# My boxer dog had tetanus



## Shaun73 (Jan 20, 2012)

I just wanted to tell you my story about my beautiful 10 month old boxer dog Brandy. I am still really confused about what happened and not sure how to comprehend things but I thought I would throw it out there. 

I live in Sydney Australia with my wife and two boys aged 4 and 2. In June this year we purchased our first dog brandy a beautiful boxer pup with a brindle coat, white socks and white stripe between her eyes. 

Last week on Friday we decided it was time to get her desexed or spayed so we booked her in at the vet for the routine operation. We picked her up that afternoon with a cone around her head and a nice set of stitches on her tummy. She was traveling well and nothing seemed out of the ordinary we were doing everything by the book. 

On tuesday she started vomiting and was off her food, nothing to dramatic so we decided to see how she was through the day and she slowed down in her movements but nothing too drastic. By tuesday night her eyes started to look funny and she was squinting. 

Wednesday when we woke her eyes were barely opening and her face looked very different so we immediately took her back to the vet that morning. The vets were really worried and started to give her antibiotics and some muscle relaxants as she wasn't moving her neck. The vets asked if she had been poisoned they took blood tests and rather than wait for the results they also x rayed her to see if she ate anything. 

They could not figure out what was happening to her as she started to drool excessively so the relocated her to the local vet hospital for another opinion and increased supervision. At the hospital they started to think this was tetanus as her mouth started to 'smile' which is very unusual for a boxer. 

By the time I had finished work the vets at the hospital had given us the choice to keep her in for the night whilst we wait for some antitoxin or we could drive her an hour and a half to the main vet hospital called SASH where they had the anti toxin ready to go. 

When we picked up Brandy the symptoms were horrific, regular spasms, she couldn't sit down massive amounts of drool and she was very distressed. The car ride was one of the most horrendous experiences we have every encountered as we rushed her to SASH. 

When we arrived the vets immediately recognized the rare tetanus infection and after an initial test to see if brandy was allergic to the anti toxin they gave her the antitoxin and we went home knowing that she was only a 50/50 chance of surviving. 

The next day they reported not much change but they were happy with her progress and we called every 3 or 4 hours and every vet we spoke to pretty much said the same. On Friday morning we called to see how she went through the night and the vet said she was showing signs of improvement as she was up and moving and also barking at a vacuum cleaner. So we started to get our hopes up and the bills were coming in thick and fast as we had no insurance. 

We called during the day and the vet had said they had put on an eye mask and ear plugs to keep her peaceful but things were still progressing as planned. 

We I returned home I called the vet hoping they might let us go and see her the next day and find out what time frame we might be looking at to bring her home. 

However the vet had some really bad news for us as Brandy had gone into cardiac arrest and they couldn't revive her after some trying for over half an hour to bring her back. She had a spasm that affected her respiratory system and the horrible bacteria called tetanus took our beautiful girl to heaven on us. 

The vet said they dont know how she picked up the tetanus and it might have come through the desexing or could have been a bone she chewed on and a nail she might have stepped on. It is really hard for us as a family to comprehend how we took our Brandy to be desexed and then a week later she has passed away. 

We can't think of anymore we could have done maybe we should have taken her straight to the vet on the Tuesday night when we first saw some symptoms. We don't know if we should be angry at the vet who did the surgery but the other vets assure us the procedure was done correctly. 

We are so sad and devestated by our loss I thank you for taking the time to read this post. During the ordeal it was really hard to find out what happens when you dog is diagnosed with tetanus. Maybe our story one day might be read by someone that could get them to act faster. When we were wondering what to do we did simple google searches on things like : my dog has tetanus will she survive? My dogs eyes are sunken and my dogs eyes look funny? And none of these really gave us much of an incite. 

If anyone else has had a dog die or survive from tetanus we would love to hear your story. Our grief is really hard to get past at the moment for our family and by writing this post we hope in someway it will help us get through and comprehend what has happened to our beautiful boxer pup Brandy. 

Thanks for taking the time to read my post.


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## GottaLuvMutts (Jun 1, 2009)

I'm sorry for your loss. 

I don't know much about tetanus, but it might be worth checking with the first vet to make sure that everything was sterilized very well after this occurred - wouldn't want this happening to the next dog being spayed in that room!


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## Abbylynn (Jul 7, 2011)

I am so very sorry for your loss ... thoughts and prayers for all of you during your time of grieving.


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## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

My condolences on your loss. I had a horse at a rescue that I was helping to care for, die of Tetanus. It was horrific. I know there is a vaccine for horses which is pretty common to give, but not sure if dogs have one. My guess would be yes. I'll check with my vet.


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## pringles (Mar 5, 2013)

I had a female husky mix that used to practically knock my kids down to get outside everytime they opened the door. She loved to go down into a creek behind our house and run wild. The last time this happened she was found with a male dog and I was scared she was going to get pregnant or worse, I had had it. 

I took her to the vet to get spayed and some tips on intensive puppy training. I got her back the next day and she then proceeded to tear her stitches out overnight. So, I took her back to the vet. They decided to keep her and put her on antibiotics for a few days. When I picked her up I noticed her eyes looked weird, they didn't know what it was so they told me to just watch her over the weekend, this was on a Friday.

By Monday the top of her head looked scrunched up and her ears didn't sit right. I took her back for the third time. They kept her to run tests and figure out what was going on. But to make a long story short, they found out it was tetanus. They ordered the antitoxin and basically told me she was doing good and responding well, they expected a full recovery.

Two days later they called to tell me she started having trouble breathing and ended up passing away. I was devestated. During all of this I had been doing research to find answers. I did find that animals can get tetanus from horses, apparently its in the intestinal tract and can be passed via a wound or cut.

This raised a red flag for me because we do not live near any horses and the vet we took her to boards and cares for them at his clinic. Her spay opening was the only "wound" we could find. So after all that stress, worry, $1,200 and a tragic ending, we still didn't have any answers.


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

I'm so sorry for your losses.

Tetanus is literally everywhere. My mom's friend got it from stepping on an acorn. Basically any puncture wound can lead to infection.


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## Poly (Sep 19, 2007)

Sorry for your loss.

Dogs don't get tetanus from horses or from any other animal. They get tetanus from wounds infected with the _ Colstridium tetani_ bacteria. Because they are naturally highly resistant to the toxin the bacteria produces, the disease is relatively rare in dogs. 

Never say never, but it is almost impossible for a dog to get infected from a surgery performed at a vet hospital that follows basic routine antiseptic procedures. 

Dogs reaction to _ Colstridium tetani_ infection is different from horses and humans. Because of their high resistance to the toxin, dogs often have a _long incubation period _and may develop _localized tetanus_ that spreads slowly from the wound site. However, generalized tetanus can occur in dogs and if it does, it must be treated promply.

Because dogs are so resistant, anti-tetanus vaccines are not routinely used. Horses, on the other hand, are routinely vaccinated.


Here is a very good video


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## luv mi pets (Feb 5, 2012)

We once had a dog come in and tetanus was quickly diagnosed and treatment was started right away. The dog had a 1/2" laceration on the right front leg, which allowed the tetanus to enter into the body. We were able to get the anti-toxin from another vet in the area. The dog was at the hospital for 5 days before being released back to the owners. It was a touch and go situation for the first three days. We did soak the wound with a hydrogen peroxide mixture, which in turn caused the dog's fur to become a burnt orange color. Oddly enough the dog in the video resembles that dog quite a bit. The dog had the classical smile and perked up ear stance with the wrinkled brow forehead so often seen with tetanus. Being the main caregiver (nurse) for that dog, I was so happy when the dog was finally able to go home.


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## ShelleyJ (May 31, 2013)

Shaun73 said:


> I just wanted to tell you my story about my beautiful 10 month old boxer dog Brandy. I am still really confused about what happened and not sure how to comprehend things but I thought I would throw it out there.
> 
> I live in Sydney Australia with my wife and two boys aged 4 and 2. In June this year we purchased our first dog brandy a beautiful boxer pup with a brindle coat, white socks and white stripe between her eyes.
> 
> ...


I read your story and am heartbroken for you, but you are not alone. The story of our precious Blackie, a black Scottish terrier mix who we took in when our daughter could not longer care for her


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## Kyllobernese (Feb 5, 2008)

I get a tetanus shot every three years, the only shot I ever get, as I work around horses. My horse gets a tetanus shot every year as they are much more likely to get tetanus. I have often wondered why dogs do not also get the shot but had never heard of a dog getting tetanus although I know any warm blooded animal can.

Years ago a pony I was looking after died of tetanus because usually as soon as the symptoms show up it is too late even with treatment.


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## ShelleyJ (May 31, 2013)

I am so sorry for your loss. I had almost the same experience getting our dog Blackie spayed. She was almost 6 years old. We loved her very, very much and like your dog started vomiting about a day after she was spayed. I took her back several times and finally was sent to a veterinary specialty hospital. She did not last through the night there as her heart stopped. I feel so badly that I ever took her to get spayed, but what you describe in your post is almost identical to my experience. I do believe that my dog contracted the tetanus when she was spayed. She had no other wounds on her and was fine when I took her in and up to date on all vaccines. My husband and I are devastated. I feel so much better knowing that I am not alone. However, the vets are unwilling to admit that they did anything wrong. I find that even worse. I don't think I would ever trust a vet again after what happened to our dog.


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