Threat to Life with a Reactive Dog

My Charlie almost died this week. What started as a little bit of soft stool turned to diarrhoea, with vomiting, and stayed consistent until she needed an emergency vet visit on Saturday night, and hospitalisation on Monday.

She ended up needing to be on fluids for two days, she received an ultrasound on the third day, which yielded no obvious physical ailments, and no poisoning could be identified. She had just got affected by a severe bout of something gastrointestinal, and we almost lost her.

Set up in my parents laundry at the start of everything

There were decisions that had to be made and considered over this time that has been extremely draining. Emotionally, my partner and I were having to consider what choices would have to be made if she didn’t improve. Physically, sleeping on a couch to check on the dog’s wellbeing every 3 hours was also a mission. Charlie is out of the woods now, medically, for the time being - but we haven’t finished our vet visits and journey just yet. We know she is in pain, physically or gut-wise, so more testing will be needed.

Decisions had to be made in the moment for Charlie. She is a sensitive, reactive dog, who has major worries about strangers. She is muzzled at the vet for check ups, and managed really carefully. Change is scary for her, routine brings her comfort… and these things had to be weighed up when we were figuring out what care she needed.

On the first emergency visit, they offered to keep her overnight. She was in a different city, staying with me and my parents that evening, so her routine was already seriously off. The idea of leaving her with strangers wasn’t really on the cards. It would be more frightening and scary to be left there overnight than just coming home and being monitored.

Emergency muzzling and 24/7 vet clinic

It was when she still hadn’t eaten, or kept water down, that checking in with the vet on Monday became an urgent priority. She was so sick going in, that she didn’t even respond to being in the clinic, really. The vet said, very frankly, ‘dogs that look like this need to be hospitalised’. I knew she was right. While the idea of leaving Charlie alone made my heart sink, I had seen her looking at me that morning. She couldn’t speak, but her eyes were begging for help.

Part of me felt anguish… Should I have admitted her at the 24/7 clinic? Did I wait too long to get her the IV fluid support and proper supervision? My amazing vet reassured me. If you have gastro symptoms as a human, you don’t immediately go to A&E, you monitor for a while and then go in. The choice to leave her on Monday was the right one, and just not a moment too late.

So we made it through the vet visits. This meant at home, my partner and I were having to keep up the care. And we were coming across some dilemmas. How were we going to get Charlie’s medication into her, when she very clearly was too nauseous to take food (never before have I seen a dog spit out a cheese ball, which she did).

At home between visits, cuddles with Dad

She hadn’t eaten in four days, and this was becoming the next concern, since the diarrhoea had run its course. We advocate for cooperative care and decisions, and with a lot of dogs, more pressure, control, and tension creates even more worry. I already knew this was the case with Charlie – raised voices even when they weren’t directed at her could make her leave the room. 

Having to put restraint on Charlie to syringe feed her blended chicken with her pills made me feel extremely uncomfortable, and I was apologising profusely. She didn’t know it, but it was what needed to be done.

There comes a point where the threat to life in a medical emergency has to outweigh the consequences of psychological distress. When it’s life or death, it becomes a matter of ‘deal with the fallout once we make sure she’s home and safe’.

Scary car rides to and from the vets

I was extremely worried when I saw Charlie become wary of being hand fed treats on her first days home from the vet. I had already started googling creative ways to administer medication. I knew her response was valid - she hadn’t had the choice to take food, it made her feel frightened of us, and the food had made her feel unwell. But what if the response was long term? 

We managed to set up meals and leave her to eat in her own time - no pressure at all. As her appetite returned because her nausea and gut pain reduced, we are so very lucky that she is back to her hungry self. We haven’t had to do any training to bring her back to that space, but it was certainly something I was aware would be a possibility.

Charlie’s vet visits aren’t over yet. I’m expecting her wariness of the vet clinic will be the same if not more intense going in on Monday. She is not magically a social butterfly, and even if she met the staff throughout her time there, I can imagine she still views them as strangers - and she now feels a lot more able to communicate she feels uncomfortable.

Charlie’s reactivity hasn’t disappeared, either. Last night she decided to let us know with a round of alert barks that the neighbouring dogs had returned home. But something that usually brings irritation, made me smile as I helped her settle back down. She’s returning back to normal - and all the ‘problems’ are actually something I prefer, over not having her at all. It’s a weird but comforting realisation.

Rollie-pollies in the grass now she's home

Charlie is the first dog I’ve had under my full care. All the other dog’s in my life have been family pets, so it was up to the parents to make decisions. 
Now that it’s my turn to step up to the plate, with a dog with a specific set of needs, she still continues to teach me so much. 

Where to draw the lines in the sand for different kinds of wellbeing, how far you will go to make sure beings that you love are safe and well, how many lives the life of one dog can impact…

So here we are, back on track to figure out why Charlie is uncomfortable and sore. I am so grateful we still have her, and so very thankful to everyone who sent their support, in whatever way they were able.

Hug your dog, and appreciate their quirks. You don’t want to have to wait until they are gone to realise how important and amazing they truly are.

Me and my homie - both circle faces when we smile

Authored by Sarah Endres
Dog Trainer and Behaviour Advisor