New to the Board - Very sick pup

[Brandgin]

Hello all,

 

My 3 year old female border collie has been very sick for the past few weeks and seems to be getting worse..these symptoms came on quite suddenly. Three weeks ago she appeared active and healthy and was still chasing frisbees for as long as my arm would hold out.

 

I have had many tests run on her, have had her on anti-inflammatories and now steroids. I have been to two different vets, with no diagnosis yet and am waiting to get her in for a scan. I wondered if there was anyone else who had a dog with similar symptoms.

 

The muscles at the top of her head and her temples have atrophied and her head looks like a scull...very sunken in so that the bones in her face are very prominent. She is having great difficulty walking, especially her front legs which are very weak. She cannot stand for a long period of time and cannot climb stairs at all. I have to carry her outside to do her business and then carry her back in. She is not really interested in eating and she normally loves her food.

 

I am very, very worried about her and the waiting to find out a diagnosis is very stressful. More importantly, I am concerned about her pain and not knowing what else to do to help her.

 

Has anyone had a similar experience with their dog?

 

Thanks.

[Jack & Co.]

This was just mentioned today on another thread ( Boyden is very sick ):

 

Rebecca, Irena Farm

 

Member

Member # 3324

 

posted 05-26-2006 02:01 PM

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I can't believe the emergency vets wouldn't admit him. Water under the bridge now (I missed this earlier). I'm glad you are probably at the vet now. He may need stronger antibiotics if he has a resistant bug or back-to-back infections. But they'll know.

 

He sounds like every dog I've had with acute Ehrlichia. The head to one side thing is called ataxia (though I'm sure you know that). It's a neurological problem and can be accompanied in this disease in particular by seizure activity, nausea (from vertigo), and muscle wasting (noticable on the top of the head - ears don't stand right and skulls looks "sunken" above the eyes).

 

The good news is that if you find the right antibiotic to treat it, he WILL recover with the right supportive care. Consider having your vet show you how to administer subq fluids since the emergency vets are so uncooperative. He definitely could have benefited from that, as well as being ready to support him in case of seizure activity and making him more comfortable with pain meds. But the fluids at least are often 50% of the battle in acute care situations.

 

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Rebecca Shouse

Irena Farm, NC

 

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I remembered reading the part about the muscles on the head. Hope this helps a little; maybe some of the more knowledgeable folks can give you more information.

[juliepoudrier]

Yep, my first thought was TBD. Has your vet done a tick panel? If not, insist on one. You might also want to insist on a course of doxycycline while you wait for the results. Here's a link to a page on tick diseases. They are nothing to fool around with, so get back to your vet pronto! If it does turn out to be TBD, learn all you can about the disease and its treatment. Many vets are not up on the latest protocols, and by being your dog's "patient advocate" and gaining every bit of knowledge you can, you can help save her life.

 

http://saluqi.home.netcom.com/ticklinks.htm

 

J.

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

Yes, this sounds like either babesia or ehrlichia in particular. Doxycycline can't hurt, is very inexpensive, and you'll know without a doubt within a couple days (sometimes within 24 hrs) that you are on the right track because you'll see 100% reversal of symptoms.

 

I just had to treat a foster dog for TBD and was reminded again of how sudden it can come on and how dramatic the improvement is with treatment. Sometimes I wish I didn't have so much experience with TBDs but I hope this helps you!

[Brandgin]

Thank you all for your replies. I am going to the vet this afternoon and will have her run more tests to see if this may be the cause of her illness.

[Meg's mum]

Please keep us posted. We will keep your pup in our thoughts.

[Allie Oop]

Best wishes and good luck at the vet.

[sea4th]

My last GSD had these symptoms. The muscles just melted off him. I never did have an autopsy done (he went downhill and died within 5 weeks), but Lou Gehrig's disease, and a couple of other neuroloical disorders were mentioned. In the end, again without an autopsy, because one eye bulged, it was felt he had a brain tumor.

 

I wish you and your pup the best.

[J.E.S]

Member

Member # 2435

 

posted 05-27-2006 01:56 PM

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My last GSD had these symptoms. The muscles just melted off him. I never did have an autopsy done (he went downhill and died within 5 weeks),

My last GSD had these very same symptoms also. He went downhill very fast. Was still eating but the muscles just deteriorated very fast. He was not young (almost 9) and seemed like an old dog. I was broke and moving at the time and he died the day I was going to take him to the vet. His sypmtoms started around 3 weeks before he died. I did not have an autopsy done either. He was a great dog, we really miss him.

[sea4th]

Hi Joan,

 

Major was also between 8 and 9 and went downhill quickly. Even though I was in an awful financial crunch at the time, I'm still kicking my butt that I could have done more. If I had taken him to a better vet at the onset of his symptoms, could I have saved him with earlier and proper intervention. Diagnostics would have been way too expensive and at the time that I took him in to be euthanized----it was at the emergency clinic, grasping for some last hope, I asked the vet "without all of the diagnostics, based on what I've told you and what you see now, is there any chance of saving him." The reply was no. I think if he would have given me hope, I'd have carried Maj out and gotten the money somehow. My decision was based on his reply.

 

Many GSD's, I found out later, tend to have a neurological disorder---I forget what it's called, and those that are affected, death is common at the age we are speaking of.

 

It haunts me to this day. He was my boy.

[Brandgin]

My thanks to all of you for your replies. Though my vet did not believe my dog had a tick disease, she did test her and that was found not to be evident. (Apparently we do not have tick disease here in Alberta where I live) I asked for a prescription for Doxycycline which she has been on for the past week and I have seen some slight improvement. She is walking, though very shaky, only a few steps and did attempt to run today but fell down. Also her appetite has come back, she cannot chew hard food due to the muscle atrophy and I am feeding her canned food right now. She seems be be more responsive and not in pain, which is good. All of her blood tests have come back normal, internal organs normal and her xray showed nothing abnormal. The vet still feels that it may be cancer so I am going ahead with the cat scan to see if they can find anything. I am so frustrated not knowing what the problem is and if the drugs she has been taking are helping her or masking something else.

 

It amazes me how many of my family members and friends have said, "Why don't you just put her down? Why are you spending so much money on her, she's just a dog." They just don't get the fact that I love her so much and that to me she is like one of my children. They call me the crazy dog lady but I just don't understand how some people think a dog is so worthless...no wonder I like dogs more than people.

[muddy bob]

Hi,

I understand you since I have recently had issues as well. Your friends and family may think they have your best interest in mind but only you can decide what is right for you and your girl. I don't think any real friend ever intends to hurt another with their comments. They just don't want us to ride the emotional rollercoaster and go into debt just to have a bad outcome. You could tell them you understand why they are making these comments but that it really does't help the way a bit of support would. That's just the opinion of one crazy dog lady trying to help a fellow crazy dog lady. I wish you the best of luck and hope you dog continues to improve. Keep us posted.

 

Muddy

[Miztiki]

I am really sorry for all you are going through. I understand how frustrating it is and how hard it is. It's terribly difficult not knowing what is wrong or what you can do to help.

 

I hope she starts to feel better. What is her name? I'll pray for her, and for you and your strength through all of this. Please hang in there as best you can and maybe God will see fit to make her whole again. I hope you can find peace and comfort knowing that she is much loved by you and is blessed to have you there to care for her. Some people just don't understand that but they are the ones missing out. Don't let it get to you.

 

Everyone here is pulling for your precious girl. Please keep us updated. ((((hugs))))

[Brandgin]

Thank you so much Muddy Bob and Miztiki for your kind replies. It makes sense Muddy when you say that my family and friends are trying to save my emotions rather than being unkind. Thank you for that. I have been a lurker on the board for quite some time so have read all posts. Muddy I am terribly sorry for the loss of your girl to cancer...my deepest condolences to you and your family. Miztiki, I hope that your Boyden continues to do well and his health gets back to normal. I know that you both can appreciate what I am going through and that means alot to me. I will continue to seek answers to my girlys health issues and hopefully soon I will know one way or the other what her prognosis is. By the way, her name is Ginny.or..Gin Gin....fatty Mcfat fat, sweet pumpkin, lovey dovey....she answers to anything and is a very loving 3 year old Border Collie/Lab mix who I adopted from a rescue in British Columbia, Canada when she was about 4 months old.

[2 Devils]

I can also understand since I lost my bc/mix a couple years ago to cancer at the young age of 4. It is terrible trying to find out what is wrong.

 

Just ignore what folks say. Luckily my mom and stepfather understood my up and downs and my poor was worse than I was during that time...

 

Hope she feels better soon

[Claire Owen]

"Fatty McFat Fat" - just had to say I love the nickname, my Bailey is Snoozy McSnooze Snooze!

I hope you get some answers soon, and I know how it feels to have people that dont understand why these animals are more than 'just dogs', I'm sure they mean well though.

Claire