(From February 2014)

Two weeks ago, on a Monday morning, I decided to let Daisy Mae have a bed in her run. She had been destructive as a younger dog. However, she had been sleeping on this bed for more than a year without a problem, when it was outside the run. I felt that she knew it was hers and wouldn’t bother it. It was an older bed, and if she did a little nibble or rip, I would throw it away. Below is a picture of what I came home to that day.

Normally one would be worried about what the dog ingested. I was concerned, but Daisy Mae had always been miss “rip and spit” when she chewed things up. But what really worried me was her breathing…she was having a severe problem with a very strong reverse sneeze. Also it sounded like she had a stuffy nose. It definitely was not normal breathing. So off we went to the emergency vet. After 2 trips, a night in emergency and exam by two vets…She had ingested part of a zipper…luckily it was already in her colon and it was felt she should pass it without a problem. And no one could explain about the breathing problem. The GP vet who examined her said she must have just developed allergies or had suddenly come down with kennel cough. I explained that she had no history of allergies and it was absurd to think this was kennel cough…no fever or runny nose…and a sudden onset when she chewed up her bed. He finally agreed to look in her nasal passages with a scope, but explained that for a full exam it would need an internist. He didn’t find anything and sent her home on anti-inflammatories to deal with her “inflamed tonsils.”

I took her to work with me the next day and she was having a very bad time…so we went back to the vet. He said he didn’t know why we were there. “I told you there was nothing else I can do for you.”

We went home very discouraged…and I couldn’t figure out how to help her. No one wanted to believe that she had something in her nose or sinuses. That night I called and talked to the ER vet, whom I had known for a long time. She said that she agreed with me and set up an appointment for a scoping with an internist the next day. He didn’t start until 3pm. Before the procedure he called to talk to me...and even he had the audacity to suggest kennel cough…When he called back, he had found something in the back of her nose which he had removed. He also hosed out her sinuses and didn’t find anything else.

When I met him several hours later, he walked into the room, introduced himself, and said “I apologize. We were wrong and you were right.” BE AN ADVOCATE FOR YOUR DOG! The one thing you have in your favor is that you know your dog!!