Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - aiha questions

I took my dog to the vet last night, she had diarreah and refused to eat...that was my biggest concern. In 7 years she has never turned down a crumb! Anyways she was diagnosed with aiha which I had never heard of. I feel like she is in very good hands and have been pleased with the vet but would just like some input/insight. She stayed last night and has been on fluids, antibiotics, etc. and will have more blood work done this morning which I am anxiously awaiting the results of. Anyways, any info. would be nice. Thank you.

Kathy North Carolina

Hi Kathy. What is your dog's name? I'm sorry that she has been diagnosed with this illness but you have come to the right place for support and information. This is a great website and will give you lots of information about this illness and treatment: http://www.cloudnet.com/~jdickson/index.html You might want to ask your vet about giving your dog something to protect her gastro intestinal tract from the medications. The two that are most commonly used are sucralfate and famotodine (Pepcid AC). It's a good idea to start her on these right from the start to avoid ulcers. Another danger for some dogs in the early days is pulmonary embolism. Some vets treat for it and others don't. Your vet should be able to judge whether or not your dog needs something for that. My dog was given heparin in the early days and then we switched to a portion of a child's aspirin later on. So ask your vet about that. I asked for all copies of the CBC printouts and have started my own file. Having them has been so useful when looking back over the months and trying to remember things to relate to specialists and other vets. I also started keeping a diary of Duck's behaviour, energy levels, temperatures etc. Again, at times it is so useful to be able to look back at that information and if you don't write it down, you probably won't be able to keep it straight. I don't have so many questions for my vet anymore but, in the early days, I wrote everything down before our vet visits. I'd walk in with a long list but that way I got all my questions answered on the spot. I'm glad you have a vet you are comfortable with. That's really important because you will be working closely with him/her for the next while. Good luck to you and please keep us all updated. If you have any questions or just need to vent, we're all here for you. Take care. deb and Duck

Debbie BC Canada

Hi Deb & Duck (cute name) thank you for your response. Keeping a log sounds like a very good idea. Her name is Maddison, she is 7 and has always been very healthy so this is a shock. And it came on very quickly, yesterday was the first day that I noticed her acting a little lethargic and like I said the first time ever that she wouldn't eat. I am still waiting to hear from the vet on her blood work from this morning. Thank you for your support and I will keep you updated. I'm glad Duck is doing well. Kathy

Kathy North Carolina

Hi Kathy and Maddison

Joanne wyoming

Just an update...I spoke to the vet and her red blood cell count has deteriorated since last night so they are going to give her a blood transfusion, and the waiting continues...

Kathy N.C.

Hi Kathy and Maddison This disease is a real shocker. My 5 1/2 month old GSD puppy crashed on Christmas Eve day, she was kinda low the evening before, was running a very high fever,(104.8) but since I work for a vet, I called him and we decided to wait till the next morning(christmas eve day) so I could bring her to work. I dosed her with antibiotics, anti inflammatory and watched her all night. I never thought to check her gums. The next morning, I took her to work, her gums were white, she was lethargic and her pcv was 14%. Her other blood counts were terrible. She was given some shots right then, put on fluids and started on Prednisone, Famotidine for her stomach and Doxycillian for an antibiotic. I took her home, she started eating that night. Christmas Day her blood count had already started climbing, was up to 16%, her white count was also climbing which I hated to see, but the Prednisone lowers the immune system so she could not fight off anything. It has been almost 2 months now. Sofie blood work started climbing the next day, is now at 51% and has stayed there for over three weeks. We have lowered her Pred from the initial dose of 50mg twice a day, to 50mg once a day, next week she will start on 25 mg once a day. My vet felt the risk of a blood transfusion was not worth it, even though her initial count was so low. We weighed the pros and con's of it and decided at the beginning, if she kept climbing, no transfusions. I am so glad we didn't do them. This can be a long fight, ups and downs, so don't give up, remember she will have bad and good days. I have been lucky that Sofie has had all good days, no bad ones, but I think she is in the minority of how fast she has recovered, maybe its because she is very young. I also switched her to a totally natural food, Blue Buffalo, which I think has helped her, since her body does not have to fight off types of food that can bring alergies on(wheat, corn,soy, coloring, preservatives, etc) Just be strong, give her lots of support and remember, there are plenty of dogs who climb their way out of this terrible disease.

Joanne wyoming

Kathy, Sorry to hear that. What is her PCV or HCT values? What is her RBC count? Is she regenerating red blood cells? Do they have her on Prednisone? Has your vet dealt with this AIHA before? My vet had not really had dealt with it much before Sofie,at least an acute case like hers, but he conferred with a Veternarian specialist in Utah and has continued to work with him throughout this episode.The decisions they made together for Sofie and I have been the right ones, and I always felt good about the treatment plan. Don't be afraid to ask lots of questions to your vet. Get the counts and write them down daily. Ask, ask, ask, and if you feel you need to question a treatment, do it. Its your dog, and you need to be comfortable with her treatment.

Joanne Wyoming

Hi Joanne and Sophie. Thank you for your thought and story. I honestly have no answers right now. I'm not sure about her counts. Last night when we he told me that she had this he explained it very well. I'm not sure if he has dealt with this before but he certainly sound slike he know what he is talking about and how to treat it. I hope that is true with me having no experience. She didnt act "sick until yesterday in the afternoon and I took her to the vet at 6pm, he said that her urine was as bad as he had ever seen it. I didn't get a count but after the blood work this morning he said that her red blood count has continued to decline and a transfusion would be necessary. He also mentioned that about 75% of dogs who get this do not require a transfusion but because her body was destoying them so quickly she did. I will keep you posted, thanks for your concern and I hope Sophie continues to have all good days!

Kathy NC

Kathy,if you dont think your vet has any experiance with this get to a 24 hr emearengcy clinic hospital specialty DR ASAP this is not a dieasese to mess around with and wait and see you have to act quickly you need to be with a vet the knoows has to treat this agressivaly please act quickly time is not on your side. Take it from one who know i waited too long Kathy

kathy pacifica calif

Hi Kathy, I'm sorry hat things did not go in your favor. It is very hard. I feel like our vet is experienced and am confident that he is doing a good job treating her. From what I have learned on this site it sounds like he is doing what he needs to and has prescribed the right meds for her. She got to come home last night and seems to be feeling a little bit better but still won't eat. I am going to give the vet a call (he comes in at 9 am) and may have to take her back in. We have an appointment for more blood work in the morning and I am hoping that her pcv will continue to rise. If you have any suggestions on how to get them to start eating again please let me know. I have tried peanut butter, chicken & rice, hot dogs, and chicken noodle baby food...

Kathy N.C.

This thread was discussed between 19/02/2008 and 22/02/2008

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