Sunny

[admin]

Hello Sunny!
I heard your mom or dad uploaded a picture of you, making contact with this group because you are pretty ill with AIHA.

I sure hope you are not feeling too bad, things are under control and you are on the mend. Let your mom or dad know that there are many people here that are willing to help, answer questions and support them in their journey. Ask them to post on the forum and let us know a bit more about how you are doing!

Best wishes,
Brigitte & the poodle boys

• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by Patrice.
• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by Patrice.
• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by admin.

[admin]

Nice to meet you Sunny – what a great looking guy you are. Please let us know what happened to you & what we can do do help. We would all love to speak to your Mum & Dad & wish you all the luck in the world,
Best Wishes from all of us
Sheena, Worzel (diagnosed Dec 2012, in remission) & Ollie too!

[Vally]

Hey Sunny. It’s nice to see another pretty girl here. Let us know how you’re feeling.

Vally and Bingo

[maura]

I am Sunny Girl’s mom , Maura. I posted the pic of my shih-tzu Sunny Girl who is in the midst of battling AIHA since Aug 12. She has had 1 transfusion and the baby blood cells are not yet regenerating. I am her momma and she is my heart dog. She is only 6. I do feel her vaccines in June were the trigger. I am lost just watching her sleep all day and seem to loose all interest in life. How can I help her?

I feel so lost with this watching my once joyful pup go through this. I am in panic mode because the 1st transfusion was Aug 12 and she has no new red cells yet. Her pvc went from 35 to 25 and I want to get her another transfusion asap as she seems so lethargic. The vet told me to keep inspecting her gums-they still seem pink. The hospital is a 40 minute drive and I wonder will I need to rush her. I believe the vaccines she rec’d in June triggered this and I am riddled with guilt. She is my baby.

[Vally]

Hi Maura, I’m so glad you’ve posted. We’ve all been wondering about your girl.

You’re not alone in this. We all know how terrifying this horrible disease is and how lost we all suddenly found ourselves.

Don’t feel guilty about the vaccines. You gave her the vaccines because you were being a good mum and were doing your best to protect her.

With a PCV of 25, it’s not a good idea to transfuse again right now. The reason is that the body thinks it has enough red blood cells and won’t bother making any, so the vet is right, keep an eye on her gums. If they seem to become suddenly pale, or she’s suddenly very lethargic, ring the vet and maybe make the trip down. Be aware thought that the gums will be pale if she has been sleeping. Blood pumps through them as they need it, so if Sunny is sleeping, they’ll be pale, when she’s say a bit more active, you should notice they should become more pink.

There’s a whole heap of information on the AIHA Terms up the top. For example on transfusions:

https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/transfusion/

The medications take a bit of time to kick in, that’s why a transfusion is needed sometimes, to buy time for the medicines to start working.

What medications is Sunny on and what does she weigh? Predisone is usually the first drug used in this disease but often a second one is needed. Bingo is still on prednisolone and cyclosporine. Now prednisone is a terribly drug, but it’s a LIFE SAVER. It has a lot of terrible side effects, but they all go away when the drug dosage is reduced. Some of the side effects are panting, drinking lots more and therefore weeing lots more, loss of muscle tone, lethargy. Once it’s kicked in, they usually have huge appetites.

Is Sunny on stomach protection because prednisone is very harsh on the stomach and can cause ulcers. Also blood clotting can be a major problem with this disease, so is Sunny on a blood thinner, like aspirin?

Is the vet a specialist? Most of us found that being referred to a specialist made a difference in treatment as it is a complicated disease.

If you have a copy of Sunny’s blood results, you can attach them to the Urgent Advice at the top. There are some people on the forum that can understand them (I’m not one of them). They can help you to see what’s going on. If you don’t have a copy, ask your vet for a copy of the results.

The people here are really wonderful. We’re from all over. I’m from Sydney Australia. We’ve all been through, and some are going through, this disease. We all love our dogs to bits so we know what you’re feeling now.

My very best,
Vally & Bingo (diagnosed Nov 2011 in remission).

[Patrice]

Hi Maura,
Welcome to Second Chance. I am so glad you have found us! We are are to help, provide friendship and give you hope.

Please view the Introductory videos on AIHA and CBC in the AIHA Video Library. There is also a glossary of AIHA terms in the AIHA Terms page.

You can read about our dogs under Our Stories. It will help you understand some of the things we have been through.

Folks will be along over time to greet you and help you.
my best
patrice

[admin]

Hi Maura

Welcome! I’m really sorry about calling poor Sunny girl a guy! What an idiot I am for not seeing that pink ribbon too. She is sooooo pretty.

Vally has covered things really well and she has made a very important point about keeping transfusions to an absolute minimum as a PCV of about 25 is the slowing down point for new red cell production. I know Sunny will feel lethargic, but you don’t want to worry too much about this just now.

Don’t you DARE feel guilty about the vaccinations. Everyone does this in the best interests of their dogs health & most people are completely unaware that they can be a trigger. I knew nothing about this when Worzel was diagnosed either – we all learn as we go along on here. This is in no way your fault.

It would be great if you could tell us absolutely everything about medications & doses etc as Vally said. The biggest risk is abnormal clotting which you can read about here
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/abnormal-clotting/
and many dogs on here are on anti-clotting medications.

Anything we can do to help you & dear Sunny Girl, you only have to ask.
Take care & try not to worry – that is not too bad a PCV for now. Do you have a local vet that could just do a PCV check so you don’t have to go so far? Is the other vet a specialist?

So many questions – sorry!

Take care & speak soon
Love Sheena, Worzel (who looks like a girl but I mustn’t let him hear that!) & Ollie xxx

[maura]

Dear Sheena, Worzel & Ollie,
Thank you for your response-it means a lot to right now to connect with others who have gone through this awful disease with their wonderful dogs. And no worries for calling Sunny a guy because even the neighbors still think she is “Sonny”not Sunny. I named her Sunshine because that is what she brings to each and every day of my life.
Her meds so far are :prednisone 2x daily (20mgs) , Ciprofloaxin 2x daily , azathyaprine 1x daily and fomatadine. She has 2 types of eye meds too for tear production. I do not have a copy of the labwork but on Aug 12 her PVC was 8 and she got the 1st transfusion. Then she stayed at 35 for 3 days and then a week later it was 25. The vet said the baby reds had not been regenerating as of yet.
The tech on the phone today said if she is staying the same I should wait till wed. but if she is deteriorating I can bring her in today or tomorrow. I do not like that she is down all day with little moving around and at times snoring loud. I don’t want to misjudge any symptoms.
I just wish that after the vaccination on June 16th of distemper that I paid more attention to the lethargy that progressed slowly from there and the hair that fell off her face. Our local vet who also missed these symptoms luckily did send us to the er clinic which is 40 minutes away but so far they have seemed very good. They just can’t help me with my torment and anxiety. I must be driving the tech on the phone crazy.
Thank you so much for being here.
Love,
Maura & Sunny

[admin]

Hello Sunny!
I heard your mom or dad uploaded a picture of you, making contact with this group because you are pretty ill with AIHA.

I sure hope you are not feeling too bad, things are under control and you are on the mend. Let your mom or dad know that there are many people here that are willing to help, answer questions and support them in their journey. Ask them to post on the forum and let us know a bit more about how you are doing!

Best wishes,
Brigitte & the poodle boys

• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by Patrice.
• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by Patrice.
• This topic was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by admin.

[admin]

Nice to meet you Sunny – what a great looking guy you are. Please let us know what happened to you & what we can do do help. We would all love to speak to your Mum & Dad & wish you all the luck in the world,
Best Wishes from all of us
Sheena, Worzel (diagnosed Dec 2012, in remission) & Ollie too!

[Vally]

Hey Sunny. It’s nice to see another pretty girl here. Let us know how you’re feeling.

Vally and Bingo

[maura]

I am Sunny Girl’s mom , Maura. I posted the pic of my shih-tzu Sunny Girl who is in the midst of battling AIHA since Aug 12. She has had 1 transfusion and the baby blood cells are not yet regenerating. I am her momma and she is my heart dog. She is only 6. I do feel her vaccines in June were the trigger. I am lost just watching her sleep all day and seem to loose all interest in life. How can I help her?

I feel so lost with this watching my once joyful pup go through this. I am in panic mode because the 1st transfusion was Aug 12 and she has no new red cells yet. Her pvc went from 35 to 25 and I want to get her another transfusion asap as she seems so lethargic. The vet told me to keep inspecting her gums-they still seem pink. The hospital is a 40 minute drive and I wonder will I need to rush her. I believe the vaccines she rec’d in June triggered this and I am riddled with guilt. She is my baby.

[Vally]

Hi Maura, I’m so glad you’ve posted. We’ve all been wondering about your girl.

You’re not alone in this. We all know how terrifying this horrible disease is and how lost we all suddenly found ourselves.

Don’t feel guilty about the vaccines. You gave her the vaccines because you were being a good mum and were doing your best to protect her.

With a PCV of 25, it’s not a good idea to transfuse again right now. The reason is that the body thinks it has enough red blood cells and won’t bother making any, so the vet is right, keep an eye on her gums. If they seem to become suddenly pale, or she’s suddenly very lethargic, ring the vet and maybe make the trip down. Be aware thought that the gums will be pale if she has been sleeping. Blood pumps through them as they need it, so if Sunny is sleeping, they’ll be pale, when she’s say a bit more active, you should notice they should become more pink.

There’s a whole heap of information on the AIHA Terms up the top. For example on transfusions:

https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/transfusion/

The medications take a bit of time to kick in, that’s why a transfusion is needed sometimes, to buy time for the medicines to start working.

What medications is Sunny on and what does she weigh? Predisone is usually the first drug used in this disease but often a second one is needed. Bingo is still on prednisolone and cyclosporine. Now prednisone is a terribly drug, but it’s a LIFE SAVER. It has a lot of terrible side effects, but they all go away when the drug dosage is reduced. Some of the side effects are panting, drinking lots more and therefore weeing lots more, loss of muscle tone, lethargy. Once it’s kicked in, they usually have huge appetites.

Is Sunny on stomach protection because prednisone is very harsh on the stomach and can cause ulcers. Also blood clotting can be a major problem with this disease, so is Sunny on a blood thinner, like aspirin?

Is the vet a specialist? Most of us found that being referred to a specialist made a difference in treatment as it is a complicated disease.

If you have a copy of Sunny’s blood results, you can attach them to the Urgent Advice at the top. There are some people on the forum that can understand them (I’m not one of them). They can help you to see what’s going on. If you don’t have a copy, ask your vet for a copy of the results.

The people here are really wonderful. We’re from all over. I’m from Sydney Australia. We’ve all been through, and some are going through, this disease. We all love our dogs to bits so we know what you’re feeling now.

My very best,
Vally & Bingo (diagnosed Nov 2011 in remission).

[Patrice]

Hi Maura,
Welcome to Second Chance. I am so glad you have found us! We are are to help, provide friendship and give you hope.

Please view the Introductory videos on AIHA and CBC in the AIHA Video Library. There is also a glossary of AIHA terms in the AIHA Terms page.

You can read about our dogs under Our Stories. It will help you understand some of the things we have been through.

Folks will be along over time to greet you and help you.
my best
patrice

[admin]

Hi Maura

Welcome! I’m really sorry about calling poor Sunny girl a guy! What an idiot I am for not seeing that pink ribbon too. She is sooooo pretty.

Vally has covered things really well and she has made a very important point about keeping transfusions to an absolute minimum as a PCV of about 25 is the slowing down point for new red cell production. I know Sunny will feel lethargic, but you don’t want to worry too much about this just now.

Don’t you DARE feel guilty about the vaccinations. Everyone does this in the best interests of their dogs health & most people are completely unaware that they can be a trigger. I knew nothing about this when Worzel was diagnosed either – we all learn as we go along on here. This is in no way your fault.

It would be great if you could tell us absolutely everything about medications & doses etc as Vally said. The biggest risk is abnormal clotting which you can read about here
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/abnormal-clotting/
and many dogs on here are on anti-clotting medications.

Anything we can do to help you & dear Sunny Girl, you only have to ask.
Take care & try not to worry – that is not too bad a PCV for now. Do you have a local vet that could just do a PCV check so you don’t have to go so far? Is the other vet a specialist?

So many questions – sorry!

Take care & speak soon
Love Sheena, Worzel (who looks like a girl but I mustn’t let him hear that!) & Ollie xxx

[maura]

Dear Sheena, Worzel & Ollie,
Thank you for your response-it means a lot to right now to connect with others who have gone through this awful disease with their wonderful dogs. And no worries for calling Sunny a guy because even the neighbors still think she is “Sonny”not Sunny. I named her Sunshine because that is what she brings to each and every day of my life.
Her meds so far are :prednisone 2x daily (20mgs) , Ciprofloaxin 2x daily , azathyaprine 1x daily and fomatadine. She has 2 types of eye meds too for tear production. I do not have a copy of the labwork but on Aug 12 her PVC was 8 and she got the 1st transfusion. Then she stayed at 35 for 3 days and then a week later it was 25. The vet said the baby reds had not been regenerating as of yet.
The tech on the phone today said if she is staying the same I should wait till wed. but if she is deteriorating I can bring her in today or tomorrow. I do not like that she is down all day with little moving around and at times snoring loud. I don’t want to misjudge any symptoms.
I just wish that after the vaccination on June 16th of distemper that I paid more attention to the lethargy that progressed slowly from there and the hair that fell off her face. Our local vet who also missed these symptoms luckily did send us to the er clinic which is 40 minutes away but so far they have seemed very good. They just can’t help me with my torment and anxiety. I must be driving the tech on the phone crazy.
Thank you so much for being here.
Love,
Maura & Sunny