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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Puppy with possible IMHA
| I have a 16weeks old Border Collie Pup, who developed a fever, took him to vet and he is anemic, and white blood cells slightly up neutrphils. Lab said they are seeing red cell destruction but we are waiting to see what the percentage is. Vet in not convinced its IMHA because he is so young. She gave him Tolfedine for fever whiched worked and he is sort of back to normal causing the usual trouble around the house. We are redoing CBC on Monday to see if there has been a difference. No bleeding that I can tell, he is eating and drinking now since fever resolved. Potientially we will do an x ray to see if he ingested something like a penny that is causing this. Any input would be appreciated Thanks Mo |
| Maureen Ontario |
| Maureen, I am so sorry to hear about your pup. Please this Joannes site if you haven't http://www.cloudnet.com/~jdickson/ Has he had any vaccines recently, this is known to cause AIHA and what is is HCT/PVC count? This is what shows the anemia level Laurie |
| Laurie CA |
| Maureen, Oh dear, a little puppy. You must be very very worried. Let me see if I can help you understand what your vet is thinking. Anemia is a symptom of some condition or disease, not a disease itself. So the vet would like to find the actual "cause" of the anemia and treat that if they can to change the state of anemia. When there is anemia of such suddenness in a young dog, the vet will be suspicious of the kind of causes that might indicate a real specific cause. A big cause of sudden anemia is the ingestion of a coin that contains zinc. Puppies are well known for their sneaky ability to pick up and eat just about anything laying around and a penny would be the kind of thing they would eat. Why would zinc cause anemia? This is actually considered poisoning and anemia of a sudden nature is just one symptom of this poisoning. Removing the coin from the body will remove the cause of the poisoning. Your puppy will still need special medical care while the excess zinc is removed from the system. Other things that puppies can ingest that might cause this sudden illness would be any foods with onions in them. Leftovers from a meal, or sneaking into the garbage would be the way this could happen. This is called Heinz Body Anemia. This means that the red blood cells are being destroyed and under a microscope the damaged red blood cell has a clump of hemoglobin called a Heinz Body inclusion. This is an easy test to do and is diagnostic immediately. The treatment is similar to zinc poisoning, supporting the kidney and making sure that it doesn't fail as the body eliminates the toxins. The other thing that might happen to a young puppy is that they have contracted a tick disease. While this is pretty far fetched, esp. where you live, it's not impossible and should be investigated with a simple test called a SNAP 4DX. I can tell you that when I flew home from Tulsa OK with Cassie when she was 10 weeks old, I found several attached ticks within 12 hours of getting home. I removed them and had her tested immediately. The treatment for tick disease is fairly easy if it is found very soon after it is contracted. good luck with your tests on monday patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
| Thanks for replying. His HCT is 30 or 31 I cant remember. Kidney and Liver function is good, lab did see red cell destruction. Yes he had vacinations recently. We have talked about toxicity causing it but again you would see Kidney or liver involvement with this . The interesting thing is I recently had H1N1 in the last week or so and was very sick. There has been only one case documented in the States and non in Canada of it jumping from human to dog but lots of cases to cats. I was wondering if something like this could cause that. Is it normal to have fever in IMHA. Anyway hopefully on Monday his HCT will be up or the same not worse. His gums look a bit pale but other than that he looks fine, since fever is gone he is almost his lively self. Oh we checked from any blood parasites too and all came back negative. Thanks Maureen |
| Maureen Ontario |
| I am sorry to hear your puppy isn't feeling well! Not very old at all. Hopefully, whatever it is, your pup will be feeling well very soon and you can put this behind you. My Border Collie/McNab is about the same age! Very hyper little buggers aren't they?! Take care and keep us posted. |
| Mardi Northern Calif |
| HI Maureen Im sorry to hear about your border collie - hope it all gets sorted out soon, your doggie seems to have bounced back quite quickly. Good luck, lets know how you go. Silka PS. I too have a border collie, Bonnie, she is 4, and a very busy dog, but she misses her buddy, Riley, who has been hit with Evans Syndrome. |
| Silka Melbourne Australia |
| Hi Maureen, I am sorry to hear your puppy is ill. Keep us posted on the test results. Puppies can get IMHA, at such a young age, but it is rare. Our puppy, Henri, was diagnosed with vaccine-induced IMHA at 5-months of age. The hospital ruled out tick-borne illnesses, poisons, cancer, etc and concluded it was from his last vaccines. Please, ask any questions you have. FYI Henri survived and his doing very well. Next month will be his 1-year anniversary. Furhugs, Ella Henri, West Highland White Terrier, 14-months, diagnosed 02/26/09 with vaccine-induced IMHA, original medication regimen included: prednisone, cyclosporine, and azathioprine. Current medications: 7mg/EOD azathioprine. |
| Ella Seattle |
This thread was discussed between 08/01/2010 and 09/01/2010
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