Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Cody, Just diagnosed

I am starting a new thread for Tammy's post so it can be seen more easily Joanne Tammy, N.J. U.S., bugnout299@aol.com Hi Jonathan, I hope you and Tessy are doing better right now. I too need answers to this miserable disease. My 1yr.5mo. old shepherd Cody was just diagnosed with this Feb.17 2009 after his rabies vaccine that day...I think there is a connection between vaccines and the anemia. His lowest PCV was 18 and we hospitalized him for 2 days......didn't need a transfusion and on the pred. he slowly climbed up to 34! But now today we just came back from the Vet and he dropped to 28...not horrible but they want to put him on azathoprine now....he is acting lethargic but eats and drinks well.....My Vet said initially the pred. works good, but than not so much....This is so ridiculously scarey!!, and also really common from what I've been reading........Keep us posted.....Good Luck for now...Tammy

Tammy NJ

there definitely is connections between this disease and vaccines/flea control products. hang in there, this is a great site that is very resourceful and full of info and personal stories, it should help you immensely in just wrapping your mind around this disease. my dog sway has been living with this disease since july 2007 with a lower PCV than Tessy has now, so dont buy into any doctors 'doomsday' scenario if they try to sell it to you like that... wishing your pup and you well-

josh california

Thanks Josh.....I might wait till we check Codys PCV on Monday before starting the azathoprine....I hate to put him on another drug, but also don't trust ANY of this....also my other Vet said onions and garlic can do this to some dogs, as well as propylene glycol, an additive to Busy Bones and other treats....UNBELIEVABLE!!! Glad you're both doing good right now! Tammy

Tammy N.J.

Tammy, I am so very sorry to hear of your most beloved Cody's illness. If you have not read my Web site on AIHA/IMHA as yet, you might want to do so. The URL is http://www.cloudnet.com/~jdickson/ Be sure to follow the links on the first page to many other sites on AIHA/IMHA that will be very helpful to you and do read the SUCESS STORIES pages. They will show you what has worked for other dogs in terms of treatment options as well as give you a lot of HOPE. It should be noted that according to the Veterinary Drug Handbook, it can take up to 6 weeks to see a clincal response with Azathioprine. We do see that drug start to work sooner in some dogs but in some dogs it takes the full 6 weeks to "kick in". Indeed there appears to be a link between AIHA/IMHA and vaccinations. You can learn more by following the links on the Vaccine links page at my Web site http://www.cloudnet.com/~jdickson/vaccinelinks.htm Onions can cause heinz body anemia and they should never be given to dogs http://www.jlhweb.net/Boxermap/onions.html I know that all of this is so hard but be assured you are among freinds here. We all understand how difficult this is for you since we have all walked in your shoes.. Be assured you and your dear Cody are in my thoughts and prayers.

Joanne MN

It was the 6 month heartworm prevention injetion, ProHeart6 that brought on AIHA in my just turned 4 year old golden retriever. It also damaged his liver and he never had a chance. When the FDA had them pullit from the market 10 months aftr his death AIHA nd liver damage were 2 of the leading death causing adverse reactions. Had he lived he would have never gtten another vaccine and we would have gone back o the heartworm prevention pills---they are a musst here in the Texas coast.

Sandra Texas

Joanne, Thank you for your kind thoughts and words. It always helps when others relate to you and your problems...any and all information is appreciated....we "lay-people" need to share our experiences.........I also wonder if time of day can effect PCV numbers....Codys number was 34 at 7:00p.m. and than today 28 at 9:30a.m. I bet lots of things can effect that number to a degree........

Tammy N.J.

So devasating to all of us who felt we were doing the right thing....encouraged by our vets to maintain rabies protocol as well as protecting our beloved pets from fleas and ticks and heartworm...to then have them suffer adverse reactions and near death expeiences from those very products. Is this incredible, horrific and any other word you can capture to explain grief, sorrow and utter frustration? Many times I just want to scream because it continues to go on..the vet recommendations for flea control products, heartworm and rabies vaccines. Who will listen to consumers who have suffered such pain and agony? So far, very few. Please be very cautious in what type of alopathic product treatments you accept for your pets. Question them all and research, research, research before you decide to use. The pharmaceutical companies who manufacture these products are very powerful. Many vets actually do not realize the dangers themselves in these products as the EPA/FDA have a history of very questionable regulatory standards on pet products. It's very scary when you start to research and become aware of the lack of accountability that goes on in manufacturing products that are supposed to be preventatives/curatives. The dog food recall/peanut butter recall is indicative of an epidemic of poor quality control standards permitted to go unchallenged. Please be careful. If you get a bad vibe, don't use the product. Tell the vet, you pass.

jan PA.

Hi Jan, Thanx alot for your response.....I myself was totured by 3rd stage Lyme Disease for 12 years and have been use to researching EVERYTHING ....I too get bad side-effects so do things the natural way....I'm as careful with my dogs, but you're right about the Drug companies....my dog Shadow had a Lyme Vaccine and than got Lyme Disease right after that....he also had epilepsy and heart-guard triggered seizures in him....I actually think this started with Cody after he was neutered last year.....he was way too lethargic and fearful of EVERYONE after that and his breathing got more labored.....he would get tired too easily for a 1yr. old shepherd...than in Sept. 2008 he got his parvo booster and he got more lethargic....but I wasn't putting 2 + 2 together....I think the rabies vaccine pushed him over the edge...hind-sight always is 20/20...the funny thing is, I never neutered my dogs and gave minimal products because of this very fear, and I always got a fight from Vets, Doctors, etc...Cody had to be neutered because we adopted him from a rescue and that was their policy. I adopted a beutiful lab/husky mix last Sept.12 who they said had kennel cough, but it was PARVO....his whole litter died, and I still think there is a connection between the parvo vaccine they got and them dying Halow got the best medical care with us and he still couldn't be saved...............my 2 wonderful older boys Harley and Shadow died before all this....it's been a heart-breaking 2 years....but we LOVE OUR DOGS......

Tammy N.J.

Hi Tammy, I know its a hard call adding anything new after all of your bad experiences with drugs - how scary that Cody developed the disease literally right after his rabies vaccine! I just wanted to say that I really believe that the Azathioprine has been a major positive factor in my dog's recovery so far. It seems this disease always has a risk/benefit ratio to try to weigh out when it comes to decisions about prevention and treatment. Warm wishes for Cody, Leslie

Leslie

Hi Leslie, You're sooo right about the risk/benefit ratio.....thanx for the positive feed-back regarding azathioprine....well today he seems much more chipper than this past week....I'm thinking the bitter cold and snow slowed him down cause he also has the heart murmur that can go with the anemia, and it's harder for everyone in freezing temps. Today in N.J. it was 72 degrees!! My boyfriend said he played more and he seems better......again, if his PCV on Monday is stable or higher I can hold off on adding azathioprine, but if it's gone down we'll add it...

Tammy N.J.

Hi Tammy, So glad Cody seems a bit brighter. We are enjoying the spring weather too, just down the road from you in Philly. Warm thoughts for Cody! -Leslie

Leslie

This thread was discussed between 06/03/2009 and 08/03/2009

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