# skunk owners, i need your help - how to get a skunk to eat



## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

im postin this as i genuinly need help. i dont want grief, just sugestions that might help

on monday night the cats knocked a hal frozen chick off onto the floor and domino ate it. we caught him as he was finishin it off. tuesday night he didnt eat any of his food and has spent most of the time feelin sorry for himself in bed, not doin much. we THINK hes possibly got a sore stomach from eatin a half frozen chick. took him to the vets wed mornin for a check up. everything seems as it should be apart from a slightly tender abdomen. he was given an injection to settle his tummy should it be upset and some subcut fluids. Last night again he didnt do much, though if i disturb him he runs off n stomps at me, then when i move aeway he goes back to his bed to sleep. last night he ate a small amount of meal worms but wouldnt touch his veg or chicken. tonight again ive given him veg and chicken but he wont eat it. He has however eaten a pile of morios. hes also had a drink of water tonight that ive seen but he is still curled up in bed not doin much. He hasnt eliminated anything as yet but it would stand to reason that if nothin is goin in then nothin will be coming out. 

anyway, im going to give him some more morios but realise too many arent good for him as he wont be gettin what he needs, but at least hes eatin something for now. my question is does anyone have any tips on how to get him eatin again? its really odd cos he goes mad for his treat of cheese and he is even turnin his nose up at that.
and do people think it is the chick thats upset his tummy? i cant think of it bein anythin else as this is the only thing different hes had to the others and the others are fine. also hes not had any opportunity to get hold of anythin else so im not worried that hes eaten somethin more sinister


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## sparkle (Mar 21, 2007)

to be honest cat id leave him..

IF theres any bacterial infection in the gut eating will excite the bacteria and could cause more problems..

what is best is to wait for a fecal sample and take it to the vet to test for food poisoning...

its a bit like a human not eating when they have a tummy bug..

its too early maybe to say if theres any bacterial problem from what he has ate..

ALSO.. defrost IN the fridge.. not out.. saves a lot of heartache


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

sparkle said:


> to be honest cat id leave him..
> 
> IF theres any bacterial infection in the gut eating will excite the bacteria and could cause more problems..
> 
> ...


i know i should have defrosted in the fridge, i thought id already got them out but turned out i hadnt. bloody cat knocked it off n when we went in to check them they were on the floor. 

if he doesnt eat though lyn wouldnt it stand to reason that he wont poop?and if he doesnt poop i cant take a fecal sample in to be tested? or is my thinkin all wrong?


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Has he pooped since eating the chicken?

Frozen food alone could well cause an upset tummy, especially raw meat.

Did the vet check for bone splinters/blockages etc? Maybe something is stuck somewhere making him not want to eat......


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

carlycharlie said:


> Has he pooped since eating the chicken?
> 
> Frozen food alone could well cause an upset tummy, especially raw meat.
> 
> Did the vet check for bone splinters/blockages etc? Maybe something is stuck somewhere making him not want to eat......


 
the vet palpated everywhere she could possibly palpate and couldnt feel any blockages. she took his temp it was fine, she checked his breathin and heart, all fine. only thing she found was a slightly tender abdomen ken. it was a chick ken, not a piece of chicken, so it wouldnt be cooked. he has one every so often

as for has he pooped since eatin the chick, im not sure is the honest answer as he lives with chester so the poop on tuesday mornin could have been from either skunk. Hence why now dom is seperated in a pen so we can monitor input and output.


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Probably worth checking with the vet again if he dont eat soon......just in case she missed something or thinks he needs checking over again.

U did not say if hes pooped since eating the chuck? If he hasnt then maybe hes constipated?? 

A whole chicken is quite a big meal for little skunkie, greedy bugger lol


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

ken it was a day old chick! not a full chicken!! :lol2:

im goin to take him to the vet again tomorrow if im still worried. it was hard to assess him this mornin as hes usually asleep durin the day so i couldnt tell if it was normal habit or not. 

hes acting a bit more normal now in physical activity, though hes still not as active as he usually is


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

xXFooFooLaFluffXx said:


> ken it was a day old chick! not a full chicken!! :lol2:


Ooooooops :blush::blush::blush::blush::blush:

Remind me to get new glasses soon = I read chick as chuck :lol2:

Hope he gets better soon - this skunkie sure likes visiting the vet dont he :lol2::lol2::lol2: maybe he has a crush on the vet :whistling2:


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

carlycharlie said:


> Ooooooops :blush::blush::blush::blush::blush:
> 
> Remind me to get new glasses soon = I read chick as chuck :lol2:
> 
> Hope he gets better soon - this skunkie sure likes visiting the vet dont he :lol2::lol2::lol2: maybe he has a crush on the vet :whistling2:


you make it sound like we cause the vet visits :lol2: we dont, hes just a problem skunk, n we do our best for him, the little sod, he likes to have me worried i think

n ken..........

get some new glasses!!! :lol2:


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

OK OK I need my eyes retested first lol

Hows Dom doing today? Did he get more active last night & start eating?


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## Lucy_ (Jul 9, 2008)

I wouldnt have thought that a half frozen chick would do him any harm at all... There shouldnt be anything in a frozen one that is going to harm him.. But as sparkle said, maybe get a sample and take it to the vets to see if he has some sort of poisoning from it being 1/2 defrosted... and to check for salmonella etc?

Has he been wormed/flead? As this is important, more so when feeding chicks because of the crap that they eat when picking food up from the floors, they can ingest anything. Freezing them should technically 'kill off' any germs etc, but they are still going to be remaining.

What did the vet give him a dose of, as in what medicine did they administer to him? Are they 100% that what they gave him is safe...?

When you are giving him the mealies, gutload them with some thing like viat skunk, sa-37, nutrobal/calcium etc so that they are full of nutrients, this way, even if he isnt eating anything else then at least he is getting additional nutrients from the mealies being gutloaded. 
Try him on a mix of tuna, cot cheese, boiled chicken and egg... when Bam had her OD she wasnt eating at all for about 3 weeks so the vets suggested giving her a mixture of the above to help fatten her up and get her back onto eating solids... (this mix is in no way means, something that they should be fed constantly! Its simply a mix that can help along with the feeding process to get back onto a normal diet)

Hope this helps

Lucy x


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

Lucy_ said:


> I wouldnt have thought that a half frozen chick would do him any harm at all... There shouldnt be anything in a frozen one that is going to harm him.. But as sparkle said, maybe get a sample and take it to the vets to see if he has some sort of poisoning from it being 1/2 defrosted... and to check for salmonella etc?
> 
> Has he been wormed/flead? As this is important, more so when feeding chicks because of the crap that they eat when picking food up from the floors, they can ingest anything. Freezing them should technically 'kill off' any germs etc, but they are still going to be remaining.
> 
> ...


hiya lucy. he was wormed about 6 weeks ago, ive given him some more wormer, he hasnt been flead recently though i would need to check the last time he was.

the vet gave him metacam. i said that i had been told it isnt safe giving to skunks, so the vet went off to research, and found that on striped bandits it said dont give to your skunk, though it didnt say why. And that she rung her american friend who deals with skunks and she gives metacam to hers. Also when dom had his op he had metacam and that did no harm to him what so ever.
the vet said there is no reasonin what so ever that she can find as to why metacam isnt safe for skunks, and that its probably come from someones skunk dyin who had recently had metacam, and theyre blamin the meds for the death, when it might not be the case. 

he continues to eat meal worm but nothing else, offered cottage cheese and bio yoghurt. he has yet to go to the toilet
Lucy can you pm me payment details so i can send you some money, will need to get some vita skunk from you.

he is booked back into the vet today at 6, so i think ill get him to x ray etc. i cant take a fecal sample to be tested if he isnt passin any


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## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

xXFooFooLaFluffXx said:


> hiya lucy. he was wormed about 6 weeks ago, ive given him some more wormer, he hasnt been flead recently though i would need to check the last time he was.
> 
> the vet gave him metacam. i said that i had been told it isnt safe giving to skunks, so the vet went off to research, and found that on striped bandits it said dont give to your skunk, though it didnt say why. And that she rung her american friend who deals with skunks and she gives metacam to hers. Also when dom had his op he had metacam and that did no harm to him what so ever.
> the vet said there is no reasonin what so ever that she can find as to why metacam isnt safe for skunks, and that its probably come from someones skunk dyin who had recently had metacam, and theyre blamin the meds for the death, when it might not be the case.
> ...


 
Its all very worrying Cat, fingers crossed the vets can find out the cause so they can treat him successfully
(((Big Hugs)))


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## felix93 (Feb 5, 2007)

I hope you get Dom sorted soon. Fingers crossed.

Regarding the metacam, I have mentioned this to my herp vet the other night because I was trying to get my new skunk vaccinated with the dogs jab (or may be cats jab) and he said he would call the company to ask again. But he has given to the skunks he treated after they were being sprayed and no side effect. The dogs and the cats metacam is different, so may be that's the different reaction? :whistling2: Like rabbits cannot be given the dogs metacam because they are too strong etc.


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

felix93 said:


> I hope you get Dom sorted soon. Fingers crossed.
> 
> Regarding the metacam, I have mentioned this to my herp vet the other night because I was trying to get my new skunk vaccinated with the dogs jab (or may be cats jab) and he said he would call the company to ask again. But he has given to the skunks he treated after they were being sprayed and no side effect. The dogs and the cats metacam is different, so may be that's the different reaction? :whistling2: Like rabbits cannot be given the dogs metacam because they are too strong etc.


 
on striped bandits it says skunks CAN NOT have baytril or metacam. it has been directly related to deaths and causes liver failure, and massive organ failure follows. Though our vet says there is no reason why it would be more harmful to skunks than anything else and that a woman she spoke to in america uses it with her skunks with no ill effect? 

ive also found a reading list for drugs used in skunks and it says baytil has been used before in skunks. metacam isnt on this list,though thats not to say it hasnt been used successfully 
http://www.rdwarf.com/pipermail/skunks/attachments/20020220/d3cbf18d/attachment.pdf

also some info here about skunk care and drugs etc 
http://rcsanimalcare.com/images/PDF/Care of Skunks Pt2.pdf

back to dom

hes been to the vet again, runnin about the vets room but wouldnt eat his mealies. again vet cannot find any blockage etc but his temp is a bit low again so he has been given a course of anti biotic injections nisamox, as the vet said a low temp could be a result of a toxin infection. He said that it is safe to use and there is no information anywhere that would say otherwise. lets hope this helps. will be contacting again monday if hes not made a vast imrovement


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Would it be worth getting some Nutri-cal for him? It's always proved worthy for us and got everything and anything eating when we used it. It's cheap for what it is and you can get it on next day free delivery from Hyper drug.


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

LoveForLizards said:


> Would it be worth getting some Nutri-cal for him? It's always proved worthy for us and got everything and anything eating when we used it. It's cheap for what it is and you can get it on next day free delivery from Hyper drug.


 
any chance you could pm me a link to where to get some from megan pleasE?


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Done. : victory:


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## Merifield (Aug 5, 2009)

The bones in a chick wont cause any problems... They are soft.
Donna


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

Merifield said:


> The bones in a chick wont cause any problems... They are soft.
> Donna


its not the bones that im worried about, the fact that it was half frozen is what is whats worryin me

on a positive note ive just caught dom eatin a piece of pepper nd a small piece of cheese. lets see if he will eat some of the other stuff offered.

i also found some poop today too, very black due to the mealies but at least its there! never been so happy to see poop in all my life! lol


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

donna,

dom and chester get a chick now and then and are fine with the bones i would have thought he will be ok? if it has got stuck then thats a problem but its not,

it would [rob de-frost in his stomach? causing somtach ache? or something and then its just adding water but im not to sure but im sending healing vibes and lots of love to cat and ditta i know cat worries alot about all the skunks and wont hesitate with the vet hes in good hands cat try not to worry to much pop in after work if you ever want a chat. you know missy will give you some great cuddles ! xx


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Hows Dom doing????


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

he was rushed to the vets last night in state of collapse..........his back legs not working...temp so low it didnt register......cut a long story short hes in heart failure, has fluid on his lungs as his heart isnt working fully, survived the night in an oxygen tent,and has been transferred to our own vet this morning, where he looks a little better but still seriously ill. he is being kept at the vets for a few days in case of further collapse.

will update wen i can

ditta


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## dracco (May 17, 2008)

so sorry to hear that hope he gets better


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## felix93 (Feb 5, 2007)

Oh I am so sorry, hope Dom gets better soon. Fingers, toes and eyes crossed.


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## mrsfluff (Jul 15, 2007)

Cat, Ditta, fingers crossed for you and Dom, the poor boy xx

Jo


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## africa (Sep 12, 2008)

All fingers and toes crossed for Domino and you both xxxx


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## adamntitch (Jun 17, 2007)

hope he feels better soon hunni xxx


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Sending Dom some healing vibes.......poor wee mite !


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

Domino passed away at around 10.15 tonight

words cannot describe how im feeling right now, im totally crushed

i miss you so much my baby, i really dont know what im going to do without you

sleep well baby


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Cat babe, I'm so so sorry! Sending you & Ditta a massive hug! x X x X x


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## Rain (Oct 9, 2007)

Poor Dom  Sleep well little soul.


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

i realy have been crying for the past 15-20 mins and my headache has got worse i woke my mum we all send our love you know where i am ... R.I.P lil' man i love you loads please cat dont get to down xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx love you all


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## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

Im so so sorry, Sophie told me the news and I just cant believe its happened. We have been there with our Mitch so can understand how you are feeling right now. I know you dont feel like you will ever lose the ache in your heart but honestly it will get less painful. RIP Domino my first Skunk love, you will be sadly missed as you touched the hearts of so many people

Big Hugs to you both


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## felix93 (Feb 5, 2007)

:gasp: I am so shocked. 

I am very sorry and I don't even know what to say. It's Domino who got me wanting a skunk, even I have never met him in person. God must so needed more furry angels back home today because I lost one of my cats this morning. 

RIP Domino, Hugs to you both Ditta and Cat.


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

i cant stop cryin i just cant believe it im totally numb. i cant believe im never going to see my baby again


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## fenwoman (Apr 15, 2008)

OMG I am so so sorry mate. I remember him slipping his harness at Nerys' place and you having to coax him out from under the cages where he'd made friends with pippin and the meerkats.


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## Fixx (May 6, 2006)

Cat, Ditta, for what it is worth you both have my deepest condolences, having gone through this I know how much it hurts.

Rest in Peace little Domino.


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## adamntitch (Jun 17, 2007)

sorry to here this cat and ditta you know where i am if you need to talk conner just let me no what had happened me and richie and the animals are sending our love and kisses your way xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

So so sorry to hear this news  

RIP Dom


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

im so sorry cat and ditta 

RIP lil man 

will miss you and so will your 1st boyfriend too (kaimi) 

((((((((hugs)))))) to you and ditta cat


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## MSL (Jul 30, 2007)

So sorry Catand Ditta
RIP little Domino
Lots of love and big Hugs
Pen


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## dracco (May 17, 2008)

so sorry for you have followed this thread hoping things would turn out ok 
sleep well wee man


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## mrsfluff (Jul 15, 2007)

So sorry for you both xxx I loved hearing about all his escapades, they always made me chuckle :flrt:

Jo


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## quilson_mc_spike (Dec 27, 2008)

i had a dream last night that i would like to share,,

i had a dream, dom came running through my door, i picked him up and cuddle him for hours and hours and then i told cat, she was delighted and came instantly and she to, cuddled him for hours we where all so content! then, he, like all of our skunky friends knew he would be hungry so cat filled him with cheese cottage cheese butternut squash pepper and i had the honnor to take him to school, he, finnally made the papers of THE LIFE HES RETURNED TO and all the people in the world wrote to cat ditta and myself, then when everything died down we all got back to normal, and i woke crying and crying with missy curled around my head purring.. it was 5 AM!! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx we miss you baby!!!


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Cat, Ditta - I'm so sorry!! I honestly don't know what to say, but I know how you are feeling at the minute, losing any animal is hard, but it's such a tragedy when it happens to a young animal.

From everthing I've read about him, Dom was such a character and I know he's going to leave a huge hole in your lives.

RIP Dom, you were well loved!!


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

I really don't know what to say. I'm sitting with tears in my eyes, big hugs to you two, you know where I am if you need me. 


RIP Dom


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## africa (Sep 12, 2008)

Oh no how dreadful. I'm so so sorry to hear your very sad news.
Sending lots of love and hugs.
RIP Dom
Sallie,John, Jake and Nicky, Chloe, and all the animals xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


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## pepsirat (Feb 5, 2009)

*Hi*

Hi, that is very sad im so sorry for your loss.


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

just a quick update...........dom is having a post mortem done as we are having him cremated......ian, doms vet is doing this free of charge as he ie as gutted as we are and wants to learn more as to why this happened. we will have his ashes back with us in approx a week when he will be layed to rest in our garden. cat has taken to her bed and cannot speak to anyone or come downstairs as she gets to upset. im coping (just) and looking after our other critters who i think all know something is afoot.

chester has taken to sleeping in doms bed, whether that cos hes missing dom or cos dom makes a better bed, i dont know but we are all feeling a little lost

just wanted to keep you updated and thank everyone for their kind thoughts and words

i am around but not posting much as im up and down........my brother in laws post mortem will be performed tomorrow so all in all im in a shit way


ditta


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Oh Ditta - this must be awful for you and Cat!

I remember when we lost Briagha to heart failure, for weeks afterward we found Merlin asleep or sitting in all Briagha's favourite spots. It was kinda spooky!

Give Cat my love and tell her how sorry I am and you take care!


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## jo (Jun 29, 2006)

Im so sorry Cat & Ditta, ive only just found out and im so so sorry for you both, i know how your feeling right now what with going through a very similar thing myself recently, i know nothing i can say will help but what i can say is just think back to all the good times you all had and all the cuddles he gave you, your never forget him, nor will i. He was a gorgeous boy! R.I.P Domino xxx

if you need a chat you know where i am xxx


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

well ive managed to drag myself out of bed for a short while to take Chester to the vets for an x ray, i wanted to make sure he didnt have what domino had. The x ray was clear, his heart looks a normal size, Doms was 50% bigger than chesters which is a huge amount bigger. At least i can eliminate anything ive done from the cause. The vet assures me it hasnt occured from any care given and its possible it could be genetic or he was at more risk of it. 

Dominos heart wall had become thinner and saggy, and he had a ring of fluid round his heart, most commonly seen in larger dogs and usually a result of old age. Though as we all know, old age diseases sometimes take the young, and unfortunately it decided to take my Dom. The vet said its a progressive disease that has probably been going on for 6 months or so with no signs.

Though i still feel lost without him and always will, i can remember the good times with him. Hes had a troubled life right from start so id like to think we gave him a good year

miss you babe, but i know you'll never leave me


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Glad you've managed to pick up a little.

It's always good to know that whatever the cause of death of a loved animal that it wasn't something you might have caused or could have prevented, so there must be some comfort in that knowledge.

Briagha, my Havana, died of heart failure, caused by similar symptoms, (cardiomyopathy), so I know exactly how you feel. I could see his heart on his x-ray and it was bigger than it should have been and surrounded by fluid too.

I thought I'd discovered it in time to help him by keeping him calmer, not allowing him to rush around and feeding him a special diet, but he died only weeks after we got the diagnosis. It devastated me, just like you!!


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## xXFooFooLaFluffXx (Aug 4, 2007)

feorag said:


> Glad you've managed to pick up a little.
> 
> It's always good to know that whatever the cause of death of a loved animal that it wasn't something you might have caused or could have prevented, so there must be some comfort in that knowledge.
> 
> ...


 
how old was he Eileen? 

im still very raw and i have exema all over my face due to stress, ive never had it before, but i need to be strong for Ditta, shes suffered a double loss, and all ive done for the past 2 days is cry for me, its been all about me, so i need to look after her now


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

xXFooFooLaFluffXx said:


> how old was he Eileen?
> 
> im still very raw and i have exema all over my face due to stress, ive never had it before, but i need to be strong for Ditta, shes suffered a double loss, and all ive done for the past 2 days is cry for me, its been all about me, so i need to look after her now


 
great big hugs to you both hun 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


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