Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Cassies Story

After reading all the heart wrenching tales of all your favourite canine friends we thought we would add our story of our beautiful little girl Cassie, so if you have the time to read this, sit back relax and read on. Cassie is a Keeshond and is five and a half years old and she has been our pride and joy since we got her at 8 weeks of age. Always full of beans and a typical little madam when she was a pup but she soon grew out of that and turned into the most lovable, intelligent, inquisitive and laid back little girl. Even when we took on another Keeshond when she was three she never batted an eyelid and took her sister Rosie into her house as if she had always beeen there, no jealousy or animosity whatsoever. She was always such a healthy dog and she was not that familiar with the inside of a vets as we never really had need to visit because of her healthy life, apart from the vaccination trips that is. So it came as a bit of a shock to us both when we noticed a change in our little girl back in late September 2007 when she started sneezing and coughing so to the vets we went who diagnosed a nasal infection and gave her antibiotics. Unfortunately this didn't do anything but instead made things worse as she started fainting on odd occasions. Back to the vet where they thought she may have a heart condition so referred us to a specialist. Tests were done but they could find nothing wrong with her heart and as if she knew, Cassie seemed to perk up a bit and she was fine for a few weeks, we even went away to Snowdonia for a week in October where she enjoyed her usual antics of running like a mad thing along the beach and through the fields with her sister and four Keeshond friends who came with us......yes six Keeshonds on tour, are we mad or what? Anyway (are you still paying attention?) I'm getting close to the crux of this tale. A few weeks after getting back from holiday we noticed she was getting poorly again, wobbly on her legs and we noticed blood in her urine, so it was back to the vets again and more antibiotics as they thought it was a water infection....which we didn't. She got worse to such a point that we went back to the specialist as we were worried that it was her heart and he was going to attach a Holter monitor to her for a week to check her heart out. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you view it, the specialist took one look at her and decided to carry out some blood tests (which our vets never did) as he suspected it may be something other than her heart. After an anxious couple of hours he confirmed his suspicion and concluded that Cassie had AIHA in his opinion. Not knowing anything about this disease we didn't have a clue that it was as serious as it is so we got home and immediately made an appointment for that night at our vets and insisted on seeing one of the senior partners. So, down to the vets again and by now Cassie was doing the usual dog thing of looking at us as if to say "I know where we're going and if you think I'm getting out of the car, think again". Although to be fair she really was so poorly at this stage she didn't put up much of a struggle. One look at her and Diane (the vet) prescribed an immediate start on Preds as a blood test showed her PCV level at 11. The next two days were the hardest of our lives as we saw our darling little Cassie get progressively worse hour by hour and the tears were free flowing from both me and Sue as we thought we were going to lose her. Back to the vets for another blood test after two days only to find to our horror her PCV had dropped to 9 and we were told that at that point the only realistic chance was for her to have a blood transfusion which could be make or break for our girl. For those of you that have gone through this you will know what a hard decision it is to make as in your heart you know it's their only hope but are you doing the right thing. We made the decision and fortunately there is a blood bank at Loughborough University which is only a few miles away so I went straight there and picked up the blood. The transfusion was done that night and believe me it was tough having to sit at home waiting for the phone to ring, although in a way we were hoping it didn't ring (no news is good news as they say). At 10 pm it rang and to say my heart was pounding would be an understatement. "Cassie is fine" the vet said, "the transfusion is done and she isn't showing any signs of rejection at this point" Sue and me breathed a semi sigh of relief because we knew she wasn't out of the woods yet as the next 24 hours were going to tell us if there was a light at the end of this horribly dark tunnel. Anyway, she stayed in hospital for the next day and we went to fetch her later that evening. Wow what a difference!! There was our little girl, tail wagging and so pleased to see us knowing that her confinement was over and she could get out of this prison cell we had left her in. She wasn't the lively and fit Cassie we knew and loved from 3 months ago as this disease takes its toll in more ways than anyone can imagine, but she was back with us and thats what matters most. The medication regime started in earnest and I found myself sleeping downstairs with her a lot to cope with the nightly toilet requirements (Sue was pleased with the arrangements too as apparently I snore). To date and after a few more blood tests her PCV level is back up to 43 which we thought we would never see again. Her medication is coming down in dosage, her appetite is outstanding to the point of us thinking she was given the blood of a bull elephant and she now enjoys a gentle walk most days. She is still quite weak but does occasionally forget herslf and breaks into a little jog....then she remembers and stops running. So to all of you out there who are going through this traumatic time with your loved ones..take heart. We can see a light at the end of the tunnel but we still take nothing for granted and take each day as it comes. Every day she is still here is better than winning the lottery because she isn't just a pet, she is part of our family, she is our little girl and Rosies sister and best friend. So to Cassie, thank you for being a fighter, sorry for putting you through all this and remember me and Mum love you to bits. Thanks for reading this and if anyone has any questions please feel free to drop us a line as we have found that there is nothing better than talking to someone who has gone through this to ease your mind and to say there is hope and there are others out there that care. Steve, Sue, Cassie and Rosie.

Steve & Sue Jardine Leicestershire UK

Steve and Sue, Thanks so much for this beautiful story! I cried all the way through this because it is so apparent how much you love you doggy, Cassie. I hope she continues to do well. deb and Duck

Debbie BC Canada

Hi Deb & Duck, Thank you for your thoughts and yes we do love her loads. Will keep this thread updated with her progress Steve & Sue

Steve & Sue s.jardine3@ntlworld.com

Steve & Sue, Yes, indeed a wonderful story about Cassie, and so happy to hear she is doing so wonderful! It is indeed a long battle, we have Holly a dachshund who was diagnosed in March 2007 and she is still fighting also. IN fact tomorrow we go for blood work it has been 1 month now and again hoping we can do some reductions. Take care and keep up the good work Cassie! Linda

Linda Sapphire

Hello everybody, Good news, Mum and Dad took me to the vets today so they could have another look at me. What they didn't tell me was that the vet was going to stick a needle in my leg and take some more of that red stuff out. What are they doing I thought, it wasn't that long ago when they gave me loads of new blood, now they want to take it out!! Anyway according to Mum and Dad I'm doing very well because my PCV level is now up to 50 and the vet also said that some of my tablets could be reduced. Thats good because I don't like them too much.....especially that ciclosporin, thats horrible. Still I better do what the grown ups say or I won't get better and anyway I love all this extra attention I'm getting so a few tablets and medicine won't hurt. Thanks to all of you who have sent me the kind messages. I hope this gives everyone a bit of hope in that we can fight this horrible thing and there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Just remember...one day at a time. Cassie (and Mum, Dad, & Rosie too)

Steve & Sue Leicestershire UK

glad to hear of cassie's rather quick recovery... best wishes for continued success

josh california

Keep up the good work Cassie. Jackie and Jasps

Jackie pembrokeshire; west wales; uk

Thanks Jackie and Jasps, I used to come on holiday to Nolton Haven with my Mum & Dad and hope to come back one day to run about on the beach again.

Steve & Sue Leicestershire UK

I am so happy your girl is doing so great, and am sorry you had to find this site because of her disease. You are like probably 99% of us that had never heard of this disease before our beloved dogs were diagnosed. My story is happy. i lost my 4 year old golden retriever, hunter, to it 8 days after diagnosis. But i am always trhilled to hear od dogs that are doing well and wish them long, long lives.

Sandra Texas

Great news about Cassie and what a speedy recovery, you must be so happy :+) Regarding Trixie's medication, she has been on Prednisolone 25mg 1 and 1/2 per day Antepsin 1 g x2 per day Azathioprine 25mg x2 per day. Trixie came down with AIHA early September 2007 and has been on the medication since then, although her Pred was increased to 1 and 1/2 rather than just 1 about 2 months ago. Today was the worse I have seen her, the fact that she had to lay down when we were out, it was like she was saying,"I'm too weak to walk anymore" We had only walked from the car to the field right beside the car, no distance at all. From what I have read, some dogs to make a good turn around being on this medication, however, Trixie does not seem to be responding. I am hopeing that the Hospital will find out why this is happening. I am going to hate leaving her there tomorrow, I shall take her blanket with us, so she will have the smell of home. Tricia

Tricia UK

Great news for Cassie! It amazes me how some dogs bounce bag so easily while others seem to fight and fight and fight just to maintain.. Bella goes back for blood work tomorrow. Everyone keep their fingers crossed..

Jason Myrtle Beach

Well we've just got back from the vets as today was the day for Cassies routine blood test. The great news is that her PCV levels have gone up 1% since the last test and are now at a very healthy and respectable 51. The vet has also dropped her preds down to 10mg a day and she will be off the ciclosporin in two weeks (currently she's on 50mg a day). She still has her wobbly moments on her legs but we have found that if she goes out for walks regularly she seems to be steadier, so obviously the preds are having an impact on her muscles. Like we keep saying though, it's one day at a time and every day we see an improvement is a bonus. The one thing we still have concerns about is the impact the preds are having on her liver and we were thinking of trying her on milk thistle. Does anybody have any knowledge of the benefits of this, assuming it would be beneficial to her that is? Any feedback would be welcomed. Well thats it so far so take care of all your four legged children and keep thinking positive thoughts. Steve, Sue ans Cassie

Steve & Sue Leicestershire UK

I have also read about Milk Thistle being given and wondered how this could help? Tricia

Tricia UK

This thread was discussed between 06/01/2008 and 25/01/2008

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