dog bitten by brown recluse spider getting worse

    • Silver

    dog bitten by brown recluse spider getting worse

    My dog was bitten by a brown recluse spider. He was on antibiotics for 2 weeks. It is over a month later and it seems to be just getting worse. We have been having a cone thingy on his head so he doesnt irritate it. The bite was in his groin area, and now has spread up his tummy and also to his male organ. Do you have any suggestions with what to do to help his healing or stop the spreading at least? Thank you!
    • Gold Top Dog
    Does the vet know this?  He needs to go back asap -- usually just a few days on cephalexyn should take care of it. 
     
    It may have been another kind of spider or it may be that the antibiotic just wasn't the right one (or that he was resistant to that particular antibiotic).  Usually the bite of a brown will make you feel really SORE and stiff too - but seriously he needs to be under a vet's care for that -- that's a totally toxic reaction and you can't just let it worsen ... that particular venom will simply spread and spread and it can eventually kill if left untreated.  The wound usually will putrefy and grow larger.
    • Silver
    Yes, the vet knows. He was taken in many times. He lives at my parents house. they say it is from him irritating it. They gave him cortizone(?) shot the last time which was end of last week, which helped for a while.
    • Gold Top Dog
    As I told you in the PM -- something's wrong here -- either the dog was resistant to the antibiotic and they should have switched or the whole thing is being mis-diagnosed.  You don't just send a guardian home and say the dog is irritating it -- that's just plain wrong.  Sorry -- I don't know you nor your vet but I think you need to seek another opinion.  You and your parents aren't crazy -- the dog's in pain and the vet's not doing the right things to ease it.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Give him 2 mg of Bendryl per pound of body weigh 3 times a day, third being right before bed so hes not up fooling with it while everyone is alseep.  Maybe boost his immune system with Echinacea 1000mg 3x day. 
     
    I dunno here if that would interfere with his anitbiotics... I agree with Callie that the vet should be doing something more... maybe find a new one.
    • Gold Top Dog
     I agree with Callie about seeking a second opinion; also, if the cortisone shot helped maybe the vet could prescribe prednisone. 
    • Gold Top Dog
    No theres not, I just find it so strange the vet wouldnt be doing more for something so serious![&:]  The emergency vet may help or just go to a new one and give them the history.
    • Silver
    Here is Pic of the sore
    • Gold Top Dog
     It looks awful; poor dog. I hope you follow Callie's advice and seek a second opinion. By the way, both of your dogs are pretty.
    • Silver
    I agree with the prior emails about a 2nd opinion.  Do it immediately.  Don't wait.  It is for your pup's sake you are doing this.  Let us know how that turns out.  Good luck and take care,
    • Silver
    We got him in at a different Vet. I'll let ya know how it goes. thank you everyone
    • Gold Top Dog
    Good luck, let us know!
    • Silver
    We just got back from taking in Casey. They examined him and identified his sores as possible tumors. They did lab work and it came back as cancerous. Kinda hard news to take...but at least we know now.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I'm very sorry to hear this.  What type of cancer is it?  It seems very quick to have been able to determine it was cancer in one visit.  Did they do a biopsy?  What is the prognosis?  Again, I'm very sorry to hear this and I hope that there's something that can be done for Casey.
    • Silver
    By looking at the cells under the microscope, there were lots of suspicious cells that were most likely cancerous. and the vet said with a bite, it woulda been showing some improvement with the antibiotics and other stuff we've been doing, in which it is just continuiously getting worse. She said we could figure out what kinda cancer it was by sending in the slides to colorado state to be detected. We arent sure what we are going to do from here yet.