uti/e-coli infections

[knightrider]

My puppy has had a pretty bad strand of e-coli for several months. We think we finally have it under control, but my question is that would something like this mean that she shouldn't be bred down the road? I had thought of breeding her if she turned out nicely, but the fact that she got this and it has been difficult to get rid of concerns me.

 

The vet thinks that she got it before her immune system was strong enough to conquer it, but it worries me a bit. I didn't go into a lot of detail on everything the vet and I have done but she's had constant care/follow ups and we've been on top of this. I"m hoping that it is done now.

 

Thoughts?

[gcv-border]

If an infection is hard to clear up, I wouldn't immediately think that was a reason not to breed her. It could just be bad luck.

 

 

BUT, having said that, I would want to understand why the infection is hard to clear.

 

Is it because the incorrect antibiotic was used? No correlation with suitability for breeding.

 

Do you clear up the infection and then it comes back? 2 possibilities come to mind. One possibility is that a poor immune system may predispose her to repeated infections. The second possibility is that she may have a juvenile vulva (and the vet should have told you) which can predispose to repeated UTI's due to E. coli. In either case, IMHO she is not a breeding candidate.

[knightrider]

That is what i'm worried about. Initially I think the incorrect anti-biotics were used. After the first culture, we used what should have worked, but after 10 days (might have been 14, can't remember), the infection came back. We then used a different med because the other vet in the office thought the one she was on wouldn't be safe for puppies longer term. That didn't work and then it came back after the dosage was done.. so we did another culture which showed some similarities and we chose another drug for a much longer period.

 

The vet did not think she was conformationally challenged back there, but did think that maybe after her first heat cycle she will be ok. Between the heat cycle and longer term antibiotics. the vet thought it was because she got a nasty strain when she was too young - this started before she had all her shots.

 

So... I guess next question would be if it was a poor immune system because of her young age and now does not come back, would breeding be a possibility?

 

If this does come back, I will driving her to either New Bolton or Roanoke/Blacksburg for an appointment with a specialist. I'm hoping we will be done after this.

[jvw]

I actually have a male who had a stubborn e. coli UTI. We ended up putting him on 30 days of antibiotics after culture. And we ran another culture a few weeks after antibiotics to make sure it was all gone this time. Also, he now gets a daily Crananidin, cranberry supplement, to help prevent any future e. coli from sticking.

[GentleLake]

I sincerely hope you're able to help your pup recover from her infection.

 

It seems to me though, that everyone's ignoring the elephant in the room, which is how you can possibly determine whether a puppy has breeding potential at such a young age.

 

Surely you haven't been able to determine her working ability yet and won't be able to for some time. Until you've demonstrated her ability on livestock, it seems a bit premature to be considering breeding.