07/10/11 - We had two vision moments today when we were outside.
1) Reo was laying on the deck, and I was approaching the deck from the yard. She seemed to be holding eye contact with me, and as I got closer, she progressively looked "up" at me to maintain eye contact. When I got closer to her, she put her ears back and her tail nubbin' wagged like crazy!
2) Reo chased an adolescent Blue Jay (it wasn't an adult, and it couldn't fly as well as one, yet not a baby either) across our lawn in the back. She caught it and was prepared to kill! I shouted "leave it" at her, and picked her up. I went to tell Sean what happened, and we were wondering about whether or not a dog could catch a bird if she was completely blind. A few minutes later, I put Reo down. Well, little miss chased and caught the bird AGAIN! I almost let her have the bird this time around, but the bird's mommy was up in our tree screaming, so I decided not to. But boy, Reo was so fired up! She searched for that bird in the yard for days afterwards!
07/17/11 - Reo's mood has been so good lately! She is always out in front on our walks, and her confidence seems to be rising.
I'm continuing to watch Reo's labial infection, and have been washing it with an antiseptic skin cleanser (clorhexadine gluconate). I've noticed that if it's not cleaned every other day or so, the little pustules come back.
Reo's appetite is still good, but she will occasionally wander around the house, nose to the ground like she is sniffing for food. She is still on the Orijen kibble and Merrick Grammy's Pot Pie, with pumpkin and all her supplements. I added in some boiled chicken thigh last night in place of some of the wet food and she loved it. I may start adding in some cooking again to see if she will tolerate it.
07/19/11 - Reo threw up 3 times this evening. The first time looked like ground beef texture. The second time was more liquidy and very dark brown. The third time was mostly frothy liquid. I didn't see any grass or anything in there, so not sure what she ate that made her throw up. She ate all of her dinner and kept it down.
07/21/11 - Today, we had two separate incidents with sight!
1) Reo jumped off the couch and walked to her Kong that was sitting on the floor with absolute purpose, like she knew it was there. She sniffed it, and then walked directly to one of her stuffed toys. No sniffing around, no "looking" for it with her nose!
2) As I got into work, Reo and Leigh were in the back of the car. I turned around and lifted my hand up to pet Leigh. As I did so, Reo followed my hand! Then I moved my finger left, then right, then up, and she followed it all the way! It was crazy! I tried to fiddle with my phone to get the video camera, but by the time I figured it out, she wasn't doing this any more. Still, this gives me hope!
The whole way home from work last night, Reo was looking out the car window. She has not done this since she went blind - usually she buried her head in the car seat.
07/22/11 - Today, I got to work and took Reo and Leigh out of the car. There were some light green packing peanuts strewn around on the grass, probably got blown out of the trash. Reo immediately bee-lined over to one and sniffed it. Now, packing peanuts don't have a very strong smell, so I am SURE that she saw something in the grass - wow!!
I hope, because this incidents are happening more and more frequently, that we are seeing some improvement and it means that Reo might get some sight back!!
In March 2011, our Miniature Pinscher, Reo, suddenly went blind and was diagnosed with SARDS (Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome). We were given no hope for vision recovery, but through research, perseverance, love, tears, and a lot of luck, we brought our dog back from a serious illness, and restored some functional vision in about 5 months! This is our story, our journey...and we hope that by sharing our story, we can help other dogs diagnosed with SARDS!
BLOG DISCLAIMER
**DISCLAIMER** Please note: I am not a veterinarian, and the purpose of this blog is solely to educate, provide resources, and share Reo's story. In this blog, I will present research and information on the theories of SARDS to which I subscribe, along with my own narrative. If you think your dog may have SARDS, or adrenal exhaustion/Plechner Syndrome, please seek veterinary care right away!
If you are just beginning your SARDS education, I suggest you start with the blog post from August 22, 2011 entitled "SARDS Resources". If you'd like to know our trials, tribulations, and joys from the beginning, start with "But first...Reo!" and click chronologically on from there.
If you would like to read my suggestions as to how I would approach treatment for a newly-diagnosed dog, check the November 16, 2011 post "If I had another SARDS dog" (and then read my blog more fully for appropriate context).
Though we have decided to suspend Reo's retinal protection supplements in September 2012 (see September 16, 2012 post "Decision for Reo") due to the fact that she had very little remaining vision, I am still strongly supportive of our treatment approach, and know that it changed Reo's health and longevity in a positive way. Feel free to comment and ask me any questions - I am happy to help if I can!
Update: Reo became an angel on October 21, 2014. She had a profound kidney infection, causing acute kidney failure, and she was unable to recover. The contributing factors to her decline are covered in my February 16, 2015 blog post "Farewell to Reo".
Though I do not regularly update this blog any longer, much of the information is still relevant (though some of the links may be out of date). Feel free to join the conversation at "SARDS Dogs United" on Facebook.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
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How has Reo been doing since 07/22/2011? We are in the beginning stage of learning about this, it has been 3 weeks since our dog's diagnoses. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHi there - I'm sorry that I'm behind in updating my blog - just over a month that I need to post! I'm sorry to hear about your dog - I know just what you are going through, and it is so very hard! Have you begun any treatment for your dog?
ReplyDeleteReo is doing *awesome* these days. She is very much back to herself in terms of attitude, so I know she is feeling better on the inside!
I estimate she has about 80 - 85% vision on a typical day. She can see great outside or in bright light, but sometimes has problems inside or in dim lighting. We will go back to our ophthalmologist next month to repeat Reo's ERG to see if there are any changes (she was flatline at diagnosis).
We noticed her loss of vision and took her to ophthalmologist immediately. She was diagnosed on 8/22 and at that time was totally blind in left eye, and had some vision in the right eye. She started Ocu-Glo right away to hopefully help her retain the little vision she had in right eye. Within a week it seemed that she had lost all vision in the right too. On 8/22 we also took her to an internal specialist and had numerous other test done. (checking for atypical cushings, and other things) Still waiting for adrenal panel to come back. We have been researching IVIG therapy to determine if she is a candidate. In the meantime we started her on doxycycline and last week added prednisone to the mix. (I am taking her back to ophthalmologist today to recheck. The whites of her eyes are a little red this week.)
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think was the key factor that helped Reo the most. (In regards to treatment)
What would you suggest?
Who do you recommend contacting first Caroline Levin or Dr. Plechner?
Thank you.
PS- we can correspond via email if that works better and/or via telephone.
Sure - we can correspond via email/phone! My email is cookypuss1 at gmail dot com.
ReplyDeleteI will be happy to give you my perspective. As I mentioned on my blog, I think that SARDS and IMR are two different diseases. The pred/doxy treatment is suggested for dogs starting IVIg therapy. For me, I think it is too risky to the dog, and there is no guarantee of vision for all of the expense.