Dog Community

Alley update on skin test/Immune Rush Therapy?

Posted : 10/27/2006 3:09:04 PM

Hey guys I just got home with Alley... she had to be at the Speciality clinic at 8 am this morning. With traffic a 30 min drive turned into over an hour.

She tested postive to alot of NEW things and hardly any of the old things 4 1/2 years ago... Ragweed was a BIGGIE along with Bermuda grass and some others....

I have her scheduled for "Immune Rush Therapy" next Thurs. Are any of you familar with this or have done it?

If you don't know what IM talking about its when they keep giving the dog shots every 30 min's about 10 total. They put a cathered in in case of a bad reaction they can stop it instantly. I asked about her immune system being so poor and how can she take this. He said it will even help boost the immune system.

My Allergy specialist said his Dad is an Allergist in Texas and does this on people and its really showing great results and my Specialist has been doing it for 5 years on dogs like Alley that haven't respond to anything and its shown GREAT results in the dogs he has done this too. After they do an entire day of Immune Rush Therapy then you continue at home with a maintance dose which would be a weekly shot.

We finally got Alley on an antiboitic... Baytril. Alley had Ecoli on her a 2 other kinds of Staff infection on her skin. Just the very same thing when she had her knee surgery 2 years back.

So yet again today was another 400 and some...so in 3 weeks that is 1200.00 spent.... I can just imagine what next week will be..... HOLY CANNOLLI.....

dyan

Posted : 10/27/2006 3:30:27 PM

YIKES!!!
The "Immune Rush Therapy" sound very interesting. Hadn't heard of it,,but I guess...why not?? Kind of scary though. Remember being quite nervous on the days that Mike was to give Ollie his shot at home...because I can't imagine getting that big dog picked up and out the door and into the car in a hurry for medication to stop a bad reaction!

I think what makes me really mad about this...is what in the heck is causing our dogs to have these allergies???? If its something we could have prevented or not? I have a feeling that the answer is yes...we could have. I would love to see an experiment or results of a bunch of dogs that were not given vaccines and preventatives vs the dogs that are..and see which dogs get the allergies. If its both, I would be surprised!

cakana

Posted : 10/27/2006 3:30:28 PM

Yeoch Kim, that's gotta hurt, but what are you gonna do, right? I've been there too and it gets pretty rough on the pocketbook but the positive to your news is that you have some answers and hopefully the antibiotics and other treatment will help poor Alley. I'd never heard of that procedure, but I makes sense, and as long as they're monitoring it carefully, it's probably safe. I'll be anxious to hear what the outcome is.

Kim White

Posted : 10/27/2006 6:56:48 PM

Okay get this...

I was telling Mike (hubby) about this procedure and he said our Allergist wanted to do this with him! Mike is very allergic to Wasp. So the procedure goes like this for him. Mind you he's not doing it ..but here we go....

You go weekly for a month...each session takes 3 hours. And they keep injecting you with the Wasp venomn I guess. To get me or my husband to sit still for 3 hours it takes putting us on an airplane were we have no choice...LOL

I have alot of mixed feelings on all of this and this constant poking on Alley. He entire side is shaven and its all bumpy. Im to give her Benedryl every day 3 times a day to build the antihistmines up in her system before you do this procedure.

To me it sounds harsh....but I discussed with my husband and we really have NO CHOICE anymore but to do this.... we are at the end of our rope. And I can't give her steriods and let her live a shorter life without being miserable cause the prednisone makes demodex mites flourish.... So I feel Im stuck here.....

Kim White

Posted : 10/27/2006 6:59:19 PM

Remember being quite nervous on the days that Mike was to give Ollie his shot at home...because I can't imagine getting that big dog picked up and out the door and into the car in a hurry for medication to stop a bad reaction!

You do know the first thing is to get a Benedryl down if anything bad happened... I wonder if you Vet could give you an Epi pen? Ask and see... that way you would have plenty of time to get to the Vet if a bad reaction occured. My husband carries one in case he gets stung. I never thought to ask if they do the same for dogs but I would think they would???

calliecritturs

Posted : 10/27/2006 7:09:51 PM

Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do. You've certainly explored all the options and remember - 10 years ago a dog like Alley wouldn't have had a ghost's chance of surviving at all. good luck.

jessies_mom

Posted : 10/27/2006 8:48:33 PM

I've heard of the therapy for people but not for dogs; Jessie started with getting a shot every 3 days and increasing the strength of the vaccine and the amount injected until she got to 1cc, and then after 2 months of that she went to once a week, then after 2 more months she went to 1 shot every 2 weeks. My derm vet has said that she will need to retested occasionally because thier allergies change, which is what happened to Alley. A reaction to the shots is very rare. Will they put in an IV to administer the shots so they won't have to stick her every time? Let us know how things go Thursday; I hope this works for Alley; I'll keep her in my thoughts.

sandra_slayton

Posted : 10/27/2006 10:03:01 PM

My youngest son was also really allergic to bee and wasp stings. Doc said he would start to swell as much on inside as outside and we got him in for the allergy shots, one a week for a year. This was 32 years ago. last summer he got stung by three yellow jackets while mowing and didnt even get a lump.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 10/27/2006 10:56:58 PM

I never thought to ask if they do the same for dogs but I would think they would???

I have two vials of injectable Benedryll, in my first aid box. They never mentioned an epi pen, to me, but the Benedryll works great, once it's injected. I can't give an IV shot (which is the QUICKEST way, straight into the blood), but I can give an IM shot, or a sub q. I'd try the IM, in an emergency, if I couldn't get it, I'd do sub q and rush to the vet's.......

That is a scary sounding thing to go through, Kim. I hope that it works, for Alley. You've been through EVERYTHING with this girl. I'd be sooo nervous about it. Post, the day before, and remind us to keep Alley and you in our prayers?

Kim White

Posted : 10/28/2006 11:39:30 AM

Jessie started with getting a shot every 3 days and increasing the strength of the vaccine and the amount injected until she got to 1cc, and then after 2 months of that she went to once a week, then after 2 more months she went to 1 shot every 2 weeks.

Well I guess that is the old way of doing it now....And especially with Dogs as bad as Alley.
Once she goes through this then we jump right into the maintance dose.
If for some reason she has a bad reaction in the middle or end or begin of this procedure then we have to go back to the old way of doing it....... If I put her through this I PRAY she makes it to the end so it will be beneficial cause I hate putting this girl through all of this as it is and then for her not to make it to the 10th shot will be devestating to me.

Kim

Kim White

Posted : 10/28/2006 11:40:06 AM

That is a scary sounding thing to go through, Kim. I hope that it works, for Alley. You've been through EVERYTHING with this girl. I'd be sooo nervous about it. Post, the day before, and remind us to keep Alley and you in our prayers?

Will do.....

and thank you so much