The Newsletter of Dwight – Pine Bluff – Lakewood Animal
Hospitals
April 2005
CASE OF THE MONTH:
From Bad to Worse: Jersey
It started as a routine evening for Sue: she set out her dog’s Rimadyl,
an arthritis medication, then went to find the dog. But when Sue
returned to the kitchen, the pill was missing, and her cat, Jersey, was
on the counter licking her lips!
Sue, a long-time receptionist at Dwight Veterinary Clinic, knew
that even one tablet of Rimadyl could be lethal to a cat, so she called
Dr. Cronin immediately. He instructed her to give Jersey hydrogen
peroxide to induce vomiting. However, Jersey would not vomit.
Sue brought her in to the clinic, where Dr. Cronin administered more doses
of hydrogen peroxide, followed by syrup of ipecac, before Jersey finally
vomited. But…no pill!
Meanwhile, when Sue returned home, she found the missing Rimadyl
on the floor. Apparently, Jersey had only tasted the pill before
finding it unappetizing and knocking it down. It seemed that everyone
could breathe a sigh of relief.
However, Jersey continued to vomit. In fact, by the next
morning she was extremely ill, vomiting multiple times and refusing all
food or water. Anti-nausea medications had no effect. She began
to vomit blood, and she was in obvious pain.
Her condition puzzled us, because by now the effects of hydrogen
peroxide and ipecac should have been long gone, and we knew Jersey had
not ingested the Rimadyl. Blood tests were all normal. Why
was she so sick?
On Saturday morning, three days after Jersey was brought to the
clinic, a new symptom was noted: Jersey’s tongue and lips were raw with
bleeding ulcers. Apparently, something caustic had burned her entire
GI tract, from her mouth to her stomach. But what? Sue had
no harmful chemicals or toxic plants. We questioned whether the hydrogen
peroxide or the ipecac could have caused the damage, but we have used both
many times without ever having a side effect, so this seemed very unlikely.
Jersey’s condition continued to deteriorate. We could not
give her any medications by mouth, because even a drop of water caused
her to vomit again. This limitation on medications slowed her recovery
greatly. And a new risk was looming. See, Jersey is aptly named…she
is overweight and rather resembles the breed of cow she is named for.
(Obesity runs in the family…her littermate, Hampshire, is named after a
pig!) Obese cats are at extreme risk for liver failure if they do
not eat. Jersey had now gone 5 days without eating, with no improvement
in sight. We discussed placing an intestinal feeding tube if Jersey
did not respond soon.
That Monday, however, Jersey began to turn the corner.
With an injection of a different anti-nausea medication, her vomiting ceased,
and she seemed much more comfortable. Two days later she began to
eat small amounts again. She went on to make a complete recovery,
somehow escaping liver failure.
We consulted with many specialists concerning Jersey’s case.
One DVM at the University of Illinois finally provided insight: he had
treated one other dog with a similar reaction after giving hydrogen peroxide!
Jersey was only the second case he had heard of. A very unusual situation…but
fortunately, a good outcome.
How Would You Know?
Your pet looks healthy. She eats all her food – she has plenty of
energy – her coat is shiny. She passed her veterinary exam with flying
colors. Her vaccinations are up-to-date and you keep her on parasite
preventatives. But could she be hiding an illness? How would
you know?
Animals are masters at masking illness. Often, they will
not show signs until disease is very advanced. Even a thorough veterinary
exam can miss internal illness.
That is why our clinics recommend “wellness testing” – annual
blood testing for every middle-aged and older pet. For dogs, that’s
about 7 years and up; for cats, 10 years or older (in certain cases, these
recommendations may vary). A wellness profile can help detect illness
before it becomes life-threatening – such as diabetes, liver disease, or
kidney failure. Wellness testing also allows us to establish
a baseline for your healthy pet. We will know what values are normal
for your pet. Then, if your pet should become ill in the future,
we can quickly determine just what has changed internally.
With annual wellness testing, now you do know!
All About MANGE
Your dog is itching. He has sores on his legs, his face, and his
ears. Could it be “mange?” What exactly is mange, anyway?
Mange is a somewhat over-used term for skin disease, but it refers
specifically for skin infection with mites. Just because a pet is
itching or has sores does not mean it has mange. Your pet could have
fleas, ringworm, allergies, or another cause for skin disease. There are two common types of skin mites: Demodex, or demodectic
mange; and Sarcoptes, also known as scabies.
Demodex mites are most commonly found in puppies. Lesions
often start on the face, with hair loss, itchiness, and redness around
the eyes and lips. Lesions spread to the legs and body. In
advanced cases, dogs can have severe skin infection and be very ill with
fever, oozing sores, and near-complete hair loss. The mites are easy
to diagnose by skin scrapings – a scalpel blade is scratched along the
dog’s skin, and the skin flakes are inspected under a microscope for the
mites.
Demodex is not contagious to humans or other pets. In fact,
all dogs have Demodex in their skin! It is believed that affected
dogs have an immune deficiency that allows the mites to proliferate to
the point of skin irritation.
Treatment for Demodex is usually a daily dose of oral ivermectin.
Antibiotics and/or medicated dips and baths may be required in severe cases.
Simple cases in young pups can be expected to clear up quickly; older dogs
and severe cases may require prolonged treatment and may suffer relapses.
Sarcoptes, or scabies, is a skin mite that causes intense itching.
The tips of the ears, the elbows and hocks, and the chest are most commonly
affected. Scabies is contagious to other dogs and even humans.
The mites can be very difficult to diagnose from skin scrapings, so a trial
therapy is often used: if the dog improves, then it is assumed he had scabies.
Most commonly, a spot-on product called Revolution is applied to kill the
mites.
In the past, poor living conditions and inadequate care often
led to infestations of Sarcoptes; hence, itchy dogs with skin rashes earned
the generic term “mange” – most did have mange! Now, fortunately,
mange, especially scabies, is much rarer. If your dog is itching,
he needs a veterinary exam to determine both the cause and an appropriate
treatment.
