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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - RESULTS OF AIHA
| Hello I have a 10 year old LAB, ZEKE. He has been diagnosed with AIHA at a vets in Spain. He is being treated but sometimes I have difficulty with the language. Can you tell me what actually kills the dog? Is it lack of food beacuse he wont eat much? Is it organ failure or does he just "waste away" and give up? Is he sufferring? Many thanks. Loving owner of the best dog in the world. Terry |
| TERRY SPAIN |
| Terry, I am so very sorry to hear that your most beloved Zeke has been diagnosed with AIHA. If you have not read my Web site on AIHA/IMHA as yet, you might want to do so when you can. The URL is: 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 treatment options as well as give you a lot of Hope. You have asked a lot of questions that most caregivers of AIHA/IMHA dogs ask at the onset of the disease. I will try and answer a few of them. First of all it is so important to know that dogs who have AIHA/IMHA are not suffering or in any pain. They are just very weak and tired from the lack of red blood cells. Dogs can go for a very long time without eating so lack of food probably is not a cause of death in dogs with AIHA/IMHA. However it is very important that the dog drink water. Dogs with AIHA/IMHA may have organ failure at some point, however the biggest cause of death in dogs with AIHA/IMHA at this point seems to be blood clots to either the heart or lungs. I have seen dogs with AIHA/IMHA die in as little as 20 hours after diagnosis from these sorts of blood clots. Many vets will prescribe heparin or a low dose of aspirin to try and stem this complication. Please believe me when I say I truly know how hard it is to deal with AIHA/IMHA. But also believe me when I say that dogs CAN and DO survive the disease and go on to live happy healthy lives. My own Meisha was proof of this are all the dogs on the Success Stories page at my Web site. Be assured you and your most beloved Zeke are in my thoughts and prayers during these most difficult days. |
| Joanne MN |
| Thank you for your support on this site and the email that I recieved. ZEKE is strong and WILL fight this. I think we were lucky with an early diagnossis as ZEKE was already at the vet having stitches out after an operation on his knee. I have read some, but not all of ths forum, because it upsets me to much. Does ANYONE know the causes of this horrible killer? I had given ZEKE ibuprofen because of his pain after the op. Could that be a cause? Thanks again |
| TERRY SPAIN |
| Dear Terry And Zeke, I am so sorry to hear that you Zeke has come down with this disease. I want to tell you that my mini-schnauzer, Kent, developed this disease when he was 9.5 years old. He will be 11 years old this July 14th. If you havent yet done so, please read through Joanne'es Website. It is extremely informative and a great place to start in understanding this disease. Also read through some other threads on this website as it may help you understand it better, also the medication etc. Please let us know what Zeke's hematocrit is, what medicine is being prescribed for him, and what his vet says. It will help us to help you to have this information. Hang in there, Christine and Kent. |
| Christine Fl |
| Thank you Christine. I have started a new thread ZEKE, which you have seen. I will give all updates on that new thread. What is hematocrit? Is that the Red Blood Count? As you will see, his RBC is 16.2, the same as when he was diagnosed on Tuesday! Thanks again for you concern and support. This really is a wonderfull forum. Terry |
| TERRY SPAIN |
This thread was discussed between 01/05/2008 and 03/05/2008
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