Vally - 11. page

[Vally]

Brad, just wondering how Max is going.

[Vally]

Do you know what his PCV is? the percentage of red blood? What colour are his gums?

How long has he been on the prednisone? I’m worried the dose wasn’t enough to start with. The dosage is 1mg per pound divided into two doses, so he should have been on 40mg twice a day.

What are you trying to feed him with?

I’m wondering if he may have pancreatitis. Prednisone usually gives them a huge appetite, but prednisone can also trigger pancreatitis.
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/pancreatitis

There is a simple instant blood test to check this. If he does have pancreatitis, he would be in a lot of pain and would not be able to stomach food and would be vomiting – some of the symptoms that you’re seeing.

Brad, I think Max needs hospital care right now and most likely he needs to be on a drip. Is there an emergency hospital you could go to? He really needs to be under a specialist’s care, someone who knows this disease. It’s not very well known and I’m worried that the treatment isn’t really doing anything other than making him weaker.

Please take him to a hospital.

Vally

[Vally]

Hi Brad and welcome. I’m sorry you’ve had to come looking because I know how worried you are right now.

Can you tell me how much Max weighs? The dosage depends on weight. At that dosage he’d have to weigh around the 20lb mark with you dosing about 10mg twice a day.

Yes there are other drugs, the best being cyclosporine. There is also azathioprine. They are often used in combination with prednisone. Prednsione tends to work quickly, at the right dose, but has a lot of side effects, and that could be what you’re seeing.
Prednisone:
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/prednisone
Cyclosporine:
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/cyclosporine
Azathioprine:
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/azathioprine

Prednisone must be given with food. It can cause ulcers and therefore, stomach protection should also be given. It’s possible the prednisone is causing stomach issues. The best stomach protection is Sucralfate, but it must be given away from drugs and food as it blocks their absorption.
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/sucralfate
but you could also give Pepcid:
https://www.secondchanceaihadogs.com/AIHA_Terms/famotidine

Ask anything Brad, happy to help get Max feeling better.

My best,
Vally

[Vally]

Hello and welcome.

Dotty is your girl? This is always hard. Has Dotty improved in the 4 months? The drugs are terrible with the side effects so they always look so very bad until you can start to reduce them.

How old is Dotty and what are her blood levels now?

What drugs and dosages is she still on and what is her weight? Do you have a copy of blood test results? Patrice, the site owner, is a wonder at understanding them and it may be able to help work out what is happening now.

We’ve all lived this here so understand what you’re going through. Ask anything at all.

Vally

[Vally]

Definately stomach issues. You’ve changed her food, maybe too quickly and she needs to get used to it.

As Patrice said, make sure this is not pancreatitis.

Feed smaller meals spread out instead of large meals.

Let us know how you go at the vets.

[Vally]

Francesca, as Patrice said, she has improved so much. They look at they’re very worse at this stage because the prednisone does so much to them.

Do as Patrice suggests and ask for Sucralfate for her stomach. It’s a great drug. It heals any damage to the stomach and protects it.

Also ask for a pancreatitis test. Its a very simple test.

Don’t worry that she can’t get on the sofa yet. You’ll be so so happy the first time you see her do it again because you’ll know she is feeling better.

Keep strong for her.

Vally

[Vally]

Francesca, can you confirm the prednisone dosage, before today, how much prednisone was she on. I understand 1 and 1/4 tablets twice a day, and today, 1 tablet twice a day? So 25% reduction? This is good – no more than 25% reduction at a time, and never reduce two different tablets at once.

I used to always find that my dog, Bingo, red bloods dropped down a little bit after a reduction, but the next time he usually picked up again. I think it was his body reacting to the change in the dosage.

I think if the disease is treated quickly, you have the best chance, so Francesca, you have done the best thing for Zhenya in getting her treated quickly.

Vally

[Vally]

Francesca, this is all normal. Prednisone gives them a huge appetite and they drink heaps of water. They absolutely do lose muscle mass though, so that’s why she has trouble jumping in the car. It’s better to keep her a bit quiet too for now.

When the prednisone is reduced (and do it slowly), you’ll see that her appetite will go back to normal and she’ll slowly start to put back on the muscle she’s lost.

In the early days, they look so very terrible and this is the drugs, but they are necessary.