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I am sometimes asked what treatment you can give to a dog with pyometra other than surgery,
I had such a question today when a client wanted a second opinion as to what antibiotics to give her dog which had an obvious pyometra, my answer which may have been unsatisfactory to the client was no antibiotic, surgery is the way to go.
.It is true that if you are dealing with a very mild early pyometra in a younger dog you may, just may, be able to calm things down with a course of antibiotics and get her over that episode. The danger in this approach lies in the fact that pyometra has a track record of returning and could well do so with a vengeance after your dog’s next season. In those cases it would be better to carry out surgery now while the dog is still relatively bright and happy than to wait for for a future point where you could be facing rushed surgery in a very sick animal. This is altogether more dangerous …
..I in common with I suspect most other small animal vets think that where you diagnose pyometra then surgery is the way to go. My experience is then that almost all such dogs go on to have a normal, happy, good quality life after the operation. As an alternative some owners want you to try antibiotics such as the client I dealt with today, they may do this for good reasons such as to avoid painful surgery for their pet but others in these trying economic times may do this to avoid the cost. Clearly they have not understood the causes of this disease when they make this request but this is understandable as the causes of pyometra are complex.
.Other drugs such as stiboestrol or prostaglandin type drugs have also been used in attempting medical treatment of pyometra. I personally would avoid the use of stilboestrol because of potential side effects. Between the two I would go for prostaglandin but again the chances of long term success would be low.
.I have covered the disease pyometra in more depth, you can read the article HERE
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