01/03/12 -
Wishing my sweet Reo a very happy 12th birthday!! :)
I get a little overwhelmed each birthday since her SARDS diagnosis, as I'm so thankful that she is with us, and there were so many times I thought she wouldn't make it to 11, let alone 12! :) She got some dehydrated lobster meat treats (made by Bravo) today for her birthday. Boy, did she LOVE those!!
Over the holiday week, I got Reo's EI-1 panel results back from NVDS. The results are added to her master table in the far right column.
|
|
Reference Range
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16-Mar-11
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30-Apr-11
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15-Jun-11
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4-Aug-11
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4-Jan-12
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25-Jun-12
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10-Dec-12
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Total
Estrogen
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30 - 35
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35.19
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35.15
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35.11
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35.06
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35.04
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35.05
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35.02
|
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Cortisol
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1.0 - 2.5
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8.43
|
7.03
|
0.97
|
0.82
|
0.68
|
1.4
|
0.96
|
|
T3
|
100 - 200
|
62.7
|
72.12
|
87.92
|
156.94
|
135.29
|
169.94
|
157.64
|
|
T4
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2.0 - 4.5
|
0.87
|
1.15
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1.6
|
3.99
|
3.21
|
7.17**
|
5
|
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IgA
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70 - 170
|
50
|
53
|
57
|
65
|
67
|
66
|
68
|
|
IgG
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1,000 - 2,000
|
722
|
754
|
883
|
946
|
973
|
970
|
992
|
|
IgM
|
100 - 200
|
74
|
76
|
87
|
97
|
97
|
97
|
98
|
Overall, I am really happy with how it looks! Her total estrogen is the lowest it's ever been (great!), and her immunoglobulins are the highest they've ever been.
Cortisol is slightly below normal (but doesn't seem to be anything to worry about, given her erratic cortisol levels in the past), and T4 is slightly elevated. But, T3 is in the normal range, so the vet is not worried about the high T4. Her previous high number in June of T4 was due to a course of Clavamox she was on.
Both Caroline Levin and Dr. Plechner have suggested that Reo doesn't need blood testing since she's "stable", and we should only do a panel if she seems like she's off track. I'll admit that it's like a crutch for me, to have a snapshot of how she's doing every 6 months. I'll see if I can limit myself to one EI-1 panel per year! I still plan to get a CBC and chemistry panel and thyroid test every 6 months, however, because I feel it's very important to keep track of these values as she is a dog on long-term Medrol.
That's the update from here. Happy New Year to all!
I don't know if this is the best place to comment, but I wanted to contact you somehow. We recently got the diagnosis of SARDS with our 6 year old Puggle. She suddenly went blind in one eye 6 days ago, and have since been able to go from vet to vet to opthamologist and get the diagnosis very quickly (3 days ago). They were stunned that she only had it in one eye. They told us that it would definitely happen in the good eye soon, and we would not be able to save the good eye or reverse the blindness at all. We have found your site and read it from start to finish! I have already started her on the Stella and Chewy's food and changed her treats as well. She is going to get bloodwork done soon to check the estrogen and thyroid. The opthamologist has agreed to work with us with Ms. Levine's suggestions if the bloodwork shows what is expected. My question for you is what would you recommend for a home cooked meal (what did you make for Reo)? I am very overwhelmed with making sure I do everything right for her. We do like the Stella and Chewy's but it is very expensive and were hoping to intermix some home cooked stuff too. Any suggestions would be great! I can also provide my e-mail if that is a better way to communicate! Thank you so much for your blog - it has helped us a lot with coping with this diagnosis!
ReplyDeleteso sorry for the delay! I have been out of the country for the past week! please email me at cookypuss1 (at) gmail (dot) com so we can communicate more!
ReplyDeleteI have not heard of SARDS in only one eye...has your ophtho ruled out PRA?
I had a wonderful dog who I celebrated her twelfth birthday overjoyed because the previous year three vets had suggested it was time to put her down. She enjoyed life more than I did and I wouldn't give up as long as she didn't give up. She made it through extreme vestibular disease, more likely the not so rare neurological side effect from overdoing metronidazole (extreme vertigo, completely immobile, needing to relearn to walk afterwards), very low blood protein (hypoalbuminea if I recall correctly) going through 3 collapses, to extreme wasting that one vet said she would never recover from. We proved him wrong and had a good year.
ReplyDeleteShe died suddenly 3 1/2 months later. It looked like low blood protein again (light gums) but it was something much more deadlier and quicker that I didn't know much about, extreme anemia. I will never be able to convince myself that my slowing her supplements, I had been giving around 30 pills a day, shortened her life. Because of this, I am very concerned about your stopping the supplements just because Reo is doing so great. Angel's autopsy revealed extreme jaundice in the muscles (did not show in the eyes) and a shrunken liver. However, and I'll sometime check to see when her last blood profile was done, she never had out of whack liver indicators. Liver cancer had been suspected, but vet to client communication can be like swimming in mud, and with no insurance, a misunderstanding, and money worries an biopsy wasn't done.
I found your blog because the journey is continuing with my new dog, Lily. She scratches and chews herself a lot. She has been for many months. Oh, I failed to mention the start of Angel's journey was food allergies beginning at 9 months. Inflammatory bowel disease and leaky gut syndrome were suspected but she never completely fit any profile. For Lily, I happen to buy one of Pleschner's first books, Pet Allegies. In researching his theorem, I came across the first site I had found for the algae supplement I felt was the turning point for Angel and the one I never should have reduced. I know it's effective, because my gut told me to take it for my long term Lyme fatigue and I got a lot of my life back. I also came across another site for a similar atypical adrenal insufficiency syndrome that focused more on environmental effects. This one listed supplements that were known to be good. I recognized many of them from what I gave Angel.
I haven't read all of this blog. Other than Reo has almost no sight left, I don't know if there are other reasons you have for discontinuing supplements. Dr. Plechner got you this far. If you want Reo to live a long life, please consult with him on this. My intuition got me in the right direction that saved Angel's life more than once. However, intuition can be clouded by other factors.
Having a blog on this journey is a wonderful idea and I am going to start one for Lily's. I wish I had done one for Angel. I hope to do a website, so others can learn from Angel's journey, but it won't likely happen until after I retire. I learned so much and I've forgotten much already. It was so time consuming, coupled with my long term disability, journeying alone, and no pet insurance, home- and money-wiae, I will be recovering for many years. I learned my lesson about pet insurance and the fact that debt is a movable obstacle when it comes to my furbabies, so this journey will be different. Lily got Anaplasmosis something from a tick bite, so even before the allergy journey, the insurance is great.
We are going to try Plechner's testing. I still don't have my kitchen back, so I don't know about a home-made diet he recommends. I think I'll copy this post for Lily's first blog.
To end on the sunny side. Other than the scratching, Lily appears to be doing great. You have done great with Reo. I know how hard a journey like that is. I tell people Angel and I went through hell together. This blog and you get five stars from me.
Hi Vicky, thanks for writing and sharing your story! Dr. Plechner did not suggest any supplements for Reo other than Nutramin (on which she remains). All of the supplements I discontinued were retinal protection supplements suggested by Caroline Levin for Reo's SARDS. Reo is healthier now than she has been in years, I am happy to report! :)
ReplyDelete