[BookerMoose]

You can add Booker to the list of the walking wounded here on BeagleWorld...

She hasn't been herself for the past few days and we thought her arthritis was acting up. She had also been having a bit of discomfort from her harness and so we were giving her some breaks from the harness (which otherwise she has to wear because of her neck surgery). She was scratching a bit, but not compulsively - just enough that we thought she might prefer to have it off when she wasn't out walking.

Well last night she definitely was not right - I don't think she slept much, if at all (I didn't, either), and most of the time she was just taking really shallow, rapid breaths. Sometimes she was panting or sitting up, and she couldn't seem to get comfortable however she lay in her bed. A bit of 3:00 am internet searching made me decide that she was either in a lot of pain or in the advanced stages of heart disease... and obviously in the middle of the night I feared the worst...

By this morning she seemed a little bit better but we made a vet appointment for mid-morning. However, when she got out of bed she went over to the carpet and started scratching her armpits again... so I went over to see if maybe I could help her out and give them a little scratch. When I put my hand there, however, I found out they were raw and bleeding. Obviously this was what was causing her discomfort overnight... although I have no idea how it could get so bad without our noticing anything besides the odd scratch.

She is now on antibiotics and topical ointment - and we have to keep her from scratching which should be fun (a cone won't help since she uses her back paws to scratch). But at least we know what the trouble was last night and she is on the mend!

Poor Booker.

 

[patama1004]

Hope Booker is getting better and better. It was a good thing you saw the raw spot in time before it got infected. Over a year ago, Boeing had to go through a minor operation to have a small lump the size of a pinhead removed from his armpit. I guessed it was caused by the friction of his harness on that tender area. So I padded up the strap that went around his chest to make it softer and more comfortable and he hasn't had any problems since.

Extra belly rubs from me and head rubs from Boeing :wave:

 

[LuckyBeagle]

Poor Booker. /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/frown.gif I hope she heals quickly and can get back to being her normal self. Lucky and I send lots of soothing rubs and love!

 

[debannib]

Just wondering how Booker is feeling now....what with all the sick and wounded on the board this week (ever noticed it seems to go in waves?)........I'm hoping she's feeling much better by this weekend! :heart:

 

[angelaH]

Hope Booker is on the mend. Some dogs cant take harnesses, but I do believe there are special ones that dont rub. I'll have to look back at some info. Cant remember if it was on this forum or a German one.

 

[cheerio]

Armpit rashes can be typical of food alergies. Have you change her food?
Now if it is due to the harness, you can get what is called a number 8. It is a harness that looks like an 8. the top part of the 8 goes on the chest and the lower part around the body so that there are nothing under the arms. I believe both Wal-Mart and Petsmart has some.

 

[BookerMoose]

Booker is feeling much better - thanks for asking. Her armpits seem to be heeling well, and she isn't scratching them or licking them (as if she could reach there with her tongue!)l.

We haven't changed her food recently - so I don't think the problem comes from that. I really do think it is the harness - and I'll definitely have a look for the number 8 harness as Cheerio suggests... since I really don't want to put a regular harness back on her and start this problem all over again if I can help it.

When we were at the vet we also asked about her arthritis and the vet suggested we try something called Recovery SA, which is a powder for her food containing a bunch of things I can't spell (including glucosamine). It has only been a couple of days and I don't know if this is really related to the Recovery SA or that she is just feeling better because her armpits are being treated, but Booker seems to have come alive - she is back jumping up on the bed and sofa (a mixed blessing), and she has even started a bit of playing with Moose and Popcorn... usually she just watches them from the side and barks in an annoyed way if they come to close to her or bump into her during their play. There is a different, less sad look in her eyes, too. I really hope this means she is feeling better, whatever the cause - it certainly isn't because the weather is making her thing of spring (we have had nothing but rain, rain every day for many days and into the foreseeable future - ugh).