[Jamie]

We have been told by the hospital that Bella has bowel inflamation disease which shows changes, the changes mean it’s permanent. She has to stay on a special diet for life, no chewies or treats ever. We have to muzzle her when she’s out walking to stop her eating ‘contraband’

Last week she got hold of some fruit down an alleyway and the next day became sick again. So if ever we doubted the special diet we don’t now.

Sad for Bella, she loved her chewies and we feel cruel but I have replaced them with chewie toys so she can still chew something. We also need to return to our vets and collect meds for another infection they found. She also has immune problems in her lower gut. At least the giardia has gone and she's on meds for coccidia.

It will be a permanent job trying to keep her well and control the flare ups but we’re grateful to finally have diagnoses. The new diets not cheap but it does work and Bella loves the food and now eats two tins a day. Much more than she’s ever eaten!

At the moment she’s happy and putting on weight, much more energy and life. That alone has made our Christmas. Poor little ones gone through so much it's good to see her trash the place on a loo lar moment

Wanted to thank everyone who has made us welcome here, it's thanks to all that we read on here that we knew something wasn't right and kept on fighting to get her diagnosed.

Thank You

 

[Jac]

Jamie, what you and Bella, and your family are going through is so hard on you all...but it is wonderful to know what has been causing her problems and to know that she will be happy and healthy again.

 

[Shannon(Phantom-Star)]

So happy to hear that you finally know what is wrong with Bella. I am sure it will be hard, but with time, it will get easier.. Thanks for keeping us updated on her condition.

 

[Jamie]

Thanks Jac and Shannon and everyone else that's given us advice and support.

Just sent Bella up to bed with Heather whilst I sneak out to work

At least now we know what the problems are we can work towards avoiding the bad stuff for her. We've never see her so bouncy :lol:

She's such a beautiful dog that we'll do whatever it takes to keep her happy

Jamie

 

[Shannon(Phantom-Star)]

The greatest joy is to see them happy, and flourish through the hard times and into the good. I am sooo happy to hear that she is on special food, and keeping the treats away might be hard, but worth it..

Are there any treats that are made by the special food she is on that she could maybe have?? I have to watch the treats I give to my lab. She gets very itchy and the whole summer she is on shots for allergies because of the grass. The winter months are good on her.. :lol: She still has to have a fish based food because of the allergies.

 

[Jamie]

Hi Shannon
No there are no treats of any kind, the wet food does come with a biscuit pack as well so at least we can use these for treats and mix with her meals.

Today I asked our vet for a copy of the hospital report on Bella, we're miffed to find the report is dated 12th December and yet we're told by our vet today that the meds need to be ordered, why hadn't they done this right away :roll:

The report concludes
'Histopathology results show chronic mild gastritis, enteritis and colitis. The gastris is superficial with lymphocytic cellular infiltrates and bacteria consistent with helicobacter species identified. It is difficult to ignore the potential for a significant helicobacter infectionin the face of lymphocytic gastritis. Intestinal biopsies are suggestive of inflammatory bowel disease, with lymphocytic-plasmacytic cellular infiltrates in the duodenum.'

She is nearing the end of the treatment for Coccidia and then she goes on another three lots of meds to control the above :shock:

Had we not asked for a copy of the report we'd never have known the full details.

This seems such a long road when you have to fight every step of the way.

Wheres' the 'big sigh' smilie?

 

[Shannon(Phantom-Star)]

Wow, that I think must sound worse than it is.. That sounds like a lot of real bad stuff. I think once you get into the routine, things will go smoothly, especially with her acting happy-go-lucky.

I would be real ticked that they had not ordered the meds sooner. That is ridiculous!! Hopefully, someone can chime in here with what all really means.. Just glad to know you have an idea of what is going on.

 

[Guest]

I'm glad you got finally some answers about Bella's problems. The big words in the report can be very frightening & you're absolutely right to be angry with the medication ordering delay. Someone obviously wasn't checking their To Do list.
To put your mind at ease, the outlook is good as long as it is treated. You're a good Dog Parent to have gone thru the time, worry & expense to find out what was wrong. Helicobacter is a bacterial infection that is responsible for causing inflammation & ulcers in the stomach or digestive tract & can lead to more serious changes in the digestive tract if not controlled.
Years ago, they used to assume that all stomach ulcers & gastric inflammation were due to food, stress or type A personality. But this helicobacter has been found to cause these problems & if proper medication to get the bacteria under control is given, you can get remarkable improvement. The bacteria is not a contagious one - it lives in the digestive tract along with all kinds of other natural, friendly bacteria that make digestion possible - so other animals or people are not at risk. Treatment includes taking an acid reducer along with an antibiotic. My Lab Patty (you regulars have heard about all her many medical issues) was diagnosed with helicobacter about 5 years ago & has done really well on the treatment, she is no longer on the antibiotics & she now only gets an occasional Tagamet pill (over-the-counter generic people type) when she shows signs of upset tummy (ie early morning vomiting - "empty tummy syndrome" - if she didn't eat enough before going to sleep.)
So, please take heart. Bella will do well. Keep us posted.

 

[Jamie]

I'm glad you got finally some answers about Bella's problems. The big words in the report can be very frightening & you're absolutely right to be angry with the medication ordering delay. Someone obviously wasn't checking their To Do list.
To put your mind at ease, the outlook is good as long as it is treated. You're a good Dog Parent to have gone thru the time, worry & expense to find out what was wrong. Helicobacter is a bacterial infection that is responsible for causing inflammation & ulcers in the stomach or digestive tract & can lead to more serious changes in the digestive tract if not controlled.
Years ago, they used to assume that all stomach ulcers & gastric inflammation were due to food, stress or type A personality. But this helicobacter has been found to cause these problems & if proper medication to get the bacteria under control is given, you can get remarkable improvement. The bacteria is not a contagious one - it lives in the digestive tract along with all kinds of other natural, friendly bacteria that make digestion possible - so other animals or people are not at risk. Treatment includes taking an acid reducer along with an antibiotic. My Lab Patty (you regulars have heard about all her many medical issues) was diagnosed with helicobacter about 5 years ago & has done really well on the treatment, she is no longer on the antibiotics & she now only gets an occasional Tagamet pill (over-the-counter generic people type) when she shows signs of upset tummy (ie early morning vomiting - "empty tummy syndrome" - if she didn't eat enough before going to sleep.)
So, please take heart. Bella will do well. Keep us posted.

wow thanks so much for posting this! Reading this has been a great help as Bella is still being sick some mornings. I'm going to the vets tonight and will let them know we are unhappy about their lack of speed in ordering meds, had I not gone in there last night we would never have found out about a lot of this. The hospital we're great but the report to the vets is in much more detail than ours.

It's good to know there is hope after all we have gone through with Bella. I'm still wondering just how much of this she may have been born with origionaly.

Thanks again for the post it really helped

 

[Jamie]

So far the new meds seem to be stopping the morning sickness and she continues to flourish at the moment.

Her best friend Madge (a two year old choc lab) has come to stay for ten days, we have to crate them both at feeding time as it's the only way to stop Bella getting at the other ones food. Madge is also having to follow the chewie ban but they are both running round having a great time

I have a feeling Christmas will be chaos but fun. We also have two thirteen year old male cats, one of which has kidney and tummy problems so it's special diets all round :roll:

We have to report back the the hospital after Christmas to let them know how bella is doing and more poo tests. Fingers crossed she continues to improve.

Would all this long term illness stunt her growth does anyone know? She seems to have stopped growing in the last couple of months, we thought the biggest growth spurt is between 5-9 months.

Jamie

 

[Jac]

Wow, I commend you on the wonderful care you are giving not only Bella but all of the animals in your home. You are remarkable!
PattyDaisy is so great to share her insight, so very helpful.
I don't know how this medication/treatment can affect Bella's growth, but my own Labradoodles stopped growing, pretty much, at 5-6 months of age. They are on the smaller side of "standard" weighing 43 lbs and 52 lbs.
My 43 lb girl has pancreatitus (sp??) and is very lean...she also has diet problems, but is strong, athletic and otherwise extremely healthy.

 

[gracielou]

Wow poor Bella and for your family I'm glad they did finally give you an answer. I would have to tell someone in the vets office about the meds not being ordered when they should have been. But the most important thing is she is feeling better.

 

[angelakj]

Oh man Jamie - I'm so sorry. What a mess. I'm glad you have a diagnosis so you can at least treat Bella and take care of her. Speaking of treats - you could make your own out of her food. Just for some variety of texture if nothing else. You should be able to cook the wet food on a cookie tray. Depending on how solid it is you could shape it into treats.

 

[Doro]

I'm sorry I haven't been keeping up on the posts--but I am so impressed at everything you have done to nurse this little girl to health. Bless you for all the caring you've shown her, and I am so glad that you are starting the reap the benefits of all of those efforts!! Hope you enjoy your holidays!

 

[Jamie]

Thanks Jac, gracielou, angelakj and Doro

Bella's doing alright, she's full of energy and mischief. She's enjoying having a friend to stay.

Here's a pic we took earlier today of Bella with her best friend. A choc lab called Madge

 

[Jamie]

Think I posted it wrong before because all I got was a red cross.

Should work fine now, I can see it on mine

 

[Jamie]

Speaking of treats - you could make your own out of her food. Just for some variety of texture if nothing else. You should be able to cook the wet food on a cookie tray. Depending on how solid it is you could shape it into treats.

Bella's food isn't easy to buy so we've ordered in bulk, we have managed also to track down the biscuit version of the same food.

Now at least we can fill her Kong with the treats and seal it with her wet food, she loves these. We also make Madge kongs made with her food (yup Madge is also a special diet dog) :roll:

We've never seen her with so much bounce and energy, she gulps food like there's no tomorrow which she's never done. So I think we're at last begining to see the light. She's half way through the latest meds, she eats so much she doesn't notice the meds in it :lol:

Christmas has been chaos but a whole heap of fun, Madge is here until the 2nd jan but has been no trouble at all.

 

[gracielou]

What great news glad she is eating so good and not having troubles with the new diet..

 

[Chesterpal]

Had to be such a huge relief to get the diagnosis and to start seeing the results of her treatment!

 

[Jamie]

Hiya

yeah it has been great to see bella full of life and energy

She has another week left on the latest meds. Understandably we're very cautious because each time she's finished meds in the past she has become sick again within weeks, so it'll be fingers crossed that the cycle has been broken.

She's a cheeky little un for sure but very cute with it!

Her friend has gone back home and now Heather and I have flu :lol:

Happy new year all

Jamie, Heather and Bella