Sunday, February 3, 2013

Excessive Drooling

For the past month or so, Sidney seems to start drooling a lot when he isn't feeling well.  Well, it has been happening longer than a month - but this month seems like it is more constant.  He will sit up as straight as he can because it might make him feel better like his Bailey Chair does with his food.  But it's one of those things where we don't know really what else to do.  We will put him in his chair for a while - but that doesn't seem to do much.  I think he may just need to regurgitate to get out whatever is making him feel uncomfortable.  But I really can't force that to happen.  And don't want to.

Basically we just sit with him and pet him while he is sitting up and drooling and wipe his mouth.  These episodes pass - but I really hope they go away.  He doesn't seem like he is in pain or anything.  He just seems uncomfortable, like indigestion.  I am guessing something is stuck in a pocket in his esophagus that causes him to feel like this and drool excessively.  Poor guy.  For now we will just do what we can to make him feel better and loved.  Because that's all we can do when this happens.

Well, to be safe I took him to the vet.  They checked him out and did X-Rays, etc.  Basically he is fine - nothing like Aspiration Pneumonia or something stuck in his esophagus.  It could be he has more acid reflux than normal getting out of his stomach and into his esophagus - making him uncomfortable.  The Vet looked up to see his maximum Prilosec (omeprozale) dosage.  We can increase it for a dog Sid's size and weight to 40mg (which is 2 pills at night instead of one).  We will give this a try and hopefully it helps!  I know some people use a Pro-Collar to try and keep their dog's head elevated which he sleeps.  We tried this for a while and ended up having to buy a few because Sid chewed them up - he just doesn't like wearing them.  We'll see if he will need to get used to it at night again this time - but we will wait and see if it comes to that.

UPDATE 2/13/13 - It seems like the 40mg of Prilosec (Target brand omeprozale) has worked - he seems to be much better now.  My only concern is what if he gets used to this dosage and it comes back - this is our maximum dosage.  I may try and decrease him down to 20mg at the end of the month and see if nothing changes, that way when he gets bad like earlier I can up his dosage back to 40mg until the episode passes.

11 comments:

  1. I sure hope this will pass real soon.
    You have no idea how much your blog has taught me over the last few days.
    My little girl was diagnosed 5 weeks ago and I fear we are losing our battle. She is only 10 weeks old and having a really tough time.
    It makes me happy to see Sid live such a wonderful and normal life. You are great doggie parents!

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    1. Hi ive just come across this blog too and find the info on here great! Im also struggling, my little boy was diagnosed 2 weeks ago and hes still only a baby too, 26 weeks. Yesterday was a bad day (15 episodes) but he had managed to go 3 days with only 2 episodes. My vet told me to think of putting my baby to sleep! There are so many wonderful pooch parents managing this horrible condition and managing it well. Hang on in there, you just need to find whats best for your dog. Anything in liquid form is really bad for my dog and has to keep hydrated with the water we add to his food. im having a go at making sum hydration jelly cubes today.
      Well Done for this blog and well done Sidney

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    2. It was really difficult for us in the beginning - we would weigh him every day and celebrate the gaining of just one ounce. But it gets easier once you start getting on a routine and stop constantly worrying that your dog could pass away at any moment. The reality s - if you can feed him/her vertically and keep an eye out for Aspiration Pneumonia - everything should be OK - as you can see from our blog - lots of ups and downs - but I wouldn't trade Sidney for the world! He is worth the extra work!

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    3. When Sidney had the drooling episode what did you about feeding her and and how long after you you gave her the Prilosec did you feed her. My 14 year old Rottweiler just got diagnosed with megaesophagus. This This is the first time I've she's hadshe's had to drooling episode.

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    4. They happen from time to time - we just wipe his mouth and stay on the routine.

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  2. Feel better, buddy!!!

    Linda with GSD Angel Baron

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  3. I hope Sidney feels better soon. My 9 year old Rottie, Bella was diagnosed in November and your blog has helped us so much.
    Thank you! Big juicy kisses for Sidney and prayers for this bad spell to pass.

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  4. Ryan, thank you for this blog! My Goldendoodle, Tucker, was diagnosed with ME less than a month ago. It's been a rough road- lots of vet bills, trying to find the a diet that he can keep down, adjusting my schedule to properly feed him!

    As you experience with Sidney, some days are better than others. I am reaching out to you because I need some advice. I am unable to come home during my lunch break as I am a teacher, and work 20 minutes away from our home. How important do you think it is that dogs with ME eat three times daily? Also, at what time do you feed Sidney his dinner?

    Thanks!
    Melissa

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    1. Hey Melissa - I don't think it matters all that much personally - as long as you get on a schedule that seems to work - that's what matters. Plus, I would assume that it is the amount of calories that the dog eats - not the overall quantity of food - so maybe do like we did for Sidney when he was a growing puppy - we added a Tablespoon each of Olive Oil(or a squirt of the Salmon Oil from the Pet Store), Eukanuba Puppy Weaning Formula and Instant Oatmeal to our soaked kibble and blended it all together. Plus, most dogs without MegaE only eat twice a day. Some people just have the luxury to feed their dog 5 times a day - we aren't one of them. Hope that helps!

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  5. Dear Ryan,
    First of all - thank you so much for your blog! I live in Bulgaria (Eastern Europe) and work in a dog shelter. I am fostering a 40 days old puppy with ME. Here dogs with ME are usually just put to sleep and there is no information about taking care of them at all!
    If it wasn't for your blog, I wouldn't have an idea how to manage the situatin. Now, with the chair, jelly water and your advises, things are so much better! I think our puppy owes you and Sidney a life:)
    Thank you one more time and I pray for Sidney to get better!

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  6. Hi Nadia - how great of you to take care of your puppy! Really glad we could help you save your puppy's life - that's why we started this blog in the first place. We put the info out there for you - your the one taht saved the puppy's life - you should be commended!!! Great job!

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