My 12year old Westie has been having problems breathing for the past 10-12 weeks.?

Question

My Vet has given him steriod injections which helped for a couple of weeks, and now a course of steriod tablets. He has alway's been very healthy, and energetic, but this has all changed suddenly. He is not eating well and does not move about much, prefering to lie and sleep rather than go for a walk. Does anyone know of any herbal treatments of supplements that we could try to help him.

My Vet has given him steriod injections which helped for a couple of weeks, and now a course of steriod tablets. He has alway's been very healthy, and energetic, but this has all changed suddenly. He is not eating well and does not move about much, prefering to lie and sleep rather than go for a walk. Does anyone know of any herbal treatments of supplements that we could try to help him. He has had x-rays taken to rule out heart problems and blood tests done. Our Vet has sent the x-rays off to the Glasgow Vets college for a second opinion. I am very concerned at the speed of his illness, but when he visits the vets he gets a bit more lively than he is at home. Has this happened to anyone else dog and if so was treatment successful?

Hi,

Thanks to everyone who answered. Unfortunatly Glen passed away in his sleep last night. He was such a happy wee chap, a real character. When i posted this question last night i was looking for a miracle

Answer 1

Hi, I found this one herbal item :

http://store.herbsforanimals.com/breatheeasy.html

I can't attest to it myself, as I've never used it.

I am sorry to hear about what your poor little pup is going through; I know how heartbreaking it can be to watch one of our 4-legged loves going through a medical crisis. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your pup.

You might really consider what someone before me suggested : a possible 2nd opinion from another Vet. It doesn't have to mean that your Vet isn't good ... it's just that sometimes, a new set of eyes can look at a problem differently and see a different solution.

Wishing your pup a quick recovery, -Mutt Buffer.

Answer 2

Look into having an echocardiogram and an EKG done. An echo (ultrasound of the heart) by a trained radiologist can show up many things that a radiograph can't. Keep in mind that a radiograph is just a snapshot- an ultrasound can view the heart for an extended period of time. There are also some things that don't show up on a radiograph or are easy to miss- like tumors. Most ultrasound machines will run an EKG while doing the ultrasound, but you might want to see if your vet can do an EKG first to show up any problems. If your vet can't find anything wrong- ask for a referral to a specialty practice. General practice vets don't see all the problems sometimes, the specialty practises tend to be more versed in atypical problems. They also have more diagnostics readily available then a general practice.

Answer 3

Westie Breathing Problems

Answer 4

I'm sorry about you getting all this slack about pet stores. I don't care where a person get's their dog from. The main point is that the dog is now in a loving home and a much better environment. Our first westie came from a pet store and the only problem he has was allergies, which is common for that breed. He lived to be 16. The keyword is 10 weeks. She's still a puppy. She's going to bite everything in site for a little bit. Unfortunately, it is going to hurt when she plays because she still has her puppy teeth. The westie we have now, when she was a puppy, she chewed up the leg of a wooden rocking chair we have, she chewed through the cord of a remote control car charger, that was charging at the time. They're like little kids, anything that can fit in their mouth at that stage, they will chew. My dog even had this fascination with empty toilet paper rolls. She'd play with them....then shred them. Your dog isn't biting to be mean, she's biting because her teeth might hurt her or she just has extra energy to release. It's just like us putting pressure on something that hurts us, except that dogs don't have hands to do that, so they need to improvise. As for playing, we use hands, but the dogs only have their mouths. At this age, I wouldn't stop her from biting altogether, but show her limits. We let my dog bite us when we play with her, but we had to teach her how she could bite when she played with us. I would stop using the spray. Of the westies I know, including my own, it doesn't phase them, it might keep them away for...an hour...and then they're right back there. Instead, give her options like bones. Teach her what she can chew and what she can't. If you see her chewing something she shouldn't be, stop her, but you have to do it while she's in the act, not after. After you tell her to stop, have a bone ready to give her. As long as she's not doing any harm to the clothes, your limbs or the "wee wee" pad, I would let her chew them until she loses her baby teeth. After that, it's up to you do and don't want her to chew. Most importantly, westies, as a breed, are very stubborn and persistant. They don't give up without a "fight". When you train her, you need to have a lot of patience and a lot of love. Good luck. I know puppy habits can be annoying, but don't forget that she is just a puppy.

Answer 5

I don't know of herbal treatment, but if you do try something, be sure to check with the vet and make sure that it is safe to use while the dog is on the steroid (probably prednisone?). Also, pred should not be immediately stopped, you need to wean him off it. Since your vet is trying to maintain the dogs health, you may not have a tapering dosage, but actually be on it long term and for life. But, if you were to want to stop, it has to be tapered off the steroid.

Also, to help aid in breathing, you can also try sitting in the bathroom with the dog and the hot shower going, creating steam. This may help. Unfortunately, this sounds like he is nearing the end of his life by sleeping, not eating well, not playing, etc. Some other signs to look for: weight loss, soiling in the home, not eating or drinking, no longer urinating or defecating. I wish you luck. Sounds like you have given your dog a nice life with 12 years of good love, food and family.

Answer 6

Sounds serious. I feel for you, it's a difficult thing to watch your baby going downhill in old age, see the vet again and get him to do more tests. Being an old dog, he's maybe suffering from poor circulation, due to heart disease and this will cause lung problems. My old english sheepdog started breathing really loudly and rasping and it turned out he had spots on his lungs in the Xray which the vet thought was cancer. We sadly had to have him put to sleep. It's the worst case scenario and I wish you and your wee dog well. I hope it's nothing serious. Good Luck.

Answer 7

I'm with I Know and Crazypranks: Your dog needs a good thorough check-up so you can find out what's wrong with him. A critter that has always been energetic that suddenly is not has serious problems. And apparently the steroids aren't helping: They're only masking the problem.

Good luck!

Answer 8

Do you give him something new last 10/12 weeks to eat?

I can only suggest a visit to a homeopathy vet.

Answer 9

I'm really sorry. I dont know of any herbal treatments. This sounds like it could be something serious. Maybe you should consider taking him to another vet if the one he is seeing now is not helping. Good luck. I hope he gets well really soon.

Answer 10

i would take him back my dog is on steroids and she was not the same and shes 5 years old the vet said i not to give her any more as can do more harm sometimes she was just laying down all time not drinking but eating bits.as soon as i took her off them that was on wednesday shes running all over again.might try him on something else,just reread they gave him steroids as he wasnt doing the things he used to i realy think he is not well at all would see another vet.i do hope he is ok