[ThereseAline]

Hi,
I'm new to the forum and had a question.
There's a dog that's been in our neighborhood for a few weeks, not sure if she's a stray or if she belongs to one of the neighbors (no collar). Her rib cage is very rounded and seems to bow out. One side is more pronounced than the other. Does this happen during/after pregnancy or is it possible something is wrong with her? Her nipples are sagging like she was nursing, but it appears as if her milk has dried up so it's been a little while since she was pregnant. I don't know how long it takes for the body to go back to it's pre-pregnancy state; I've only owned a female dog once and she was spayed.
I worry she might have worms or a tumor, but I'm hoping this is pregnancy related. She seems to be healthy otherwise, aside from 2 small cuts and lots of ticks, which we've been removing. No apparent breathing difficulties, lumps on the rib cage, or swollen belly (belly is lean).
Any advice would be appreciated; I'd like to be able to stop worrying about her.

[pinsnpugs]

Without a vet exam and some tests it is hard to say what could be wrong with her.

She could be simply emaciated, which if serious and for a long period of time will start causing organ failure.

She could need wormed and some good meals, could have a serious illness...without a vet seeing her in person no one can say for sure.

As far as the sagging....while it is a possibility she recently had a litter, if she had had pups in the past and was not properky cared for than the sagging could be from a litter long past.

If the pups are young enough, assuming she did have a recent litter, but she has not nursed them for awhile for whatever reason, her milk will start drying up naturally. Especially if she is undernourished...the body will stop milk production first in order to save the calories for her own body's use.

If there are no tags I would take her in to the vet and get her some help.
You can always keep any bills incurred and advertise her in case someone is missing her in hopes that the owners will repay the bills of they are found.

She doesnt sound as though anyone is missing her, but itis always possible...we returned a dog to a family a couple years ago who had been missing for 9-10 months.

[ThereseAline]

I don't have money to take her to the vet. If I did take her I'd have to leave her there so I'd have to make sure she doesn't belong to anyone. Some of the other dogs in the neighborhood don't wear collars and they do have owners.
I think she could stand to eat a little more, but she's not emaciated.
Are you saying nipples can sag indefinitely after having puppies? What care would prevent that?
You may have misunderstood; what I meant by rib protrusion wasn't that she's so thin I can see her ribs, but that her rib cage is rounded.

Not allowed to post pics or links since I'm a new user; I'll try to pm you some pics of her.

Or not. Can't do that either.

[DoggieVogue]

It's possible she could have a condition in which the uterus becomes puss filled called pyometra I believe, it's an infection of some sort and she would definitely need vet care. It's also posisble that she's not fed enough, just like humans when you're not well fed the stomach can stick out. I'd ask around the neighborhood if anyone knows if she has an owner, and if not take her to the vet or animal control.

[Todd]

I def. recommend a trip to the vet because this could be serious. Here are a few possible causes I found from the net...

Canine Cushings Disease

Cushing's disease is also referred to as hyperadrenocorticism. It is an endocrine disorder of either the adrenal or pituitary gland resulting in the overproduction of glucocorticoid, a steroid hormone that is necessary for normal function of many of the body's systems. There are two types of Cushing's disease: adrenal based and pituitary based.

Adrenal-based Hyperadrenocorticism

Adrenal-based hyperadrenocorticism accounts for about 20 percent of canine Cushing's disease and is usually the result of an adrenal tumor. A less common form of this type of Cushing's results from high doses of corticosteroids. This type of Cushing's resolves itself when the steroidal therapy is discontinued.

Pituitary Dependent Hyperadrenocorticism

Pituitary dependent hyperadrenocorticism occurs when the pituitary gland overproduces the hormone ACTH, which in turn stimulates the production of too much glucocorticoid. A pituitary tumor is the most likely cause of this type of Cushing's, which accounts for about 80 percent of canine Cushing's disease.

Symptoms of Cushing's Disease

Symptoms of Cushing's include increased thirst, increased urination, increased appetite, abdominal enlargement, hair loss, thin skin, increased panting and recurrent urinary tract infections.

Diagnosis

Because the symptoms of Cushing's may also occur with other diseases, a dog exhibiting these symptoms should be seen by a veterinarian for a physical exam, complete blood count, blood chemistry panel and a urinalysis. For a definitive diagnosis, the veterinarian may perform a urine cortisol-creatinine ratio test, a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test or an abdominal ultrasound.

Surgical Treatment

In adrenal-based Cushing's, surgery may be performed to remove an adrenal tumor. Surgery for pituitary-based Cushing's is rarely performed and highly specialized. If an adrenal tumor cannot be identified, drug therapy may be used instead.

Drug Treatment

Lysodren is the most commonly used drug treatment for Cushing's, but it may have serious side effects and requires close monitoring. The dog will remain on this drug for the rest of its life. A newer drug, Trilostane, is more expensive but can be a better option for adrenal-based Cushing's. Like Lysodren, close monitoring of the drug's effects is required, and after several months on Trilostane, the dosage may need to be increased to maintain the results of the therapy.

*I'd have her checked for worms or heartworm because this could potentially be the cause as well.

All in all this warrants a vet visit. This may be something to do with the recent pregnancy or something complety different but something tells me the two are related because of the time frame in which this has occured. During pregnancy the dog's ribcage is widened and it might just still be swollen or showing after effects from the pregnancy. I'd def. call the vet and see if she recommends you come in or if it is normal after the fact. Hopefully Yogi can elaborate on this because he is a breeder and has seen many births. Yogi, would this be normal for a dog to have the wider rib cage/protruding after the birth/pregnancy? Also since she has been roming around worms is a serious possibility so that could be causing the issue. That needs to be checked because worms, heartworms in particular can be deadly.

[ThereseAline]

I looked that up online and the only symptom she shows is the shape of her ribcage. Seems healthy otherwise, but I know that doesn't rule it out.
It's not an exaggerated difference, at certain angles you can't even see what I'm talking about.
Once again what I mean by rounded is the shape. She's not like a skeleton. She's a little thin, mostly in her belly, which is not swollen to suggest malnourishment. Think curved ribs, not visible ribs.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by ThereseAline

I looked that up online and the only symptom she shows is the shape of her ribcage. Seems healthy otherwise, but I know that doesn't rule it out.
It's not an exaggerated difference, at certain angles you can't even see what I'm talking about.
Once again what I mean by rounded is the shape. She's not like a skeleton. She's a little thin, mostly in her belly, which is not swollen to suggest malnourishment. Think curved ribs, not visible ribs.

Is there anyway you could try taking a photo of the dog from several different angles and post it? This would help a lot...

[ThereseAline]

I know; I'm a new user and the site won't let me post pics. I can get my post count up to 10 and pm some pics.

Just PMed some pics to Todd, he's welcome to share them.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by ThereseAline

I know; I'm a new user and the site won't let me post pics. I can get my post count up to 10 and pm some pics.

Just PMed some pics to Todd, he's welcome to share them.

Such a cute girl! Doesn't look too bad. I'd at least call the vet up for some professional advice but then maybe give it a few weeks to see if this is jus an after effect of the pregnancy. If things don't improve def. take her to the vet. Still call the vet though as I said. Again, hopefully Yogi can shime in here when he gets a chance for he is a breeder and would probably be knowledgebale about this sort of situation.

[ThereseAline]

Thank you.
I will do that. Hopefully they can ease my concerns.

[pinsnpugs]

She actually doesnt look too bad. The rib cage shape looks normal to me from the pictures.

With her sagging so far up her belly, i would say she was recently feeding a litter.

If you are unable to get her vet care, try checking with some local rescues or no kill shelters. They will take them in and provide all the needed vet care.