CALLING ALL VETS (need guidance/suggestions for my vet)

WorkingInSTL · 09-05-2008, 03:30 PM

I need some expert input here because I am frustrated and at a loss and my poor dog is suffering.

I have a 6 year old black male. He has a history of adult onset demodex. The demodex is fairly mild and moderately easy to control. The last flareup he had carried with it a secondary infection. Antibiotics cleared it up. (yeaaa).

Six weeks later he developed a deep bacterial infection in both of his back paws. Large abscess, etc. Skin scrapings showed no demodex. More antibiotics and it's gone. (yeaaa) Had a minipanel run, all came back good except for thyroid.

He is on thyroid supplements (twice daily) and has been for about 3 weeks. Coat and skin looks better. Yesterday i noticed him favoring his front paw. Investigated and saw several LARGE interdigital abscesses, three weeks from the last infection. I squeezed one gently because I wanted to at least try to relieve some of the pressure on the poor guy's foot, and it ERUPTED !!! It probably had about a half tablespoon of gooey blood burst out of it. He has a vet appointment tonight (AGAIN). I'm almost positive the infections are bacterial, and am fairly certain that they are resulting from some sort of autoimmune deficiency.

Anyone with knowledge of vet medicine that can give me any input ? Any ideas for possible underlying causes ? Anything I should bring up with the doctor ? Possible tests other than liver, kidney, pancreas, and thyroid function ? Perhaps the dosage of his thyroid supplement simply isn't correct ?

Any input is greatly appreciated.

p.s. this is not exclusive to veterinarians...ANYONE who may have something to offer, please feel free to contribute.

Lexxsmom · 09-05-2008, 04:05 PM

I am not a vet, i am a biochemist, but I would say that this is DEFINITELY an autoimmune issue.

Can dogs get lupus?

WorkingInSTL · 09-05-2008, 04:09 PM

Seems to me I have heard the term canine lupus, but I don't know anything about it. I will in about 5 minutes though (google is a beautiful thing).

WorkingInSTL · 09-05-2008, 04:22 PM

Well, canine lupus does exist, and it doesn't seem like lupus according to the description of symptoms I read online. I'm still going to mention it to the doc this evening none the less.

**voodoolizard** · 09-05-2008, 04:27 PM

nothing to imput.. just good wishes !!

WorkingInSTL · 09-05-2008, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by voodoolizard

nothing to imput.. just good wishes !!

I'll take those too...thanks.

Reds · 09-05-2008, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by voodoolizard

nothing to imput.. just good wishes !!

Ditto!

robinb · 09-05-2008, 04:54 PM

Way back in the 80's I had a 6 year old male Dobe doing weird stuff like that unexplained infections etc, we would clear him up with anitibiotics and then something else would pop, until he finally really started to crash. We ran tons of tests at the time and after a couple days of fluid therapy the dog came out of it. We maintained him on very low doses of pred for the rest of his life. He died of sudden death just short of his 10th birthday. He was never dianosed definitively, but the vet's suspected a form of systemic lupas. Then it was very hard to diagnose for sure, don't know if the testing now has improved or not. I can't exactly remember the dosage of pred we used but it was very low and the dog had few if any side effects from the pred. He lived a very normal and active life until the sudden death got him.

One other thing that we had noticed was a very slight wasting of the upper facial muscles (like right between his ears) that seemed to cease as soon as he was started on the low dosage of pred. It was slight enough that someone wouldn't have noticed it without living with the dog.

And I'm not a vet!

**RedFawnRising** · 09-05-2008, 05:13 PM

"Perhaps the dosage of his thyroid supplement simply isn't correct ?"

(not a vet, nor do I play one on the 'net) But, three weeks is really awfully soon to try to call it, on that one. I personally would probably not even spend the money on a repeat panel this soon, but your vet may advise differently.

I don't know how you feel about complementary/holistic medicine, but a consult and treatment with a good herbalist may help boost his immune system, whatever the underlying cause.

Vibes from here, too!

(One other thing comes to mind--has he been tested for diabetes? I'd want that ruled out, especially before considering starting pred.)

robinb · 09-05-2008, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedFawnRising

"Perhaps the dosage of his thyroid supplement simply isn't correct ?"

(not a vet, nor do I play one on the 'net) But, three weeks is really awfully soon to try to call it, on that one. I personally would probably not even spend the money on a repeat panel this soon, but your vet may advise differently.

I don't know how you feel about complementary/holistic medicine, but a consult and treatment with a good herbalist may help boost his immune system, whatever the underlying cause.

Vibes from here, too!

(One other thing comes to mind--has he been tested for diabetes? I'd want that ruled out, especially before considering starting pred.)

Good points, we ran tons of testing on my boy prior to the suspected diagnoses of lupus. It was more a process of elimination and what seemed to manage it.