VetNet®
VetNet® AIHA discussion forum
VetNet® Forum
Lifelong Learning Network
www.vetnetlln.ac.uk
Veterinary Recruitment
Premier Partner Program
Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Prednisone and Hair Loss?
| Hi everyone, This is my first post. I have been a lurker for a while now. I came across the site after my tiny 1 year old 5 lb. male pomeranian, Indy, was diagnosed with AIHA. It was back in early October of 2009 that my husband stated that Indy had begun to eat his breakfast a little differently than he normally did. He would get excited about his food when it was dished out, but would only take a few bites and then stop eating. It seemed like he had developed an aversion to it. He wanted his food, but just couldn't bring himself to eat it. As best as I remember, he did finish it eventually and at dinner time he usually ate as normal. We definitely were concerned, but didn't really do anything about it. At the end of October, Indy vomited a small amount of foamy clear fluid around 11pm. My neighbors were having an unusually loud outdoor party and Indy was very upset about the noises they were making. I blamed his tummy upset on that. A week later he vomited again just like the first time. That is when I took him to his vet. Indy was definitely subdued during the visit, but Indy had always been a laid back kinda guy. The vet knew that as well. We both thought that all of this was just some kind of stomach upset that would pass with medicine. He was about to send me home since the stool sample was normal when he casually asked if I would prefer to do a complete blood workup as a precaution. Of course I said yes....and boy were we both glad we did that. Long story short....Indy was transfused and we have been battling this monster ever since. I am blessed to have a vet that did prescribe the correct protocol ......as I have found out after the fact. This site confirmed everything. I am soooo thankful to have found this place. It gave me some peace...if that can happen while dealing with this disease. It is a beast for sure. Right now, Indy is off steroids and only on 1 drug once a week and that is Asathioprine. I hope I spelled that correctly. He is happy and playful and much different than he has ever been. Sometimes I wonder if he was born with this? The only problem I see now is his coat looks horrible. It is dull and he is shedding like mad. His skin was flaking but that has subsided it seems. Is this normal? Will his coat probably improve? What can I expect? Lisa Houston, Texas |
| Lisa Houston |
| Lisa, Great that Indy is feeling better. As great as it is to see them act normal and healthy, as concerning it is to not see that coat shine and look healthy. It will take a while, but it will happen! Just remember what Indy's body has gone through. The hair loss is definitely a side effect of the medications. I was so sad to see my dog with his shaggy coat. He had the most beautiful curls when he was healthy. My daughter who is a heath care professional kept telling me, Kahlu has to heal the inside first, once that is done, he will have the power for something secondary like the coat. Make sure you give Indy quality food with first class protein. maybe some supplements like Omega 3 would help to. It will take time, be patient! Tell Indy he is beautiful and you love him even though he is not looking like a show dog right now. Best wishes, Brigitte |
| Brigitte BC Canada |
| Hi Lisa and Indy, Welcome to this GREAT SITE!!! Everyone here is really compassionate, helpful and understanding...but sorry your boy is battling this nightmare....anyway, I think the hair loss is from the azathioprine, as it is a chemotherapy drug and that is one of the listed side-effects. I don't think it's from the prednisone he was on, but I'm not sure, My Cody has been on pred. for a year and his coat looks the same with no hair loss. Good luck to you and please keep us "posted"....Tammy and Cody |
| Tammy/Cody N.J. |
| Pred, aza and cyclo ALL affect the skin and coat in varrying degrees as does small things like diet. I hope it all goes back to normal cause my Tessy is dealing with the same thing...thinned hair and dry skin. She's improving with time so that's a good thing. If you're not fond of supplementing try giving Indy a sardine (the ones in water) every day. It'll take time to notice a difference but it helps. Johnny & Tessy |
| Johnny |
| Hi Lisa, It's good that you have been here on the board, there is so much support and so much to learn. My Tiggs' coat was horrible when he was on higher doses, he had terrible dandruff, the coat was coarse, and just no life to it. In our case, Tiggs' developed hypothyroid as a side effect of everything else, and this is very common. It also will affect the coat, so it's worth running a thyroid panel the next time you are at the vet. You'll have to fast him, so tell your vet ahead of time if you want to run the panel. We also switched to more Omega 3 supplements (salmon oil) and a fish/potato based food, though we also homecooked for quite a while to try to boost Tiggs' nutrition. Keep us posted on how you are both doing! melissa and tiggs |
| melissa slc |
| Lisa. Glad to hear Indy has done so well. The drugs and combined suppression of the immune system does wreck havoc on our dogs appearance. Hopefully now that you are down to just one drug Indy's coat will return to normal. It would be a very good idea to contact Dr. Dodds at hemopet.org regarding having a Thyroid panel work up. She does testing more thorough than a lot of the standard tests. Penny |
| Penny Lytle Creek Calif |
| Hi Lisa, My 2-year old standard poodle was taking prednisone and azathioprine and she had bald spots and dry hair. At one point she had severe skin flaking. I gave her a bath with shampoo containing oatmeal and aloe and it really helped a lot. Poodles don't shed but one time after her bath, the tub had hair all over it. That was about 5 months ago. Her hair is now back to normal, no shedding and no bald spots. I think my dog's hair problem was caused by the prednisone because she started on 80 mg a day and it has been gradually reduced to 2.5 mg every other day while the azathioprine medication that she takes every other day has not been reduced at all yet. She was diagnosed with AIHA 9 months ago. She is back to her old self but my vet is withdrawing the meds very slowly. It just takes a lot of time with this disease. Best wishes to you and Indy Barb and Tootsie |
| Barb Ohio |
This thread was discussed between 25/02/2010 and 28/02/2010
Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) forum index
This thread is from the Vetnet archive. The live Vetnet forum is active now.
