CockersOnline Forum
Cocker Specific Discussion => Health => Topic started by: MaxG on June 25, 2006, 04:41:36 PM
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Hi everyone,
Any opinions on this one please?!...
Just got back from Max's usual Sunday afternoon romp through the local fields & swim in the streams. While we were out, he was rolling round a lot in the long grass & doing that thing where he throws himself to the ground head first, like when they're rolling in something they shouldn't!! He also stuck his head underwater a few times when he was swimming. ::)
All of this is pretty normal for him so we didn't think anything of it, but then as the walk went on, he kept throwing himself down & rubbing his head/ears along the ground & also kept shaking his head a lot. Our first thought was a grass seed in his ear, so we had a really thorough look when we got in - shone a ruddy great torch down there & everything, but they both appear clear. :huh:
We've checked him all over, including his eyes & feet for rogue grass seeds etc. He's still shaking his head quite a bit though & scratching his ear with his foot - do you think he may have some water in his ear? That's the only other thing we can think of! If so, will it just work it's way out by itself or is there anything we can do for him? He doesn't appear to be in pain but something is obviously bugging him. I was massaging him a bit just now behind his ears, to see if I could disperse any water that might be in there but I don't know if i'm just making it worse? :huh:
Any ideas??!! :-\
Thanks!!
Kath & Max
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hi kath - it could well be a grass seed by late golden cocker did the same kept shaking his head and putting it to one side, we could not see a grass seed at all, I was quite concerned so took him immediately to the vet they had a look down his ear and there was a grass seed in it, it had gone down so far that they had to give him a local anaesthetic to get it out. I would be incline to get it checked as i know grass seeds can do a lot of damage to cockers ears, in fact Finley dad had his ear perforated by a grass seed.
Wendy
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I agree with Wndy - if thr's no obvious discharge or waxy brown exudate, indicating an infection, I'd get him looked at. Check undr his ears too, in case the fur under thr had caught something - Ham hates the burrs that get stuck there!
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Thanks guys - think we'll have to keep an eye on him tonight & if necessary he'll be off to the vets tomorrow morning!! :-\
Having said that, I'm really hoping it may just be water in his ear cos he's stopped scratching at it & is only doing the odd head shake now, so fingers crossed! He doesn't seem to be in any discomfort or anything & we've just had another look with a bigger brighter torch & still can't see anything. We've checked all round his ears too & brushed him everywhere, so there definately aren't any stray burrs or seeds etc. on the outside for sure. :huh:
He started rolling etc after he'd had his swim so that was why we thought it might be water, but then again he could have just rolled for the fun of it & then got a seed stuck & so kept rolling etc - no way of knowing for sure I guess!! ::)
These little ones do keep us on our toes eh?! :luv:
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Leave the ear well alone and see if he stops. Messing with it could make it worse ;) If he stops then he's prob OK but if he carrys on then Id take him to the vet so they can have a look ;)
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Thanks Pammy - we've left him alone & now he's running round playing like normal (he comes awake this time of night when it's cooler & demands attention - he's currently chasing hubby round the garden with 2 balls in his mouth!!) & to be honest he's only doing the odd shake every now & then so maybe it was just water? We'll see how he goes overnight etc. Luckily, the vet is within walking distance about 5 mins away so we can always pop in tomorrow. :luv: ::) :luv:
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I know that when Ben has been swimming for any length of time - he hears things :005: I haven't posted until now as it only happens occassionally and disappears within an hour or so. He does the nose to the ground with the ears on 'lookout' and it's as if he knows that something underground is waiting to be dug up! He is intent on getting this 'thing' and will dig or throw himself at it :lol: As this behaviour has disappeared so fast I'm sure it's water in the ears ;)
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Update on Max - poor little fella is currently at the vets waiting for the end of morning surgery so he can have a grass seed removed from his ear!! Well they think it's a grass seed - either that or a small lump of wax that looks like one or maybe even something else. They said it was fairly close to his eardrum & was looking a bit red & sore, so they wanted to whip it out ASAP for him. Funnily enough, he's hardly scratched or shaken his head at all today & we pretty much just popped him in to be on the safe side, assuming they'd have a quick look & tell us he was fine - we were in the middle of his walk & had a big football with us!!
God, I HATED leaving him there - he had to be dragged into the back room & I'm desperate to have him home again - counting the hours - they said about 12 ish hopefully. Thank god that hubby is off today so at least I've got a calming voice of reason with me - I'd be over-reacting if I was on my own!!
:huh: :luv: :'( :luv: :huh:
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Hour and a bit to go then max will be back and making the most of the biggest fuss he has experienced since you first picked him up, iof i was him the first thing i would do tomorrow is go and find another grass seed! ;)
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Yeah you're right - thanks Hamfam!!
He's such a funny little soul - the house is soooooooo weird without my little shadow!! :luv:
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I'm sure Max will be fine altho mayb a wee bit sore.
Not long now till you get him home again Cocker :-* from Fern
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thank you - resisting the urge to call the vet & check he's ok!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Awwww, poor Max and poor you! I'd be exactly the same if it was Alfie...
I'm sure he'll feel a lot better after they've removed the offending item from his ear though. Sending lots of cocker cuddles from me and Alfie :luv:
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Let us know after you have collected him.
I imagine lots of cuddles are in order tonight!
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Woo hoo - just called & they said he was fine - offending grass seed is out & he came round well & he's now sleeping it off but they like to keep pups in for observation for a couple of hours afterwards so we can't pick him up till 4pm!! Gonna rush round & do all my bits & pieces round the house now, so I can spend all night spoiling him - hee hee!! :luv: :luv: :luv: :luv: :luv:
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That's great. Bet you are feeling better now. To say nothing of Max.
Another lady at the vets said her dog had a grass seed removed last yeat (long haired dachshund) but carried on shaking and scratching etc for the night after, she was worried that there was another one in there. She was fine in the morning though.
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Glad to hear he's ok, Give him a squeeze from us :luv:
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Glad to know he is on the mend and they removed that nasty grass seed, give him loads of cuddles from me too :luv:
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That's excellent news :D
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Glad to hear its out now, bless his cotton socks, lots of hugs coming his way :luv:
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Brilliant that he's ok
Could you pop up to me and run round my house? I've been cuddling little madam who was sick this am and done nothing at all :luv: Wouldn't mind but she's back to normal and definately making up for lost time >:( >:D
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Glad they got it out okay. Not long until he is home now ;)
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Ahh glad Max is recovering!! :luv: Brave little boy!!
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AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!! Poor little mite is sooooooooooooooooooo dopey & sorry for himself!! We couldn't stand it any longer & turned up at the vets early & they let us have him back!! :luv: :luv: :luv: :luv: :luv:
His ears are a bit red & sore inside & they've shaved a little patch of hair inside each one & he's also obviously got a shaved bit & a bandage round his leg from the IV which is really winding him up - he keeps looking at it & trying to shake it off & bite at it! He's not remotely interested in food or drink or even having a wee or stretching his legs outside - just wants to curl up on his own with no fuss from us & sleep, bless him!! :-\
He's got a follow up tomorrow morning & they're prob gonna put some sort of treatment in his ears I think - can't remember what for though!! ::)
I'm expecting him to sleep on & off for most of the rest of the day/evening & I'll try not to panic if he doesn't want to eat anything etc even though he must be hungry cos the last thing he had was a few gravy bones before bed last night at 11pm ish. They did say that his tum might be a bit upset & he might be a bit squitty - no change there then! He's been doing whippys on & off for the past week since he recovered from his tummy bug, love him!! :luv:
He's asleep on the sofa with 'dad' at the moment while I fuss round the place - god, I've been so stressed about him today that I succumbed to a very naughty & rather large chewy double choc chip cookie with a cuppa this aft. - damn - diet was going sooooooo well too!! Ah well!!!! :005:
Thanks for all your kind words & support as usual - this forum is THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;) :D
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Awww, bless him - glad he's home safe now and getting spoiled to bits by the sounds of things!
Most dogs just like something light aftr an anaesthetic - just fed small meals often rather than one big one, and something bland. They may want to put antibiotic drops in - in case ther was a wee bit of infection, sometimes becaus the area has been irritated it's red, so they like to look again the next day.
Indie and Hamish send licks and manly hugs :luv:
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I'm really glad he's at home and on the mend, bless him :luv: :luv:
He'll probably be a bit out of it for the rest of the day so I wouldn't worry too much if he's not interested in food, I'm sure he'll be back to his usual self by tomorrow :D
Don't feel bad about the cookie, at least you only had one, I'd have had the whole packet!! ph34r :005:
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Just rang the vet & asked if I could take off the bandage from his leg cos he wouldn't stop messing with it & she said it would be fine - we could see the obvious relief, bless him - he licked us with gratitude! He's settled down now - wasn't interested in proper food but pinched a ruddy puppy tubo that was on the floor next to his bowl from earlier today, so he's obviously feeling better!! :005: :luv: :005:
Bless him - they've shaved quite a big patch of hair away on his leg - looks really odd! :lol:
It's funny - he has about 1 minute of alertness & then crashes out again - he's on the sofa again now, all snuggled up on the cushions that he's not supposed to be on, but I'm letting him off today!! ;)
I'll offer him a small meal later & then maybe again for supper, but leave it at that - if he eats it, fine, but if not, I won't worry.
He he - if I'd had a whole packet of cookies in the house Nicola, they'd be gone by now - deffo!! :005: :005: I'm currently wrestling with my self control about whether or not to get a take-away for tea vs cooking properly!!!!!!!!!!!!! :005: :005:
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AWWWWWWWW bless him, I am glad it is all sorted. :D
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Glad to hear he's home. You will all be much happier now!
Don't worry about the diet and the cookie. I am sure you will have stressed-off all those extra calories today! ;)
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OOPS - hubby has just gone for an Indian takeaway - !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ah well - rollox to it - might even do the diet some good - I've lost almost 2 stone lately & I've got to that point now where it's stuck & not moving anymore, so maybe all the calories today will kick start it - ha ha - I can dream!!!!
:005: :005: :005:
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Glad he's home and happier now the bandage is off his paw.
Enjoy the Indian takeaway, diet can start again tomorrow, ;) you deserve a wee treat especially with going through all you have today and losing 2 stone WELL DONE
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I'm glad Max is better & back home again Kath; you must feel relieved!!
Well done losing 2 stones!!.......I'm really impressed!! ;)
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Oh god, I feel GROSS - too much MSG from the takeaway!!!!!!!!!! That'll teach me!!!!!!!!! :P
Max is feeling lots better I think - slowly but surely perked up a bit throughout the evening - still not himself but getting there! He had a tiny bit of tea & a bit of a chew inbetween snoozing, so he can't be that bad! He's just polished off his usual bedtime gravy bones & is now dozing on our bed with hubby - about to be turfed off when I get in!! Well, let's see what tomorrow brings eh?! ::)
Thanks for all your kind words & support today!! ;)
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Kath, I am so sorry I missed this.... :embarassed:
I am sooo glad to hear Max is on the mend, those pesky grass seeds!! Well done on losing 2 stone, I am very jealous!!
Give the gorgeous Max a cuddle :luv: from us
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Kathy, sometimes a good fest is all you need to kick start more weight loss, I always do that and I'm sure it hlps. I was stuck last week until I had PMT and ate 42 bars of chocolate - was gutted cos thought I'd blown the diet, then tried on my far too tight jeans yesterday and they fitted!
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Thanks Shona - I'm gonna take that as the green light to go & munch my way through loads of my beloved choc that I've soooooooooo been missing - tee hee!!!! :005:
I know what you mean though - it gets stuck, you have a blowout & then it gets going again - well that's what I'm hoping anyway!! :lol:
Max seems a lot better today - just off to the vet for his checkup - wonder if he'll be quite so keen to go in today as he usually is!! He's still shaking his head every now & then & having the odd scratch but I guess it's cos it's prob still a bit sore & irritated? We'll see - fingers crossed.
;)
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shona - 42 bars of chocolate??? Is that in a week or in a day???
you sound like me - once I start on chocolate I cannot stop!!!
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I am so glad little max is feeling back to his normal self and hope the check up goes well :)
As far as teh diet I am convinced occasional naughtiness is needed to make the diet work - it makes you work doubly as hard afterwards!! I definitely know what you mean about the levelling off period i think i've just about started kicking back into weight loss but its frustrating!
Keep up the good work :D
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Hi again - just back after a check up & a walk - he was gutted he couldn't go in the fields though bless him!! :-\
He's got some cleaning fluid & some drops for a few days & then it's back to the normal ear routine of cleaning once a week & checking every day. :blink:
He wasn't quite so keen to get in there today though!! :005:
We're off on holiday with him for 10 days on Thursday so I'm so gad we got it sorted beforehand - we'll have to be very careful with him while we're away though cos we're going to the Lake District & then onto Scotland & we were planning on doing a lot of walking & swimming. :D
D'you think we should keep him out of water for a few days? Didn't think to ask the vet! ::)
Right, best get on with some washing & stuff now then - hope it might keep my mind off the chocolate - you girls have got me drooling now!!!!!!!!!!!! :005: :005: :005:
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I'm really glad Max got on ok at the vets, don't really blame him for not being too keen to go in though, poor boy! :005:
I don't know about keeping him out of the water... I do know that with Alfie it would be impossible, he even tries to climb into the shower with me in the mornings ::)
Good luck with the washing and don't think about chocolate!!