Dog Community

Okay guys, need some help!

Posted : 4/6/2010 9:24:56 PM

I sold a Beagle puppy to some great people last December. He turned 6 months last Wednesday and went to the vet for a hernia repair and a neuter. He did have an undescended testicle, which they were able to locate near a kidney. This procedure took an hour to do. Towards the end of the surgery, he stopped breathing. They got him going again, with the side affect being that he lost his sight. They told the owners that was normal and should regain vision in 72 hours. On Friday, he was reacting to light. By Saturday, he spiked a 105 degree fever, lost his vision again, and suffered a series of seizures. They got the fever down and he has not had seizures since then, although has not fully regain any eye sight. The vets are not giving the owners much information in regards to how it happened, why, a recovery period, or any side effects from these events. They are recommending an MRI for a brain tumor, epilepsy, a fasting and bile acid test for liver, among other things. The pre surgery bloodwork came out with all normal values and the dog has never had a problem prior to his surgery last Wednesday. I will be getting the medical notes tonight or tomorrow, but I am at a loss to explain what is going on!
Some history on the family... Mother is dam to 3 litters, first litter is 3 yrs, never an issue. Second litter is 2, no issues. I own two littermates that have had no problems. Both parents have their eyes and hearts certified and clear. Mother has thyroid, hips, and elbow in addition. Sire is too young for hips, but boths his parents passed all their health clearances, along with with littermates and other relatives. Sire has produced 3 litters with no other complaints from puppy owners or breeders.
If anyone has had an experience like this or can help get some insight into what is going on, it would be much appreciated! I just can't explain how a normal 6 month old puppy can go from being fine one day to having brain damage and lose of vision the next!

BEVOLASVEGAS

Posted : 4/6/2010 10:04:17 PM

That is absolutely terrible for both the puppy, puppy owner, & you!

I'm just tossing this out there. It *might* be hydrocephalus. He could have already had CSF drainage issues before surgery that just hadn't gotten bad enough to express itself. A sudden change in intracranial pressure could definitely cause seizures & even vision issues. A MRI would rule this in or out.

Have any of his littermates been spayed/neutered yet, or was he the first to go? I'd be interested to know how other littermates handled anesthesia.

We have fingers & paws crossed that the little guy improves quickly.

lcbryson

Posted : 4/6/2010 10:22:37 PM

None of the littermates have been under anesthesia yet, as I normally recommend waiting until a year for males to neuter them. I am not sure on the bitch from the litter, but figure if she had been spayed and there was an issue, they would have called me. I have kept my two for showing/breeding, but obviously if this is a genetic issue, I am hesitant to continue with those issues.

stardancnminpin

Posted : 4/6/2010 11:26:05 PM

lcbryson
go from being fine one day to having brain damage and lose of vision the next!

My first thought is that this isn't genetic, but damage from lack of oxygen when his heart stopped. Did they give you any idea as to how long he was down before they got him going again? Despite his pre-op blood work being good, the length of surgery and the type of anesthetic being used may just have been a bad match for him. From my research on needing to have a dental done on my 15 year old cat, I would question whether they had an IV going and a blood pressure monitor to catch his vitals plummeting. A procedure that long, I would think they would have had an IV going to help keep his pressure up.

Since they said the vision loss should resolve itself, it makes me believe they were contributing it to the effects of anesthesia and the time he was down when his heart was stopped. For him to crash later, was the after care sufficient to support him/his system from the crash? Seizures are listed as a side effect of both anesthesia and the lack of oxygen to the brain. I'm just throwing ideas out there, but with the history that you have on the dogs, I'm more inclined to suspect the procedure and problems as to the cause. Not saying that the vet did something wrong 'cause we all have heard the stories how a healthy dog is lost during simple dental procedures - but anesthesia has such high risks.......

Also, high blood pressure (as a result of the surgery/complications) can lead to stroke, seizures, and blindness. Have they ruled out organ damage due to lack of oxygen before starting on all of these other test? Maybe a second, independent vet opinion might be beneficial to them.

I'm sorry that you as the breeder and they as the owners are going through this. I hope the little guy gets better. *hugs*

lcbryson

Posted : 4/7/2010 12:39:12 AM

They didn't make any note of how long he was out. Heart rate started to drop, so they turned off the gas, gave him some injections (steroids, stuff get get his heart beating again, etc), and heart started up again. No mention of how long. He was fine, minus the vision issues until Saturday when he spiked the temp and had a focal seizure. They gave him some phenobarbitol and dex injection among other things. They ran bloodwork 3x. Original everything was in normal range, the next was 4 hours later, after surgery and the again Sat after the seizure. Main value to change was Amylase was low. It was 506 prior to surgery, then 364 after surgery, and 132 after the seizure. Normal range is 450-1240. Phosphorus was slightly elevated after surgery, but back in normal range on Sat's. Everything else changed, but was all within normal range.
As of tonight, he is back home, eating and drinking (although he is drinking ALOT of water), and seems somewhat back to normal, minus running into things and taking time to respond to his name and commands. They are going to a different vet for a second opinion tomorrow.

lcbryson

Posted : 4/8/2010 1:18:51 AM

Update- They got a 2nd opinion from a new vet who can not explain why this happened to him. Based off his previous records, she cant make any sense of what went wrong. They are going to give him a week for all the drugs to get out of his system and do a recheck. He is a bit dopey and out of it, so hopefully once all the drugs are gone, he will be back to a normal, healthy puppy!