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BPO Medical Forum => Medical Conditions & Diseases => : swells February 19, 2007, 08:00:48 PM

: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: swells February 19, 2007, 08:00:48 PM
I have a 6 year old male, neutered St. Bernard (Harley) who was otherwise healthy until he stopped eating last Sunday. It started out gradual, but for the past 4 days he has ate nothing. He also is not drinking, although he will eat ice chips. We have tried everything to get him to eat - all his favorites and some new ones. This is definately out of the norm for him. He has never refused food before. When we did bloodwork, the only thing that was off was that he had a high level of calcium. The doctor also took some samples of his lymph nodes, because he thought they seemed a little larger than normal (but then again, everything about him is larger than normal). Hopefully we will have the cytology from the lymph nodes back tomorrow and I pray to God it is not lymphoma. Another thing he mentioned was Addison's disease. He said it is hard to diagnose although it is treatable. Just curious if anyone else has dealt with this before. I just want to make him all better. I can't bear to watch him starve to death.  : (

Thanks,
Stacie
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Roxy Poxy February 19, 2007, 09:49:08 PM
Our Pyr, Roxy, has Addisons Disease. She was always a picky eater, but soon stopped eating altogether.  After 4 days of refusing food, we were trying to give her anything, ham, steak, chicken, even a pig ear. She didn't want any of it. She became very lethargic and would lay in the yard in places she had never laid before.  She didn't respond to her name, could barely walk alone.  We took her to the vet and they thought maybe she had eaten a sock, tennis ball etc. and there was possibly some sort of blockage.  To make long story short, they opened her up and found nothing. Two days after operation, her teeth would be chattering and her gums were cold as ice, as were her paws.  I put socks on her feet wrapped her in warm towels and blankets and kept her warm with the hair drier.  The next am we took her back to the vet. Our regular vet had been out of town (at a Canine Addisons Disease conference)but had returned. He immideatly noticed the signs and ran the test for AD.. it came back positive. Roxy was having an Addisonian Crisis and she was in shock. Addisons is very serious if not treated immidiatly. IT MUST BE TESTED FOR.  Her potassium levels were at deadly high levels, she was dehydrated and her body temp was frigid. The vet said we had 1-2 hours max to get her to the animal emergency center of AZ, before we would lose her.  The operation plus tests, medications, xrays etc had already cost us over $1500. We were asking if there was any other option and our vet refunded us all the money we had just paid and told us to get roxy there asap and that they would be waiting for us. Roxy stayed there for 5 nights (there went our trip to Europe) but luckily she pulled through.  We have to give her medication twice a day, every day for the rest of her life.  We were so lucky that our vet had just been to the AD conference. So FYI you have to test for Addisons; it doesn't come up in any other tests.  I hope everything is okay with your big baby!  I don't know what I would do without mine!  Sorry this was so long.  I hope nobody has to go through what we did with our Roxy. 
We hope Harley gets better soon!  Keep us posted!

Stephanie, Nick & Roxy
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: swells February 20, 2007, 06:50:27 PM
Thanks to everyone who replied to my Addison's Disease question. I found out today that the lymph node slides that we sent off to cytology came back as high stage Lymphoma and it was present in all lymph nodes. That's all I can say for now, I am just too upset. : (

Stacie
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: schelmischekitty February 20, 2007, 06:55:09 PM
i'm so sorry this happened to your baby!
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: bigdogs@5501 February 20, 2007, 06:55:29 PM
I am so sorry to hear this, you are in my thoughts and my prayers. If there is anything that anyone can do to help you in this ordeal- just ask. BPO is not going to let you down.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Icerotti February 20, 2007, 07:01:25 PM
You are in our thoughs and prayers. I am sorry you have to go through this.

Michelle
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: schelmischekitty February 20, 2007, 07:03:14 PM
i found this information, maybe you can use some of it?  i know you probably have a great vet already though.  give your baby some hugs from me!

here's a link about diet helping with it.
veterinarypart ner.com/Content.plx?P=A&C=&A=1697&SourceID=42

and here's a general info link.
veterinarypart ner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=575&S=1&SourceID=42

it does say:
Half-body radiation involves irradiating the front of the dog's body two days in a row, waiting 3 weeks, and then irradiating the rear half of the dog's body for two days in a row. In this study 94 dogs with lymphoma received an 11 week chemotherapy induction using prednisone, L-asparaginase, vincristine, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphami de.  Of the 94 dogs receiving chemotherapy, 78% (73 dogs) achieved remission.

Of these 73 dogs, 52 underwent half-body radiation as above. Only dogs that had achieved remission were allowed to have radiation. The median remission time for these 52 dogs was 311 days.  Thirty-one of these 52 dogs lost remission during the time of the study and twenty of them repeated chemotherapy induction, followed by maintenance chemotherapy (without more radiation).  Seventeen out of twenty were able to achieve a second remission.  It is not entirely clear whether or not this protocol increased the median remission duration over more routine chemotherapy but the relatively short (11 week) chemotherapy protocol may provide substantial convenience factor for an owner. Another important advantage was the fact that 85% of dog seeking a second remission were able to obtain one. The disadvantage of this protocol is the expense of radiation and the fact that the necessary equipment may not be readily available.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Stacey February 20, 2007, 08:00:28 PM
I am really sorry.  You and your family are in my thoughts.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Jessdryden February 20, 2007, 08:08:14 PM
You are in our thoughts and prayers. :'(
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Lyn February 21, 2007, 07:37:32 AM
Sorry to hear about Harley's diagnosis. :'( Sending thoughts and prayers to you and your family.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: CrazyLoveRosie February 21, 2007, 07:42:50 AM
I can't imagine how you must be feeling right now. For us that don't have kids, our dogs are our fur-babies. It's so difficult to imagine them in pain or ill. Know that we're thinking of you and that we're here for you!
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Olliesmum February 23, 2007, 11:31:30 AM
So sorry to hear your news,know how you are feeling had this with one of my dogs.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: Nicole February 23, 2007, 12:24:22 PM
Ohhhh, no.

All I can say is that we're here for you. Take good care of yourself and your husband and your other babies, and focus on the LIFE that Harley has! Don't let the diagnosis rule you or him.

We'll all be thinking of you.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: swells February 23, 2007, 01:08:35 PM
Thank you all so much for your kind words and prayers. It really means a lot. Harley's lymphoma is too progressed for chemo, so we opted to put him on sterroids and make his last days as comfortable as we can.

Thanks again,
Stacie

: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: macybean February 23, 2007, 01:49:26 PM
I'm so sorry to hear about Harley's diagnosis. How is he doing now? Are the steroids increasing his appetite? My cat who has cancer (also advanced past the point where chemo or surgery would work) is on steriods, and he's been eating like a champ and has survived quite a bit longer than the vet imagined he would.

I will keep your family and Harley in my thoughts. Take care.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: k2campbell February 23, 2007, 02:04:20 PM
I'm so sorry to hear about Harley's diagnosis, I know just how devestating this news is. We lost our beloved Rotti (Slater) to cancer in 2005. I hope the steroids improve Harley's well being and he can truly enjoy himself, in every senseĀ  ;)

My heart aches for you right now. I am just so sorry. Harley is lucky to have such a loving family. I will keep him and your family in my prayers. Take care.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: bluskygirl February 23, 2007, 02:06:42 PM
So sorry... sending lots of hugs and slober your family's way.  We're thinking of you.
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: swells February 23, 2007, 04:08:42 PM
He seems to be doing pretty well (probably better that I am doing). The sterroids are helping him eat and drink more and I just had him to the doctor and he said his lymphs nodes have gone done dramatically in size. We also did more bloodwork to see if his calcium has gone down. He had some mineralization in his intestines that was causing him to be sick as well. We have been puming him with fluids (Sodium Chloride) to try to get the calcium down and I think it must be working, because he is no longer vomiting.

I just keep thinking that I will wake up and this whole thing is just a horrible nightmare.

Stacie
: Re: Sick St. Bernard...Please Help
: dohertyswissy February 23, 2007, 04:10:29 PM
I am so sorry to hear this.  You are in our thoughts and prayers.