Ben Again

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

Well, every test has come back negative and now his calcium levels have dropped to high normal. He's been on doxycycline for about two weeks now, so by process of elimination - they've (Ben's now been on the internet equivalent of "grand rounds" - sp?!) decided he has ehrlichiosis but is now on the mend.

 

Thanks to all for your support and advice during this very weird and scary experience. Ben is feeling much better though he still looks like death warmed over. Of course, the real reason he did this was he knew we were scheduled for a family portrait sitting last weekend, so when I post that picture, he'll be the one that looks like a 100 year old dog!

[juliepoudrier]

Becca,

I hope Ben is truly on the mend this time around. I've posted a link her to a site that has some good information on canine ehrlichiosis and also includes treatment recommendations as it's important for Ben be getting the doxy at the right dose and for long enough to really help.

 

http://nowhereelse.homestead.com/canine_tick_disease.html

 

P.S. I hear I might see y'all at the Parker's this weekend!

 

J.

[Rave]

Becca, did they actually test for Erlichia?? it shouldn't be a "process of elimination" at all! they also need to re-test a few months after he finishes the antibiotics to make sure the titer levels return to normal. I sure hope it is something as simple as Erlichia, but you need the test to tell you so.

 

I still remember the day Casey was dx. with Erlichia, boy what a relief it wasn't epilepsy!! She was on Doxy for 2 weeks also, and her titers came back normal afterward.

 

-L

[juliepoudrier]

Laura,

So many of the tests for TBDs can return false negatives (and apparently there are significant variations in test results among different labs) that it is still considered a positive diagnosis for TBDs if the dog shows any of the symptoms of the disease, has a negative test for the disease, but still has a dramatic turnaround when treated with doxycycline. Just in the past couple of days one of the vets on the tick disease list commented on this very subject.

 

At any rate if the symptoms point to Ehrlichia and the doxy does cause a turnaround in his condidtion, then you really need to keep him on it for 6-8 weeks, not just two weeks.

 

And I know you didn't mean to make light of ehrlichiosis as a disease compared to epilepsy, but for others who may be reading this thread I want to point out that ehrlichiosis can be fatal, almost certainly so if left untreated, so by all means if you have a dog with odd symptoms and nothing else is adding up, check for tick-borne diseases (standard would be Lyme, Ehrlichia [Neorickettsia], Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Babesia), and if there's even a suspicion of such, go ahead and treat--if there's a dramatic turnaround in a short space of time, then many vets familiar with TBDs will consider that as a postive for TBD.

 

Becca,

I gather from the vets on the tick list that one of the foremost authorities in the field of TBD is near you at NC State Vet School (sorry I can't remember his name of the top of my head).

 

J.

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

My vet consulted an endocrinologist at NC State, and he was the one who pointed us in the ehrlichia direction after HE consulted someone - maybe it was the TBD specialist?

 

Anyway, we had a negative titer when all this started but we went on doxy just in case - our current increased dose (300 mg/bd) was recommended by the vets at NC State. They think, specifically, that he has E. risticii picked up from drinking puddles in the pasture.

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

Oh, and he'll be on this for two MONTHS! Ugh, but more spinach dip for Ben!

[Rave]

I knew of the inconsistencies with the Lyme's tests and how vets often treated w/o testing, but hadn't heard that yet about the Erlichia test. My experience a few years ago with the test and treatment was very black and white with my dog (even tho' she was a tri )... Test was positive (and yes, it was a relief to have a treatable diagnosis and have it not be epilepsy), treatment was effective as the seizures stopped and her erlichia titers were WNL after that.

 

I am curious who the Tick dz. expert is at State, if you can remember? I had heard it might have been one of Casey's vet's, the head of nuerology at the time. I can't say I've had good experiences with the nuerology service there, they've struck out two times already (and won't be getting a 3rd chance!). Luckily, we have a lot of options in this area for specialists.

 

-Laura

[juliepoudrier]

Becca,

In case the specialists didn't warn you, doxy can cause stomach upset and so should be given with meals. Dr. Beckett recommends feeding, giving the doxy, and then chasing with a bit more food to avoid irritation to the esophagus should the pill/capsule get stuck there. A number of folks on the list have also warned against opening capsules and sprinkling it on the food because of the irritation issue.

 

Many of the folks on the tick list also recommend probiotics when treating with doxy since the treatment is likely to kill off all the good flora in his GI tract. And try to limit calcium-containing products as they can interfere with doxy absorption, though general sentiment seems to be that if the best way to get the pills in a dog is with something like cheese, then use it, because getting the meds in is more important than concerns about a slightly reduced absorption of the meds (this is advice is especially true for extremely ill dogs who are anorexic).

 

I'll be praying that Ben is soon back to his old self.

 

(And now everyone on these boards knows that I am obsessed with TBDs....)

 

J.

[juliepoudrier]

Laura,

Apparently our posts crossed in cyberspace. Since I'm sure to be hopeless at remembering the poor man's name, I'll just query the list to find out and then post it here.

 

J.

[Rave]

I just consulted my notes, was it Dr. Sharp?? Forget first name, but he was male.

[juliepoudrier]

Laura,

The traffic is so high on that list lately that I woudn't even want to venture a guess. I have, however. queried the list, and will let you know what I find out.

 

J.