Buddy: 13 year old mixed-breed – Page 2

Sheena

Guest

Hi again Jordan

You are being well looked after by the vet nearby – how kind of her to help out. I also had never heard of this horrible disease – it’s pretty rare. Our local vets had never ever seen a case & it’s quite a big practice.

Had a look at the blood test – his neutrophils, which are the usual indicator of infection are actually OK, but giving antibiotics to be on the safe side has my vote because he does have high monocytes – these are an indicator of inflammation & infectious/non-infectious diseases too, so best to play safe. They are prone to infection with the immuno-suppressant drugs – we just take extra-special care of them, as you are.

Buddy’s reticulocyte level is GOOD! Nice & high in response to the anaemia – I’m really happy to see this – be happy too! Goodness, it’s always nice to have something really positive like this.

His MCHC (mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration is quite low – making me think he has lost some blood too. Can you also ask your vet about vitamin B12 & possibly iron supplementation? Buddy might need a bit of help on this. Iron must never be given without veterinary advice because it is dangerous to give when they don’t need it. B12 however is non-toxic & has helped a lot of our dogs, especially when they’ve had recent GI problems.

There is a supplement called denamarin which many of us have used – it contains Sam-E & milk thistle, both of which help liver function – I think Buddy could do with some for sure. Milk thistle helps to stop liver enzymes from going up – raised enzymes are another side effect of the drugs, so better to prevent this happening.

I think you are right about the tape worms – if he had a lot, it certainly could have made him pretty poorly. Any parasite like that is not good for the health. Worms can be picked up from anywhere another animal has been – they can sneakily hide until the next victim comes slong. It’s not anything you’ve done wrong, it just happens. It’s purely bad luck & most dogs get worms or something similar at some time in their life. Remember you said about the poor kitten with fleas? All these things suck the goodness out of our pets & can transfer some nasty disease along the way. Your vets have done extensive PCR testing for tick diseases though, which is fantastic.

Have a peaceful evening & a rest (a quick nap never goes amiss) – it’s my bedtime now! I also thought Worzel had died so many times during the night I can’t recount – it’s awful & I know we’ve all said this – you jump up & think they’re gone. Crazy, but we can’t help it.

Speak tomorrow

Big hugs
Sheena x

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