Waldo
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viral skin condition?Hi All,
Got home from work on Friday and Annie was real hobbly (on all four legs this time) she had developed very sore spots on her feet and had been licking them and made things worse, she was also rashy on chest and red around the mouth. She wasn't a very happy little camper.
Saturday morning and she wouldn't even come out of her kennel to walk to the shop and she had worn fur of the off the side of her front paws. A quick call to the vet and we had an appointment for that morning, initial diagnosis was either she had come in contact with something that had cause the irritation or possibly something viral was triggering it, she was also running a temp 39.6. If it wasn't a Sat. morning (with a long weekend) he would have done a biopsy and had it checked in the lab, instead he went for a course of antibiotics and some cortesone tablets with some cream. Over the course of the weekend she seemed to come good and had a follow up visit to the vet this morning (Tues), follow up treatment involves weaning her off the meds and seeing what happens next (hopefully nothing).
Has anybody experienced similar?
Cheers,
Waldo
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gundoglover
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Hi Waldo,
From where she is affected (paws, chest, mouth) it does seem like a contact reaction. Has she been running where farmers have been spraying for weeds? If there is serrated tussock in your area, then the only thing that kills it is a herbicide that was banned at first and then brought back specifically for serrated tussock use. I keep the dogs off the paddocks for 14 days after they have been sprayed. (For overseas readers, serrated tussock is an introduced garden plant from Argentina that escaped into farmland - nothing eats it, and if you don't spray it you get fined & the council sprays it anyway).
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Waldo
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Hi GDL,
No she hasn't really been anywhere (other than regular walks), it is 2 weeks since our last hunting trip to the field so she shouldn't have been in contact with anything suspect.
If it flares up again the vet will do a biopsy to get a firm diagnosis, for the short term she seems pretty well back to normal.
Should be in top nick by next weekend to go hunting again!
Cheers,
Waldo
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Ghilliegumdrop
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Sometimes we get that over here....usually caused by a thing called harvest mites picked up on farmland after harvest.
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Waldo
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Bugger, have just started to reduce the meds and it appears to be returning!
I guess more tests are in the pipeline to see exactly what is causing this.
Cheers,
Waldo
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Mugi
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Hope you can get her sorted.
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Waldo
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Dropped into the vets this morning and spoke to the vet for a few minutes, Annie is booked in for Monday morning for a anaesthetic and some biopsies to see what is really going on!
At this stage the long term is not looking real good, dodgy hip, skin condition possibly requiring long term medication (with side effects).
It is really starting to pee me off, just got past puppyhood, she is working real good and it is all turning sour.
Just don't know what to think?
Thanks for listening,
Waldo
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doganjo
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Hi Waldo, this is so sad for you. Have you spoken to her breeder about it all? If I was her breeder I would want to know in case either of her conditions are hereditary, the hip dysplasia may well be. Does she have to have an anaesthetic to investigate the skin condition? Would a local for the biopsy not be sufficient? Or at the very most light sedation. Maybe it's just me, I don't like the risks of anaesthesia.
You can't change her hips except by a major operation, which it may come to, but skin conditions are usually caused by some external influence and if that is traced they can be controlled. It seems to me she has been in contact with something due to where her sore bits are. Has she had an injection to relieve itching. Has she been put on antihistamines? Not criticising your vet - just trying to help find the answer.
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Waldo
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Hi, I have spoken briefly to the breeder and she was quite wierd about it all and not very talkative. I know she had had issues with depression, etc. and her bitch has since been desexed as the following litter after ours she couldn't sell.
I have had contact with the breed club over here via. one of the members of the committee and I have emailed him about the skin condition this week. I think the vet was intending to use a very light anaesthetic, I will raise the issue of the anti-histamine when I go in next Monday (thanks for that).
Currently have a fair bit going on, father has just turned 80 and has rapidly developing dementia, youngest son has a serious health/disability issue and behaviour is becoming more challenging and now my dog is falling apart!
Heading out deer stalking on Saturday, Annie will come if she is walking/running OK, feel we both need a good day out in the bush hunting just to clear the head.
Cheers,
Waldo
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doganjo
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Good grief, Waldo - you don't have to look far for your troubles - I am so sorry. I do hope things improve for you very soon.
Annie
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Waldo
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Sorry, things aren't that bad really.
I have my health, my oldest son (17 1/2) is fantastic, good job with nice people to work with and I have learnt so much about dogs since I got Annie. So many positives, just a few negatives that are part of life.
Cheers,
Waldo
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Lin Dyke
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Waldo, through the negatives we better appreciate the positives and the positives enable us to accept the negatives better.
Take care.
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Pippa's Pack
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If all else fails you could give homoeopathic remedies a try. Our oldest bitch had some problems many years ago with sore spots on her paws which she would lick and lick until they bled. The vet prescribed anti-biotics and steroids which caused other problems. We stopped using those and gave her sulphor tablets which cleared up the problem and it has never returned.
Also, consider allergies even to something new in the home environment. I never use biological washing liquid when I wash their bedding for example.
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Ghilliegumdrop
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Try giving her a big tablespoon of chopped up raw spinach in her food everyday. This has been used to good effect in many cases of itching.
Doesn't matter if it's fresh or frozen and it is very cheap [over here] to buy from the local supermarket.
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Waldo
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Thanks for the tips guy's, I'll give them a go and see how she goes.
Cheers,
Waldo
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Waldo
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Just been thinking while walking Annie to the shop this morning, perhaps this could be a diet related condition. For the past 2 months she been living largely on venison offcuts with some table scraps and an occasional feed of prepared high quality dry food.
The diet prior to this consisted of a mixture of table scraps, chicken necks, lamb offcuts and prepared dry food.
The condition hasn't got as bad as it was the first time it appeared (a bit of a blessing), she is off to the vets this morning (nice birthday present - she turns 2 today) for the biopsy so when she comes home I might feed her the dry food or try the spinach or sulphor tabs for a couple of days and see how she goes. It would be great if it was this simple!
Thanks again for the advice.
Waldo
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guy
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When i first got Ellie she was suffering from itchy patches on her head -around the eyes - missing hair, scabs. She also had terrible flatulence. Several trips to the vet did not resolve it. I changed her diet to green tripe and included Salmon Oil. She recovered condition without going back to the vet. AND the wind stopped.
I thought she had an intolerance to cereal - and if she gets cereal now her gut flora reacts violently.
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Des O'Neile
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Sounds awfully like spring time nettles but then your seasons are the opposite to ours. The stingers scald the feet and the under belly and the dogs licks them and therefore gets them round the mouth.
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Waldo
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Well the vet phoned first thing this morning and the lab tests are a bit inconclusive. It appears to be some kind of inflammation of the top layer of skin causing the cells to die. No real firm indication of a cause but no sign of any allergens either.
The vet said if I was a concretor and she was exposed to cement dust etc. he would say it may be a caustic burn but she has been no where near anything like that.
She has been prescribed a course of anti-biotics and cortesone tablets which I wont start till the weekend. Before starting the meds, I have removed the current bedding and replaced with an old piece of carpet (just off the living room floor) hopefull that maybe that the bedding (old towell etc. recently washed) may be contributing (clutching at straws perhaps).
If no improvement by Sat. on the drugs and hopefully clear it up to never return (fingers crossed).
Cheers,
Waldo
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Ghilliegumdrop
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Try the spinach Waldo.
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guy
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hope iit isn't the carpet 
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Waldo
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Yep, I've been giving her chopped up spinach all this week with no indication of an improvement (need to go looking for some sulphor tabs too).
I know the carpet is OK, it definately hasn't got any cleaning type substances on it (it's been an old mat on the living room floor the past few years and with kids growing up it's definately not squeaky clean).
Cheers,
Waldo
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doganjo
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Can you get Savlon over there? It's just a mild antiseptic but I find it clears many things up.
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