What could have caused my dog to get sick

[dobienamedraven]

I had a female doberman turning 11 this November, but she still acted young and energetic,very healthy,always up to date vet care but suddenly got sick and died on June 2nd. I can't help but wonder what could have made her sick so fast and nothing i look up has her exact symptoms,two different veterinarians,one being her vet she has always seen and the other a local vet in the area we now live since November,have given different answers. we were outside til pretty late on a Saturday night,Sunday she had blackish kind of wet and sticky diarrhea which I thought was due to a different dog food, later it only became worse and one explosive along with some vomiting. she still drank water but I didn't offer her food because of her upset tummy. On Monday I called her veterinarian and was told if she is keeping hydrated she should be ok but scheduled an appointment for the next morning. she did seem to start feeling better around 1:00 pm with her ears perk and wagging her tail but suddenly the vomiting came back which was grass and kinda slimy looking around 6:00 pm. I thought perhaps a warm bath would help her because her paws felt cold but she only seemed weak afterwards, by 9:00 pm she wouldn't drink water or even attempt any food.By 10:00 pm she couldn't stand without wobbling and eventually falling.around 1:00 am she squirted bright red bloody diarrhea and at 4:12 am she died. I stayed up with her all night comforting her and waiting for morning to rush her to the vet since there is no emergency animal hospital where I live but unfortunately I was to late.I didn't have a necropsy done and wish that I had because I can't help but want to know what could've happened. Can someone please help? I don't think it was parvo as suggested because she had the immunization for that. She was last seen by her veterinarian last October just before we moved to another city in South Carolina. The new food I bought was on May the 25th and she only had one bowl on Friday, I checked for any recalls on gravy train but none have shown up. Her usual diet was rice and boiled chicken or some other boiled meat and sometimes mixed with dog food, usually dog chow.

[JanisM13]

First I am so very sorry for the loss of your sweet girl.
I DO NOT KNOW if this is the same reason your girl passed but we
had a 12 year old Greyhound who had the EXACT same symptoms
as your girl,Zane had no other visible issues or problems either,fine
and then it hit all of a sudden,he also had ice cold legs and feet and
ears.
We did race to our vet and when he checked Zane it was a tumor
in his intestine that ruptured,he was bleeding out,there was no way
to save him and he was euthanized...an ultrasound WAS done on
Zane.
As I said I DON'T KNOW this is what happened to your girl but as I
read what happened it brought Zane and what he went through back
in vivid detail...the sypmtoms were exact.
Run free little girl with the wind in your face....be at peace.
Jan

[dobienamedraven]

Thank you. No blood work or anything was done. My 13 yr old son and I drove her body 30 miles on a hot day to her vet, only for him to say he says it was probably her pancreas and gave me outrageous prices and told me it probably wouldn't tell me anything. I realize now this was completely out of character for him as he has been our vet for 14 yrs. I decided to take her somewhere else but all other vets I tried couldn't do anything on that day and claim that the freezer they have to preserve her for the next day was to small for such a large dog.

[Margot49]

I am so sorry to read this.  I assume the Vet(s) dud a cimparabkecomparable lets blood panel and stool culture?  
Black, tary diarrhea/stools can be an indication of bleeding in the small intestine.  This could be caused by a number of things, including a tumor.  These can often go undetected.  Had that happen to me once with one of my dogs.  Not saying that is what it was.  Did the Vet do an ultrasound?  Even that may or may not have shown something.
It may have been the food but that would be difficult to determine unless you still have some and had it analyzed.  Just no easy answers.
It sounds like you took good care of your dog but sometimes things just don't show up on a routine exam.  I would be curious to see if any blood work showed anything.
So very sorry for your loss.  It is difficult when we just have no answers.
Please update if you find out anything.

I have a friend, who is a very reputable breeder and an RN herself.  She has lost 3 of 4 9-week old pups and the 4th is barely hanging on.  All pups very healthy, started having vomiting and diarrhea. All her dogs are fully vaccinated but we're tested for Parvo which was negative.  They under very good Vet care and her caring for them at home.  They are at a complete loss as to the cause.  She had just started a new puppy food, Merrick.  No recalls on that either.  They are just stumped.

I only relay this story because sometimes the cause of an illness can be very illusive.