Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Non-AIHA question

Hello Friends, I have been on this forum since 2002 and have always received the best support and help so I am hoping some can chime in on a non-aiha question. My neighbor has an 18 month old husky...beautiful sweet girl! She just recently started pooping in the house at night, despite being let out just before bed. She gets plenty of exercise and attention. Her human mama is home with her during the day so she is never alone. I so wish I could help her but after probing for the obvious such as changes in food and or eating times, routine changes, etc. she still cannot pinpoint the problem. Her hubby is in the military and will be leaving soon so I thought that maybe she sensed he was leaving but my neighbor told me it has never been an issue before when he leaves and he is gone a lot. Any thoughts or suggestions are highly appreciated. I am in total disagreement with how the hubby is "disciplining" her. First, he yells at her after the fact and then puts her in the bathroom for the rest of the night. Not cool at all. I know with my boys I could ALWAYS pinpoint why they suddenly would poop in the house and that was when my hubby went out of town. And, of course, the the occasional times when they got older and they were not always able to make it outside in time. Bless their hearts...they tried. Miss my boys! Teresa

Teresa va

Hi Teresa, I have had a couple of huskies myself...my first thought is that she may be having seizures. When my pup started having seizures my Vet told me that a sign they were seizing was urinating or defecating in the house, when they never had before. Eighteen months to 2 years is when seizures usually start in Sibes. Hope this helps

Julie IL

One of my first thoughts was did she seek medical advise? If this was done and medical issues ruled out then I'd start a process of elimination. First, how does the stool look?? Loose or firm? Same spot everytime? Is the dog experienceing anxiety or security issues lately?? If I were your neighbor I'd be back to housetraining 101 to start. Start by crating her at night to see if that helps. Whenever she takes the dog out make sure they have a high quality reward treat ready ONLY for if she does the business outdoors (especially inthe morning) ...and lots of praise for going outdoors. The absolute worse thing to do is yell at a dog and punish them for their msitakes...makes me wanna punch that idiot in the face! By scolding or yelling at the dog it puts fear in them and likely they won't want to use the bathroom in their presence. Very bad idea. I think that the crating at night is the best first step. If it's a medical issue the dog will likely not be able to hold it anyway and will deficate *inside* the crate. This will answer lots of questions. If it's behavioral then he'll probably hold it till morning...in which case lots of praise and rewards. Start here and see where this goes. IF they are not willing to crate then they should let her out at intervals perhaps throughout the night and use the praise/reward system. Tell her the next time she poops inside to take the poop outside (while the dog is watching) and tell her to tell the dog "outside" or whatever commands they use. Oh...and wash the area where the poop was REALLY REALLY REALLY well to get rid of ALL scent. Johnny Tessy & Sadie

Johnny

Thank you so much Johnny and Julie. Julie, very interesting about the seizures. Would your pups have them only at night though? This has only happened during the middle of the night. Last night she let to her out to pee at 1 am and by 1:40 a.m. she was awaken by the smell of poop in the living room....third time in about 5 days. Johnny, her stools are solid. That is the first thing I asked. I have seen her a few times acting a little odd, almost nervous lately. She loves everyone over here in the complex and the minute she comes outside she runs over to my patio for some lovin'. A lady named Rose walked up the other day and "Maple" rolled over to get a belly scratch and Rose noticed that she was shaking. I thought that was strange too, as Maple is far from a nervous dog. The owner told me that she was just at the vet last week and everything was fine as far as blood work, stool sample, etc. I don't know if the nervousness is now just a result of the husband scolding her or what. Yeah, that pisses me off. I also told her that crating at night would be a good start. I am going to pass all this wonderful info to the owner. Thank you so much. Will let you know the outcome. Teresa

Teresa va

Yes, my Sibe only had them at night during a deep sleep...it is very common at that time. He has been on pheno for almost 2 years, we weaned him off slowly because he had gone 18 months without a seizure...and bam, a grande mal at 5 in the evening exactly two weeks off of the pheno. I blame the crazy rabbit though LOL, Sibes are such an excitable breed.

Julie IL

Wow Julie! Honestly I am beginning to think this may be a possibility. Next thing is how do I tell this poor girl? She is young and very sensitive. I mean, she was in tears just telling me about the poop. I fear she will be overwhelmed and start crying hysterically just at the possibility and I do not want to scare the mess out of her. She loves her dog dearly. She was telling me how she has been frantically cleaning up the poop so her hubby doesnt see it and get mad. Ha! Good thing my hubby isnt like that cuz he would have been history, after me rubbing the poop in his face on his way out the door. I have a medical background myself so I know that not every seizure is falling on the floor and having convulsions, etc. Sometimes it can be a mere twitch. How do vets test for that? Teresa

Teresa va

First of all, it is nothing to be too scared of (well I was in a panic but... LOL). I am not sure there really is a test for it, usually dogs are just diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy which just means no known cause. She can take her pup to a neurologist (not actually necessary), but I would wait for that until she actually witnesses a seizure. I am not sure where the pup sleeps, but if I were her I would make sure I was in the same room. I think we missed many seizures with Hurley because he slept down in the family room and we were all upstairs at night. When we did finally witness his first grande mal, it was very frightening...that is when I started putting 2 and 2 together and realized there had been more. Good luck to your friend and her pup.

Julie IL

I guess I should add, it was by his behavior after the grande mal that I realized there had been more. He was very nervous, aggressive, ran tight circles in the yard, shaking, panting, pacing, etc. He has been having some petit mal seizures (partial focal) since back on the pheno. His are simply licking one spot, maybe a bit of twitching...but he is not there, you can't stop him. Has the pup been vaccinated recently? Hurleys seizures coincided with recent vaccinations...Heartworm preventative, flea preventatives, etc. can all bring on seizures.

Julie IL

Yes, indeed, she was vaccinated last week.....the works, and was also given her heartworm preventative. The main thing I have noticed that is out of the ordinary has been licking and nervousness/shaking. But when I mention it the owner says she is like that because she is so hyper. Sometimes its easier for an "outsider" to notice things, I think. I see and play with this sweet pooch at least twice a day and the past few days have been different. I guess the best way to describe it is she seems skiddish now. Well, I am gonna go over and talk to her. I wonder if she has a video recorder see can set up at night time. Thank you so much Julie!

Teresa va

Teresa...maybe this site may help some. http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/site_map.htm Lots of valuable info here on seizures.

Johnny

My Vet suggested a nursery monitor, we used that for a few months. The site Johnny posted has a wealth of info. I was going to post the same, but have problems posting links here. Idiopathic epilepsy is said to show up around 2-6 years of age...in my experience most sibes seem to present between 18 mos. and 2 years. I think they are super sensitive to chemicals and vaccines.

Julie IL

You know...you should recommend to your friend to seek out the advise and help of a TCVM. Tell her to check out tcvm.com and there is a locator tool there. I'm unfamiliar with seizures but have heard of many others who have used traditional chinese medicine with very good results. Just an option for her perhaps.

Johnny

This thread was discussed on 11/08/2010

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