[Dailydrool] Dexter's drug reactions

[Pamela McQuade]

If you get my Facebook postings, you probably already know that  for a
number of days our Dexter has been in pain, despite the gabapentin that has
been so helpful in treating what I assume is a benign tumor of the urethra.
The vets could not identify exactly what was going on by putting their
hands on him, so yesterday he had an ultrasound.

The news is good. The vet who did the test, whom I like immensely and feel
is very competent, says that there is nothing major there, though she has
sent the test out to a specialist to confirm the findings. Hallelujah, no
cancer, which was my great fear. But it looks as if  Dex may have an
infection in his kidneys, so she did a urinalysis, the results of which we
should have later today, and she is preparing to give him an
antibiotic, even if the test results are not conclusive..

The problem is that whenever Dex gets knocked out (even though in this case
the doc used a "baby dose" of the medications and he was not out
completely, just feeling no pain), he does not do well. I do not know what
she used at first, but he was so uncomfortable and squrimy that  she called
and asked if she could use Valium on him too so that she could get good
pictures of him. That did the job; he calmed down and she got good, clear
readings from the ultrasound. But as twice happened after he had a real
knock-out anesthesia, hours later, Dex is barely walking around and is
looking like a zombie. When we picked him up at the vets, trying to get him
into the car was like lifting a piece of cooked spaghetti onto the seat.
Thank God that Drew was there to lift the back end while I held onto the
front. But I hoped that it would wear off quickly once he was home. Not
so.  At least Dex can walk now, but he's not eating and gets cranky if
anyone gets near him. Not a happy camper.

Does anyone else have a dog that's sensitive to anesthesia? Dex is thirteen
and a half and has kidney issues, so  in a way I'm not surprised he's
affected more than a younger dog would be, but this is the third time he's
had such a reaction, though ever since his first bad reaction the vets have
tried to be very careful with his dosing,

I will probably end up taking him back to the vet in the morning (I'm
writing this in the middle of the night) and having them do supportive
care, which has worked before to get him eating and functioning well, but I
hate seeing him go through such a reaction. Is there something we should be
doing to avoid this situation? I don't do unnecessary surgeries or tests
with him, but every time it happens I get more concerned. And if he should
ever need a serious surgery, I'd like to be prepared.
Pam, food slave to the Dashing Bassets
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