Artesien Basset leaving in Shanghai needs some extra help!!!

[ouna]

As some of you know from my previous post, Ouna my 10 year old Artesien Basset has suffered from a calcification of the bone on her spine, from there she had a skin infection that brought her entire immune system down, that followed by Ouna refusing to eat for a week.

But after almost 3 months of battling I am happy to say that Ouna is doing much better. Her appetite is definitely back ( she eats voraciously nowadays), as well as her spirit. We are doing acupuncture session weekly and are seeing some net improvement in her back legs ( she finally accepts to be on her right side with no yelping), everyday we do some 5mn exercise on the wheelchair ( however she really does not like it )

But lately Ouna has been crying a lot, clearly from discomfort, she tosses and tosses and nothing seems to calm her and it does not come from her back. I suspected a UTI , and had a confirmation at the vet today , they are some white blood cells and crystals in her urine. So now she is back on anti-biotics ( which I am not very keen on ) so if any of you have any natural suggestion on how to help Ouna with this that would make both our days and night ( we are both totally sleep deprived)

On top of that I have noticed that her urinary tract is bit red, has anybody experience that with their dog, it is clearly inflamed , any suggestion how to appease her.

I was working on getting a baby pool to start some hydrotherapy but now I want to get rid of the UTI first.

When giving me some advice please remember that I live in China and my ressources are unfortunately pretty limited.

In advance thank you for your help

[critters]

Her urinary tract is probably irritated from the crystals. Can you get her to drink more, to flush them out? Maybe put a bit of broth or other yummy stuff in her water?

If the swimming water is clean, it may be that going in the pool (essentially a bath) might help with the UTI. Many critters will also drink some of the clean water, which would help too. With that said, she probably won't feel much like actually swimming until the UTI is under control.

[CarolC]

My dog drinks a lot when she has hydrotherapy. When it is time to express her bladder it is big and I usually say, "Oh, did you drink the pool again today?"

If she has inflammation, what about an anti-inflammatory to make her feel more comfortable? Could your vet give her an NSAID for a week? Most common pain relievers for dogs are anti-inflammatories, it might help.

I have no experience with crystals in dogs, but in cats it is necessary to change the diet so the crystals will not come back. Did your vet say anything about changing her diet?

It is great to see she is letting you do acupuncture on both sides now, it is so wonderful to see real progress like that!

[ouna]

Dear CarolC and Critters,

Thank you for the tips.
I am thinking of giving her some cranberry juice, what do you think?

She is already on NSAID. So not much I can do on that side.
I will check with my vet concerning the diet, and will try to find non salted chicken broth to add to her water ( not sure I can find that here though, but will figure something.

I am glad to hear that I can start the home hydrotherapy even though she has a UTI, Shanghai is very hot right now so either way I am sure we are both going to enjoy a refreshing swim.

Will keep you posted on the progress once more thank you for your support.

[CarolC]

I just checked the Mar Vista Vet website and what I said was wrong. They recommend not giving another NSAID along with Rimadyl because of increased risk of side-effects.

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/rimadyl.html

Cranberry is good for acidifying the urine which can be helpful with UTIs. But if she has crystals, you would have to be sure the cranberry won't make the crystals worse, I would hesitate to try it without knowing.

[ouna]

Dear all,

thank you for your kind help for Ouna.
Unfortunately Ouna has hurt her neck and was in alot of pain on Sunday, so we had to say goodbye. That was the hardest thing I ever had to do.
She left a immense gap behind her and we miss her tremendously.

However, I would like to thank the community for giving us such a support in those last months.
Despite the fact that we lived in China and that dogs don't have the same place that in the west, this website has given us the strength we need it.
So thank you

[critters]

I'm sorry for your loss. Other people around the world are fighting the same battles you did, and, hopefully, vets are watching, as well as potential pet parents, who see that disabilities aren't necessarily something to kill somebody for. You and your baby were trailblazers!

[Caroline]

I kept up on your journey with Ouna,
You really did so much for her she was so lucky to have you.
I am so sorry for your loss.
Caroline

[CarolC]

I am so sorry. You were giving her the best of care and she was a very lucky dog. I am sure she knew how much she was loved and how much you wanted to help her and she enjoyed knowing that every day of her life. I am very sorry for your loss.