Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - My Angel, Layla has IMHA

My Layla (3 year old Labradoodle) is an absolute Angel, a happy, fun loving, brilliantly, smart, energetic little girl who LOVES to run (20 miles an hour) behind the car in the vineyard. Unfortunately she developed IMHA around Christmas of '08, and I have been heartbroken since. Her PVC has never dropped belo the high 20's, thankfully. We took her to Ohio to a blood specialist. She's hanging in there, but has lost her sparkle. I am reaching out to anyone who has success stories of this awful disease. She’s on Prednisone (which caused a 12 pound weight gain in 1 month!), Was on Cytoxin - a chemo. drug for 4 days & now Azathioprine. The vet wants me to add Danazol, but it’s so expensive. Anyway I'm thrilled to have found this site after hours of searching. Some of the sites I found were so horrible, doom & gloom. Please, any info. will be so appreciated. Your prayers will also be welcomed.

T. Rose Erie

Hi T! My dog Tiggs was diagnosed this past July and has been slowly but surely winning the battle against IMHA. If you read through many of the threads here, you will see that a lot of dogs can go on and live happy, long, healthy lives. Visit Joanne's Meisha's Hope website, and you find many years of Success Stories that will inspire and encourage you to stay positive in the fight. When Tiggs was diagnosed, he was 4 years old, and a total spaz bot. I too thought that all of his sparkle was gone forever, but today, after many months, he's a total goofball once again, and terrorizing his 13 year old doggy sister, and now a new foster sister to boot! Don't give up on Layla, she'll get there. It's a long, slow process, but if you've made it this far, odds are that she will continue to improve. Also, once you start to ween off of drugs, more of their energy will return, but it's a balance, because you don't want to ween them too fast or you might risk a relapse. Hopefully you have a great vet that can slowly guide you and encourage you through the process. Visit Joanne's site, and please stay on the board and let us know how Layla is doing! We will keep you in our thoughts and prayers. melissa and tiggs

melissa slc

Hi, I have a 1 year old labradoodle Charlie, who was diagnosed about one month ago. His last check was pcv 37. He is on prednisone and azathioprine and like layla, hungry all the time. He is slowley getting his playfulness back but I found he would play more if I played with him and didn't baby him. He definately isn't totally himself but he will get there. He has a 2 week follow up this thursday I can't wait to see where his level is. Take care and just believe your doodle will get better. Carol

carol wa

Hi I have a 3 year old American Cocker Spaniel called BillyBob. He was diagnosed in May 2008. Billy has had a very tough 9 months, with some very close calls, but his PCV is now 39 and presently holding steady. He still takes 5mg Pred per day, 25mg Aza every third day and AB's for his various infections that keep appearing. But he's good, still likes playing ball, eating and stealing the laundry. He doesn't look very pretty because he developed Cushings (through our vet being too pigheaded with the Pred) and he is losing his fur but he seems happy in himself so that good enough for us. Like Carol says try not to cushion her too much, try to trest as normally as you can and keep to a normal routine. Billy misses his walks in the Forest but hopefully soon he'll be back in there. Good luck and keep us posted, there's always plenty of support here.

Steph Gloucestershire UK

T. Rose, I am so very saddened to hear that your most beloved Layla was diagnosed with IMHA near Christmas 08. While AIHA/IMHA is a very difficult disease, dogs who have been diagnosed with it CAN and DO recover and go on to live happy healthy lives. My own Meisha was proof of that as are all the dogs on the Success Stories pages at my Web Site 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 SUCCESS STORIES pages, they will show you what has worked for other dogs in terms of term options and give you a lot of HOPE. It should be note that according to the Veterinary Drug handbook, it can take up to 6 weeks to see a clinical response with Azathioprine. We do see that medication start to work sooner in some dogs but in some dogs it does take the full 6 weeks to "kick in". In the many many years I have been doing the Meisha's Hope Web site and receiving emails from AIHA/IMHA owner/caregivers, I have seen very few dogs who have the disease be put on Danazol and most/many of those dogs who have been put on that medication, have been taken off it because of side effects such as bleeding. Also I seldom seen Cytoxan used any more for AIHA/IMHA. When addtional drugs besides pred are necessary, most vets will now use either Azathioprine or Cyclosporine. Has your vet mentioned Cycloporine to you, if not, please ask him/her his experience with Cyclosporine for the treatment of canine AIHA/IMHA. It is very expensive but it appears to work very well for many dogs with AIHA/IMHA. You will see both Azathioprine and Cyclosporine mentioned in many of the SUCCESS STORIES at the Meisha's Hope Web site. I truly do know this is so hard but remember dogs CAN and DO recover from AIHA/IMHA and go on to live happy healthly lives. I pray this will be the case for your dear gal. But remember AIHA/IMHA is a marathon, NOT a sprint. Many times it can take an very extended period of time for a dog with AIHA/IMHA to get into remission. Be assured you and your dear Layla are in my thoughts and prayers during these most difficult days.

Joanne MN

Whoops, still half asleep. This statment, 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 SUCCESS STORIES pages, they will show you what has worked for other dogs in terms of term options and give you a lot of HOPE. should say 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 SUCCESS STORIES pages, they will show you what has worked for other dogs in terms of TREATMENT options and give you a lot of HOPE. note the word term should have been TREATMENT Sorry for the mistake I am off to have breakfast and WAKE up!!

Joanne MN

We are keeping Layla in our thoughts and prayers. Please do all the research you can as you must be your Layla's voice in her treatment, don't hesitate to express you opinions and concerns to your vet, especially if what they are recommending seems questionable. As others have said please read the success stories and you will see that there is indeed hope. Cheryl and Ginger

Cheryl & Ginger Pineville PA

Hey T, Sorry to hear about Layla. Me and Tessy will send some positive energy your way. Like everyone was saying...you should for sure check out Joanne's Meisha's Hope website! This was such a help for me in my struggle and the success stories helped me calm down significantly. It really gives a person HOPE! Keep positive and show her love and things will be alright. Jonathan

Jonathan NS

Hi T, Also sending some positive energy your way for Layla. We have Holly, a dachshund, and she was diagnosed in March 2007. He has been a long and expensive battle, but she is doing great and on the recovery road. This week we are finally able to stop the aziathioprine and hopefully in the next few months will be able to reduce the prednisone. In the last few months of reducing the meds we were amazed to see her energy level return. We are all here to help each other, just like one big happy family. Enjoy each and every day with her. Linda

Linda Sapphire

I hope your Layla is doing well. I also live in Erie, PA. One of my dogs was diagnosed with IMHA in July 2007. Please feel free to Email me, if you would like to. Sue

Sue sueroo@adelphia.net

I hope your Layla is doing well. I also live in Erie, PA. One of my dogs was diagnosed with IMHA in July 2007. Please feel free to Email me, if you would like to. Sue

Sue Erie

Hi, I'm not that far down the road in Buffalo NY. My dog Spencer was on Joanne's site success story of May 2007. He is doing great. Dogs can and do beat this! If you are ever in need of a Internal Medicine specialist, Dr. Brummer in Orchard Park NY is a good one. Best of luck to you and Layla, Kim and Spencer

Kim Ny

T and Layla, Hope your both continuing to do ok. I am going to put my 2cents in and say that I would NOT recommend Dr. Brummer for IMHA. I debated writing this as I'm not sure if this is innappropriate to do publicly, but those are the kinds of worries that caused me to be afraid to speak up for my Ollie when he was sick. I lost him last fall. So now I'm just going to speak my mind. I would probably take a dog to Dr. Brummer for anything else, (he does have a good reputation), but never for IMHA. He's just not up speed on treatment, or agressive at all, which is what you have to be with this disease. He gave up on my dog. I'll leave it at that. You are your dogs best advocate, and this disease is like a puzzle, the more pieces you have the better you'll be able to understand the big picture. There is an incredible amount of information on this site, and lots of inspiring stories, in addition to the ones on Joanne's site. I am so happy you found a specialist in Ohio! Keep your head up, you CAN beat this!

mj ut/ny

MJ, I agree with your comments regarding Dr. Brummer, and I'm glad that you spoke up. Our vet in Erie had started our dog on prednisone and Imuran, I believe also with another medication that I can't remember, after he was diagnosed. Dr. Brummer was recommended to us, so after five days and one blood transfusion, we transferred our dog to his care. I don't understand why, but Dr. Brummer immediately discontinued the Imuran and the other medication, and gave our dog prednisone only. He didn't seem to do anything above and beyond to try to save him, like I had expected him to do. After five days of our dog being observed with no changes in his treatment and given prednisone only with no improvement, our dog's condition worsened, and Dr. Brummer felt that our dog was developing pulmonary embolus/clots. He would not try baby aspirin or Heparin, because he said he was afraid of the possibility of internal bleeding. He told us that nothing could be done regarding the clotting, and he apparently wasn't willing to try any different medications either, which I was surprised that he didn't do during the five days that our dog was under his care with no improvement. On the fifth day, after our dog's condition had worsened due to the clotting, Dr. Brummer suggested that we take him home, which we did. He said there was nothing more he could do - but I feel that other drugs could have been administered during the five days that he cared for our dog. Three days after we brought our dog home, he died from a clot to his heart or lungs. I was also told that Dr. Brummer has a good reputation, and I believe that. I'm sure that he's a great vet for other things, but I agree with you about Dr. Brummer's approach to treatment with regard to IMHA. I feel that he gave up on our dog, too. When I think back on some of his comments during our dog's initial examination, I don't think that our dog stood much of a chance by being treated there, but I didn't realize it at the time. I normally would have been a better advocate for my dog, but I wanted to trust Dr. Brummer because he was a specialist and was recommended. I often wonder what the outcome would have been if I had kept our dog in Erie, or if I had insisted that something different be tried. I feel like I let him down, too. Therese and Layla - I'm also glad that you found a specialist that you're happy with in Ohio. Therese - I enjoyed talking with you on the phone yesterday. It sounds like Layla is doing well. Please keep in touch. Sue

Sue PA

This thread was discussed between 23/02/2009 and 26/02/2009

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