Urgent Advice Needed

[jayp]

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I know many have had to wait for a diagnosis BUT and its a big BUT if the dog has some infection of any kind then steroids will be the worst thing you could do
They will suppress an immune system trying to fight the infection and the results could be dire

I have recently been involved with a similar case , it turned out that even after extensive tests and a diagnosis of polyarthritis the whippet actually had an abcess on a damaged disc.

The steroids he was prescribed didnt work which led to further tests and the eventual discovery of the problem

If the dog does indeed have an immune mediated disease then steroids will usually work wonders but they cant be prescribed without first ruling out infections

All I would say is make sure your vet is aware of the possibility of these diseases in whippets which im sure will be taken seriously and considered.

I would also agree that some vets may miss the diagnosis completely which is why its such a help to have those on here that have experience

I hope all goes well

Jan

and how hard is ruling out infection? run bloods a matter of hours 24 at worst i worked many years managing a very large intensive pig unit, a big problem is meningitis (probably due to the close breeding) and you become very adept at spotting the signs, when i took my bitch in i mentioned that i thought it was neurological, the vet rebuked it and insisted it was a spinal injury kass rallied and then went down hill very quickly i got her to a specialist 2 hours away who i had telephoned and given a run down of symptoms he agreed and the rest is history if you look back at my posts you will see i gave the same advice to another member and if i remeber rightly she too'd and thro'd to different vets for over a week till the dog was finally diagnosed with SRM

btw Kass relapsed every time she came in season

Patrick im not disagreeing with you but it is as you have shown a difficult disease to diagnose , it is an inflammatory response in itself and as such will give similar reeadings and symptoms to infection.

An inflammatory response to injury will respond to steroids in low doses but an autoimmune disease will need a large immunosuppressing dose to have any effect

I suppose all im saying is take all the info that can be found to the vet and as you did get a referral to a specialist if not happy with the investigations

Which I hasten to add was the very good advice you gave

Jan x

 

[starswift]

with sig we to and fro d for between our vetand the animal health trust for nearly a fortnight before he was diagnosed with srm and polyarthiritus the bills running to about £5000 and his steriod dose was massive and it took at least 8 months for him to be off them totaly but he has been off them now for 18 months and his future looks rosy, i think if you reduce the steriods any quicker the chance of relapse is greater, hope all goes well for this little one x

 

[jinnyfizz]

It is good news at the moment. After some fluctuation, the owner has sought 2nd opinions and spoken to owners of whippets who have previously suffered from SRM or still suffer with relapsing SRM.

They are now following the SRM route and hopefully will get bloods done!! (apparently the original vet never took bloods, just diagnosed a collapsed spine )

It is in it's early stages and I am hopeful that this little whippet will make a full recovery but the owner is now aware of SRM and how devastating it can be if not caught and treated in it's early stages :thumbsup:

 

[masta]

with sig we to and fro d for between our vetand the animal health trust for nearly a fortnight before he was diagnosed with srm and polyarthiritus the bills running to about £5000 and his steriod dose was massive and it took at least 8 months for him to be off them totaly but he has been off them now for 18 months and his future looks rosy, i think if you reduce the steriods any quicker the chance of relapse is greater, hope all goes well for this little one x

mind blowing the symtoms and the breed are a massive flag (or should be) to a clinician after my experience i changed vets to one that uses his head,experience and his EARS to make an informed diagnose's he has never asked the stock question of many modern vets "Are you insured" which i believe has a bearing on the option of MRI scans,specialists etc the advantages of using steroids quickly (once a full blood test has been run) for a dog presenting with the classic signs of SRM far outweighs the dangers

 

[starswift]

jinnyfizz if they want sigs notes for guidance im sure the animal health trust will oblige pm me and i can sort it