Help with diagnosis, vet stumped - ITP? AIHA? Neurological? (outdoorschik)

outdoorschik

Other thing we just thought of b/c of you all ... we think she was one of two that tested positive last spring for lyme but they didn't treat due to her not showing symptoms.

Bingo -- betcha that's it!! 

Tell Olly-vahhhhh that Aunt Callie sends big scritches (and Uncle David too LOL)

rellasmom

calliecritturs

Is there ANY Possibility she's gotten into rat poison/warfarin?  That can cause lameness/stumbling and the anemia/low platelets (often actual internal bleeding)

Funny well not really funny but funny that you say that because for some reason a her getting into a poison was actually my first thought as I was looking at bloodwork and what different things mean.... hum.

If she were having any internal bleeding though would it show up on an xray??

Natasha -- that's not 'funny' you're GOOD!!!  When you see loss of coordination and low clotting factor poisoning is one of the first things you should suspect (because it's the most lethal the quickest and can be easy to treat if caught EARLY)

Internal bleeding can show up cloudy on an x-ray but it's not at all "for sure".  Typically you look for things like "bruising" on the dog -- particularly in the belly area, or in the whites of the eyes, etc (literally the eyes showing red). 

Honeslty I think this is tick disease because it's so easily missed at onset, and the stumbling/lack of coordiation is kinda classic (not to mention that Outdoorschik would MUCH rather it not be auto-immune!!  but pred is the first course of treatment for tick disease too)

 Karen; I don't have any ideas about what's wrong with her; just wanted to say I'll be sending healing thoughts. Hope you can get this diagnosed very quickly.

Ulcer?

Hope she feels better soon!

Karen, hows it going over there?

Sorry i had to head south for a funeral for a few days, hence being MIA. Negative on the tick disease/heartworm panel. No change in symptoms. She's still on the steroid and we retest blood next week. He's wondering about a slipped disc in the neck... when I asked how that related to bad blood work he couldn't explain... but said steroids would address an immune issue and suggested we double them.

We're deciding now on the next move. Another, vet? Realistically, if it is leukemia or immune mediated we would not treat, I've gone that road before (Snickers) and respect folks that do. That being said, we would not.

 Funny, but I have a friend whose dog had Lyme-like symptoms which came and went for a while.  Vet didn't think it was Lyme, but the owner requested doxy anyway.  Guess what?  Symptoms went away.  I hate tick-borne diseases.  If she had low grade Lyme, but wasn't treated, my first instinct is to get the antibiotic anyway.  Can't hurt to get a second opinion, either.

I second everything that Spirit Dogs said.  INcluding the 2d opinion.

Its so hard to know what to do in these situations.  But, if it were me I'd recheck the bloodwork within the next day or so to see how shes responding to just the Prednisone.  And, go from there. 

willowchow

Its so hard to know what to do in these situations.  But, if it were me I'd recheck the bloodwork within the next day or so to see how shes responding to just the Prednisone.  And, go from there. 

I think that is what we are going to do... she is improving and definately not getting worse. I think if she takes a turn for the worse we'll seek another opinion, if the pred improves whatever is wrong with her I suppose I can live with not knowing exactly what it is...

Any news on SueBee???  How's she been doing lately?