When it rains, it pours.

[Smokeycat]

I finally got to the point where I wasn't stressed out because of Kryten only to have something go wrong with Jiggers. For those who don't know Jiggers is my 2 year old Irish Setter mix. His appetite has been lousy for the past couple of weeks. I attributed this to a spike in the temperature and humidity levels but both have returned to normal and his appetite never returned. The past couple of days he has also been very lethargic and has even refused his favorite treats (doggie chocolate). His stomach has clearly been bothering him because the first thing he does when he goes outside is eat some grass. The only time he acts normal really is if you pick up his 5' stick, he then will fetch it and play keep away.

I took him to the vet this morning and while his anal glands needed to be expressed (that stunk), the vet figured that was more likely a symptom from his irregular food intake than a cause. He now is on an anti-nausea/antacid to see if things can improve without needing anything more invasive, like a blood test.

 

[Iymala]

Oh no, poor Jiggers. I hope he feels better soon and the medicine calms his stomach.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Bleh, ings always come all at once. I hope he's ok!

 

[Smart_Family]

feel better soon Jiggers!

 

[cinnamon roll]

I am so sorry Smokey, this happens to my puggle occasionally too. I hope that the squeezing and the meds make him feel better.

 

[angelbears]

Keeping Jiggers in our thoughts. Hopefully, it is just an upset tummy. How is his poop? Nice hard poops help keep the anal glands expressed.

 

[DennasMom]

Ah, poor Jiggers.
I hope it's just a silly stomach bug and passes quickly.

 

[musicdeb]

Poor Jiggers...hope he gets well soon.

 

[fila4me]

praying this is solved quickly!poor baby

 

[voidecho]

Man, what a crappy summer for your boys.

 

[Smokeycat]

Keeping Jiggers in our thoughts. Hopefully, it is just an upset tummy. How is his poop? Nice hard poops help keep the anal glands expressed.

Normally it's firm but it has been all over the map due to his eating. He does have a history of anal gland problems though, this is the third time they have been expressed.

 

[Penelope's Mom]

Poor Jiggers. I hope it's nothing serious.

 

[Smokeycat]

I'm going to strangle him!!!!!!

Last night he ate most of his supper so he probably ate 3/4c instead of 2c yesterday, we were hopeful that the Zantac was what he needed. This morning he refused to eat at all. He smelt his bowl and walked away. So we tried taking him for a walk hoping the exercise would convince him to eat. No luck, smell and walk away. So I wanted to know if he didn't want to eat or if he didn't want to eat that. Gave him something else and he practically inhaled it. As a final test I bought a sample bag of a different food and once again he inhaled it. The moronic dog chose not to eat!

This isn't the first time he has done this although he didn't make himself sick the last time. Irish Setters as a breed are known to be fussy eaters. I don't know if it was a coincidence that he changed his eating habits when it got it and humid or if he slowed due to the heat and then chose not to eat when it returned to normal. The other option is that he realized he got more attention when he didn't eat than he did when he ate and as we all know any attention is great. I think he has had a problem with the change in the household dynamic with Kryten's surgery. Prior to surgery the dogs tended to be together 80-90% of the time. After surgery due to the necessary restrictions on Kryten's activity they might spend 50% of the time and since we need to do separate rehab with Kryten, Jiggers time with us has dropped a bit as well. He is smart enough to think that if he is 'sick' too he will get the same treatment as Kryten.

All of that said I'm still going to strangle him.

 

[musicdeb]

Sorry to hear you're dealing with more dog drama, Smokeycat. hehehehehe Whoever said dogs were not smart, needs to read this story.

 

[Smokeycat]

He wouldn't eat this morning again and then when I cleaned the yard after work I discovered that both dogs have tapeworms. This was the first day either of them have shed any but it definitely explains the digestive issues that Jiggers has had. It took me a while to figure out how they could have gotten worms, especially Kryten since he doesn't go anywhere but I think I can thank the flooding southern Alberta experienced a month ago. It's been hot and Jiggers loves swimming so runs have been along the river to allow him to cool down if needed. Given how much 'stuff' is likely in the water the chances are very high that Jiggers picked up the worms there and brought them home where they infected Kryten. Right now I would really like them to stop costing me money.

 

[DMikeM]

Poor guy I hope he recovers quickly.

 

[musicdeb]

I'm so sorry to hear that you have to deal with one more thing with the pups. Hope they both start feeling better soon!

 

[Hector]

I heard ground up raw pumpkin seeds rids dogs of parasites. Never tried it though.