My german Shepherd puppy passed away today, and my other one...

Riicky · 05-13-2008, 08:09 PM

Well, I had a terrible day today. I have a 6 month old German Shepherd puppy that passed away. She was so sweet... This is horrible. But, I have a 10 month old German Shepherd as well. I obviously freaked out when I seen the pup dead this morning. I rushed my other dog to the vet, to get a checkup to make sure he was okay. He acted okay earlier today. Wanted to play, and what not. But since the vet trip. He's been really sleepy. And hasn't eaten or drank anything yet today. He's only 65 lbs. So he never was a huge eater. But still, I haven't seen him eat anything today. I just found out about Parvo... Like minutes ago. I have no idea how my other dog passed away. And I'd been extremely sick myself the past 5 days so I havent payed any attention to my dogs eating habbits or when their outside I didn't see their stools or notice them vomitting. I'm hoping Jaxsyn (my other shepherd) Is sad about Lilah. I don't know if that's true about dogs greeving over other dogs. They were very close though and got a long beautifully. But As of now I'm not as sick as I was so I'm really focusing on jaxsyn. I can't take losing both of my dogs man. That would be so aweful. What should I do? Take him back to the vet tomorrow to get Checked for parvo? Or if he acts okay tomorrow just disregard the whole thing? I don't have a lot of money at all. I'm actually poor as snot. lol. But I'll find a way to pay for parvo testing if necessary...

But I know this post is really scatter brained, and jacked up. I'm really upset about my dog who passed. And my other dogs health. Should I not worry yet though tonight? DO dogs infact greave other dogs? Or could the vet trip of rattled him? He did get his shots today. Neither of my dogs had anything more than puppy boosters up until today. I didn't really know it was this nescessary. First time dog owner, and I'm only 23. I just don't know certain things?

Thanks if anyone cares to read this and help. It's GREATLY appreciated.

OH, and I did notice Lilah sleeping more and more. Not as active. But like I said, I had been pretty sick the last week as well So I didn't think a whole lot of it. They did have an encounter with a squirrel... Jaxsyn actually has a few deep cuts that were bleeding last week from the squirrel. But they look to be healing fine The vet didn't think much of it. But do squirrels carry any weird diseases that could of hurt my dogs? My dog's ended up killing the squirrel and playing tug of war with him. I stopped them don't worry. They aren't mean dogs. They were just trying to play. So don't hate them. Their puppies!

MarleysGirl · 05-13-2008, 08:16 PM

First of all Im so sorry to hear about your puppy. Losing a dog is hard enough, but must be even harder with just a pup. My thoughts are with you.

What did the vet say when you took your other dog in? Did they not suggest any testing? Are you getting them to look into what happened with your other pup? I would always rather be safe than sorry, especially with my dogs health. Please keep us posted.

Riicky · 05-13-2008, 08:20 PM

Well the vet knows I don't have a lot of money so they didnt reccomend doing any testing on poor little lilah. She just told me their could be 1000 different reasons why she died. She acted like Jaxsyn was okay. She just said keep an eye on him. I'll be more than happy to pay for testing with jaxsyn though. Like I said, there is no way I could handle loosing him too. Hes my best friend! He's just laying here looking at me now. I really don't know if he's just tired. (I also got him groomed today too.) from a long day at the vet and grooming place or he's sad about lilah, or if he's starting to get sick. I just can't tell and it's driving me insane.

salask · 05-13-2008, 09:04 PM

Well, i can say dogs do grieve. At least Daisy did when Sweety passed away. They were best of buds and were always together. Daisy didn't want to eat and just wanted to be by herself. Have you ever had any blood work done on Lilah? Maybe there's something going on and unless you have some blood work, you won't really know for sure if Lilah is grieving or if she's sick. Best of luck!

Riicky · 05-13-2008, 09:10 PM

No bloodwork has been done on either dog. Lilah is the one that passed away though. I probably typed something wrong in an earlier post. But I think I'm gonna try and make an appointment tomorrow for Jaxsyn to get some bloodwork done to be safe. I can't deal with this. He's just sleeping He never sleeps this much. :-(

salask · 05-13-2008, 10:02 PM

Sorry, i got the names mixed up....
Try to be strong for your pup, dogs can sense your sadness and stress. If he continues this way, you have to get some blood work done so you can at least have peace of mind... Good luck!

Love's_Sophie · 05-13-2008, 10:09 PM

I am sooooooooo sorry for your loss!!!

I am guessing your older boy is grieving over your loss as well, but as others have mentioned, simply keep an eye on him, and get further vet advice and care if necessary...if something doesn't feel right (other than the grieving), then go with your gut...

Elana55 · 05-14-2008, 11:52 AM

Well, there are some simple things you can do to check your dog's health. Can you take your dog's temperature? it ought to be between 100 and 102 degrees. You do this with a rectal thermometer, just like a baby. If you don't feel comfortable doing this, ask your vet to show you how.

Is your dog drinking plenty of water? You can keep an eye on that AND you can take some of your dog's loose skin in your hand and pull it up.. it should go right back in place (slide easily back in place). If it stays up and slowly goes back in place your dog may be a bit dehydrated.

However, temperature tells you a LOT. If it is very high or very low (out of the range I mentioned), go back to the vet.

Dogs need shots, just like babies do. Puppy shots are not long lived and dogs need two sets of shots.. 2-3 weeks apart the first time and then annually after that. Some people don't vaccinate annually.. they do blood work instead to see if the dog has immunity.

Is your dog on Flea Preventative medication or Tick prevention? Fleas and ticks can make a dog sick.

I sure am sorry you lost your puppy. It sounds like you are trying really hard to learn and be a good dog owner.

You said your other puppy got his shots when he went to the vet? He might be a little sleepy from that too.

brighteyes · 05-14-2008, 02:46 PM

I hate to make you scared, but I had a pup (almost a year old) pass away very early on monday morning from parvo. It was horendous. Her companion, a 9 month old australian shepherd started showing symptoms last night....I had been researching parvo since the diagnosis of the first pup on the weekend, and I urge you to immediately take your dog back and get him tested. The test itself should not be expensive, it is the treatment that they recommend that cost $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Believe me, I spent HOURS on the phone trying to find a new vet that did not insist on the standard treatment that is $1500.00/per day/night, on that would prescribe antivirals even though they have not been researched in dogs....for not I am just pushing electrolytes/fluids using a syring and waiting for our appointment time. Like you, I don't know if I can take the loss of another dog. (both dogs had been vaccinated for parvo....they can still get it)

Riicky · 05-14-2008, 09:38 PM

That's horrible bright eyes. I woke up early today to take my dog to the vet, but he acted fine. He woke me up and wanted to play. He braught his favorite ball and laid it on me this morning. So we played, and he drank water, and ate just a little. But he's drinking water fine. No vommiting. He's only made poopies once in the past 36 hours. And when he did it wasn't 100% solid. But I JUST switched new food to him today. (What little he ate) I changed from pedigree puppy to that eukanuba german shepherd dog food. He wouldn't touch that pedigree crap anymore. But I called my vet and they said since he is acting normal now he's probably fine. He could of just been reacting to the shots yesterday. I really hope your austrailian shepherd makes it through. People outside of the dog community just don't realize how much dogs mean to people. But I feel your pain. Goodluck.

ChrissyBz · 05-14-2008, 09:47 PM

Sorry for hijacking Riicky.

Bright eyes. Tamiflu. It has helped many dogs survive parvo it's off label though and many vets still do not use or know about it's effectiveness with parvo. Check it out. Spread the word.

cshellenberger · 05-14-2008, 10:29 PM

Riicky,
Eukanuba isn't much better than Pedigree. If you really want a quality food go to something like Natural Balance, Wellness or Solid Gold. All are made from human grade ingredients with NO corn, soy, by-products or harmful preservatives.

RRM_Mom08 · 05-15-2008, 12:12 AM

For the food i suggest looking here http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/ It gives a breakdown of most of the major dog foods on the market (because both of those that you named are pretty crappy)

I am so sorry for your loss but..I would have had the bloodwork done on the dog ASAP after the other dog passed..and if you purchased that puppy from a breeder and had a contract most would require a PM exam to know exactly why the puppy passed

Riicky · 05-15-2008, 12:57 PM

snap, i thought that the eukanuba was good stuff. That's what the people at petco told me at least. Where can I find better dog food? And I'm not sure about a contract with the breeder about a PM test on lilah. I never thought about it. We signed some stuff I'm not sure if it had to do with anything like that.

cshellenberger · 05-16-2008, 12:14 AM

Petco carries both Solid Gold and Natural Balance. Don't listen to the people who work there, most know squat about pet food.

winniec777 · 05-16-2008, 04:06 AM

I'm so sorry about your pup. I read your post pretty quickly so maybe you made this clear and I missed it -- did you say that both dogs got shots? The boxer who belonged to a friend of mine died from a reaction to a booster shot -- shots he had gotten before with no problems. It's pretty rare, I guess, but it can happen. Again, I'm sorry for your loss. And glad to hear the other dog is doing better.

Riicky · 05-17-2008, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winniec777

I'm so sorry about your pup. I read your post pretty quickly so maybe you made this clear and I missed it -- did you say that both dogs got shots? The boxer who belonged to a friend of mine died from a reaction to a booster shot -- shots he had gotten before with no problems. It's pretty rare, I guess, but it can happen. Again, I'm sorry for your loss. And glad to hear the other dog is doing better.

no neither dog had it's shots. It couldn't of been parvo because I'm sure jaxsyn would of gotten it and died, or gotten sick. He's really active again like he used to be, and came up negative for parvo or anything else. He must of initially been sick from all of the shots that they gave him the day Lilah died. If Lilah did infact pass away from me not getting her shots then... I don't know I'm a real Jerk for not getting them. I didn't really know it was that important. Sadly.

SMoore · 05-17-2008, 06:58 PM

I didn't read all the posts so you may have already mentioned but what shots did the older dog get at the vet?

I'm not very fond of all the vaccinations vets do and many can really harm the dog.

I'm sorry for your loss. I have a 10 month old GSD and i'd be lost without her.

PeppersPop · 05-18-2008, 04:29 PM

What a terrible, horrible, no good, crappy day!!! I am so, so, so, sorry that you are going through this.

One thing I am wondering... what kind of illness/symptoms did you have? There are some diseases that both humans and dogs can get so I am wondering if perhaps there is some link between what you had and what your pup had.

Regarding Jaxsyn, I would keep an eye on him but from what you've said, it sounds like he's ok. You mentioned a number of things that could cause your dog to act tired and a little off... a stressful day, including a vet visit, vaccines, and grooming, loss of a friend/playmate, a food change, being on a different schedule while you were sick.

I do think that dogs get upset over the loss of a playmate or friend. Also keep in mind that dogs definitely pick up on their owner's emotions. I am sure that he is feeling your sadness as well as his own.

After reading all of your posts, it sounds like Jaxsyn got checked by the vet and was not sick. It also sounds like he is now back to his normal self.

As far as the blood testing goes, I would talk to the vet about it. It may not be necessary. Taking a bunch of blood to run tests is going to be expensive and its going to be stressful for both you and Jaxsyn. Unless there are some symptoms or some indication of a problem, I'm not sure what you would be accomplishing by testing him for health problems he has no symptoms of. I think you would be better off saving the money and using it to get Jaxsyn up to date on his shots and putting him on heartworm and flea/tick preventative.

As far as food changes, make sure you do it gradually... decrease the old, increase the new until he's only getting the new food.

Regards,
Sid

[quote=Riicky;292078]Well, I had a terrible day today. I have a 6 month old German Shepherd puppy that passed away. She was so sweet... This is horrible. But, I have a 10 month old German Shepherd as well. I obviously freaked out when I seen the pup dead this morning.