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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - For those in the Philadelphia Metro area...
| Sunday night, approximately two hours after saying goodnight to my crazy, very active, fun-loving 2 1/2 year old German Shepherd - Chloe, I was awakened by a scuffle in the living room and found her collapsed, unable to stand or even lift her head. Immediately got her in the car when the vomiting and bloody diarheaa began. They quickly got fluid into her at the hospital and she started to come around, but the vomiting and diarheaa persisted. Long story short... through the process of exclusion (via ultrasound, x-ray, bloodwork) she was diagnosed with acute enteritis which would have likely been fatal had she not gotten to the hospital so quickly. I understand from the doctor that this was most probably caused by a viral infection (although possibly bacterial?) and that they are seeing an awful lot of it in this area. So far, the immune-suppressed IMHA Beau has not shown any signs of it, and I fear what impact this could have on his recovery. But I will remain positive. It could be that his dosages of prednisone or pepcid prevent this? In any event, you should be aware that this is become more prevalent in our area and while you can't stop it -- you can recognize signs and seek vet attention immediately. Especially if a dog's health is already compromised. Best wishes for good health! Sharon |
| Sharon PA |
| Sharon, I am really sorry this happened to Chloe. You were very smart to get her to the vet so quickly. I am glad the outcome is good. For general reference here is a quick look at this condition from this website: http://www.pethealthandcare.com/dog-health/enteritis-in-dogs.html "Enteritis in Dogs Enteritis in dogs is an extremely common illness that is seen in pet dogs. This condition causes an inflammation of the intestines, particularly that of the small intestines. A number of bacteria and viruses can cause this infection in dogs. Enteritis in dogs may be caused due to bacteria such as salmonella, staphylococcus, shigella, and escherichia coli, etc. Since the causes of enteritis in dogs are also viral, some of the viruses that could be responsible for the condition include parvovirus, rotavirus, and coronavirus. Unlike some of the other dog diseases, enteritis in dogs is not particular to any breed. There are no breeds that pose higher susceptibility to the condition. Your dog may get enteritis at any point in its life." continues on this page... my best patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
| Patrice, Thank you so much for the additional info! I too am glad this is a good outcome -- Chloe will come home from the hospital this evening -- but I wanted to alert people about the higher-than-normal incidence in this area, as well as the fact that this came on so fast it was mind-boggling! To go from very playful to critical within two to three hours... Thanks again! Know this info could help! Sharon |
| Sharon PA |
| Sharon, It would be appropriate to use some plain detective work to narrow down the exposure to the offending bacteria or virus. The first place I would start is to write down all the interactions with other dogs, visits to other households, training facilities, vet offices, play areas etc going back about 10 days (which would cover the incubation period for many of these things). If you can narrow down a specific place or dog where Chloe might have been exposed you can notify someone. The next thing to check is if Chloe has the appropriate vaccination against parvo and actually continues to have immunity to it. This is one of those very difficult vaccinations that seems to show a low titer level when tested. Parvo is usually very active in puppies and they can die very quickly. Dr. Dodds related a story about this where the mother was not vaccinated, the puppies developed parvo and passed it back to the mother, killing her and the whole litter. Breeders sometimes count on this "herd" vaccination method (mother passes immunity to puppies) but this backfired because the mother was not able to pass the resistance on to her puppies. I would then look to food as a possible source of bacteria. If this seems to be happening in one geographic location perhaps a local store is carrying bags of a brand of dog food that might be contaminated with samonella or e. coli. For that matter, if your vet mentioned this seems to be happening a lot and you buy your food from him, could it be possible he is seeing his own patients who are also using that same food? I wouldn't accuse anyone of anything yet, but good to track this down as best as possible. If there is a regular play group then feces could be implicated by passing on a virulent strain of e. coli as dogs run around getting it on their paws etc. Since you don't know which one of these scenarios is the possible vector it might be a good idea to clean your house before Chloe comes home? my best patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
| Patrice, I am almost certain that this was picked up from the groomer's on Saturday. I am really not in a position to contact the groomer, however, since I kind of lost it on her when she called to tell me she gave both Chloe and Beau flea baths. Know that one suspected trigger for Beau's IMHA was the three flea baths she gave him last October! And she knows the disease and knows that these baths were probably the culprit. Based on this, I believe a courtesy call PRIOR to the baths would have been in order. Last night the doctor and I discussed what possible exposures Chloe could have had -- he told me that it could be environmental (i.e., picking it up off the groomer's floor, etc.) or possibly exposure to a toxin (i.e., the flea bath once again!). I did use borate acid (Fleabusters) to treat for fleas prior to them coming home from the groomer, but the doctor does not feel this is harmful in any way and I was meticulous about getting rid of any excess on the carpets/floors and laying down sheets and blankets where they normally lay at night to minimize exposure. It's tough to try to identify what would cause this, much like trying to narrow down what the trigger was for Beau's IMHA back in October. What is so ironic was that I have been watching Beau like a hawk since Saturday because of the flea bath, never dreaming it would be Chloe that would become so ill! The doctor is not thinking it is any of the "puppy" viruses, nor does he believe it is HGE since that usually affects smaller dogs. Truly scary stuff though! Still hoping that whatever it is, it is not contagious and doesn't affect Beau. So far, so good! Thanks again for your concern! Sharon |
| Sharon PA |
| Sharon, I can understand your hesitation to contact the groomer. But for the sake of many other dogs, can't you have your vet contact her? |
| Patrice NYS |
| Good point Patrice. I will get her a message and ask the vet to contact as well. Hate to see anyone else go through this! |
| Sharon PA |
| Sharon, How scary for you. Have you considered using another groomer? I really would be upset at anyone who cannot follow simple direction regarding the health of my dogs, especially when it sounds like she if fully aware of her possible part in Beau's diagnosis? Hopefully everything turns out o.k. Penny |
| Penny Lytle Creek Calif |
This thread was discussed between 28/06/2011 and 29/06/2011
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