Kaiya's Thread

brittk

Well, now that we have been home for a few days, I thought I'd get a thread going for Kaiya. We were going to try to change her name, but she responds to it so well already (its the name Peggy was using for her) that we decided it would have to stay. I know Kaiya the Kai Ken is a little redundant, but if you dont think about the breed, her name is pretty cute .
She has settled into our home pretty well. She is learning super fast and is going to be starting puppy class hopefully in the next week. We go to the vet tomorrow for her final vaccination (bordatella) and to see about her heart murmur. Hopefully she has grown out of it, if not, we will be making an appointment with a cardiologist in the next 2 months.
So far, she is just a little ray of sunshine. She is super affectionate, which I was a little surprised about and she LOVES all people, the UPS guy (and gal), kids, people in trench coats, hats, sunglasses, she loves them all. She loves to play tug and chase and loves chewing on her bully stick and antler.

As promised, more Kaiya SPAM...Enjoy!

BradA1878

She is really cute! I like the name too.

the_november_rain

Kaiya is cute! I love picture #3, just want to give her kisses!

Calia

OMG, she is so cute, and those ears are just begging to be nibbled on:)

sjp051993

she is adorable!!!!!!

tjbart17

She is totally cute!!!!!! She kinda looks like Koda did in that 3rd and last pic, a little. I think it's the big ears with the face that hasn't caught up yet. So adorable!!!

I have a Koda the Kai Ken. *sigh* yes redundant but Kaiya is a cute name.

She has a heart murmur? Heard of this now a few times in the US. I do hope she grows out of it.

brittk

I knew going into it that she had the murmur. Peggy's vet thought it might be something that she grows out of, but we are going to have to wait and see. We will see what out vet thinks tomorrow and go from there. Im going to be sneaky and not say anything about it to see if they even catch it...does that make me mean? I just want to be sure she gets the most thorough exam possible... luckily, it doesnt affect her spunk at all

tjbart17

Lol no it doesn't make you mean. Sounds like Peggy was very honest with you. Is it genetic? I'm asking because it seems to pop up here in the US. Koda's breeder kept a Kai with a really bad heart murmur as a companion pet.

brittk

Peggy was extremely honest and I trust her completely. We talked at length about possible complications and causes. She did tons of research as did I. She hadn't had it pop up before that she was aware of. We dont know if it is genetic yet or not, but we will find out at the cardiologist (if its congenital or from rapid growth). This was a repeat breeding too. I think the first litter was 3 or 5 pups and Kaiya's was 3. It was recommended that we wait until 6 months of age to have any testing done.

I think a Flyer x Player pup from this summer had a murmur as well.

tjbart17

I've never met Peggy, but from what I've heard she's pretty darn cool. I'm thinking of going to the NIPPO show (given that airplane tix won't be too high). If she is there it would be neat to meet her. I might bring Koda along too.

7Stefan7

Kaiya looks stunning! I hope the heart murmur is gone.

brittk

@Tara, Peggy is very cool. She is so knowledgeable and so into making sure that her pups best interests are at heart that it would be hard not to like her. Oh I will be so jealous if you (and Koda) go to the Nippo show! That would be awesome.


Kaiya was a champ at the vet today. She got her temp taken, her bordatella vaccine (so violated from both ends), and an exam without a peep. While no one at the vet had ever met a Kai, all of them were completely enamored and she was totally the star of the show. Unfortunately, her murmur is still there and we will probably be going to get an EKG in a month or so. I'm feeling good about our vet though as she has a dog that was diagnosed with a heart problem and we are going to be able to use her cardiologist. For now, we just wait and see.

sunyata

Sorry to hear that Kaiya's murmur is still there... She is still a pup, so it is possible that she may still grow out of it (hopefully). But either way, it is great to know that you not only have a vet to support you, but a breeder as well. I have never met Peggy, but I have heard some awesome things about her.

And Kaiya is absolutely adorable. I love her ears!

Brego_mellon_nin

Oh what a doll she is! Love her sweet face.

I hope that the murmur is nothing serious and will go away. This cutie doesn't deserve to be sick!

tjbart17

@brittk you should go too! I still have to see where it is, and how much it will cost to fly me and Koda there. But I am seriously considering it. I would also like to have a bro/sis meetup with Tora and Koda. Also, I'm considering maybe (slightly maybe) showing him in the altered category. We will see. I doubt that will happen though.

Kaiya is a really pretty girl. I'm glad that she took her violations well. That's a good sign with a Kai.

brittk

So I got a call from the vet last night and Kaiya has both Giardia and Whipworms! She has not had any bouts of diarreha or anything since we picked her up. She is not lethargic and does not seem to have lost her appetite. I went and got her medication last night and we gave it to her at dinner time...about 11:00, she threw up all of her dinner and medicine. I am at a loss for what to do. The info we were given with the prescrition says that it is unlikely to but may cause vomiting in dogs and cats. If she cant keep her meds down, how will she get better?

Also, does anyone have first hand expericence with these parasites? Any help would be greatly appreciated...I thought the murmur was going to be the extent of our problems from the vet visit.

sunyata

Bella had whipworms when I got her... A simple round of dewormer fixed that right up...

As for Kaiya not being able to keep the meds down, call your vet. There may be a different medicine or a different form of the same medicine that will be easier on her tummy.

Try not to worry too much. She is for the most part healthy and will get over the parasites with ease, once she is able to keep the medicine down.

dlroberts

One of my Shibas had giardia and hookworms when I got her. Not seeing any evidence of those is not surprising as they are both cyclical parasites and may only cause digestive distress during certain phases of their development. Both should be cleared up relatively easily with two rounds of dewormer spaced 3 weeks apart.

I will caution you on one thing though. Giardia for sure, but I suspect hookworms too, are extremely contagious and can live outside the body for weeks or months. Giargia is also passable from dogs to humans, so be extremely careful when cleaning up feces. But, because it can live outside the body for so long, be extremely diligent about cleaning up feces.

As for the medication, speaking to your vet is good advice. There are a number of dewormers that are indicated for treating giardia, so if one doesn't work well, you can try another.

I know it seems really bad, but all things considered these are pretty easy to treat. Good luck!

Calia

Wow that sucks about the worms, my girl is positive for roundworm so you may want to mention that to the vet (since they both came from the same place).

brittk

Oh goodness. Thanks for the heads up. We are on dewormer so hopefully that gets taken care of too.

tjbart17

I've had to deal with Giardia. Bear had it. My sister got it once too when we hiked Half Dome. She would kick my butt for saying that lol.

It's easy to treat, but take Dave's warning seriously. It can live outside the body, and trust me that's not something you want Kaiya to get reinfected with or you get it.

All in all dog's get worms. It's gross, but not bad. I would definitely tell your breeder. She may want to treat her dogs at the house.

Make sure that you get a monthly heart worm medicine. I use Interceptor at my house.

sukoshi_mom

Ask your vet about recommendations for disinfecting the yard/house for the giardia.

brittk

Thanks for the advice. We are on Sentinel currently and are going to be changing to interceptor next month. I will definitely be asking when I call today to change the meds about how to disinfect the house. We have been diligent about wiping down paws underbelly and butts when we are done going out, and picking up poop is instantaneous with us. My biggest concern is that we are in a condo and tehre are a lot of dogs. Unfortunately, there are a few owners who dont believe in picking up their dogs business...some people just shouldnt have pets.

brittk

Thought I'd give a little Kaiya update with some new photos. We went back to the Friday and she was cleared of both the Giardia and the hookworms, so thats a good thing. Her heart murmur is still there, though it didn't sound any difference, so we were referred to a cardiologist. That appointment is about 2 weeks away and will hopefully give us all the answers we need.
In the mean time, we have had play dates, been to the dog park and gone out around town. She doesn't seem to really enjoy playing with other dogs, she just likes to run. Its kind of funny to watch, as she typically tries to get the other dogs to chase her.

tjbart17

Great news! I'm glad that little Kaiya is doing better. Her ears are adorable in that last pic and her coat is so shiny.

jujee

Yay free of hookworms n giardia. Hopefully the heart murmur goes away. She looks great

7Stefan7

Unbelievable how hard they grow... She looks stunning! Hopefully the cardiologist can help her.

brittk

@tjbart17 She is very shiny, even with her Kai Dandruff.That's her 'I'm going to listen very closely to what you say, but pretend to ignore you' look She does it very well.

Thanks all!

sunyata

She is beautiful! Glad she is parasite free, and I really hope the cardiologist deems her murmur harmless.