Serena, Havanese, radiation treatment - sweet Serena has passed

Hi January,

I did read your old thread that Louise so graciously posted, and OMGosh what a journey you and Serena have been on.

It just amazes me the challenges our furbabies go thru and yet bounce back.

So glad Serena is very happy and playful, and that her hair has grown back too.

Best wishes to you both.
Lori

January, by Atopica, do you mean cyclosporin? If that is the case, I don't want to alarm you, but I would be VERY CONCERNED with the long term use of the drug. My 1st Cushpup, Barkley, also had very severe allergies for which my derm vet had him on cyclosporin long term I'm thinking about 2 years or so after we started the cyclosporin, Barkley was diagnosed with lymphoma. Cyclosporin is a major immunosuppresant drug given to human organ transplant patients to prevent organ rejection. Our Cushpups already have an out of whack immune system, & now you're adding another drug that hits the immune system even further. After Barkley's lymphoma diagnosis, I asked my derm vet if the long term use of cyclosporin could have allowed the lymphoma to develop. The response was, "Possible, but there has not been enough research done to document the issue." There's no doubt in my mind, it's a great drug for our pups with severe allergies, but after what happened with Barkley, frankly, I'm scared of using it. With my concerns about using cyclosporin, I opted for Chewbacca to start allergy shots, rather than cyclosporin, even though my derm vet (same one that took care of Barkley), did say we could treat with cyclosporin.

Debbie

Hi Debbie,
Thank you so much for voicing your concerns. Yes, it is cyclosporin and I have pretty much the same concerns you do about it. I will be talking to the derm vet about it, but it seems like my choices right now are prednisone with all of its dangers and cyclosporin with all of its dangers. My hope is to use the cyclosporin to straighten out her IBD and skin issues, wean her off of the prednisone and not have her taking either of these drugs.
January

Hi January...
I read your thread with much interest, as it reminded me of what I went through with my dog. Lucy had a huge macrotumor which was removed by surgery two months ago. I just had a couple questions for you. Does Serena still pant? And the DI, do you remember how long she had that?
I'm glad Serene is doing well now:)

Gina and Lucy

Hi Gina,
I am just fascinated that your Lucy had surgery, but I can't find your earlier posts. I'm not very proficient at searching so if you could help me find it I would appreciate it. As to your questions re: Serena. Yes! She still pants -- a lot. I thought maybe it was from the prednisone she gets. As far as the DI goes, I think the vet first became suspicious she had DI was back in late summer 08. She was successfully treated for Cushings yet was still drinking and peeing her brains out. Fortunately it was like water so she really didn't do any damage to our house. She completed the radiation treatment right before Thanksgiving and I was able to wean her off of the desmopressin by late April or May 09.
January

Hi January...

Thanks for getting back:) As for my earlier, original thread, I took it down. I think I still have a copy of it somewhere, though. With the help of the administrators, I'm sure I can recreate it somehow if people are interested. It was a very long, tedious, excruciating day by day account since Lucy stopped eating completely and until after her surgery.

Reading your thread, I was amazed at how similar our dogs' symptoms and progress was. Radiation wasn't an option for Lucy, as her tumor was too large...I think it was something like 2.5 centimeters.

Lucy pants all the time too! And I thought the same thing, that it's prednisone, but she's only on 2.5 mg a day, and she's about 55 lbs now. It's a relief to know that the DI will eventually go away, though.

Thank you so much for putting your thread up...you don't know how much of a help it is for me to see the progress. If you want you can PM me anytime and we can discuss and compare notes further:)

Gina and Lucy

Hi January,

I always love to hear about Serena, especially when the news is so good! The bit about the part in her hair is precious!

In reading about her bowels and skin, I wondered about some Omega's for her. It might be worth looking into if you and your vet haven't already.

It is really cool to read the exchanges between you and Gina. I am glad you two have found each other and can share your experiences.

Hugs,
Leslie and the girls

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Originally Posted by Squirt's Mom

Hi January,

I always love to hear about Serena, especially when the news is so good! The bit about the part in her hair is precious!

In reading about her bowels and skin, I wondered about some Omega's for her. It might be worth looking into if you and your vet haven't already.

It is really cool to read the exchanges between you and Gina. I am glad you two have found each other and can share your experiences.

Hugs,
Leslie and the girls

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Hi Leslie,
You are always so kind and supportive to me and Serena. I appreciate it so much. Her dermatologist suggested Bacid or just plain yogurt for her IBD. Do you know how hard it is to find plain yogurt that hasn't been souped up?? I am interested in the Omegas; however, I wonder if I could get her to eat it. I used to give it to my old dog TJ and I remember it as a capsule that I broke open and put the oil on his food. She is so finicky I don't know if it would pass muster. Does it come in any other form?
January and Serena

Hey January,

It seems I have seen salmon oil in a liquid form but I'm not positive. I use the caps for Ruby but she's big enough to swallow them. I just go ahead and make a mess getting the oil out for the littler ones! ;)

It is hard to find a good source of Omega 3's in food, but one sardine carries about 100mg EPA/DHA if she will eat them. Get the ones packed in water, not oil. Poultry fat, egg yolks and flax also have some Omega's in them tho marine fish oils are the best.

I don't know if Serena will take pills or if she can handle the size of most of the fish oil caps I have seen, but freezing them takes the odor and the sour burps away. I haven't tried freezing and taking a hack-saw to them to cut in half, but that might be a thought. :p

Here is an article on the Omega's:
Veterinary Services Department, Drs. Foster & Smith, Inc.
Holly Nash, DVM, MS
http://www.peteducation.com/article....2+1662&aid=666

You will also want to add some Vit E when using fish oils to help prevent oxidization in the body and get maximum benefit from the oils.

Hugs,
Leslie and the girls

Hi January,

When Munchie was taking salmon oil, Kronch is what the veterinary nutritionist from UC Davis approved for him. It is in liquid form and comes in a bottle w/pump. If you google it, many places online sell the product.

This is the information from the manufacturer:

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* The relationship between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and the fact it contains both fatty acids makes it ideal.

* Kronch Salmon oil is extracted by cold pressing the fresh salmon at low temperatures. Cold pressing ensures that the fatty acids aren't broken down and that their qualities aren't lost. The fact that Kronch Salmon oil is cold pressed, means that it is very concentrated, making it very economical for daily use. Normal salmon oil which is extracted by boiling many different kinds of fish, contains much less fatty acid and hence don't have the same positive effects.

* Our Kronch Salmon oil is a pure natural product containing no preservatives, BHA, BHT, Ethoxyquin or artificial coloring or flavoring.

* We only add natural antioxidants such as alpha-tocopherol, ascorbyl palmitate, rosemary and olive extracts to our Kronch Salmon oil.

* Each bottle comes complete with a practical dosage pump which not only minimizes air input during use, but also ensures a good level of hygiene.

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Louise