Help! Update on my Sophie doodle

[Donna]

Update on Sophie doodle.
Sophie went through a bout 2 weeks after she was spayed. She was fine when I went to work but very sick when I got home. Very lethargic, having difficulty walking, jumping up on the couch. Took her to the vet and after numerous tests they said she had a UTI. Put her on antibiotics for 14 days. 10 days on antibiotics, same symptoms appeared. More tests and another 2 days overnight at the vet hospital. They ruled out Lyme. More antibiotics and 10 days later, same thing. This time was a weekend so I had to take her to the emergency vet hospital. They did a spinal X-ray to rule out disco spondylitis. X-rays were good. Thought it was a reoccurrence of her UTI. Then they did more tests and said it was Addison's disease and within 24 hours they gave me a 4th diagnosis of meningitis. The bill was over 2500.00. They wanted to do more tests - a tap which could have paralyzed or killed her and a MRI. I said if you think that's what it is, can't we just treat her for it. They wanted $5000 more to run those tests. They gave me prednisone and amoxicillin. She's was on that and doing well. She went off the prednisone and within a week started having difficulty in her back end so I started that back up. Went off the amoxicillin last week and so far so good. I think we are thinking an autoimmune disease at this point. Any ideas or suggestions at this point? Her vet is stumped and I'm not sure where to turn. You guys are great and I know you'll have the answer. Thank you all in advance. Sophie thanks you too!

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

I just read this Donna and do not have any suggestion, but wanted to tell you I am sorry Sophie and you are going through this!  I hope someone on here may have some input for you.

[Donna]

Thank you so much! I posted on here when she initially sick and found so much comfort. She's doing ok now but still on prednisone. I'm hoping someone can shed some light on this. I wish I could find her litter mates to see if they have any issues. My sister has Sophie's brother and he's fine. She was fine until she got spayed at 6 months. All the problems started 2 weeks after that.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm very sorry to hear all this.

Having dealt with immune-mediated diseases extensively (JD has two of them), I have to say that I am a firm believer in diagnostic testing; without it, you cannot treat anything properly, and when you are talking about serious diseases like some of those you have mentioned here, proper treatment is everything. 

I understand how difficult it can be to pay for these tests, believe me. Diagnostics alone for JD's IBD were almost $5000. But without the testing, we could not have treated it properly, and long story short, he would have continued to suffer needlessly and probably died. 

And if guessing by the vet is iffy, guessing by strangers in an on-line forum is disastrous. I don;t think anyone here could possibly have the answers to what is actually wrong with Sophie. I wouldn't even try to guess. 

Prednisone is a miracle drug for treating symptoms, but it can't be used long term without serious side-effects. And it doesn't cure anything. You use it to get some temporary relief for the dog while you look for causes and decide on treatment options. 

If Sophie's symptoms return after the pred has been discontinued, my suggestion would be to find a good internal medicine specialist and book a consultation. Have all of Sophie's records transferred there ahead of time, so he/she can review the case. The specialist may see things that point to something specific, they have much more experience with serious disease than the GP vets. 

If there is a vet school in your area, that might be a good place to look, The knowledge is usually cutting edge and the prices are usually less than private practice vets.

In the meantime, I'd get her on a good probiotics and give her some Pepcid or Zantac, too. The antibiotics and the pred can wreak havoc on the GI system once they are discontinued.

Good luck, I hope things improve permanently.  

 

[F, Calla & Luca]

Super advice,I could not have said it better myself : ). I was going to say that if it were my dog I would want to know what was going on. If it is an autoimmune disorder it is likely to recur.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Donna, I am so sorry Sophie is so ill.  It was thought that one of my dogs had Addisons, but it turned out not to be.  His symptoms were not like Sophie's at all, so my experiences with him would not be of help in this situation.  My suggestion is to ask you vet what kind of specialist you should consult and then do that.  We spent less going to the dermatology specialist than we did trying to 'cure' my dog with the general vet.

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Nancy ~ Not to take away from Donna's discussion here, but I am having Beau tested for Addison's tomorrow.  In his last four visits to the vet, he has had a heart rate in the 60s, and my vet is concerned he may be Addisonion.  It scares me.  I am praying he is not.

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

Sending prayers it's not.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Please keep me posted.  Gordie, our Springer, developed a skin problem where he had cyst-like bumps that burst all over his torso, and he lost his fur down to the undercoat. No one knows what the initial trigger was but it turned into what was a massive skin infection that was treated by our general vet with antibiotics (wrong ones for the problem and not for long enough) and given Prednisone which apparently he is now allergic to.  The dermatologist suspected  allergies; that he hadn't been on the correct antibiotic; and a reaction to the Prednisone. We decided to postpone any testing until the Prednisone was totally out of his system.  His new antibiotic was for a minimum of 30 days.  He immediately began showing some improvement.  After 30 days she renewed his antibiotic for 30 more days.  He had a bit of a relapse and Addison's testing was discussed.  We postponed it because we wanted to give him a chance to complete the antibiotic.  For Gordie, this was all he needed and we feel very fortunate.  We don't know the origin of the problem, but we seem to have cured it, although 'mild' Addison's is always a possibility.   We watch him very carefully.

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

Poor Sophie! So sorry you both are experiencing this. Sending healing vibes you find an answer soon.

[BG and Gavin]

Best thoughts that you can get to the bottom of this mysterious illness.

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

Donna, I'm sorry you and Sophie are going through this.  It sounds like by giving her the prednisone they were treating her for secondary or atypical Addison's. Except for the fever, her symptoms are consistent with Addison's. Obviously I'm no vet, but we strongly suspected Addison's when Finn showed pain in his hindquarters, weakness, lethargy, etc. but testing ruled it out.  

Since your vet concluded it was Addison's through testing, before they switched to meningitis, I'm confused. But I strongly agree with Karen that it's time for an Internal Medicine Specialist.  I think the UTI is maybe clouding the issue. I know you can get to the bottom of this and find a management plan. Sending positive thoughts your way. 

[Deborah Brown]

I'm familiar with Addison's and it shouldn't be that hard to diagnose once it is suspected.  So were they mistaken?  I'm confused by all this myself but the prednisone would be a treatment for Addison's.  It often manifests itself after a trauma.  In Sophie's case that would be the spay surgery.  The good news about Addison's is that it is manageable.

So, I agree with the others that you need to find a specialist to figure this out.

I'm really sorry you are going through and wish the best for Sophie!