Infection and inflammation

[dotdotdot95]

Hello,

You might have seen my previous post of my Gertrude who had an infection in the leg and tail back in March.

She finished her antibiotics, but she was still walking a bit wobbly, and her feet seemed to have lumps. So back to the vet we went.

She has two abscesses, one in each feet/front leg. They tried to remove them surgically but the lumps are too deep and they don't want to damage any tendons therefore we are doing a course of antibiotics instead. Options are that a) the antibiotics is working, and the vet might extend it by a few weeks so ensure it's cleared b) the antibiotics have reduced the lumps, but not working quickly so they'll do surgery again and c) amputation.

She's been on Enrocare for about 2 weeks now. The first week she bit down on the plastic syringe, cracking it and making it sharp. She bit down on it again and then a few days later she gasped and I noticed the part between the tongue and gums is inflamed and has some sort of petechia. Assumed she scratched it when biting down on the broken syringe.

Phoned the vets and they said to keep an eye on it. She's already on antibiotics and painkillers so not much they could give.

Fast forward to today. As I was giving her the painkillers this morning I noticed it's still inflamed, but now it's on both sides.

I have sent images to the vet as well, and should hear back tomorrow when they're in.

I attached the image from today. My concern is that it started when we started Enrocare. Could this possibly be a side effect or allergic reaction? Could it be a form of mouth rot that happened when she scratched her gum?

Could this be completely unrelated?

I'm hoping someone has seen something like this before and can tell me what I should be preparing myself for.

Thank you!

 

[KarrieRee]

Hello,

You might have seen my previous post of my Gertrude who had an infection in the leg and tail back in March.

She finished her antibiotics, but she was still walking a bit wobbly, and her feet seemed to have lumps. So back to the vet we went.

She has two abscesses, one in each feet/front leg. They tried to remove them surgically but the lumps are too deep and they don't want to damage any tendons therefore we are doing a course of antibiotics instead. Options are that a) the antibiotics is working, and the vet might extend it by a few weeks so ensure it's cleared b) the antibiotics have reduced the lumps, but not working quickly so they'll do surgery again and c) amputation.

She's been on Enrocare for about 2 weeks now. The first week she bit down on the plastic syringe, cracking it and making it sharp. She bit down on it again and then a few days later she gasped and I noticed the part between the tongue and gums is inflamed and has some sort of petechia. Assumed she scratched it when biting down on the broken syringe.

Phoned the vets and they said to keep an eye on it. She's already on antibiotics and painkillers so not much they could give.

Fast forward to today. As I was giving her the painkillers this morning I noticed it's still inflamed, but now it's on both sides.

I have sent images to the vet as well, and should hear back tomorrow when they're in.

I attached the image from today. My concern is that it started when we started Enrocare. Could this possibly be a side effect or allergic reaction? Could it be a form of mouth rot that happened when she scratched her gum?

Could this be completely unrelated?

I'm hoping someone has seen something like this before and can tell me what I should be preparing myself for.

Thank you!

We need Tracie to respond to this- @Drache613

 

[nicoleraine]

We are dealing with the same thing right now. It started from an injury and it turned into what looks like exactly that - with the infected tissue spilling over the teeth (so painful for him).
It became inflamed and very painful for our boy. It's been seen by both our Emergency and regular vet. I will also defer to Tracie @Drache613, since I'm new here, but both vets have termed it Mouth Rot.
It sounds very plausible that a scrape from previous syringe feedings could have, unfortunately, gotten infected.

You may want to go back to your vet.
We are doing a systemic antibiotic and a local antibiotic on the site, as well as Meticam, and swabbing with an antiseptic. Additionally, it's all feeding and hydration by syringe to minimise any further irritation (he won't eat otherwise anyway). I am also trying the manuka honey. I found it helpful to drain the sites while administering the antiseptic when possible, and if he would allow it.

I hope your beardie recovers from all this without too much more distress. This sounds like a lot.

 

[dotdotdot95]

Thank you! Yes the vet also said it could be injury from the syringe and she is being syringe fed as well as she takes some veggies as well.

She's already on antibiotics and painkillers so nothing else they can prescribe. I was advised to swab the area for any discharge (so far there hasn't been any).

It hasn't changed shape or colour since last week and she isn't blackbearding anymore than usual. As you can imagine she's not a fan of medicine plus walking on her feet is still a struggle. She blackbeards when she gets the antibiotics, then when she tries to hold her weight on her front feet. But nothing other than that.

If anything changes, and not for the better, then they'll take a closer look.

I don't give her medicine through a syringe now, she gets it on a piece of veggie which she takes. And the formula in the syringe is a thicker consistency so I just let her lick it off rather than having her chew on it again.

She is strong willed. She is on week 3 of antibiotics and the swelling on her feet are going down now. We take pictures frequently so we can compare, and it's healing nicely.

She's had a rough year so far so I'm hoping she will pull through without anymore added stress.

 

[nicoleraine]

Thank you! Yes the vet also said it could be injury from the syringe and she is being syringe fed as well as she takes some veggies as well.

What a blessing she's still eating. Such great news! And how clever to get the meds on the veggies. Be sure to check for any remaining debris after she's eaten.

She's already on antibiotics and painkillers so nothing else they can prescribe. I was advised to swab the area for any discharge (so far there hasn't been any).

Great that you were able to see your vet. It sounded like you were already on a good portion of the meds.
The discharge was achieved with a little bit of pressure from the qtip (stopping if it wasn't tolerated) in order to excise the site. Unfortunately, most of it was left too long and it's hardened up too much to remove.

It hasn't changed shape or colour since last week and she isn't blackbearding anymore than usual. As you can imagine she's not a fan of medicine plus walking on her feet is still a struggle. She blackbeards when she gets the antibiotics, then when she tries to hold her weight on her front feet. But nothing other than that.

I'm glad to hear it doesn't seem to be causing her distress.

If anything changes, and not for the better, then they'll take a closer look.

I don't give her medicine through a syringe now, she gets it on a piece of veggie which she takes. And the formula in the syringe is a thicker consistency so I just let her lick it off rather than having her chew on it again.

She is strong willed. She is on week 3 of antibiotics and the swelling on her feet are going down now. We take pictures frequently so we can compare, and it's healing nicely.
She's had a rough year so far so I'm hoping she will pull through without anymore added stress.

It sounds like your girl is a fighter. We are in her corner, too.

 

[dotdotdot95]

Thank you! She needs a bit of persuasion to eat, and she won't touch bugs (very normal for her on antibiotics), which is why she now also gets Rephashy Beardie Buffet and CCF. I'm upping the ml on both from tomorrow, as she has lost some weight over the 2.5 weeks. But she likes butternut squash, and if I give her the meds on that and sprinkle bee pollen on it, then she will happily eat it. If she can taste the antibiotic, she will try to spit it out tho haha. She's a smart cookie.

I swear I am more stressed than she is because they take so long to recover. Especially the lil wounds she has from surgery, bless her.

I'm going to try to squeeze the bits, but she is no fan of me swabbing it, so we'll see how it goes. As soon as something touches her mouth she chews, even if it's the vet's finger

I always try to give the meds on veggies, since she once nearly inhaled some antibiotics from the syringe. She shook her head and got it out, but it was traumatising for us both. So since then, if she's on meds it's always on veggies. I only tried the syringe again thinking it would be quicker. Oh how wrong was I? Hopefully she won't suffer with the mouth too much. I managed to peak in there earlier, and the petechia seems to be fading on one side and it doesn't seem to sit on her teeth as much. So, I'll take that as a good sign.

Hope your boy is doing fine, and I wish him a speedy recovery!

 

[nicoleraine]

Thank you! She needs a bit of persuasion to eat, and she won't touch bugs (very normal for her on antibiotics), which is why she now also gets Rephashy Beardie Buffet and CCF. I'm upping the ml on both from tomorrow, as she has lost some weight over the 2.5 weeks. But she likes butternut squash, and if I give her the meds on that and sprinkle bee pollen on it, then she will happily eat it. If she can taste the antibiotic, she will try to spit it out tho haha. She's a smart cookie.

I swear I am more stressed than she is because they take so long to recover. Especially the lil wounds she has from surgery, bless her.

I'm going to try to squeeze the bits, but she is no fan of me swabbing it, so we'll see how it goes. As soon as something touches her mouth she chews, even if it's the vet's finger

I always try to give the meds on veggies, since she once nearly inhaled some antibiotics from the syringe. She shook her head and got it out, but it was traumatising for us both. So since then, if she's on meds it's always on veggies. I only tried the syringe again thinking it would be quicker. Oh how wrong was I? Hopefully she won't suffer with the mouth too much. I managed to peak in there earlier, and the petechia seems to be fading on one side and it doesn't seem to sit on her teeth as much. So, I'll take that as a good sign.

Hope your boy is doing fine, and I wish him a speedy recovery!

We’ve had more luck doing some things with a tapered syringe. This has allowed the ability to both deliver with precision and from more a distance, thereby avoiding that bite down reflex. I’m able to keep that one out of his mouth all together. I switched after it became clear we also would not get good results.

I’ve tried to rinse with honey water after the food and med medley to clear debris and calm the throat tissues. I try to keep the swabs on the outer gums if I can help to avoid that bite trauma. It’s a strategy of inside and outside the tooth line- mostly. We’ve been at this for almost a month now. Surgery on Thursday.

I hope some of that might be helpful.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I know it is very difficult! Trying to keep her from getting another injury would be stressful.
I hope the surgery goes well. Please keep us posted on how she is doing after the surgery.
That sounds like a great idea about the tapered syringe to help prevent biting down on the
syringe.


Tracie

 

[dotdotdot95]

So just an update - my girl is hospitalised, and it seems like she has a systemic infection.

We took her in this morning after her displaying some concerning behaviour yesterday and trying to regurgitate her medication. She has a pain response when her abdomen is touched, and also when her back legs are touched and stretched out. Her back legs don't straighten out at the knee completely like they are supposed to, and they think she might have developed arthritis. They will be doing an x-ray to check.

They also think she might have developed abscesses in her tummy which is why her abdomen is painful and why she keeps trying to poop something out and nothing is coming out.

The tongue issue is inflammation, and it's possible the infection has spread. Which means the antibiotics are not working. So they are trying her on different medication and they are monitoring her for a couple of days and see if she improves.

But if no improvement is seen, we will not put her through more pain and we will be talking to the vet about putting her to sleep

 

[KarrieRee]

So just an update - my girl is hospitalised, and it seems like she has a systemic infection.

We took her in this morning after her displaying some concerning behaviour yesterday and trying to regurgitate her medication. She has a pain response when her abdomen is touched, and also when her back legs are touched and stretched out. Her back legs don't straighten out at the knee completely like they are supposed to, and they think she might have developed arthritis. They will be doing an x-ray to check.

They also think she might have developed abscesses in her tummy which is why her abdomen is painful and why she keeps trying to poop something out and nothing is coming out.

The tongue issue is inflammation, and it's possible the infection has spread. Which means the antibiotics are not working. So they are trying her on different medication and they are monitoring her for a couple of days and see if she improves.

But if no improvement is seen, we will not put her through more pain and we will be talking to the vet about putting her to sleep

 

[nicoleraine]

So just an update - my girl is hospitalised, and it seems like she has a systemic infection.

We took her in this morning after her displaying some concerning behaviour yesterday and trying to regurgitate her medication. She has a pain response when her abdomen is touched, and also when her back legs are touched and stretched out. Her back legs don't straighten out at the knee completely like they are supposed to, and they think she might have developed arthritis. They will be doing an x-ray to check.

They also think she might have developed abscesses in her tummy which is why her abdomen is painful and why she keeps trying to poop something out and nothing is coming out.

The tongue issue is inflammation, and it's possible the infection has spread. Which means the antibiotics are not working. So they are trying her on different medication and they are monitoring her for a couple of days and see if she improves.

But if no improvement is seen, we will not put her through more pain and we will be talking to the vet about putting her to sleep

I’m so sorry sorry to hear she’s taken such a down turn. Poor girl.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh poor girl, I am so sorry.
Do you know which medication they have her on right now? Have they tried AZT for her? It is possible
that the infection could be bacterial which most regular antibiotics aren't real effective against.
The AZT works against septic arthritis pretty well.
Keep us posted on her. We are all pulling for her.

Tracie

 

[dotdotdot95]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all your replies. Gertrude has crossed the rainbow bridge tonight. We decided it was the best option. She looked way more declined when we saw her tonight than what she was like yesterday morning and that's with more medication, fluid and feedings.

The vet also did an x-ray again and both vets have looked at the results. The lungs were smaller and they found abscesses/masses in the tissue which is what's causing it. It is possible that this was cancer and was spreading.

My heart aches right now. But this was the right decision, especially when we saw her to say goodbye she looked like she was done and had tears in her eyes as well.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all your replies. Gertrude has crossed the rainbow bridge tonight. We decided it was the best option. She looked way more declined when we saw her tonight than what she was like yesterday morning and that's with more medication, fluid and feedings.

The vet also did an x-ray again and both vets have looked at the results. The lungs were smaller and they found abscesses/masses in the tissue which is what's causing it. It is possible that this was cancer and was spreading.

My heart aches right now. But this was the right decision, especially when we saw her to say goodbye she looked like she was done and had tears in her eyes as well.

I am so sorry to hear this -- my heart goes out to you --

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I am so sad for you & little Gertrude. I am so sorry that you lost her....she knew just how much
you loved her.
We are all here for you, if you need us.

Tracie