2yo dog just not herself

[pitakelly13]

About 4 or 5pm today I noticed my 2yo Shepherd is not acting herself, very lethargic and meek, not very cheerful. She hasn't drank any of her water in the house, but I'm not sure if she drank from her outside bowls. Her nose is warm but much of what I read on google says that is not a good indication of much.

I tried to (after hours) call and email the vet to ask if I should take her in for an emergency, but he hasn't responded yet.

Any suggestions?

[Penguinetta]

Does she have any other symptoms?

[pitakelly13]

No. no vomiting, diarrhea, or anything like that...just not being her normally active self

[s4mula]

Is she eating? Having normal BMs? Urinating at all? You can check her gums, if they are pink and moist, it's a good indication that she's hydrated. If they seem pale and tacky, you may want to consider taking her to an e-clinic.

[pitakelly13]

Update: After six hours and $2100, Katie has been diagnosed with something called IMHA, a blood/immune system disorder. Her prognosis is not great. Mortality rates are anywhere from 20-80%. We did catch it early apparently, which may help. For the next 48 hours she is hospitalized on many meds and transfusions, praying she will survive.

Please, let this help all pet owners to be aware of those hinkey feelings that something just isn't right, even when no other symptoms are obvious!!

[BlueEyedFrog]

I have been wondering about your Shepherd. I so am sorry to hear this is the outcome of a hunch that something wasn’t quite right. How scary. Thankfully you acted so quickly!

I will be pulling for her to get through this. Please keep us updated as to how you and Katie is doing.

[sundae]

Originally Posted by pitakelly13

Update: After six hours and $2100, Katie has been diagnosed with something called IMHA, a blood/immune system disorder. Her prognosis is not great. Mortality rates are anywhere from 20-80%. We did catch it early apparently, which may help. For the next 48 hours she is hospitalized on many meds and transfusions, praying she will survive.

Please, let this help all pet owners to be aware of those hinkey feelings that something just isn't right, even when no other symptoms are obvious!!

I was offline last night and am just now reading this. It's Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia and you're right. It's not good. I am praying right along with you. Should she survive, talk to your vet about never vaccinating this baby again. You don't want any stressors that could affect her health.

ETA:

Please do post updates. Is she being released into the care of your regular vet this morning and then back to the ER tonight? I'm so glad you acted on your gut instinct. I did that a few years ago and my dog had bloated. Had we opted to wait it out, she would have died.

[pitakelly13]

I'll be calling Dr. Shelton this morning to talk about next steps if she makes it through the crisis.
Right now she will remain an inpatient until at least tomorrow night at the hospital in Grapevine. The emergency clinic at Custer and 121 sent us there because they had more testing equipment than you can find in any emergency clinics in Collin County.

[sundae]

Originally Posted by pitakelly13

I'll be calling Dr. Shelton this morning to talk about next steps if she makes it through the crisis.
Right now she will remain an inpatient until at least tomorrow night at the hospital in Grapevine. The emergency clinic at Custer and 121 sent us there because they had more testing equipment than you can find in any emergency clinics in Collin County.

So glad that Dr Shelton is your vet. He's fabulous and won't steer you wrong.

ETA: I recently completed a home visit (as part of the adoption process for my rescue group) for a family whose dog survived hemolytic anemia. If you want & when the time is right, I can put the two of you in touch with each other.

[pitakelly13]

Originally Posted by sundae

So glad that Dr Shelton is your vet. He's fabulous and won't steer you wrong.

ETA: I recently completed a home visit (as part of the adoption process for my rescue group) for a family whose dog survived hemolytic anemia. If you want & when the time is right, I can put the two of you in touch with each other.

Thank you.