[mbooth16]

I found a dog in the middle of the highway Wednesday. He was fine then, but started vomiting last night. He is a very small mixed breed. Probably around 8 - 10 lbs.

He has been vomiting a white foam type thing. He does not show signs of a fever, but he is very tired. I'm at a loss for what to do for him!! Any suggestions would be appreciated!!

[Corky/Max]

Originally Posted by mbooth16

I found a dog in the middle of the highway Wednesday. He was fine then, but started vomiting last night. He is a very small mixed breed. Probably around 8 - 10 lbs.

He has been vomiting a white foam type thing. He does not show signs of a fever, but he is very tired. I'm at a loss for what to do for him!! Any suggestions would be appreciated!!

I would get him to a vet as soon as possible! Could be many things wrong! Make sure he is drinking water as could be dehydrated very easily! He could have gotten in to something poison--Have some kind of disease--liver or kidney failure--among other things! Big Flag here---This can also be a sign of Rabies!!! I would isolate him from human contact till you find out what it is!! Call the vet!!!

[Corky/Max]

The rabies virus, which is present in infected saliva, enters at the site of a bite. Saliva on an open wound or disrupted mucous membrane also constitutes exposure. The average incubation period in dogs is 2-8 wks., but it can be as short as 1 wk. or as long as a yr. The virus travels to the brain along nerve routes. The more distant the bite from the brain, the longer the period of incubation. The virus then travels back along nerves to the mouth. Entry into the salivary glands occurs less than 10 days before the appearance of symptoms.

The symptoms of rabies are due to inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). During the prodromal phase, which lasts 2-3 days,the signs are subtle and consist of personality changes. Affectionate and sociable pets may become irritable and aggressive.Shy and less outgoing pets may become overtly affectionate. An infected dog often chews at the site where the virus entered the body. Soon, the animal becomes withdrawn and stares off into space.

There are 2 characteristics forms of encephalitis: the FURIOUS form and the PARALYTIC or dumb form. A rabid dog may show signs of both forms as the disease progresses.

In the furious or "MAD DOG" type of rabies, the dog becomes frenzied and vicious, attacking anything that moves. The muscles of the face go into spasm, drawing the lips back to expose the teeth. When running free, the dog shows no fear and snaps and bites at any animal in his path.

In the paralytic form, the throat and jaw muscles become paralyzed, causing the mouth to drop open and the tongue to hang out. The dog is unable to swallow his own saliva and drools, coughs, gags and may foam at the mouth. As encephalitis progresses, the dog loses control of his body movements, staggers about and collapses. Death from respiratory failure occurs in 1-2 days. In some cases paralysis may be the only sign of rabies.

TREATMENT: There is no effective treatment. The disease is always fatal.

Any dog bitten by an animal not known to be free of rabies must be assumed to be rabid until proven otherwise. The recommendations are as follows: If the dog has previously been vaccinated against rabies, revaccinate immediately and observe the dog under leash confinement at home for 45 days. In the case of an unvaccinated dog, either euthanize the animal (this is preferable) or confine him under strict quarantine without human or animal contact for 6 months. Then vaccinate 1 month before he is released. If this seems harsh, keep in mind that it would not have been necessary if the pet had been vaccinated.unquote---The vet should of checked in to this--If not--a poor vet--and your mom and other dog and any other 'living creature'--human or otherwise could be in very serious danger!! Please check in to this now---even if Maggie has been vaccinated before!!

[mbooth16]

I appreciate your help. He is not showing any signs of rabies. It looks more like worms. He has had a couple of very runny stools since I posted and they contained worms. I've given him a worming medicine, and he has kept it down.

My husband lost his job Friday, so I can't afford to take him to the vet.

Do any of you know of any dogs that have gotten this far down and been able to come back from it? Is there anything else I can do for him? Any home remedies anyone knows about?

[LindaLinda]

Is the dog's poop particularly foul smelling?? When my Lily had worms this past January the first thing we noticed was her poop stunk to high heavens! Much worse than it normally did. She had a little bit of vomiting but nothing extreme. We took her in and of course they did a test for worms. It came back positive. After Lily finished the meds we had to wait a few weeks and the Vet required us to bring in Lily's stool sample to make sure she was worm free. And the meds did the trick, no more worms!

Sorry to hear of your husband's job loss. My hubby lost his job a few days before Christmas in 2007 (it was a fun christmas!!) and no one worked in our houshold for 14 months after that. This economy is beyond scary! Thank God for our Vet--she was so compassionate when she heard of our situation, gave us a discount and worked out payments when our Lily got a much needed teeth cleaning, etc.

Keep us posted...