I can recommend my vet, Dr Alexander Gerold:
Knonauerstrasse 54
6330 Cham
Tel. 041 780 28 28
Dr Gerold is an internal medicine Fachtierarzt - he would be a good person to go to for a second opinion.
He speaks English, is very knowledgeable, is very accessible, a genuinely nice guy. He helped to keep Haifisch fit and happy far longer than anyone expected possible, and seems now to be working another miracle with the Belltie.
(Dr Gerold and his partners used to be at the Spezialistenklinik, where I first met them. They opened their own practice in Cham this summer.)
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I empathize with you. I owned a dog that had a nightmare of a digestive track that equated to many nights lost sleep, carpets being destroyed, and a poor quality of life for my friend for about a year. Hang in there and have hope. Things can be turned around and once you find the right vet for you and your friend you can work together to get your friend on a healthy path!
I don't have vet info for you but I am sure one of the animal savvy folks on the forum will chime in.
I do want to offer a few suggestions though that might assist you and your vet in getting to the root of your canines issues. The first thing would be to document everything you feed your friend. Be as specific as possible! Document environment. Document any medications, baths, walks in the park, walks in the woods, interactions with other people and animals etc.
Yes, it is time consuming and can be tedious but you may find that over time patterns begin to emerge. The more pieces of a puzzle you can put together and provide for your pet's doc the better! Your entry for a day might look something like this:
6:00- Let Rover outside backyard to urinate.
6:15 - Fed Rover 1 cup dry Orijen Six Fish Formula
7:00 - Left Rover 1 medium size Greenie as I left for work
12:10 - Took Rover on 1 mile walk around neighborhood. Rover urinated as we left the yard. Played ball in neighbors field. Noticed Rover chomping on something near back gate. Noticed deer droppings on the ground near gate. On walk back home Rover pooped. It was solid dark brown, well formed in three pieces. ( The more precise in your descriptions the better as it will help your vet)
18:30- Let Rover outback. Rover urinated. Went on stroll through the woods. Rover was off leash and chased rabbits.
19:30 - Fed Rover 1 can of Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream formula + 2 teaspoons of yogurt +
1 Omega 3 capsule
23:10- Let Rover outback for final time of the day. Rover urinated and chased cat out of the yard.
I kept a three-ring binder that documented all of the above for my girl as she had issues. At the time the vet kept prescribing various medications that would work short term and then we'd be back to square one. The vet wanted me to consider having my dog scoped to see what was going on but at the time I worried about anesthesia and truth be told simply didn't have the $1200 to do it. After keeping track of my notes and working with my vet it was concluded that my dog had a poultry allergy. I also noticed that issues would flair up at the change of seasons especially in the spring.
A few things I would toss out as suggestions until you are able to meet with and work with your vet: Fast your dog for part of the day or up to 24 hours after an episode of vomiting of diarrhea. Always allow access to water as you don't want to have your friend become dehydrated. Allowing the irritated digestive system a chance to calm down might be the first step toward getting your pup well. You can also obtain some canned pureed pumpkin (or you can make your own). Make sure it is ONLY the pumpkin and not the stuff with milk/sugar etc added. Add a bit of this to your pups food ( you can add up to about a tablespoon a day for a small dog or two tablespoons for a larger dog). You may want to start out by adding 1/3 teaspoon to the food and see how it goes. It is always easier to increase the amount slowly then to give too much and wish you could take it back.
If your pup has a messed up digestive track you can also help to reestablish healthy flora and fauna by adding a pro-biotic to your dogs diet. You can start by giving you dog a small amount of plain yogurt that as live cultures in it. ( Make sure it is PLAIN and not vanilla etc).
Once you meet with your vet you might discuss adding a digestive enzyme to your pet's food as (short version) it will help them breakdown and digest the nutrients they take in.
I hope you two are able to find a doc that will work with you to get to the root of your friends problem and that healthier days lie ahead! Keep ef posted with your experice and how your furry friend is feeling.
I have called them and they have also have another vet that specialises in internal medicine so hopefully she will be quite helpful. I have my appointment on Monday morning. Fortunately the dog did a poo at 9pm this evening so hopefully she will now last out until the proper morning! Wish me luck.......
She has been to specialists, she has had tests, and no one has been able to find the source of the trouble. So we have found a way to live with it.
The only food that she has is able to tolerate is Hills I/D. (dry food). She cannot have anything but this, not even a single treat which the other dogs eat. That will upset her stomach.
So all I can say is if you do not find a cause for the troubles, if you can find a way to manage the situation and your dog is healthy, you need not worry.
We do keep some meds on hand for when she gets a bout of diarrhea, which happens from time to time (if she has eaten fruit in the garden) though very often I will just give her homemade chicken soup which seems to help put her system right. Plain yoghurt also seems to help.