Irritated, Raw Vagina - Update Post Vet Visit #41

[NeylasMom]

So we had this issue pop up in December. I noticed Skye (my mixed breed) licking herself a lot. Took her to the vet, ran bloodwork, all clear. I think I put her on a supplement, UTI Stat Strength (a 10 day "course" - you're not supposed to use it for longer than that) and she seemed okay for a little bit. Back in March (I think?) because she was doing it again, another U/A - a little bacteria but not enough to indicate infection, everything else looked good. Put her on a course of ABs anyway and then I followed up again with the supplement for another 10 days sometime after that. I vaguely remember being unsure whether the ABs did anything, but thinking the supplement did. Fast forward to recently - I've noticed her doing it more and more. It's been in my head to get her to the vet, but with everything going on with Zuri I just haven't prioritized it. So very recently it's happening so much more frequently, she'll even stop to lick herself right after she pees on our walks. So I looked closely last night and the area around her vagina is bloody. I feel like a horrible dog mom for letting this persist so long. I don't know if something about her urine is irritating her (too acidic?) and she's licking to soothe it or if the licking started for another reason and now she's licking it raw.

 

When we did the ABs my vet said if it persisted to bring her back and we'd do a culture so I will take her in for a new u/a and culture, but I can't get her in until Monday or Tuesday unfortunately. So 2 questions - is there anything I can do until then to help clean up the area and soothe it? I can probably deter her from licking for a period of time, but I can't assume she won't lick it eventually so I want to make sure whatever I use is safe for her to ingest small amounts of.

 

Also, anything else I should have my vet do while we're there? Could she have more of a skin infection that wouldn't show up on a u/a that we should do a swab/culture of or something like that? I don't want to mess around with this anymore. I feel like a real jerk for letting things go on, but to be fair my vet was very blase about it and said she probably just needed cranberry in her diet, but her diet hasn't changed since I got her 4 years ago and these symptoms are new so I think there must be something more going on. Regardless, I don't want to delay a diagnosis so whatever might help us figure this out, I will do it. Her insurance will pay for a lot of it anyway. So if anyone has experience with anything like this, I would love to hear suggestions.

Edited August 4, 2016 by NeylasMom

[Hawthorn]

Perhaps there is a fungal infection of some kind causing irritation. Coconut oil is a natural anti-fungal and you can give it to her orally and topically.

Edited July 8, 2016 by Hawthorn

[cendrine1]

I was wondering if she has a yeast infection.

[cleptogrey]

first thing that popped into my head was fungus/yeast. the other....allergy. i know with almonds & dark chocolate react w/ rashes, itches, and discomfort in a similar fashion. as soon as i eliminate almonds and or chocolate i'm fine. has anything changed in her diet?

[NeylasMom]

How does one test for a yeast infection in dogs? Swab and culture? I wonder if there's something in the supplement that would keep yeast at bay? Here are the ingredients:

 

Product Facts:

Active Ingredients per Tablet:

Uva Ursi 200 mg

Chanca Piedra (Phyllanthus niruri) Powder 150 mg

Cranberry Juice Extract 100 mg

Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis) Root Powder 100 mg

L-Methionine 100 mg

Corn Silk Powder 60 mg

Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) 60 mg

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Whole

Plant Powder 50 mg

Olive Leaf (Olea europaea) Extract 50 mg

yielding Oleuropein 7.5 mg

Inactive ingredients: brewers yeast, microcrystalline cellulose, silicon dioxide, smoke flavor,

stearic acid, vegetable stearate.

 

 

This all started back in December, but nothing changed in her diet that I can think of. I feed a raw diet so she gets varied proteins - chicken, beef, lamb, etc. Treats are typically all meat based freeze dried or air dried stuff.

 

Uh oh, I just had a thought. I put her on l-theanine back in November. I stopped it briefly at some point, but I can't remember when, then put her back on it. I've never encountered a dog having side effects from it other than my mom's dog strangely having larger stool volume, but I wonder if that could be the issue? I really hope not as it helps her arousal issues a good bit, but the timing could fit. It's just in capsule form so unless the capsule itself is causing an issue for her, it would have to be the l-theanine. She also takes this probiotic daily:

 

http://www.vetriscience.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=900714120

[cleptogrey]

from what i remember yeast infections, (that's going back to college days) FLAGYL!! they were really common back then, everyone i knew had one and the awful after taste. and your current pattern was overjoyed finding out that they needed to join in, in the foul aftertaste. but meds have changed, thank god!

 

but aside from going to the vet have you considered taking her off of the l-theanine and seeing if it's an allergic reaction??? i wouldn't try any of the home made remedies. a rx works fast! as to side effects it from the l-theanine i could have changed the balance of her ph and this is the result.

 

but all of us are thinking out loud. can she go with out it? i know with my strange reactions i usually clear up in a couple of days, i swear 3/4 of my trips to the gyno were most likely allergy related now that i have a handle on things.

[NeylasMom]

We have a vet appt for Tuesday. We could stop it until then, but I'm also going to start wiping her with baby wipes and applying Neosporin per the vet until then so I won't necessarily know. I think I'd like to get her tested either way.

[tbhounds]

She may be dribbling urine making her clean herself too frequently causing self trauma. Or.. her anatomy may have changed and she may be trapping urine causing urine scold (episiotomy/vulvaplasty would be curative for that). I would cleanse the area with a diluted chlorhexadine solution using cotton, dry well and apply an ointment like panalog.

[queenwinniesmom]

This may totally not do any good (maybe you're dealing with something different), but it always helped our Polly. She would periodically get a raw and swollen vulva. Don't know if it was a vicious circle---she was licking because it was sore, licking made it more raw, etc. The only thing that cleared it up was a Convenia shot. We mainly tried that because she reacted to everything else the vet prescribed---upset stomach, diarrhea, not eating. No side effects with the Convenia, and it cleared up her little private parts.

[seeh2o]

You could rinse her vulva with normal saline a couple of times a day and/or after each time she urinates, that might actually reduce swelling and provide her with some relief. I rinse Doodles mouth out with it as her gums are bad.

Edited July 8, 2016 by seeh2o

[cleptogrey]

baby wipes? no chemicals please.even on my daughter(who is your age) i used water, mild soap if needed and paper towels, no chemicals. how about a bite not collar or the cone of shame keeping her from cleaning the area.

 

re: seeh20:isn't contact lens solution mild saline solution?

 

i use balmex or a zinc based baby tushie ointment for webbing and toe irritations. but that stuff is messy and you don't know what you are dealing with yes. it does wonders for a babies' tush. that or sunlight and air- clears up diaper rash(from acid urine when they are teething) very quickly.

 

do you need to take her to the beach? salt water/sunlight?? that sounds like the best for EVERYONE and DOG!!

[seeh2o]

You can make your own saline solution at home, no added preservatives or chemicals. That's what I do:

Put one cup of water and ½ teaspoon of salt into the pot. Put the lid on.

Boil for 15 minutes with the lid on (set a timer).

Set the pan aside until cooled to a room temperature.

Carefully pour the salt and water (normal saline) from the pan into the jar or bottle and put the lid on.

[DocsDoctor]

Ken is on antibiotics for a UTI at the moment. Asked the vet just this but about his boy bits obviously, as they were looking a bit sore. He suggested applying an icepack, and if something else was needed, vaseline. But nothing else, in case it messed up Ph levels in the area.

[Guest Sportingfields]

My Rosie had a flare up many years ago & started to lick herself raw. I don't remember why but we did end up on antibiotic. Our vet recommended we rinse the area 1-2 times daily with soothing warm water, hiney in bathtub with flexible hose/shower head got the job done. After every pee trip, I did several applications of warm wash cloth compresses, pat dried carefully, then apply a very thin coating of preparation H. It's good if you can watch her for a bit afterward so the stuff has time soak in. It won't bother her if she does lick it off. Main thing is take away the itch/burn & she'll leave it alone without further prompting from you. The ice pack is also a good idea to try.

 

If you think one of her supplements may be at the root, I'd take her off it until you see your vet. I'm sure everyone is chuckling but you'd be amazed at the minor stuff I've healed with Prep H, works much better than neosporin & had seal of approval of my vet.

[NeylasMom]

So urine had WBC, RBC and bacteria though she wasn't definitive on there being a UTI - said she could also have bacteria on the outside from all the licking working its way in and causing infection. Regardless, she is on Cephalexin and we sent her urine out for culture. I'm also to stop the l-theanine for 3 weeks.

 

She also prescribed a 7 day course of Rimadyl to help calm the area down. I'm in my dog has cancer and I can't handle anything else on top of it mode so I'm afraid to give it to her. Contemplating half the dose instead. What do you think? They prescribed 75 mg which is pretty much the appropriate 2 mg/lb dose (close, she weighs 42 lbs).

 

Otherwise, we keep it clean and keep her from working on it. They want me to use an e-collar, but I am going to try to keep her from doing it using the baby wipes, Neosporin and just watching her and if that fails, we'll use the collar.

 

Or I thought about the cloth diaper cover they make for dogs that you stick the diaper pads in, just minus the pad. I'm not sure which would make her more miserable.

Edited July 13, 2016 by NeylasMom

[KF_in_Georgia]

When Silver was in heat and I had to use the diaper cover with a pad, she didn't mind it--and that was three long weeks.

 

But in the mornings, I'd be groggy when I took her out to pee. I'd stand there with her and Sam, and she'd just look at me. "Come on, Silver. We haven't got all day." She'd tilt her head and look at me as if making up her mind...and then pee, still wearing the diaper cover I'd forgotten to remove. Thank heavens they came 2 to a package.

 

[greysandmollie]

Jen...I would try the rimadyl and see if it takes some sting out that she might leave it alone??

[tbhounds]

A 7 day course of rimadyl is highly unlikely to cause harm. I also would not cover the area.

[cleptogrey]

unfortunately i am from the school of "let it air out". wearing skirts vs. jeans definitely helps when there are irritations. putting an ointment on may retard the healing process, what did your vet say about that?

 

the bite-not collar is far more comfortable than the e-collar. easy to make. use corrugated cardboard- doubled up around the neck, line it w/ a dish towel and secure with good old fashioned duct tape. if you were going to grapehounds i could bring a length of corrugated cardboard, but you can find some at a craft store(michael's/hobbylobby) . i found it most successful when felix had 14 staples on his side and needed not to chew on them.

[NeylasMom]

Thanks all. I know the Rimadyl will be fine, I just need to hear it from multiple people. Freaking anxiety.

 

A 7 day course of rimadyl is highly unlikely to cause harm. I also would not cover the area.

Oh, I didn't even consider that a diaper would be preventing airflow, thanks.

 

Cleptogrey, vet recommended Neosporin if I could keep her from licking for 5 min after. I think I will just do that for a couple of days to five it a head start until the ABs can kick in. Actually, I wonder about using DermaGel. I love love love that stuff - antibacterial, but it really seems to speed wound healing. It has more ingredients though that may not be safe if ingested. I can ask the vet when they call with Zuri's test results today.

Edited July 13, 2016 by NeylasMom

[Newgreymom]

We used a thin coat of AandD ointment with no covering

[NeylasMom]

Well I'm glad I waited to start the Rimadyl because Skye threw up this morning. At least this way I know it's the antibiotics. She had vomited bile one or two mornings toward the end of her last course of ABs, but I wasn't sure they were causing it. Now I know.

[racindog]

Hate to tell you this but there is one vet here that refuses to use Rimadyl due to the prevalence of adverse and serious side effects. PM me if you want his name. He is a 'conventional' vet- NOT a holistic one that many people would therefore automatically reject. Personally I wouldn't use it but thats me.

[Newgreymom]

Hate to tell you this but there is one vet here that refuses to use Rimadyl due to the prevalence of adverse and serious side effects. PM me if you want his name. He is a 'conventional' vet- NOT a holistic one that many people would therefore automatically reject. Personally I wouldn't use it but thats me.

There's always a risk when using NSAIDS. We used Previcox on Dylan and that almost killed him, so with any anti inflammatory medication, there are risks. You have to way benefits/adverse reactions

[greysmom]

Neosporin also has a spray-on version that might work more effectively in this application.

 

Did the vet consider a kidney infection rather than a UTI???