Last night Jake was very quiet. We figured he was exhausted from being in the hospital for so long. We let him sleep. At bedtime, he got up on the bed and slept with us all night. Didn't get us up to pee at all, which is not normal.
On rising, he went out to pee. I fed Woody and Shane, and took Jake out on the deck with some chicken. He didn't want it. Took it in his mouth, and then spit it out. Went out to the lawn to poop. Several times. On his way back, stopped to drink out of a pool of water that had accumulated from the sprinkler run off. Ah ha! Back up on the deck, I gave him fresh water.
I tried feeding him a Merrick sausage. No luck. Fried up a steak. No luck. Swiss cheese. No thanks. What else is in the fridge? Tried some deli turkey. Ate that right up. Feed him a few slices and then tried to hide one of his pills in a piece. Spat that right out, so I forced the pill on him.
Jake laid back down by the sofa. I went out back to check his stools and they were black. I picked up one to take to the new vet. I also collected a bit of that water he was drinking. Time to walk everyone. Jake perked up a bit, so I thought I would take him down the street a little bit.
As we left the house, a neighbor was walking by with his dog and Jake went nuts. Barked and barked, as he always does. Good sign. Crossed the street and all of a sudden his back legs started to swing out and then they collapsed. He struggled back up and moved onto the tree lawn where he peed blood. I picked him up, threw him into the car, and drove to our regular vet.
While there, they checked his blood work to make sure he wasn't bleeding out. Collected a urine sample. More blood. Said we just needed to go to our appointment with the specialist. Mentioned Addison's disease.
Drove Jake to Central Texas Veterinary Specialty Hospital. Went through his history again. Doctor said it sounded very much like Addison's. They are keeping him overnight on fluids and will get the results in the morning. We have our fingers crossed that it is Addison's because she didn't sound hopeful otherwise. Generalized vasculitis is the only other explanation and that is not good. The lab results will be back in the morning. If it's not Addison's, we'll have some tough decisions to make.
We swung back to the vet to pick up Frank's car. One doc came out to see me and said every time a fax comes in they run over to see if it's from the specialist about Jake. The whole place is concerned about him. That made me cry more than anything else.
Now that we are home, I looked up Addison's. You know the feeling you get when you read your horoscope and it matches your life exactly? Well that's how I felt when I read this passage (Jake's symptoms are in purple):
I don’t have a diagnosis – what are the symptoms?
The symptoms of Addison’s disease can be vague. More importantly, they are similar to the symptoms of many different problems. Initially, the dog may be listless, or seem depressed. Many dogs are described as just seeming off, or losing the normal sparkle in their eye. Lack of appetite is a good indicator. Other symptoms include gastro-intestinal problems like vomiting and diarrhea. Pain in the hindquarters, or generalized muscle weakness such as a dog that can’t jump onto the bed or couch as he has done in the past is not uncommon. Shivering or muscle tremors may also be present. The most important thing to remember is that you know your dog better than anyone. If something seems amiss, have it checked out.
These symptoms may wax and wane over months or years making diagnosis difficult. If the adrenals continue deteriorating, ultimately the dog will have an acute episode called an Addisonian crisis. Potassium levels elevate and disrupt normal function of the heart. Arrhythmias can result and blood pressure drops to dangerously low levels. BUN and creatinine levels, generally indicators of kidney function, are often elevated. At this point many animals are diagnosed with renal failure, as the kidneys are unable to function properly. Typically animals are given IV solutions for rehydration, which may produce an almost miraculous recovery. This too, is a great indication that failure of the adrenals rather than of the kidneys is creating the symptoms.
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