051122Singapore chihuahua hypothermia, hypoglycaemia, diarrhoea,
pet health and welfare educational for animal lovers, excerpts from
Be Kind To Pets, sponsored by AsiaHomes
Internet. Written in Jun 18, 2005.
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THE 34.9
DEG CELSIUS CHIHUAHUA & THE 41 DEG CELSIUS MAN. |
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I remember Nov 7 2005 VERY well.
A bright evening sunlight glowed the Hougang apartments near Jalan
Kayu. I was to vaccinate some puppies at the kennels.
Yet this day was a matter of life and death. For a chihuahua
and a man.
A friend under chemotherapy overseas was quarantined for over 7 days
because he had a "viral" infection and was not permitted visitors.
He was never given antibiotics despite the fact he had a 41 deg C
fever controlled only by anti-fever injections.
Did the doctors
expect him to have no bacterial infection since his immune system
had crashed due to the past 2 months of chemotherapy? I text messaged to
him to get more interested in knowing his medical health and blood
tests. Was his kidney and liver function normal?
The doctor would
not give him antibiotics because that was the same practice in the
U.S.A. Unnecessary use of antibiotics would lead to resistant bugs I
know, although my friend would not be able to explain.
So, the fever raged on an on. 4-hourly anti-fever injections for 2
weeks. Nobody at the hospital knew what to do. How about the
specialists, I asked him. How about the professors? He did not know
what to do. How about acupuncture? Was it an auto-immune illness?
He did not have any answer. He was given cold baths and Chinese
medicine. Still the fever could not go down to below 38 deg C. It
hovered at 39.1 to 39.4 degrees C. Too high, I said. Too long.
Any weaker person would have perished. He had dry mouth. No
appetite. Now he was 49 kg instead of 70 kg in bodyweight. He could only breathe on
oxygen tubes into his nostrils. He talked to me for less than a few
seconds. "Confined to the hospital room for over 3 months. What am I
doing in this world?" I could not imagine his emotional
worries. Could not help him there. Something was wrong with his
medical treatment.
Then a phone call came from a Chihuahua owner. She had to know why
her Chihuahua could not recover. Was she right to let the Chihuahua
be euthanased as the puppy had diarrhoea and crying in pain over the
past 2 weeks of hospitalisation? Was there some malpractice by the
veterinarian or mismanagement by the pet shop operator? Was there a
genetic cause for the abnormally high liver enzyme level from blood
taken today before euthanasia? The puppy had been suffering for the
past 2 weeks. Unable to stand and crying in the last few days. She
had consulted various human doctors and vets.
Yet there was no answer.
Was she all out to sue the vets and the pet shop operator or to get
their professional licence revoked? For all the grief and suffering
over the past 2 weeks?
Every day was a day of no progress, just like my friend undergoing
chemotherapy. Emotional worries day and night. No end to it.
For the puppy, she could authorise euthanasia. For my friend, he had
to tolerate the pain and not being able to eat food normally.
The puppy was referred to me by a pet shop operator at 11 a.m as it
had collapsed. The pet shop operator had kept it overnight in
the shop.
Its temperature was 34.9 degrees C. After fluid
therapy and warming by the hair dryer for a long time, it was able
to sit on its chest. The temperature was around 38 degrees C. Not
able to stand. It was hospitalised at a veterinary centre in the
afternoon but had never fully recovered. Passed watery stools.
Weight loss. It was 2 weeks of agony for
the owner.
She asked many questions I could have no answer.
"Was the chihuahua normal and eating before you sent it to the pet
shop?"
"Yes," she said. "However, it had suddenly foamed in its mouth and
passed out loose stools."
This 8-week-old Chihuahua could have been over-playing with the
other dogs after purchase. I have seen a few of such cases of stress
in the small breeds. They do not eat or forget to eat. The blood
sugar level drops and they get into fits. This is called
hypoglycaemic fits.
Foaming at the mouth. Diarrhoea later on. Many cases recover if treated
the drop in body temperature to below the normal 39 deg C could be
reversed and there were no other causes of the fainting.
In this case, the pet shop operator should have referred the puppy
to the hospital instead of overnight stay with the older Chihuahua.
It is best not to board less than 16-week-old Chihuahuas. You never
know what will happen.
I had done a faecal parvoviral test. It was negative. One
possibility was that it had fits from brain trauma or was
over-stressed by playing too long. Bigger dogs jumped on him during
playtime as the owner had other adult dogs. Or
falling down injuring its brain. After 2 weeks of suffering, the
owner decided on euthanasia. But was that the right decision?
Nobody knows the answer.
So, I advised the owner to wait 4 weeks. Stop thinking about the
puppy and if she wanted more answers and reports, to contact me 4
weeks later. That was the best solution I could offer to her.
As for my friend, he was shifted to another hospital where the
doctor diagnosed that a very large cancerous lump in his groin had
pressed on his nerve causing uncontrollable fever for the past 2
weeks. After removal of this lump, his body temperature was normal.
Any more delay of his hyperthermia, he might not be alive.
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