Tooth extractions - old dog :(

booter

As the title says, my poor old pooch has decided not to eat He's been having very little since Saturday. He's never been a gobbler, he liked to crunch his food and "taste" it, (he really relished dinner time) so even the soft stuff I've given him, he tries to crunch and I think either it's still sore, or he doesn't like the sensation. He avoids his food dish like the plague - which is next to his water dish, so I have to remove the food dish so he can still drink.

I've tried pretty much everything to try and tempt him. And I realise that this makes him sound like a real prima donna (the vet made a similar reference on my last visit) but he really isn't - he's a typical feisty, independant Yorkie (or was until last Monday)

I can't believe how much he's lost interest in everything - usually, the mere mention of a w.a.l.k. (I swear he can spell) will have him doing the happy dance, and jumping as high as my waist. Now - nothing. Not even a glimpse of a wag of the tail. The cats in the garden are safe - he doesn't give them a second look.

It's so distressing - if I'd have known before that he would be so miserable, I'm not sure I'd have taken him There are very tiny daily improvements, but I didn't think for a minute that recovery would be so slow or so difficult.

I could return to the vets, but after the last visit, I think they see me as a neurotic owner (I guess I may be after all?!) What can they say - "he'll have to get used to it"? And I think they'd charge the consultation fee - I'm still feeling the effects on the bank balance from last week.

Sorry, feeling the need to have a good old moan and vent a little

sheramber

Two things come into my mind.

If he is reluctant to swallow has he got a sore throat from having a tube down it for the aneasthetic?

As an old dog has he got problems arising from having an aneasthetic?

booter

sheramber wrote: »

Two things come into my mind.

If he is reluctant to swallow has he got a sore throat from having a tube down it for the aneasthetic?

As an old dog has he got problems arising from having an aneasthetic?

Thanks for your comments - I've no idea! And they've already told me that the anaesthetic is usually gone from the body within 48 hours.

So I returned to the vets today. I saw a different one, and I have to say, they seemed to take me a little more seriously (I think this one may be more familiar with the breed) and not look at him like a "Paris Hilton" pooch (he's soooo not!) They've given him a good once over (he really don't like that thermometer :eek:) and temps ok, gums seem to be healing good, throat looks ok, no lumps etc in his tum - all very reassuring. So she's given him another jab of anti inflammatory, and says she wants to see him daily this week to see how he's doing (& for consistency).

An hour after the jab, he chased a cat down the garden (they've become very blase round here!), and he's just eaten dinner :j - ok, not a "full portion", but hey, baby steps . But he's back!!! :j So, I'm guessing, it must be pain related (and now feel guilty for not going sooner ) But I'm so relieved that he's finally eaten something, and he's got some of his personality back Someone said in another post on the board that the first rule of pet ownership is to trust your gut (sorry, can't remember who!) - how true that is!

Got a feeling that I'll have a big red mark on my file at the vets - as the owner from hell :rotfl:Good!

Mupette

awww glad to read he's perked up a bit and got back to cat chasing, and has managed some food.

maybe the antiseptic just took a little bit longer to leave his system / or being older just took a while to get back to his normal self?

Had we listened to the first vet who looked at our kitten Dave when he was ran over a few weeks back he'd be buried at the bottom of the garden by now. My husband insisted on x-rays and told them to ring Langford to see if they would take our kitten - glad they did, he's currently sulking in his crate (the kitten not the husband)

owlet

I'm so pleased you are making progress, that's great.

I expect his gums will be sore for a good couple of weeks. Maybe you can get pain relief into him now that he is over the worst, it seems that he still needs it. He might not be in actual pain as such but being sore is obviously enough to put him off eating & making him feel rough.

Does he like cheese? My little dog will take any tablets as long as cheese is involved lol. She's on half a Piriton twice a day for hayfever (luckily just streaming eyes) but shes loving a couple of pieces of low fat cheddar twice a day. She thinks it's christmas lol.

Well done for persisting with the vet!

booter

Mupette wrote: »

awww glad to read he's perked up a bit and got back to cat chasing, and has managed some food.

maybe the antiseptic just took a little bit longer to leave his system / or being older just took a while to get back to his normal self?

Had we listened to the first vet who looked at our kitten Dave when he was ran over a few weeks back he'd be buried at the bottom of the garden by now. My husband insisted on x-rays and told them to ring Langford to see if they would take our kitten - glad they did, he's currently sulking in his crate (the kitten not the husband)

Thanks Mupette I've been following your posts about Dave - I'm so pleased for you that he seems to be doing so well I find that husbands can sulk more than cats, although cats do it so much cuter & better :rotfl:

owlet wrote: »

I'm so pleased you are making progress, that's great.

I expect his gums will be sore for a good couple of weeks. Maybe you can get pain relief into him now that he is over the worst, it seems that he still needs it. He might not be in actual pain as such but being sore is obviously enough to put him off eating & making him feel rough.

Does he like cheese? My little dog will take any tablets as long as cheese is involved lol. She's on half a Piriton twice a day for hayfever (luckily just streaming eyes) but shes loving a couple of pieces of low fat cheddar twice a day. She thinks it's christmas lol.

Well done for persisting with the vet!

Thanks owlet The vets did tell us that his gums would be uncomfortable for a couple of weeks but to reintroduce softened "normal" food after about a week. :cool: Difficult to do when he wasn't eating at all.

Usually he absolutely loves cheese, but he really wasn't touching anything and the only way to persuade him to have the pain killer was to smother it in cheesy triangle.

I returned to the vet yesterday, and just to keep the momentum, she gave him another jab of painkiller. I asked what it was - Meloxicam. So I'm now wondering if he had an intolerance to the Onsior. But he's now almost back to 100% :j He's eating like a horse (if they eat softened chicken/mixer!), chasing sparrows, blackbirds, cats, Mum's dog (I'm dog sitting at the moment too), comes to say hello in the morning, does the happy dance when I get the lead out.....well, you get the drift The only after effect is that he gets a little tired when out walking. I haven't been going far, but even then the personality's back - he stands, looking at me as if to say "aww, c'mon, gimme a break":rotfl:.
The vet and I agreed I wouldn't return today, to see how he gets on, but that if he does go downhill, I can return tomorrow for another jab. But all's looking promising so far (knock on wood, fingers crossed and all that!)

Wow, this is turning into more of a blog - sorry! Anyway, I'll keep you posted!

jrtfan

Hi Booter. I've come late to this thread but just wanted to say I'm glad he seems to be returning to normal now after the dental.

Your breakdown of the Vet bill looks about right to me, given that it's £100 less because of the special offer. My older JRT had a dental in February which included removal of one of his upper 'fangs' plus a scale and polish for the remaining teeth (he probably has half of them left in his mouth). I think my bill was around £350 which included an amount for maintenance anaesthesia, I forget how much this was exactly. It's frighteningly expensive, isn't it? Seems to vary hugely depending on where you go, to. A neighbour of mine was given an estimate of £400-£500 to have her Westie's teeth cleaned and one extraction. This was from our local Vet down the road, which is why I stopped using them!

Re Greyhounds - I had one until a couple of years ago and what you've said about their teeth is quite right!

booter

jrtfan wrote: »

It's frighteningly expensive, isn't it? Seems to vary hugely depending on where you go, to.

Thanks jrtfan. Yes, it's shocking when they tell you how much :eek: and shocking how much it varies. The best advice always seems to be to shop around, but if you're happy with your vet and they "know" your dog, it's difficult to choose to go elsewhere. Not an issue in my case, as the vets I've used are relatively new to the area - thank goodness they had an offer voucher at the right time.:)

Quick update for those interested - he's definitely "back" :j He just now needs to learn to stop racing around like a loony when he's just eaten (he's thrown up his dinner this evening as a result ) - it's a learning curve, as he's now more of a gobbler/gulper!

jrtfan

Oh, that's lovely news - thank you for the update. He's timed his recovery with precision hasn't he - just in time to enjoy the weekend with you! Glad he's okay now xxx

owlet

Fantastic news, I'm so pleased to read that he's back to normal. It's so worrying when our fur babies are poorly isn't it.

If he continues to gobble to fast, you can buy bowls with knobbly bits in to slow up eating x