Woke up at 7 to Rio having difficulty breathing, standing, and concentrating.. Rushed him to our vet, as I thought he might be having a stroke. He has a level 4 heart murmur for which he takes Enacard daily. We arrived at the vet at 8:00 and they did a chest exray looking for fluid buildup, and a complete blood work up checking for infections and kidney function. To make a two hour visit into a "short story," his white blood count was slightly elevated thus we now are on antibiotics; and the overall diagnosis is that he suffered a seizure likely caused by his heart beat dropping temporarily which reduced the oxegen to his brain. Rio was 11 years old last October and is very tiny.. The vet said the seizures may be reoccuring as he ages. He is now able to stand, walk, breathe normally, and was eating a few minutes ago. I was truly afraid I was losing him this morning.. but I had a Shiztu/Maltese cross that had seizures for 3 years before I lost her at age 16. However, she was a 12 pound girl compared to Rio who is 2.5 pounds.. Please keep Rio in your thoughts and prayers... Since I have 8 chis, some may not remember which is Rio, so here is a pic of him.. Thanks for your prayers.
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Until we extend the circle of our compassion to all living things, we will not, ourselves, find Peace... -Dr. Albert Schweitzer
Oh, he is a tiny boy, and I know your heart was in a panic this morning.. I will be thinking of you,& Rico and yes, seizures can be managed, Are they going to change his meds, or add new ones?
Deb, You know I will keep Rio in my prayers. He is my favorite as he reminds me of my little Prissy. I hope he does well now. Please keep us up to date on him. Give him akiss and hug from me.
Thank you ladies.. Ellen they upped the dosage on his heart meds, and added an antibiotic for 10 days to treat whatever has his white count elevated. He is normally checked every 90 days for his heart murmur, but they want to see him once a month now.. I am $225.83 poorer...lol but my baby feels better and that is what is important to me.. Told hubby we will have to '"cut out" our Zaxby's, Chik-Fil-A, and Captain D's for February...lol Looks like ham sandwiches at home for us!
-- Edited by chideb at 13:14, 2008-01-28
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Until we extend the circle of our compassion to all living things, we will not, ourselves, find Peace... -Dr. Albert Schweitzer
Oh Deb, I know that was a scarey time and the drive must have seemed to take forever.Like when we are rushing to the ER it seems like it takes forever to get there. You and Rio are in my prayers. I lift all my Crossings friends up in pray everynight. I hope everything gets better now and he is able to "hold his own" for awhile longer. I know vet bills are so high but we still do it because we love them so much. Sometimes I wonder if pet insurance would be a good thing.
Deb, I'm so sorry to hear about what happened with Rio. I will pray that the new meds keep him as healthy as possible for as long as possible. I don't think any of us here would forget who Rio is. He's like our wee little old uncle.
Thanks guys for your concern... He is feeling better this evening.. it's nearly 6 PM here now. We started on his antibiotics at 11 this morning, so he will get it again at 11 tonight.. Will keep you updated.
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Until we extend the circle of our compassion to all living things, we will not, ourselves, find Peace... -Dr. Albert Schweitzer
You guys are very thoughtful, and I sincerely thank you.. Louise, he has been in here with me at the puter since we got up this morning.. i just took him back to "his" bedroom (lol) and he is napping now.. Even tho he prefers my bed, I have been keeping him close so I can watch him.. He went out to potty with the pack earlier and ate his treat when we came back inside.. He ate his "Moist and Meaty" last night and this morning.. He can't eat kibble cause he only has a few teeth left... The others eat Science Diet small bites and so did Rio for most of his life... but now I let him eat whatever he can chew and likes. The vet put him to sleep and pulled 4 teeth in 2005, plus what he has lost on his own.. Bless him, he is gonna be toothless, bald (he's losing hair too), and nearsided... but he will always be the "Prince" around here..
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Until we extend the circle of our compassion to all living things, we will not, ourselves, find Peace... -Dr. Albert Schweitzer
At each age, he deserves to eat what he wants, Maybish is the same way, She has a few teeth missing on their own. I am glad that he is doing better, What a scare for you...
Deb, you know I'm the same with Prissy. She can eat whatever she wants, when she wants. She still has all her teeth and her food of choice is still Iams. I recently tried Senior menu from Bil Jax but she turned her nose up at it so I gave it to my son for his 11 year old Pug. Give Prince Rio a hug from me.
Oh Deb, I just came across your post on Prince Rio. I'm so happy to hear His Majesty is doing better. Please give him a kiss for me on his tiny little head. Bless you, little one.
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Siggy by Rosa
"My sunshine doesn't come from the skies,
It comes from the love in my dog's eyes."
Prayer works... I have known that for a long time now.. Rio is acting like his ole spoiled self today.. He has been in my lap or on my computer desk with his blankie all morning..lol I think I hear him asking for some thin sliced deli roast beef... slightly heated, please... he has "radar" when anyone fixes a sandwich around here!! lol
-- Edited by chideb at 13:51, 2008-01-31
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Until we extend the circle of our compassion to all living things, we will not, ourselves, find Peace... -Dr. Albert Schweitzer
So glad to hear Rio is doing so well today. They sure can scare the heck out of us, can't they? I hope he enjoyed his deli roast beef, slightly warmed.lol You go Prince Rio.