Laryngeal Paralysis/Collapsed Trachea Anyone?

[bigears]

Hi everyone.

Here's the latest: Mugsy's fever broke Saturday. His walking is way ugly and he even wet our bed some time yesterday. I'm guessing he was either sound asleep, or trying to hard to avoid getting up and just lost it. It was not a pleasant surprise last night when Matt and I got into bed. Needless to say, the down comforter is still tumbling away in the dryer. The neurologist was off Sunday and today, so she told me to call her tomorrow a.m. to see if the biopsy results came back. If they did not come today, she said that she would call the lab and bug them all day long tomorrow. Shadow seems pretty much cleared out and felt well enough to trample the pool cover as we laid it out yesterday. Mugsy is vaporizing on the loveseat (The doctor suggested just taking him into the bathroom for steam, so I mentioned the vaporizer and she was pleased with that. She didn't suggest a nebulizer and did remark that his pneumonia was mild, so I left it at that. He is very good about laying near the steam! If his re-check shows pneumonia still; I will take Sabrina Jay's suggestion) That's about it, other than my deciding to change regular vets as the one I used forever seems very negative and unreceptive to how the doctors are dealing with Mugsy. I don't know if it's because he has not seen Mugsy since July (when Mugsy could run), or that he is old school. It was a very difficult decision, but we (especially Mugs) need someone who has a more positive stance. We are really hoping that the answer comes soon--tomorrow would be lovely!

Wow! I got long-winded there! :eek: So sorry!

Allison

 

[Snork]

How is Mugsy doing? Do you have an answer yet? I will keep my fingers crossed for you.

Warning - what follows comes from someone who doesn't know a squat about this particular disease in dogs and is not a vet. Obviously, dogs are worlds apart from horses and I might be absolutely off the mark, if I am - please feel free to correct me.

When I first read your post, I thought that if Mugsey was a horse, EPM would be something worth checking into. EPM is a neuro disorder that is really feared in the horse world - partly because it is so hard to diagnose and has a variety of often "unexplainable" symptoms. Tripping, loss of coordination and some muscle atrophy seems to be present in almost all cases, though.

The reason why I mention a horse ailment is that I seem to remember that I have read about EPM's canine counterpart - I think it was called neosporosis. From what I remember, it is, like EPM, caused by a protozoan parasite. Unfortunately I do not know the symptoms in dogs, other than that it causes neuromuscular paralysis.

If nothing else comes up, and you are at your wits end - maybe you can ask your vet about "doggie EPM."

-snork

 

[bigears]

Thank you, Snork. The equine and canine worlds also share laryngeal paralysis, so EPM could very well be a possibility. I have a horse myself, and if he was the one going through this...well, I'd either be out a house or a husband! Those vet bills are crazy high!

Yesterday, I sat on the deck with the boys and enjoyed the pre-Isabel weather. We use the old patio furniture cushions as deck dog beds and I was sharing one with Mugsy, when he stood on his back legs and put his front over my shoulders and gave me a huge hug and kisses with teeth! I almost cried. He also tried to go after Shadow and check out the UPS man! It's no recovery, but it was so encouraging to see him trying to do more. We should have biopsy results tomorrow, until then...good day!

Allison

 

[bigears]

Biopsy results are in and the drama continues to unfold. The bad news is that Mugsy's demyelination is severe and pred may not help, but we will try next week when antibiotics are finished anyway because I just have to try whatever has a shot of working. The neurologist says she is not very optimistic, but hopes she is wrong (Now how often does a doctor admit to that?). Mugs has shown some improvement and she noticed it today. I have been afraid to notice it in fear of false hope. The pneumonia has cleared out of his lungs and we bought him booties to protect his paws from scrapes and scratches when he hits them on surfaces. The good news is that someday, the myelin sheath around the nerve may regenerate and be ok, however, we were warned that things could get worse before they get better.

Here's the kicker............acquaintances of ours have Mugsy's brother, coincidentally named Mugsy. I had told my husband that when we got a diagnosis that we should give them a heads-up. Well, Matt called today and found out that the littermate has also fallen ill and cannot walk. He is having difficulty with the rear legs. I gave him the name of our neurologist, and ironically, their doctor called her while we were at the hospital. So now we have 2 vets collaborating to help 2 littermates! The other people even called our breeder--who I have spoken to, and had over my house this summer--and she told them that no one has reported any problems with puppies from that litter! I was floored! Why would she lie? :confused:

I want to get in contact with other littermates to see if they are sick too, but I am not sure how to go about it. MODERATORS--How can I do this? I do not want to break any BW rules, but I am really concerned for the other 6 dogs from this litter.

After hearing this, our vet also did bloodwork for Neospora Caninum, a disorder contracted in the womb. She said she would be shocked if he tested positive, but figured it was worth investigating after hearing about the other Mugsy. Those results will come in a week.

Until then, we plug away with lots of love and lots of liverwurst to get the pills down.

Allison

PS--I told the other Mugsy's dad to get on BW right away! He had never heard of it! Unthinkable!!!

 

[Cindy Creel]

I am so sorry to hear about Mugsy. I hope that he does get better, You are still in my prayers.

Cindy

 

[bigears]

Thanks Cindy! I am just glad to know that there is still hope that this could turn around. Last night we had a friend over and Mugsy did all he could to be near him. He was more mobile and social than he has been in a long time--and this is a friend who is over often. Today we bought more carpeting to create an area near our front door to the kitchen so Mugsy could get around to other parts of the house without struggling on the hardwood. He has been making an effort to travel more, so I didn't want the flooring to restrict him. I could care less if my house looks like crap as long as my sweetie can go wherever he wants! It seems we are seeing some improvement, so please keep the prayers and vibes coming!

Allison

 

[boxers4life2001]

I am so glade to hear that Mugsy's pneumonia has cleared. I am also happy to hear he might be improving some:D It must be so hard watching your baby struggle to move around, it breaks my heart Mugsy is going through all this. It sounds like you have one heck of a fighter on your hands

Keep up the good work Mugsy. It may be a long road ahead of you but I know you can pull through this big guy!!!!!!

We are sending many prayers your way everyday!!!!!!

P.S Your thread is usually the first one I check everyday. I'm always waiting for a Mugsy update.

~Carrie~

 

[bigears]

Carrie--that is so nice!!! Mugsy says that he really appreciates all the love and prayers from his BW family. He came out of our room to get his breakfast all by himself again this morning, and he tried to eat his dinner standing up, but that didn't last long on his shaky legs. We are really hoping that things are on the upswing and that maybe we won't even need to try the prednisone. If we continue to see small improvements, we will hold off on the steroids a bit longer, especially since the neurologist is not optimistic about the results. As soon as he gets stronger we are going to look into taking the boys on a weekend away--Poconos or something like that. We just need to find a place that will welcome them, but I think we have some time to find one.

Allison

 

[Cindy Creel]

I am still praying for Mugsey. I am so glad that he is regaining some strength. Have they ever pin pointed a diagnosis?

Cindy

 

[bigears]

Hey all. We are still seeing small improvements and hoping that we are on the path to recovery. Mugsy is a bit more mobile and gets out of bed right away every morning without coaxing. He is done with antibiotics, but we have decided to see if he continues to improve on his own without the steroids. His littermate had an MRI and has a herniated disk (I may have mentioned this already), so at this time, it looks more like coincedence than connection (then again, who knows). We are still watching and waiting and hoping for the best.

Allison