Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Lucy's Battle with IMHA

I want to express to all of you how grateful I am to have found this site. My 7 year old pit bull Lucy was diagnosed with IMHA on 10/9/10. Lucy had been vomiting for 2 days, so I brought her to the vet. Lucy's vet had lost her own pit bull that very week after a 2 year battle with IMHA, and knew immediately to test her red blood cells. Lucy's red blood cell level was only 12, and I had to bring her immediately to an animal hospital in a neighboring county where she was admitted to critical care for blood transfusion therapy. After 5 days in the hospital, she was discharged with a red blood cell count of 25. When she returned to the hospital just one week later, Lucy's red blood cell count was 35. At the next visit, Lucy's red blood cell count was still 35. At yesterday's visit, I learned that Lucy's red blood cell count had dropped to 22.6. The hospital is now putting her on cyclosporine (she already takes prednisone and azathioprine). The doctor told me today that she is optimistic, as Lucy's other levels are good, and her body is creating immature red blood cells. I am keeping my fingers crossed and asking for prayers that Lucy pulls through this. In the mean time finding this thread and Meisha's Hope gives me hope. It has been devastating, and is so hard to explain to others who know nothing of this disease. Reading about all of you and success stories makes me feel as though this disease can be beaten. To all of you who are still battling this with me, my prayers go out to you and your dogs as well. Leigh

Leigh New Jersey

Dear Leigh, I am so sorry to hear of Lucy's diagnosis, but happy to hear the vets have given her a good prognosis. Is there anything that has happened (such as a medication reduction), that would have caused Lucy's red blood cell count to drop to 22.6 from 35? Was a dosage missed, or did she vomit her meds back up? When my Millie was sick, we had a couple of incorrect PCV readings, so maybe it's worthwhile getting another one to make sure this first one is correct - especially if Lucy has been well and you've noticed no change in her behaviour, eating habits etc. Certainly making reticulocytes (baby red blood cells) is a positive sign! This means her anemia is regenerative and her body is trying to increase the rbc's in her blood. This disease certainly can be beaten - my Millie is a 20 month survivor - and the May 2010 success story on Meisha's Hope. This forum is amazing, so many caring people who can offer great advice and support, and who know exactly what you are going through. Please do keep us updated on Lucy's progress. Millie and I are thinking of you both and hoping Lucy can be another success story! All the very best, Sam & Millie.

Samantha Geelong

Leigh, I am so sorry you and Lucy are going through this. It sure is a roller coaster ride. It is quite common for a dog to have a significant drop in RBC after a transfusion. The high RBC was because of all the new blood and now Lucy has to make her own. The fact that she is making reticulocytes is great! Has Lucy's thyroid been checked? A low thyroid can suppress blood building and with a supplement it can be "kick started". To do this I would recommend your vet sends the blood to Dr. Jean Dodds. She does a breed specific analysis and has so much experience with the disease. I know there is an other place in the US that is very good, but the name escapes me right now. Your vet can only do a basic analysis, in my opinion Lucy needs to have all her thyroid levels checked. Have you looked into a home cooked diet? I always thought people that cook for their dogs are crazy, but when my poodle was ill, I made it my mission to do everything I could to get him better. It felt good to put something healthy into him besides all the pills he had to take. Here is a link to Dr. Dodds liver cleansing diet: http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/Liver%20cleansing%20diet.htm You can add all kinds of healthy vegetables or use Chicken or turkey instead of fish. I would also look into giving Lucy some vitamins. Dr. Dodds recommends B12, folic acid and iron. All this would be combined in a product called petinic. Take it one day at a time and be sure to keep us posted! Best wishes, Brigitte & the poodle boys

Brigitte BC Canada

Thanks Sam & Brigitte! When Lucy was discharged from the hospital on 10/13/10, she was taking Prednisone 20mg 2x/day, Azathioprine 50mg 1 every other day, Aspirin 5mg 2 capsules once a day, Doxycycline 100 mg 2x/day, and Pepcid AC (Famotidine) 10mg 1x/day. When Lucy returned to the hospital one week later, the doctor cut her Prednisone down to 20mg in the morning, and 10mg in the evening. Three weeks after that when Lucy's RBC was still at 35, the doctor cut her Prednisone down to 10mg in the morning and 10mg in the evening. The doctor also added Metranidazole 250mg 2x/day for loose stools. At the following visit, we learned that her counts had dropped to 22.6. Right before this visit, Lucy began having a decreased appetite (although still better than when she initially became sick), and on my way to the hospital I noticed that she was very yellow. I am not sure if her thyroid was checked. I know that they checked her for cancer, and to see if she swallowed anything, before doing the blood transfusion. I also know that they checked her liver and kidneys prior to putting her on the Cyclosporine this last visit. I tried to check the bills, but I didn't see anything about the thyroid. She doesn't take vitamins or special food. When she was in the hospital, and when she first came home, I cooked her boiled chicken and rice. She is now back to her Blue Buffalo food. The recipe looks like it would be good, but I am not sure that I have the time to do that. I have taken a lot of time off of work to take her back and forth to the hospital which is almost an hour from my home, and had to start working on call nights and weekends in order to pay the vet bills which are steadily building. Where would I get the Petinic from, and should I run it by the doctor first? I also would like to know more about Dr. Dodds. Thanks for all of your help! Leigh & Lucy

Leigh New Jersey

Hi Leigh and Lucy You can get the pet-tinic online just do a search. Here is link, shop around and get the best price. Ginger is on cyclosporine and it did seem to really help her, it just took a few weeks to really kick in. Hope Lucy is feeling better soon. Sounds to me like maybe they started to reduce the pred to soon and too fast. http://www.amazon.com/Pet-Tinic-4-oz-by-Pfizer/dp/B000O5FXZ8

Cheryl & Ginger Pinevile PA

Leigh, You can reach Dr. Dodds through hemopet @ hotmail.com (remove spaces) I had my vet call her and we used her labs a few times. I was always impressed how thorough the reports were. if you google hemopet, you can find out more about Dr. Dodds. My gut feeling is that the prednisone was reduced too soon too fast. I think that maybe the RBC at 35 was just because of the transfusion and not because Lucy had made enough RBC. I would suggest you get a copy of all the lab reports. It can be very helpful when you start to understand the numbers and when you can see trends. i remember I was so frazzled in the first weeks after my dogs diagnosis, I could not remember any of the numbers from one day to the next. It would also help when people here are asking about numbers, you would have them at hand. I would also suggest you work with a day planner. Write down all the meds and times given. It is important to give everything at the same time and schedule with or without food. I had to write every thing down and have a certain procedure as not to forget anything. lack of sleep made my brain pretty mushy:) I would definitely always let your vet know about supplements you want to add. On this board we can only tell you what we did and what we heard from other people. Even though there are people here that know more about AIHA than some vets, we are not vets and can not see your dog. So for sure let your vet know. Best wishes, Brigitte & the poodle boys

Brigitte BC Canada

Any news on Leigh and Lucy??? Johnny & Tessy

Johnny

I just wanted to drop in and show my support for Lucy and you, Leigh. I also am a guardian of a few pit bulls, and lost my first pity Sway to AIHA in 2009 after a 2+ year battle with the disease- Dr. Dodds is about the single biggest and best advocate you could have in this situation, so please reach out to her if you haven't already. ...Will be praying for Lucy

Josh California

I know exactly what you are going thru. My dog, Mickey, a shipoo (7) years old died within 18 years of suffering from IMHA. I took him to the vets and there was nothing they could do for him. I had to put him to sleep. I was completely devasted and I still am. He died on March 5, 2010. My vet told me it attacks dogs suddenly and the day before he was fine. I even took him for a long walk. To help with my pain, I purchased a shih tzu. It certainly helped but my heart still bleeds for my Micke. I will pray for you and Merry Christmas.

Kathy Pittsburgh

Hello all- Life has been hectic, so I have not been on here for a few weeks. I wanted to give everybody an update. On 12/22 I came home to find Lucy pale, weak, and not eating. I called the vet and rushed her back to the hospital. Lucy suffered a relapse, and had a second blood transfusion on 12/23. I was able to bring her home on Christmas Eve, due to some finagling by my vet who understood my financial situation. So far, she is doing well. When she left the hospital on 12/24 her count was 27, and she was up to 29 on 12/28. She has good color so far, but I am keeping my fingers crossed and saying my prayers. We are scheduled to go back to the hospital on 1/11, so I will keep you informed. Thank you to all of you on this thread. It is so helpful to be able to talk to others who understand. Leigh & Lucy

Leigh New Jersey

Leigh, sorry to hear you and Lucy had this setback! I encountered the same thing with Tessy and it felt like someone pumched me in the gut!!! I was sooo confused! We added cyclosporine after this and her crit (PCV) eventually climbed very slowly to normal range! You have to be very carefull with the drugs! ALWAYS make sure Lucy gets them ON TIME....very important! AND make sure to reduce very very slowly BUT only when the time is right. Are you using Pet Tinic? Very good idea to do so if you aren't! Also you should ask for and get copies of all the bloodwork done so far. That way you can start a database for easy access. Good for asking questions and answering ours! I'll keep Lucy in my thoughts and prayers, Johnny & Tessy

Johnny

This thread was discussed between 02/12/2010 and 07/01/2011

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