stupid--I just grabbed at it and yanked it away! Dumb! Dumb! Dumb!

Sure enough, a few days later the tik's 'thing' was still in me, infected, and getting much worse, so it took a doctor to cut it open to remove and treat he spreading infection.

Lesson learned.

From boy scout days, I recall spreading anything on the tik that has no air bubbles. The tik can't breath and will back out. I never heard of anyone having luck with the old treatment of "unscrewing" them, but was told that touching them with a "just burned" match head works. Never tried it.