Help me. They want me to put him down. – Page 2

Keymaster

Raya,
I have received all the paperwork, thank you. As I suspected, a relatively healthy dog that has had a sudden autoimmune attack on the red blood cells. By this I mean that the chem screen shows perfectly normal body systems (liver, kidney function etc) with only a slightly high blood sugar (probably stress related) and a slightly high monocyte (WBC) level that is bringing the WBC count above normal. There is a higher total bilirubin and that is due to the destruction of red blood cells in circulation. Bilirubin in the coloring of the hemoglobin in those red blood cells. You are also seeing it in the urine, another indication that there is or has been RBC destruction. Because of this be cautious feeding any meats that already have blood in them because it can overload the kidneys and liver to remove this bilirubin from the blood.

I also see a lower than normal platelet count. This could be a simple lab error where the platelets glob together on the glass slide and are hard to read, techs will usually observe “platelet clumping on feather edge, value is normal” to indicate this. I would want to see future CBC’s to make sure that they are not truly low. It is a small concern because it can lead to inappropriate clotting in the body. In this case we often recommend low dose aspirin therapy to prevent this very dangerous thing from happening. Discuss this with your regular vet asap. You can say a friend who is a nurse, doctor, whatever, told you to check.

There are clues in the reports that indicate to me that he may have had some degree of canine atopy, which is doggie allergies, as seen by the ear allergies. Many dogs that develop AIHA IMHA and bone marrow failure have a history of canine atopic allergies. He was prescribed Temaril-P drops for his ears and that is interesting because it provided a small amount of prednisone (along with another medication) and may have possibly contributed a small degree of immunosuppression, which was discontinued a while back. I suspect the camp he went to has multiple trees and grasses, all which WILL enhance allergic (think autoimmune) activity. This could be one strong trigger for what has just happened.

In addition I see that he was in camp for “behavioral issues.” I see this much differently than you do! Perhaps you are a better trainer than you thought because behavior issues can be directly related to a medical condition many dogs have called hypothyroidism. In fact many dogs may be “put down” for behavioral issues that trainers can’t resolve when in reality it can be a treatable medical condition.

Please go to this page where there is a link to an article I would like you to read, click on the picture of the dog and that will take you to a webpage. Here is a quote from this webpage: “Aberrant behavior including aggressiveness, phobias, hyperactivity, poor concentration, and seizures is associated with canine hypothyroidism and feline hyperthyroidism.”
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/canine-hypothyroidism-resources/

In addition hypothyroidism is related to poor bone marrow production of new RBC.

What is the solution? Testing for hypothyroidism is important and must consist of a panel of several values (not just one or two.) What we want to see is if certain values are within a range of accepted values or if they are too low or too high. The thyroid gland is activated and stimulated by multiple hormones in an intricate harmony and the subsequent release of thyroid hormones is complex as well. So each of these steps is evaluated on a thyroid panel. Hypothyroidism in dogs is easily treated with a twice daily dose of thyroid supplement. This is extremely effective and inexpensive.

As I have said, hypothyroidism can be linked very strongly to the development of AIHA IMHA and bone marrow failure. Chance was hypothyroid and he had terrible canine atophic allergies starting at a very young age. He went on to develop profound bone marrow failure at the age of 7. Part of his treatment involved the use of thyroid supplements. We knew that his history of allergies and hypothyroidism were triggers to his later autoimmune profound bone marrow.

Eating is positive and a welcomed sight. I am greatly encouraged by this. That shows a will to live and interest in his family. Do not consider stopping his treatment or giving up right now.

With anemia, there aren’t enough red blood cells to carry enough oxygenated blood to the body. This will result in the body attempting to get more O2 into the body by increasing heart and respiratory rate. Thus the difficulty breathing. It is normal and expected when on high dose prednisone treatment.

In addition predisone has a negative affect on nearly every body system. The best way to describe this so you will understand is that predisone is very much like our own bodies cortisol. When a dog or a human is faced with a stressful situation we attempt to respond to “fight or flight.” We release more cortisol into our blood so we can increase blood flow, raise heart and breathing rates, pump more glucose into the blood for energy and numerous other body systems adjust to ensure we are ready for either battle or escape.

When we give prednisone in immunosuppressive doses for the purpose of reducing the over-activity of the immune system, we are giving the body way more cortisol than it needs. This leaves us in a state of constant alert. If you have ever almost been in a car accident then you know how this rush feels. Imagine feeling this way all day long. This condition is called Iatrogenic Cushing’s Disease, or Cushing’s syndrome CAUSED by giving high doses of medication. Do you not panic, you will see many side effects that will go away once the drug dose is reduced, such as the peeing, thirst, agitation, breathing heavy, weakness.

What questions do you have now for me?
My best
patrice

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Raya

Guest

I’m going to take some notes on everything you mentioned to bring with us to the vet.

Thank you for looking over all of that, I’m so glad you could understand and read through it all. He was at camp for basic obedience training, he had mild food aggression as well and the only dogs he’d been around had some pretty bad aggression issues. He’d gotten attacked more than a few times, and he was very young the first couple times, so he’s had a weariness about other dogs and always felt like he had to growl or get defensive. For me, though, he has always been good. Just high energy like the little husky in him usually is.

Your situation with Chance sounds just like Anakin. He has always had allergy issues with his ears on and off since I got him. Always scratching at them and making them scabby, but it was such a come and go type thing. That’s why I had him on and off of medications and ear drops a couple of different times.

I suspected he was allergic to grass or something, as he had been biting at his paws. We got him on the oral Temaril-P for a few weeks, his ear problem seemed to clear up pretty good, it was healing and the fur was growing back inside it. Then they put that yellow gunk in his ear to keep him from scratching at it and kind of soothe it while he was at camp, it hadn’t been bothering him but I wanted to see how he did off the Temaril-P. I thought he would have been fine.

I guess I was very very wrong. Lots of trees and grass and things out in Nipomo indeed..

You’ve basically answered any question I might have and given me a good basis on everything to ask for and look for. I got him a bunch of chicken, sweet potato and rice that I’m gonna boil up for him and feed him in small, soft chunks this evening and see how he takes to it. He finally pooped for the first time in four days, it was bright orange like sweet potatoes. I haven’t seen anymore blood in his urine since Monday morning.

Thank you for explaining the side effects of the Prednisone, it seems like he’s got those pretty bad and I was taking all of it as a sign of him getting worse. We have an appointment set up with his regular vet, I’m going to write down everything you’ve told me to ask about and look for, I hope to the universe that you’re right. It really does sound like Chance and Ani were in the exact same boat.

Thank you for providing me with this knowledge and comfort. I had no hope until last night and this morning when all of you started responding to me and understanding exactly what was happening.. I know he isn’t well, and I know we still have a lot more hoops to jump through, but I am so glad to know he has a fighting chance. I appreciate you and everything you’ve said and done for me. I will let you know how his next appointment goes and be sure that I ask all the questions.

Thank you so much! I wish I could meet your Chance, I’m so happy he made it through this. His story is giving me so much hope. I’ve never known how to pray, but these last couple of days I’ve been begging whoever and whatever’s out there to let me keep my Ani. I wish I could show you guys a picture of him.

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Raya

Guest

You ladies have given me so much more hope than I’ve had in days.. And Vally, no worries! I was so comfused, I thought I had sleepily attached that photo on my own somehow.

I got Ani to eat some boiled up/soft shredded chicken, sweet potato and rice all on his own last night. I came in ready to try and fight him for this, but he gobbled it all down by himself.. He was also able to stand and hold himself up long enough to eat the whole thing. This is the most improvement I’ve seen since he’s been home with me. He’s had a pig ear in his crate with him since he’s been home as well, but he hasn’t had the strength to gnaw on it.. To my shock, I heard a crunching and I turned to see him digging in. Sadly, I had to take it away because I was worried about how his little tummy was going to handle it/GI issues/if his organs were functioning properly enough to process something like that just yet. I was wondering if you might have any suggestions on what I could give him in the meantime, because I felt like the worst mom in the world taking that away from him when he finally had it in him to eat it. Piggy ears are his favorite, but I know they aren’t the best for them.

I was also wondering about milk thistle and what you think about it helping him to process all these meds- My sister came by and dropped some off to us yesterday, I wasn’t sure how safe this was or how much I should give him. They’re in veggie caps, the bottle says 175mg and that adults should take two capsules daily. I would think he’d be okay with one or half?

Also, I woke up at around 2am to Ani peeing all over the floor next to my door. I took him right after dinner/before bed, but I think the pred is making him wake up and chug in the middle of the night. This seems normal, right?

Thank you so much again. I’m going to look through all the stories on this page today.. And I’ll keep you updated on his blood tests/visit with our regular vet tomorrow. I’m hoping his prognosis isn’t still just as bad as it was or worse.. I’m seeing such small but significant improvements, trying not to get my hopes up too high but I feel like he has a better chance than he did. Love love love to you all. And to little Saba and all the other animal family members too! I wish I could come to Aus, my previous landlord was from there and strongly suggested I go visit for a while.

❤️, Ani and Raya

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