Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - White blisters/ spots on tongue ?

New issue of the week ... We noticed Gunner has blisters/white spots on his tongue. Has anyone experienced this. We are trying to get an appopintment for the vet tomorrow, waiting for a call back. I thought I remembered reading somewhere about that being a side effect from some kind of med. But can't remember what one. And he is on so many now !!! This poor guy. Just when I think things are looking up something else happens. Thanks for any advice JAcki and Gunner xo

jacki

Is Gunner only on Prednisone? These weakened immune systems tend to open up the body to infections to move on in. What do you mean by blisters? Is he able to eat and drink ...chew and swallow without problems? A vet visit would be a good idea! Might be in need of antibiotics! Keep the water clean and fresh at all times. Keep us posted. Johnny & Tessy

Johnny

Ginger had white sores on her tongue while she was on the pred, and once the soress

Cheryl & Ginger Pineville PA

sorry I hit the send button by accident on the post above, please disregard. Ginger did have the white sores on her tongue while she was on the higher dosage of pred and once the pred was reduced they went away. There was not too much I could do for them as she would just swallow anything I put on them. They did not seem to bother her. Cheryl & Ginger

Cheryl & Ginger Pineville Pa

Jacki, Kahlu had very bad mouth sores,mainly on his tongue, some of them bleeding. It did however not deter him from eating. As soon as he got off the very high pred doses the sores went away. Best wishes, Brigitte

Brigitte BC Canada

He is currently on 2 antibiotics for other issues, Amoxicillian and Cipro, so I'm thinking that should be taking care of any infection. He is still on Pred .. we just reduced it from 40 to 20 mg per day (does that sound right? ) He is also on Imuran every 3 days (weeing off) .. and Soloxine . Because of his colitis they added a few other drugs that he is currently taking ... thank god there has been no more blood in his stool at all. He has been doing great with the pain in the back leg, he just as we speak ran out back because he heard a noise. So I think we may have that under control, he also for the 1st time in a week went on a short walk down the street. It has been literally one thing after another, but I am pushing forward through everything .. and most importantly he is !!!!! I would like to start giving him something for his joints, I did purchase DGP (dog gone pain) and have been giving him 2 tabs a day which may be helping the leg situation. The woman at my favorite pet store also told me that goats milk is excellent for colitis (haven't tried that yet) But I would like to start adding some holistic stuff instead of all these drugs !!! His diet and eating habits are excellent, I've been cooking chicken breast, roasting carrots, sweet potatoes and spinach mixed with some of his Taste of the wild kibble, I have also been givng him some organic yogurt for a treat with his pills and I think it may make his mouth feel better as well. In addition to all this, he has been getting warm towel massages atleats twice a week, which he of course loves !!! And putting ice and moist heat on his poor back legs :) As always I am open to any other suggestions or tricks to add ... has anyone ever done any kind of muscle builder for the loss of muscle mass? (just a thought) Thank you for always responding to my messages guys it really means alot to us :) Jacki and Gunner

jacki Phila

Jacki, just let me know when i can move in!:) I would also love a hot towel massage! When my dog Kahlu was ill I took a workshop for Tellington Touch. Google it and you can see it is similar to a massage that you can do for your dog. I found it very therapeutic not just for my dog, but also for me. This disease just takes all out of us and there is so little we can do. I did TTouch on Kahlu and tried to do it with intention. Talking calmly to him about getting better and visualizing him running over fields, being healthy. It might sound a bit hoaky to some people, but lets face it, I was desperate. Once he got better, down to 5mg of pred, we did a lot of swimming at the lake (it was summer) that got his muscle back fairly quick. Gunners prednisone reduction from 40-20mg seems a bit much for me. Usually reductions are done not more than 33-25% preceding a blood test. So down to 30mg might be a better choice. The food you are giving Gunner sounds great! A lot of people have added a supplement called petinic. It consists of Vitamin B, folic acid and iron. You might want to look into that. Like you I was always hoping for something more natural to replace the prednisone and imuran. But at this point you can not stop these medications or you will have a relapse for sure! You could also get some milk thistle for Gunner, if he is not already on it. This will help the liver to repair itself. Best wishes, Brigitte & the poodle boys

Brigitte BC Canada

Anytime Brigitte :) You are always welcome to come visit and I'll set up a real massage !! lol . I'm gonna look up the tellington Touch for sure. I am willing to try anything. I thought the drop in pred was alittle much . Today was the 1st time, so 1st thing tomorrow I'm going to call and ask. He does take Petinics and Milk thistle(because of people telling me of those on here) as a matter of fact I need to get some more of both. As per Dr.Dodds recommedation he is on Soloxine, have you had experience with that? I'm not sure whether that worked or it just took time for the original cocktail of meds to kick in, but after about 6-7 weeks after his blood transfusion etc his Red Blood count did start to go up. I sure do hope Gunner comes through this, I just want him to feel good and healthy I know this took a lot out of him and with his age he may not be 100%, but I pray everyday he just gets some of his spunk back :) He really is an amazing guy and such a good good patient ! I wish you could see pictures of him. If you are on facebook, please look me up. jacki.fusion@yahoo.com Have a great night and thank you for everything :)

jacki Phila

Hi Jacki I agree with Brigitt that the 50% reduction of pred seems a bit much, usually the vet will drop the dosage by 25% unless your vet feels that the pred is really starting to do more harm then good, Ginger had to have hers reduce at about 40% (you can break the 10mgs in half easily)as it was really taking a toll on her back legs. I have tried pretty much every arthritis supplement on the market and found that some work for some dogs don't work for others and the one that works best for Ginger is Cetyl M http://www.entirelypets.com/cetylm120.html?gclid=CL-qk6yihagCFYxd5QodrDtqrA and she has been on it for about 3 years and you can get it many places, she also takes fish oil. If DGP seems to be working for Gunner then stick with it, I have that too and give it to her once or twice a week in place of the Cetyl M. Glad to read he seems to be feeling better:) Cheryl & Ginger

Cheryl & Ginger Pinevile PA

Jacki, I feel your pain and your fear with the perceived drastic drop in prednisone. Know that Beau (although a smaller dog - cocker spaniel) was dropped from 40 mg/day to 20 mg/day about two weeks ago due to steroid hepatopathy. Today he was reduced to 10 mg/day. His PCV has been holding very stable at 22. Would like a higher number, but it is what it is at this point and it's not going down! In any event, I feel like I have my "old" dog back -- the one I had in October prior to his diagnosis. So - don't be scared. Just keep the faith! Sharon

Sharon PA

I agree. And they said we could do 30 instead of 40 of the pred. 20 seemed to drastic, although all his issues I know are pred related. I'm going to look into the Cetyl M and fish oil , I haven't added that(fish oil) to the mix as of yet. Is that also good for arthritis? I've read about it for other stuff, my question is always how much to give. Gunners a big boy 120 pounds. And do you buy one specifically for dogs or does that matter ? Thanks Sharon for your words,we are all staying positive for Gunner, he is such a strong guy. He went on another short walk today and we let him come upstairs for the 1st time since last Monday. I think being on the carpet was good for him, my whole main level is hardwood. I think we will keep him on the carpet for another week or so to give his legs a break and see how it goes. he is snoring away next to me as we speak :)

jacki Phila

jacki, i am glad you decided to go with 30mg. After the next blood test in 10 to 14 days you can go down to 20mg and not fear a relapse. In the whole scheme of things, a few days of being patient will be worth it. if you are getting fishoil, omega3 the dosing should be right on the bottle. hang in there, in a few weeks Gunner will get stronger again. Take it one day at a time and remember Gunner lives in the moment! Best wishes, Brigitte

Brigitte BC Canada

This thread was discussed between 04/04/2011 and 05/04/2011

Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) forum index

This thread is from the Vetnet archive. The live Vetnet forum is active now.