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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

What on earth is wrong with my dog/s?

57 replies

MotherofPufflings · 21/06/2026 10:08

Sorry, this is going to be on the long side.

9 days ago we sadly had to put our 8-ish year old rescue dog to sleep. He had ckd stage 2/3 and anaemia but seemed to be doing OK, then had a gradual increase in fussiness over food over a couple of weeks. He then came down with bad diarrhoea (small amount of vomiting) and we just couldn't get him to drink enough to stay hydrated. He spent almost a week at the vet every day on fluids and anti-emetics but within 12 hours of stopping every time he'd refuse to drink, although would eat small amounts. He was increasingly miserable and with no clear cause we made the horrible decision to pts.

Duirng the time he was ill our 12 year old dog also became increasingly picky. We did manage to get him to eat but assumed it was stress and his normal pickiness. A few days after dog 1 died we left for a motorhome holiday with dog 2. At this point he more or less refused to eat other than cooked chicken with a lot of encouragement. He then came down with d&v. Spoke to a vet helpline and they felt he was OK at that point as eating and drinking. 24 hours later he was completely refusing to eat so contacted a local vet. He gave an anti-emetic injection and dog 2 then did eat a good amount of food that evening. We also gave an omeprazole capsule as suggested by vet. Unfortunately he was very sick overnight - but more like burping and regurgitating food rather than actively vomiting. Refused to eat again.

Saw another vet yesterday who was at a loss. He's well hydrated, temp at top end of normal but diarrhoea continues and the main issue is refusal to eat. She gave another anti-emetic injection (prevomax) plus metaclopramide and steroid injections. He still won't really eat! He had a very small amount of kibble last night but refuses offers of everything else including cooked chicken.

Overnight he's had no vomiting but woke a few times to go outside and had small amounts of watery, mucusy diarrhoea. Still drinking normally but will not eat!! He seems reasonably bright, keen to go out for a walk and sniffy and interested. We're almost certainly going home tomorrow now to get back to familiarity and our own vet - tbh we'd have gone before but where we are is much cooler than home right now so in some ways I feel he's better off here.

Just at a complete loss and really scared we're going to lose dog 2 as well 😭

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MotherofPufflings · 21/06/2026 10:18

Sorry, just to add, dog 2 has stage b1 mitral valve disease, on vetmedin as a precaution. No cough, resps absolutely fine.

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WonsWoo · 21/06/2026 10:21

I’m so sorry to hear about your poor dog1.

Could this be a reaction to that from dog 2? Maybe stress and grief?

MotherofPufflings · 21/06/2026 10:34

Thank you, it's been devastating really and I feel I haven't had a chance to grieve him because I'm so worried about dog 2.

He's fairly anxious at the best of times, so yes he could well be stressed and upset. He's been shaking a lot too so clearly very unhappy but that has now stopped, which is good I think. He just needs to start eating!

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catslovehairties · 21/06/2026 13:41

Stress and grief. His world has been turned upside down and now you're away from home as well - he's probably terrified and really, really confused. Just give him time Flowers

hididdlyho · 21/06/2026 14:21

So sorry, it sounds like a hugely stressful situation for everyone. Probably grief and could also be the heat affecting his appetite. I would keep offering small amounts of cooked mince and chicken to him and see whether the smell entices him to eat something. We've had some luck with that in the past with our previous elderly dog. Tinned food in gravy if he doesn't already get that might be worth a try as you can mix water in with it and try to get liquid into him that way.

MotherofPufflings · 21/06/2026 19:28

He's really unwell this evening, lots of diarrhoea and acting oddly. Waiting for the emergency vet to call back 😭

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HappiestSleeping · 21/06/2026 19:35

I would put money on this being grief.

BruceLeTerror · 21/06/2026 20:37

@MotherofPufflingsI’m so sorry about your dog, and also that your remaining dog is very poorly 😞
Absolutely no use whatsoever, just didn’t wanna read and run
Fingers X’d the Emergency vet is helpful for you all tonight xx

MotherofPufflings · 21/06/2026 22:03

Thanks everyone for the support, it's much appreciated. The emergency vet felt that he didn't need to be seen tonight which was reassuring and we have an appointment first thing tomorrow morning. We're planning to give the holiday up as a bad job and go home after that. Hopefully being at home will help 🙏

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HappiestSleeping · 21/06/2026 22:54

@MotherofPufflings when my wife died last year, our dog searched the house every morning, and every time we came home. Looking for her.

I asked the undertaker if I could take him to see her. We entered the room, he went nuts for a second or two, realised, and then sat for fifteen minutes before he wanted to leave.

He never searched the house again.

Walkingnice · 21/06/2026 22:58

It could be stress colitis. My boy had this when we lost his sister. We gave him canine rehydration drinks and fish and rice till he was better. The vet also gave an antibiotic shot and anti sickness tablets. I hope you get ddog sorted and sorry for the loss of your other dog .

Gillettegirl · 21/06/2026 23:21

HappiestSleeping · 21/06/2026 22:54

@MotherofPufflings when my wife died last year, our dog searched the house every morning, and every time we came home. Looking for her.

I asked the undertaker if I could take him to see her. We entered the room, he went nuts for a second or two, realised, and then sat for fifteen minutes before he wanted to leave.

He never searched the house again.

So sorry for your loss. That is an amazing story, we don’t always give animals the credit they deserve.

stayathomegardener · 22/06/2026 08:18

Have you requested the stool sample be tested in case it’s a bug?
I use the soil based probiotic Kiki Body Biotics for our dogs when off colour, worth reading the Amazon reviews on use in dogs.

spiderlight · 22/06/2026 09:17

Has he been tested for pancreatitis?

Twiglets1 · 22/06/2026 09:34

So sorry to hear about this.

Our dog would drink Oralade when they had sickness and diarrhoea and wouldn't take anything else ...you can buy it online from places like Amazon. I would try this as would be great for rehydration.

Hope your dog gets better soon.

MotherofPufflings · 22/06/2026 11:14

We've seen a vet this morning and have been referred to another branch for bloods and a scan, including tests for pancreatitis. His tummy was a bit tender today o/e where it hadn't been previously.

He was pretty bad overnight 😭

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PrizedPickledPopcorn · 22/06/2026 11:24

I’m so sorry, @MotherofPufflings. What a hard thing to be dealing with. I do hope that they find something they can fix so you can all get on with recovering from the loss of your other dog. 💐

MotherofPufflings · 22/06/2026 16:13

Well he's been at the vet all afternoon. He does have pancreatitis, quite likely to have been triggered by stress. We're probably going to actually just stay where we are until the end of the week to avoid a long journey, heat and builders at home. I really hope he's going to be OK 🙏

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hereweareagain3 · 22/06/2026 16:19

We had one of our dogs PTS a forthright ago. Our remaining dog has been off his food since. We have another rescue joining us next week so hoping this will perk him up. We think it’s grief+ hot weather.

just seen your update about potential pancreatitis. I have everything crossed for you. X

noctilucentcloud · 22/06/2026 17:29

I hope he starts picking up soon @MotherofPufflings

BillyBites · 22/06/2026 17:54

Oh you poor things. This all sounds horrific. Sending you best wishes that your dog recovers soon. Xx

Valpolichella · 22/06/2026 18:28

One of my elderly dogs has recently had pancreatitis. I’ve never had a dog with it before and she was really not very well at all. Vet was very concerned, particularly with her age. But, she got good painkillers (gabapentin ), and ate a very bland diet for a couple of days ( white fish and white rice) and she bounced back really quickly.
Is he with you or in the vet? Everything crossed for a full recovery for him, it is bloody awful when they are poorly xxx

MotherofPufflings · 22/06/2026 18:37

He's with us, he's had antiemetic injectiona, antibiotics, paracetamol (doesn't seem to be in a huge amount of pain), omeprazole, appetite stimulants and probiotics. My main concern is getting him to eat because he seems very averse to pretty much any food at the moment. When he does eat he vomits a fair bit back up and has frequent diarrhoea. If he doesn't eat soon then I'm going to ask the vet about a feeding tube.

I think we've made the right choice to stay here away from the heat of home and building work, but I'm just not sure. It's so difficult to know what to do for the best.

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BruceLeTerror · 22/06/2026 18:47

I’m glad you’ve got a diagnosis, pancreatitis can be very painful for them (my vet likened it to stomach cramps?)

I probably wouldn’t worry too much about lack of appetite at the moment (although my boy gets steamed white fish and bone broth for a few weeks after an attack)

The most important thing is hydration, I think that’s what makes pancreatitis so dangerous? Just make sure he’s taking enough water on board (and keeping it in him)

Poor little pupper, (and you!) it’s so awful when they’re poorly 😞😞

MotherofPufflings · 22/06/2026 19:15

BruceLeTerror · 22/06/2026 18:47

I’m glad you’ve got a diagnosis, pancreatitis can be very painful for them (my vet likened it to stomach cramps?)

I probably wouldn’t worry too much about lack of appetite at the moment (although my boy gets steamed white fish and bone broth for a few weeks after an attack)

The most important thing is hydration, I think that’s what makes pancreatitis so dangerous? Just make sure he’s taking enough water on board (and keeping it in him)

Poor little pupper, (and you!) it’s so awful when they’re poorly 😞😞

Thank you, I've been encouraging him to drink as much as possible and I'm reassured that his hydration levels have been good whenever he's been assessed this week.

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