Case Studies

Case Study: A Case of Difficulty Urinating

Millie is a 1.5 year old spayed female Chow that had always been healthy aside from an anatomical inverted lower eyelid which had been corrected surgically (entropion). She was seen at her local veterinary clinic for routine vaccinations, and was given a Rabies vaccine 2 days before her current symptoms began.

Current Symptoms: Millie had become quite subdued. Her right eye began discharging green matter, and her energy and appetite were decreased. This unwellness continued, and slowly developed into urgency to urinate, with the most peculiar characteristic that Millie refused to urinate except inside the lake (which thankfully was not too far from the house). She would wade into the lake to void the urine and would not urinate on land.

In addition, Millie was separating herself from the rest of the family and would not play with the other dog of the household. She continued to have discharge from the right eye. Her stools were softer than normal and she had vomited water a few times in the past couple of weeks.

Physical exam and urine analysis revealed nothing additional, and ruled out a urinary tract infection.

A homeopathic remedy was selected based on the symptoms described above, and given in a single dose.

A report, obtained 7 days later, revealed that Millie had improved considerably. She was no longer hiding in dark, empty rooms, and she was no longer obsessed with the lake. However, she seemed over-reactive, especially toward moving things such as a ball rolling past her, or children running. She reacted by barking loudly, startling or shying away.

The resolution of the previous symptoms with the development of this new symptom pointed to a different homeopathic remedy. The new remedy was administered, again in a single dose.

A follow up report was obtained 10 days later (verbatim from owner's e-mail): "Millie continues to do better each day. The only thing that concerns me is weeping from her right eye. It's not daily now but still every 2-3 days it will weep all day and she will paw at it if I don't keep it wiped. The hyper-reactivity has resolved and she is mellow as ever now."

It seemed that the acute phase of this imbalance was drawing to a close. The only remaining observable dysfunction was an historic complaint that Millie had her whole life, which had been corrected surgically.

Another update a month later showed that all of Millie's behavioral abnormalities had resolved, and her right eye had a very slight, intermittent watery discharge. The owner considered this 'normal' for Millie.

Millie is seen yearly for her wellness exams and continues to do very well. It has been 18 months from initial presentation at the time this article was written.

Note: For Professionals who are interested in seeing the details of the full case, please contact CAHM through the contact link on this website.