Heart murmur

[Jen]

Thanks Linda!!! I will research puralube vet ointment online ASAP. It’s pretty bad- she can’t blink her right eye & everything falls out if her mouth, excessive drool etc… I think the not eating is because she’s freaked out more than anything bring wrong. She stills wants treats so that’s a good sign. We leave at 2 am for FL so not sure I can get drops before then but I’ll ship them to FL. Thank you for the quick response!!! I’ll try not to freak out & will watch the you tube massage video. She’s had it for 3 days now.
So glad to hear Sadie is doing well! You must be happy with the HCT. We ‘re thinking of you & Sadie!!!
Jen. & Maggie

[Jen]

Ok, now her equilibrium seems to be off. She sometimes stumbles when avoiding things out of the right corner of her view. Like door swinging open… Also both pupils seem to be shifting? Does anyone have any ideas? The vet is calling tmrw with test results & I leave for FL in a few hours ( with dog) on a 20 hr road trip.

[Patrice]

Jen,
Sorry to read this, you must be a bit frantic.

This could simply be an ear infection and that can lead to this symptom.

However, with the eye nystagmus this could be something more serious.

I don’t want to panic you, but I do want to be fair and let you know a possibly more serious condition that this could be so you can check with your vet. Please, can you tell me if your vet did a full tick panel to rule out tick disease?

Unfortunately these symptoms you describe can be attributed to the neurological symptoms of certain tick diseases. Here are just a few of the many symptoms in Lyme Disease and I have seen this happen to a number of dogs on Tick-L:
Head, Face, Neck
5.Unexplained hair loss
6.Headache, mild or severe, Seizures
7.Pressure in Head, White Matter Lesions in Head (MRI)
8.Twitching of facial or other muscles
9.Facial paralysis (Bell’s Palsy)
10.Tingling of nose, (tip of) tongue, cheek or facial flushing
11.Stiff or painful neck
12.Jaw pain or stiffness
13.Dental problems (unexplained)
14.Sore throat, clearing throat a lot, phlegm (flem), hoarseness, runny nose

Neurologic System
36.Tremors or unexplained shaking
37.Burning or stabbing sensations in the body
38.Fatigue, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Weakness, peripheral neuropathy or partial paralysis
39.Pressure in the head
40.Numbness in body, tingling, pinpricks
41.Poor balance, dizziness, difficulty walking
42.Increased motion sickness
43.Lightheadedness, wooziness

Dogs, in particular, that have these facial symptoms, can experience a serious inflammation of the eyes called Lyme Uveitis and this is often something a vet can diagnose with a visual examination (viewing the eye from the side and looking for a shimmering.) Treatment is a high priority in these dogs to protect their future vision.

Treatment for Lyme Disease is doxycycline and Tick-L recommends a higher longer dose. “The dosage we recommend on Tick List is an aggressive one: 5 mg. of doxy per pound of body weight given every 12 hours for 8 weeks. ”
my best
patrice

[Jen]

Hi Patrice, she was tested for several tick borne diseases I. Sept when diagnosed with aiha. Since then she has not had any ticks & it is very cold in New England so ticks wouldn’t be alive this time of year. I researched symptoms. & could be vestibular disease. My only option is to call vet in morning from road explain rapid eye movement & dizziness. She was seen by vet last night & he checked her ears & eyes.

[Patrice]

Excellent! Good to test the easy stuff first

So yes vestibular disease is the next likely condition.

It could be vd solely due to ear infection or it could be a true neurological condition. Vet can examine eye movements to determine this.
My best patrice

[admin]

Hi Jen

I’m sorry to read you are going through this worry, especially so close to your trip. When I read your post I wondered about uveitis and I see Patrice has also mentioned it. Molly had it once although it disappeared very quickly and the cause was not found (but suspected herpes infection). In her case her eye suddenly went cloudy, she acted terrified and kept blinking.

I am wondering about some sort of inflammation or damage to some of the cranial nerves (which could cause nystagmus, balance (vestibular) problems and Bell’s palsy). Infection can be a cause – is Maggie on antibiotics? I don’t know what time it is there but it must be getting late so I am wondering if your vet has an out of hours service you could call to discuss before you go?

Please keep us posted when you can and drive safely. I hope Maggie feels better very soon.

All best wishes,

Mary and Mable x

[Vally]

Oh Jen I’m so sorry, just when you’re heading off. You must be so frazzled.

Maggie may need some meds, possible anti nausea, as she may be feeling dizzy but you’ll know how severe the symptoms are and hopefully the vet could tee up something for you.

Let us know how she’s going.

Love Vally & Bingo

[Jen]

Thanks everyone for responding! Well we are on the road. Maggie is resting comfortably now . I am waiting for her vet office to open in few hours and will relay her symptoms to him. He checked her eyes at visit on thur night but did not check inner ear. She was groomed on wed & groomer thought she had a lot of ear discharge so I applied a ketaconosole cleaning solution- perhaps she had damage to eardrum & the solution caused this? I read that could happen. My hope is the blood work & thyroid will rule out anything major & prhaps it is an ear infection that vet could prescribe antibiotics & I can maybe pickup somewhere on road??? I will be at destination Sun evening but don’t want to do more damage by waiting til then