Diablo

[Tara]

Sheena…you don’t know how much your post has helped me this evening. I had begun to loose home and we had even started discussing putting to sleep because this is no quality of life for him…..if he wasn’t still trying to follow me everywhere I would be certain this was the right decision. Him following me although breaking my heart because he is as you described….falling over, walking in circles etc. but it also gives me some hope because when he first got IMHA a year ago now he was so sick he did not care if he was with us or not. We will give it another week for sure but I have to get some food into him…he is going to fade away. I am worried about this triggering his IMHA too? He is on Baytril….I will call vet tomorrow. Thanks again everyone.

[Patrice]

Tara,

I am so sorry this is getting worse. Try to remember that your vet believes this has a peripheral root not a central, that is significant. Many dogs do have a rough few weeks in the beginning.

Baytril side effects can include:

• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Lethargy
• Poor coordination: ataxia and possibly even seizures
• Others that are more significant but are tied to long term use or in dogs with other complicating conditions.

Drugs that can interact with Baytril can include:

• Aminoglycoside antibiotics
• Antacids
• Cephalosporin antibiotics
• Rimadyl (and other NSAIDs)
• Penicillin
• Aminophylline
• Cyclosporine
• Nitrourantoin
• Sucralfate
• Theophylline

I am not sure what all of the other drugs you are giving him are so perhaps one of these listed drugs is conflicting with the Baytril.

The whole point of using this drug, I assume, was to err on the side of caution if this is an ear infection. If it is making him sick then perhaps taking him off it for a few days might be quite revealing if he seems to improve. It would be helpful to see him eat.

Dogs can adjust to many things that we humans might find unbearable. This is probably because dogs don’t have the same vivid imagination humans have. He simply loves you and just wants to be with you. It’s only been a week or so, see the vet again about the antibiotics this week.

my best, patrice

 

 

[admin]

Hi again Tara

Please believe me when I say this was one of the worst things I have seen my dog go through – it is truly awful & you feel almost cruel. For anyone who has not seen an attack like this, it is shocking & frightening. I will quote my vet exactly & apologise for the swearing! He said “For goodness sake give the poor old bugger a chance to recover! This is my favourite thing to treat because owners are always so surprised at how well they recover, so there’s no way I’m putting him to sleep”. I am going to e-mail Claire as she has been through the same thought process. I know you are worried about triggering the IMHA & I would personally drop the Baytril & stick with the anti-nausea meds. I totally agree with Patrice on this – these antibiotics can have interactions & can stop them having an appetite. Sprockett had no other treatment apart from the anti-sickness drug, it was just an old dog “stroke” which is pretty common. Please be patient – Diablo has beaten IMHA & he can beat this too – he just needs time to get better. I vaguely remember Sprockett not eating much at all until his eye movements slowed down (maybe a week), probably because he couldn’t focus on anything & the dizziness must be terrible.Tara, you know I am thinking of you & Diablo – he loves you so much & wants to be beside you. If you can get him to eat, I know that will cheer you up.

Loads of love to you both, Sheena & the boyz

[admin]

Oh Tara I am sorry this is happening. I am no expert on dogs but from reading everything that Patrice and Sheena have said, it does sound like there is a lot of hope that Diablo can make a full recovery from this. Looking at the list of interactions Patrice posted, could there be some interaction between the Baytril and the Cyclosporine? Have you contacted your vet again? To my mind, it is excellent that he is still trying to follow you around, even if he is struggling to do that at the moment. I think that’s a great sign.

On the food front, I know I tried everything under the sun to persuade Molly to eat, and eventually resorted to high calorie prescription foods. I’m not sure where you are based, but we’re in the UK and I used Royal Canin convalescence support (a bit like formula milk) and Hills A/D recovery. I’m pretty sure A/D is available in the US, and both of these are suitable for dogs as well as cats. The A/D is like a pate and you can mash it up with water, to a soup-like consistency which allows them to lap at it. You can syringe feed this too, although hopefully that isn’t necessary in Diablo’s case (and I am not sure about the “rules” on syringe-feeding dogs). Both of these foods are supposed to be “highly palatable” to tempt them into eating.

Hang in there. We are still keeping everything crossed that Diablo turns the corner very soon.

Mary & Mable x

[Tara]

Thank so much Sheena and Patrice. Diablo is on 25mg of cyclosporine and still on sucralfate 2x per day so this is scaring me now that I know that they can interact with Baytril. My vet of course knows he is on these meds so wonder why she would choose Baytril? She decided on antibiotic just in case their was an ear infection but we don’t think there is one….just a precaution.  I think I will stop it and see if there is any improvement. To make things worse my regular vet left for a week vacation today and I hate dealing with vets that are not familiar with Diablo just because his case is so complex. I only have one more day of Cerenia…they only gave me 4 days worth so I am terrified once off it the vomiting will start again. Before going on Baytril he did want to eat although he usually threw it up after because of the dizziness or perhaps just a coincidence….I don’t know. I think one of the hardest things is other people telling you that you are cruel keeping him alive too….but as you said Sheena they are not familiar with CVD. Thanks so much…will keep you posted.

[claire]

Tara,I have just caught up with Diablo’s situation (thank you Sheena for your email!)

I understand completely what you are going through- as Sheena says it is dramatic and scary to watch. But I completely agree that Diablo will come out of this given a bit more time.

In December 2012 Ruby lost her battle with IMHI and I had driven back from having her put to sleep with my older collie in the car. When we arrived home at midnight Foster immediately collapsed. It felt like the worst night of my life,I just couldn’t believe I was going to lose her too. She was disorientated,head tilted and eyes flickering from side to side. My vet confirmed the following day that she had had a stroke. Like Sheena,I had to support her with a “sling”  to help her walk outside for a least a fortnight,it might even have been longer. But gradually the flickering stopped,the head tilt went and she regained the ability to walk normally. She is now 15 and there are no lasting signs. She has been on vivitonin since then and will remain on it for life to stimulate blood flow to the brain and other organs – but she made a full recovery! Like you,I wondered whether I could take much more of watching her in that state- but please hang on in there! Sheena encouraged me to do the same – otherwise Foster might not be here today sniffing around in the kitchen for food!

 

I am thinking of you both

Lots of love

 

Claire & Foster

[admin]

Hi Tara

Someone said to me it was cruel putting Worzel through the IMHA treatment when he was in his worst skeletal state. I didn’t know at that time if he would recover, but had to give him every chance. Most people don’t understand what is going on. It is the same ignorance with CVD & people say these things with the best intentions, I’m sure. They don’t realise how hurtful their comments are. I know you will always do your best for Diablo & so does he. I was talking to a friend in the UK this morning whose dog had the same thing (elderly 16 yr old Jack Russell) & he said it took about 3 weeks for his boy to really improve, but he still has a slight head tilt which is rather cute. He is 18 years old now & still mad as a hatter!

I’m sorry about your usual vet being away – why does this always happen? Sod’s Law I think!

Please let me know how Diablo is getting on – we are all thinking about you both

Love Sheena & Co

 

[Tara]

Thank you so much Claire for taking the time to post and again thank you so much Sheena….can’t thank you enough….you have both given me hope. It is a week today and Diablo is no better but no worse….I got him to eat some boiled chicken breast yesterday so that was a relief. My last day of Cerenia for the nausea is today…do you think I should ask for more or wait and see if he starts vomiting again once it wears off?