We have an 11 year old elderly mix of Shepherd and husky that has severe issues taking and holding any antibiotic. She has blood loss and the vet says it's ulcer and she must take a PPI (proton pump inhibitor), then an antibiotic. Now we started a stronger one called metronidazole in 4ml dose twice per day. She is not doing well since she started it. She vomits all the food she manages to eat. Nothing stays in her stomach. We had to stop after only 2 days of therapy. I'm a bit desperate now because we must heal her possible Helicobacter pylori or fungus infection that is causing the ulcer, but she will not take or hold any antibiotic. The PPI drug she barely tolerates too, but at least she doesn't vomit it.
She is also difficult to take any pills. I tried the method that vets use and I used in my other dogs with success (open mouth, insert pill at the back of throat, close mouth and hold head up). She will fight and eventually gag. She will just not take a pill.
So I open the PPI in some tiny portion of dog food (liquid dog food) and she eats it. I'm sure this is not ideal, but it's something than nothing cause she suffers from reflux, too.
I have made some research online, one source (Mercola) mentions that holistic vets prescribe probiotics and other stuff (various natural substances) for ulcers and avoid antibiotics.
I have experiment with small portion of Lactobacillus acidophilus that I have always used for myself for years with no problems, but because this doesn't mean it's safe for my dog I gave her tiny portion. She did well and then a normal portion she does fine. NO side effects at all. No urge to vomit, and no reflux. I have to mix it again with tiny portion of liquid dog food, since our friend won't take pills. This means a large portion of this L. acidophilus is killed before it reaches the gut flora, but because I give her a PPI (the PPI the doctor suggested at 20mg dose) 20 minutes before the probiotic, I assume some probiotic survives to help her fight whatever infectious virus has caused the ulcer.
Now we haven't done an x-ray, all we did is blood test and stool photoshooting for the vet and the vet has decided it's ulcer and she must take by all means this antibiotic and when I called the vet to tell that the dog won't hold it and had horrible bounds of vomiting after taking it, the vet said there is nothing else she can do since the dog won't hold the drug. (At this point, if the vet was a 'holistic vet' I guess she would perhaps tell me 'at least give her probiotics after the PPI?)
Do you have experience with this type of thing and holitic vet care?
Disclaimer: IF YOU READ THIS BECAUSE YOUR DOG HAS ULCER TOO, PLEASE DON'T GIVE L. acidophilus JUST BECAUSE MY DOG IN PARTICULAR IS DOING WELL WITH IT, YOUR DOG MAY NOT DO WELL AT ALL. I TAKE L. acidophilus MYSELF FOR YEARS WITHOUT PROBLEMS. ONCE A DOCTOR SWITCHED ME TO Saccharomyces boulardii AND I HAD DYSTENTIA AND BREATHING PROBLEMS FOR DAYS ----> DO NOT TAKE INTERNET ADVICE AND APPLY WITHOUT CONSULTING A HOLISTIC VET DOCTOR).
We noticed the more days go by since metronidazole the better she becomes but she still doesn't eat much and eating causes her pain (the ulcer I guess). I read online again, that I must keep her on bland diet with little portions for a month or so (and some sources even suggest complete fasting while still giving liquids). So I'm a bit lost of what to do now, if she took the PPI and metronidazole the therapy would be working we would all be happy, but it doesn't work and makes the dog very very sick to take this particular drug. Not to mention it costs 15 euro per small amount because she denies pills we have to order it to the pharmacist in special liquid format that smells like dog food and the dog STILL has horrible side effects, even in a benign for the dog format.
So we are done with metronidazole. And amoxicilin before metronidazole (the vet gave us that first) also caused the same side effects, but without neurological side effects such as epilepsia (and my dog is never epileptic before).
Maybe there is an antibiotic for Helicobacter pylori or fungi in the stomach of a dog and it doesn't cause so much upset?
