My dog's stomach infection won't heal. Need a second vet opinion?

Poor guy. Not every pet with a fever has an infection, so if the antibiotic isn’t working it’s either because there is no infection, the infection is internal, or the antibiotic is not the right kind of antibiotic for the infection. Your pet needs additional testing to sort this out and make sure we are on the right track with treatment. I would start with baseline bloodwork and a urinalysis. Best to take your pet back in to your vet or to another vet for a second opinion here so that we can get a proper diagnosis and tailored treatment based on your pets specific problem. I hope that your pet is able to make a full and speedy recovery soon! Best wishes and take care.

Unfortunately sometimes gastrointestinal disease can be difficult to diagnose, and even with all of the testing that has been done to Fergus the exact cause may be elusive. It may be necessary for you at this point to consider abdominal surgery, what we call an "explore" in order to try to find the problem definitively. I know this is likely not what you wanted to hear, however this may likely be your best chance for getting an answer.

My next step would be to send off blood for a test for plague (Yersinia pestis) and Tularemia, especially if your dog has access to areas where there are rodents, squirrels and rabbits. These would not be included in regular blood work. You may also want tod discuss a disease called malignant hyperthermia with your veterinarian. Other common causes of "fever of unknown origin" would be tumors, however your vet apparently ruled those out with blood tests, ultrasound, and xray and possibly blood parasites such as Ehrlichia spp, Babesia spp and similar. A heartworm test may also be advisable.

I am not sure why your vet did not feel like tests were needed. There are many patients I see where I don't think testing is needed. This is a question you will need to ask your vet. If Riko is not doing better then testing may be needed. If you voice your concerns to the vet I am sure they will be happy to run some testing if that will make you feel better. Hope this helps. Best wishes for a speedy recovery for Riko!

This sounds like a pretty complex situation, and I'd agree that an infection of some sort seems likely with a high WBC. I'd be worried about something viral, perhaps even meningitis, especially if it seems that she has neck pain, but that's basically a guess on my part. She should be tested for tick-borne diseases (Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, ehrlichia, babesia, Lyme) if that hasn't been done. I'm not sure how far you are from a specialty hospital, but it sounds like she's still not out of the woods, and in the absence of a definitive diagnosis, I too would be worried. I would recommend taking Sky to a specialty hospital, where they might be more capable of diagnosing the problem and getting her the appropriate treatment.

Oh my. Poor girl. IF there is still swelling of the foot with no improvement while on 2 different antibiotics, then I would highly consider getting a culture done to determine what antibiotic will be effective here. A topical antibiotic cream may also be needed here, such as Silver Sulfadiazene. If she won't eat, then that worries me that perhaps the infection is now in her bloodstream (bacteremia), which can get bad enough where pets require hospitalization and fluid therapy. Please take her back in soon to have her temperature checked and a cbc (complete blood cell count) to check her white blood cell count. At the very least she likely needs to go on a probiotic now since she is on hard core antibiotics that have likely disrupted her GI flora. Colitis causes pets to strain as you have described for Marbles. You can get her started on over the counter Culturelle or Fortiflora until you can get her back in to your vet for a rechk. Try also offering her some boiled plain chicken and rice or lean ground turkey and white rice to try and entice her to eat. I do hope that your fur baby Marbles feels better soon! Best of luck and take care. : )

You will first need to determine the type of infection. A recheck with your veterinarian would be recommended. Samples can be submitted for fungal culture as well as for bacterial culture and sensitivity. If it is a fungal infection, your vet can dispense an antifungal. Some of these infections can take weeks t months to resolve. If it is a bacterial infection, the sensitivity panel should determine the most effective antibiotic to use in treatment. Allergies should also be ruled out as an underlying cause. They can be frustrating to diagnose since they have multiple causes (food, environmental, parasites). Discuss allergy testing, food elimination trials, hydrolyzed diets and antihistamine use with your veterinarian. Legally, we are prohibited from recommending a medication in the absence of a physical exam. Any prescription medications will need to come from your vet.