Poor Raustyk girl * update on pg 5, not too good *

[lv4dogs]

Last night, shortly after I got home from work, Raustyk started whimpering out in pain as she was laying on the couch. She wasn't even moving around or the like. I called her off to see what was the matter. She could barely walk. Her hind end was so wobbly & unstable. It was weird & frightening, she was in pain and so unstable. Like a combination of toxins (except mentally she was sound) and pain/injury. She was like that all night despite pain meds, comfy beds & tlc. So today she spent all day at work with me... at the vets.
She had fluids, blood work, nerve tests, an ultrasound, and some meds. She goes back tomorrow & again Saturday for more fluids, tests, monitoring, etc...
Her bun & cre were high. Her bun has always been a little high, ever since I adopted her at 6 months of age. Now her BUN is 49 and her CRE is 3.1. Everything else was either at a safe level or were not too far off and shouldn't pose a threat. More extensive blood work tests were sent out to the lab as well & we'll have the results tomorrow morning.
I don't know the complete results from the ultrasound but I did speak briefly with the Dr. who did it. I still have to talk to the doctor that is handling this case more tomorrow to get more precise details. But overall, nothing looked too bad. The kidneys are a little small but I guess not small enough to cause this problem or any problem really, but then again it is not good for them to be this small since she has elevated liver & kidney values. I think if we can correct her levels now her kidneys should remain healthy or at least close to it. If not then there is a possibility I am sure that her kidneys will fail & or become diseased faster than if she was healthy. The cause for this is unknown, there are quite a few possibilities though. There was mention of another "non-normal" reading on the ultrasound report but I was unable to read the writing. But it wasn't that bad though. I will find out more tomorrow.
The reason for what ever is wrong with her is still unknown. It's small talk (or at least I hope) that it could be a few things, like vestibular disease, a blood clot, a brain tumor, some sort of nerve disorder or the like. I am hoping that it's not any of those though. The suddent onset of this and some of the symptoms kind of point towards those. But some of the symptoms & test results make it seem like it may be something a little milder thank god.
She is a little perkier though after getting 2 bags of fluids & some drugs.

I hope my girl gets through this with no long term, ill effects.

[luvofallhorses]

I will be praying for Raustyk that everything turns out okay! (((HUGS)))

[K9soul]

I'm sorry to hear Raustyk is so sick . I will definitely keep her in my thoughts and prayers.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

Poor Raustyk.

I'll be keeping you guys in my thoughts. I hope everything turns out ok!

[Daisy and Delilah]

I'm so sorry to hear this, Sue. I'll keep all of you in my thoughts and prayers. {{{{{HUGS}}}}}

[chocolatepuppy]

I will keep Raustyk in my prayers.

[lv4dogs]

Sorry, I copied & pasted this from my lj. I have a lot to do & didn't have time to re-write it all.
We continue to thank each & every one of yous for your thoughts & prayers!

So more tests and consults were done today on Raustyk. We have not ruled out most of the other possible conditions that I have already listed before but have come to the conclusion that it is most likely something more along the lines of a degenerative myelopathy problem or even some sort of neuropathie problem. The whole kidney thing has been brewing for quite some time. Although it is worse now it is probably not related to her hind end problem.

We have also come to the conclusion that pretty much the only things at this time that would help diagnose the problem besides time & what we are already currently doing are things like an MRI, bone scan or the like. But even so, there really wouldn't be much of a cure for her if she were to have any of those problems detected by those means and the few things that might have a cure she would not be a good candidate for.

So we are monitoring her closely, giving her proper exercise & therapy, low protein foods, fluids, supplements & tramadol for pain.
I have quite a bit of research to do, mostly regarding some supplements & just about everything on how to feed a low protein all raw diet.

It stinks, her kidneys can not handle a lot of protein but her muscles really need it. It's a no win situation here.

[Ginger's Mom]

Just seeing this now, Sue. Not really sure what to say other than I will add my good thoughts and prayers to those that are undoubtedly already going for our dear Raustyk. Hope things improve for that big girl.

[luvofallhorses]

I will continue to keep Raustyk in my thoughts and prayers. (((HUGS))) to you both!

[Kater]

Oh no, I'm so sorry to hear about Raustyk. You will both be in my prayers! Hugs being sent to you both!

Maybe you could consider Chinese herbal pain medicine (is there a local alternative vet?) in light of her kidney function? At the clinic where I work we use a formulation called Body Sore (Chinese Name: Shen Tong Zhu Yu). We get it from Shen Xie, DVM PhD of the Chi Institute in Florida. Here is how he describes the Body Sore: Half of the ingredients are to resolve Qi-blood stagnation and relieve pain, and another half ingredients are to tonify Kidney and strengthen the bones and ligament/tendons.

Just another pain management idea. I have tried using it for my dog's pain, but he has a very sensitive stomach and the herbs depress his appetite too much. However, it works wonders for some dogs.

[lv4dogs]

Maybe you could consider Chinese herbal pain medicine (is there a local alternative vet?) in light of her kidney function? At the clinic where I work we use a formulation called Body Sore (Chinese Name: Shen Tong Zhu Yu). We get it from Shen Xie, DVM PhD of the Chi Institute in Florida. Here is how he describes the Body Sore: Half of the ingredients are to resolve Qi-blood stagnation and relieve pain, and another half ingredients are to tonify Kidney and strengthen the bones and ligament/tendons.

Just another pain management idea. I have tried using it for my dog's pain, but he has a very sensitive stomach and the herbs depress his appetite too much. However, it works wonders for some dogs.

I am researching alternative methods now. Body Sore sounds like a wonderful product, thanks for mentioning it. I will keep it in mind that's for sure. At this point I don't want to chance using it right now though as her appetite is already close to nothing. If I can get that back up I'll be prepared!

[k9krazee]

Oh Raustyk I've been thinking of you guys all day. (((hugs)))

[crow_noir]

Poor girl. *hugs*

The protein dilemma reminds me of some of the reading i was doing in King's last year. Whether or not the protein issue is real is actually a huge topic online. You might want to try looking into the difference between protein strands. I read something that dogs needing a diet of low protein supposedly actually did well on non-red meat proteins. I couldn't find any studies done using nuts as a substitute. (I can't imagine feeding a dog as a vegetarian, but if it would help a dog with these problems I'd be interested.)

[pitc9]

Thinking of you!
{hugs}

[lv4dogs]

Raustyk's appetite is starting to come back. I can get her to eat some of her regular diet (raw) and she'll even eat some EVO. So for now, no more cooking or "spicing" up her meals. She's also beginning to drink more, so no more broth added to the water to entice her to eat.
The bad news, her gait is not any better. We have an appointment with a specialist on Monday, 4/16. That's the soonest they could get me in. (Or at least with one of the doctors I preferred). She goes back to my work Friday to see a Dr that hasn't looked at her lameness problem yet, but she did do the ultrasound. Then she will come back again with me on Tuesday to see yet another Dr., one that hasn't even sen her yet.
I pray and hope they find something that is curable, if not curable at least something we can treat the symptoms for her to make her more comfortable & so she can enjoy a little more time here.

We think that her 3 main problems (lameness, kidney/liver/appetite) are most likely unrelated. Although we still need to keep all three in mind & try to treat them so they can all work together again to make her healthier overall.

Poor girl. *hugs*
The protein dilemma reminds me of some of the reading i was doing in King's last year. Whether or not the protein issue is real is actually a huge topic online. You might want to try looking into the difference between protein strands. I read something that dogs needing a diet of low protein supposedly actually did well on non-red meat proteins. I couldn't find any studies done using nuts as a substitute. (I can't imagine feeding a dog as a vegetarian, but if it would help a dog with these problems I'd be interested.)

Thank you for the well wishes (and everyone else too!). And thanks for the advice too! I have been researching my butt off, about everything that is going on with her. lol I've actually (re)discovered that it is not really the amount of protein they get, rather than the type of protein. Genreally speaking; useful protein (coming from meat rather than fillers), moist protein (fresh meats), etc... are examples of quality protein. Commercial diets are dry and are filled with filler (corn, etc..) like proteins because it is easier to mass produce and non meats offer lower protein levels, making those types of diets lower protein diets.