Sunny – Page 2 – Second Chance AIHA Dogs

Keymaster

Hi Maura

Thanks for forgiving my awful mistake! Being completely stressed out is normal – most of us had never heard of this nasty disease, so you just don’t know what to do. I’m sure the vets will completely understand your anxiety. It’s horrible. She is going to be very, very tired & your vet is right to get you to check her gums for pinkness regularly. Just don’t panic if they are pale when she has just woken up. Dogs store a lot of blood in their spleens while they sleep & it only goes back into the circulation when they are fully awake & alert. So, I hope that helps! I had Worzel’s PCV checked every other day when he wasn’t producing any new cells, just to make sure his PCV hadn’t dropped too much (yes – I admit I was completely paranoid). I would recommend you do that for your own peace of mind – it saves you going crazy with worry.

It is pretty common for the PCV to drop after transfusions, so try not to worry too much about that. Poor Sunny must have felt awful at a PCV of only 8. That is very low indeed. When the drugs start to do their job, things should start to stabilise, but it doesn’t happen overnight – we all wish it did! – and we have to be patient to start with. If she needs another transfusion to tide her over, well so be it – as long as she gets better.

Great to see Sunny is on prednisone & azathioprine, plus the tummy protector famotidine. You can also ask your vet to add sucralfate for tummy protection -it’s great stuff. You need to give the tummy protector separate from the other drugs because it prevents proper absorption. Always give the azathioprine with food as there is a risk of pancreatitis with this drug. My Worzel was on azathioprine & he became regenerative a couple of weeks after starting it, so I am crossing everything for this to happen to Sunny too! A more commonly used drug used these days is cyclosporine, so if the azathioprine doesn’t work or Sunny has problems tolerating it (all dogs are different) then there are other drugs you can try. All these drugs are in our glossary of AIHA Terms (at the top) so you can look up anything like that – we have tried to explain how/when to give the drugs, the side effects etc. If you’d rather just ask on the forum, that’s OK too!

I would like you to talk as quickly as possible about changing the antibiotic because this can have an adverse effect on Sunny’s blood. We have recently been discussing which antibiotics are not suitable (they can make things worse) for dogs with AIHA & I have just checked Ciprofloxacin for you – it has some risks of worsening the anaemia & causing other problems with the other types of blood cells too. It also suppresses the bone marrow, which is the last thing Sunny needs as she is not producing enough red cells as it is. Please look at this link – you can print it & take it to the vets maybe? If you page down to the hematologic side effects, these are very important & my personal view is that I would change to something safer if it were my dog. It’s not worth taking the risk.
http://www.drugs.com/sfx/ciprofloxacin-side-effects.html

I also see ciprofloxacin interacts with anti-clotting medications. Clotting is a huge risk as I mentioned and I don’t see an anti-clotting medication on Sunny’s list. Please could you also urgently check with your vet as to what tests they have done to ensure Sunny is NOT at risk from clotting. Sorry to be such a naggy person, but it is very important – we all want Sunny to get the best possible treatment. I would really like you to send us copies of her blood tests & blood smear results- some of us can check to make sure everything is OK for you.

I expect I’ve bombarded you with enough information, so I’ll leave you in peace for now. There are many experienced & knowledgeable people on here who care about you & Sunny – if you are worried about anything, please feel free to ask any of us for help.

Sending you loads of love & best wishes – a big hug to the pretty girl too!
Sheena, Worzel & Ollie xxx

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