hi everyone! I'm from cleveland, ohio. my dog is a three year old black english lab, named louie. he is akc certified, champion-sired, champion-blood line. he is my most favorite thing in the world. he has been a very healthy boy since I got him at 8 weeks old. about a month and a half ago, he started acting a bit funny... he was not interested in his dry food, and it was very out of character for him since he LOVES food. my first inclination was he was getting tired of his food, and perhaps was being a bit too spoiled at his grandparents house with things like cheese being added to his food. this persisted for a few days and he began to have diarrhea on top of his lack of an appetite. on a friday, I took him to the vet and they did a routine check up and prescribed him flagyl for any stomach issues going on, an appetite stimulant, and cerenia (for nausea). saturday he seemed to be doing better, he was in better spirits, his diarrhea slowed down, and I was so happy he was feeling better. sunday came and he took a turn for the worse. his breathing was labored and he was just not himself. I called the vet and they told me to bring him in right away. so, in emergency hours, I took him to the vet. I was not too concerned, thinking at the very worst he maybe had a minor obstruction that could be easily removed... but I was not prepared to be there for several hours for them only to come back with his blood work results. his platelet count was at 2,000 (150-200k normal range) and his RBC was around 20%. I was devastated. he had to be admitted to the ICU and put on immediately a high dose of steroids and immunosuppressant... he could not come back home til his platelet count reached at least 30k (which they thought would be a safe enough range not to be too susceptible to a major bleed that could be uncontrollable)... after four days, louie's platelets came up to 34k and he was able to come back home with me. over the course of those four days he went through so much I cannot even believe how brave he is and I was so happy with his progress. I went from thinking my dog would die to having a good outlook from the doctors about his recovery. he was sent home with specific instructions to limit activity, a specific diet (soft foods only) and a large list of medications to take. I thought the hardest part of my journey was over..... but I couldn't have been more wrong.... this is my first post and I don't know if I should continue my story about louie.... I will go on further if I get some positive feed back, I don't want to overwhelm readers with a lengthy story and to make them lose interest right away. I need support very badly, this is consuming every part of me, and I would love to talk to anyone who has a dog or had one with ITP or similar disorders. we are a little over a month out from the initial onset of his illness, and it's been the hardest few weeks of my life. please, anyone, could you share your insight, experiences, prayers..... today is my 33rd birthday and it's definitely been the worst. I am beside myself with how I went from having a energetic, healthy, beautiful boy to one that is battling with a very serious disease.
Hi Welcome to the site. So sorry to hear what you are going through. I had to look up ITP as I had never heard of it. I cannot offer you any advise just the support of someone whose dog was diagnosed with an aggressive form of skin cancer at 14 months. It becomes all consuming as you want your dog to lead the best life possible for as long as possible. I was looking for support from people who had had a similar experience but fortunately( for them) didn’t find anyone. You may find the same but hopefully you will get lots of replies from owners lending their support. Let us know how Louie gets on and remember to look after yourself too.
Hi, I am so sorry to hear your boy is so poorly. It breaks your heart. I will pray for Louie and sending love to you
