ahicks51

Is metronidazole really not licensed for veterinary use? The Merck Veterinary Manual references it 50 times. Here's one interesting reference: http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.js...d=metronidazole Note that they suggest the following: "Corticosteroids, azathioprine, sulfasalazine, tylosin, and metronidazole are among the drugs most often used in the management of IBD." All of which are used in humans- along with immunomodulation for us bipeds (too pricey for pets)- for diseases that are frequently rooted in a diet too rich in grains and other vegetable matter.

There are also capsule fillers: http://www.vitaminbungalow.com/pd_now_food...sule_filler.cfm They consist of a tray with holes in it; you put the longer side of the capsule in the hole, then sweep the powder to be encapsulated over the top, filling the capsules. Then put the small ends on, closing the capsule. That's just one; Google for "capsule filler" and there are many makers.

Whatcha feeding him? There are anecdotal data to support the notion that too much vegetable matter in the 'ol food bowl (grains and other dog-inappropriate chow) may cause IBD.

Fish food is largely ground fish, liberally dosed with menhaden oil (from another species of fish). It's almost pure fish protein, except for some brands that add vegetable matter for whatever reason. Shouldn't cause any long-lasting harm. Er, except to the carpet.

That depends upon the type of cancer; there is a curative vaccine available for oral melanoma. It works well about 1/3 of the time, and prolongs life another 1/3 of the time. For the remaining 1/3, it does little or nothing. But those data are a year or two old; they may be better by now. See also: http://www.petcancervaccine.com/melanoma/oral.shtml

Come to think of it, if the rash is bacterial, it is frequently better to treat with topical antibiotics; you can only give so much of the stuff orally before you cause an overload, poisoning the host. But a much higher concentration can be applied topically in many cases without causing undue harm; for resistant bacteria, this is sometimes useful.

Did the vet do a skin culture to determine if the rash was due to a bacterium?

The overall morphology is that of a wolf mix, but when you break it into components, he's probably not- or very low percentage wolf at best. I called in a favor with the Candy Kitchen in New Mexico, where they take care of wolf hybrids that these nutcases buy for their macho image, and end up ditching them because they're uncontrollable. The big giveaways are: Tail has a "J" hook. Wolf tails are pendant, no curl to 'em. Ears are all wrong. Wolf ears lack hair inside, and are held higher on the head, with pointy tips. Eyes are wrong. There's some other stuff, too, but it's fortunate they didn't destroy him at the pound as they're not very good about telling what's what, and wolf hybrids are destroyed upon intake- no holding for owners at all. I've been pondering what he is- and waiting on the DNA tests to get a little better- but I think he's something like a malamute + bearded collie. The former explains his size, while the latter explains some bits like the way his fur is, and his behavior.

Not so much a fix-a-grey story, but I found Tito at the pound while looking for a greyhound that was lost (Barkley, Sun City, AZ- still missing). He was "e-listed" for "extreme fear," meaning he was going to be put down after the mandatory 5-day wait unless someone picked him up. So, after seeing him 3-4 times, I had a 36-hour hold put on him 10 minutes before they closed on a Friday which was effectively his last chance at ever having one more meal on this planet. I got to handle him Saturday, and he was completely unsocialized. Fortunately, there were no signs of neglect or abuse. So, after de-nutting, I literally dragged him home where he promptly escaped from the car. I drove off after him, and was able to step on his leash at an opportune pee break. In the backyard, he spent two weeks languishing by the back fence- except for when he had to be crated, since Minerva wanted to eat him. This continued throughout the heat of the summer for about 5 months. Finally, in September (I think it was), I gave up and just let Minerva lay into him, with her muzzle on. After about 15 minutes, she got tired and quit. We walked them together shortly after that, and Minerva only tried to kill him 10-15 times on a half hour walk. Eventually she got the idea that he wasn't edible, and now she just plays rough with him instead of trying to kill him. Lest anyone think I exaggerate for my much-vaunted comedic effect, no- she really *did* try to kill him for 5 months. Tito is now the best guard dog in the pack.

The lymph nodes in Minerva's neck were swollen bilaterally several days after extraction of one of her chipped lower canines. Needle biopsy showed they were normal. They went back down later. We figure it must've been the extraction. Any chance anything is going on in the mouth, maybe under the gumline?

The good news is that Sporanox (itraconazole) is available as a generic; it came off-patent a few years back. Worst comes to worst, get a prescription filled elsewhere- don't be afraid to shop around. Similarly, amphotericin has been around forever- it's not expensive, but for best results it is used intravenously. Unfortunately, amphotericin has earned its nickname- "amphoterrible"- from its side-effects, which are almost certainly the reasons to hold your pup overnight. Moreover, it can sensitize the animal so subsequent treatments become riskier. It's tough on the liver, and hard on the kidneys. But for disseminated fungal infections, it can be the biggest hammer in the toolbox. Last I checked, amphotericin was administered as a liposomal complex, which reduces the side-effects. It's more expensive because many (all?) of these treatments are still on-patent, but they're presumably safer. Ask to make sure they're using a liposomal complex- probably something like Fungisome, made in India and less expensive than other brands. As a caver, I'm real familiar with histo; colloquially, we call it "guano-head." Just about every caver who crawls through guano gets it at some point in their lives; most get over it, but some can get it pretty bad.

Any other symptoms? Has he been checked for tickborne diseases? Or has he been diagnosed with something already and I've just missed the original post...?

There's another option- wash the paws in a Virkon solution. It has the same disinfection capability of bleach- stronger, actually- but it's not caustic like bleach. It's a veterinary disinfectant; you can buy it on eBay, and through some dairy supply companies. I've used a lot of it; I wouldn't use it on a regular basis- it's very drying on the skin- but it's not as harsh as bleach, and it's a very, very good disinfectant. Use it as a "step through" bath, followed up with a quick rinse, or with a "Paw Plunger" or whatever- again, followed up with a clean water rinse.

I suspect you already know this, but did the vet check for LSS? www.greyhound-data.com/dir/397/Lumbosacral_Stenosis.pdf

I don't know as it's really a problem. If it were, vets would have huge problems with drug-resistant bacteria attacking their own pups. If you want, just walk them around the block once you get home from the vet- through tall grass, if you can. It's not disinfection, but it certainly is a... friction-based removal of any bugs they may have picked up on their paws. Really, though, you'd have to wash the whole dog, as everyone's hands have been on the pup. And their collar. And the leash. Between the foamites (inanimate objects) and everything else, you'd pretty much have to put the dog through the washer, and they frown on that.

How about planting... sand? Or gravel. Gravel works, too. Or tire mulch.

Both of ours came chipped from the adoption group. And the ones we foster all get chipped, too. Registration is very, very important. I was trying to spring one dog from a pound in Phoenix that had been chipped, but never registered. The pound said it was a Canadian chip. The dog was up for adoption, and although they're not supposed to, they handed me the chip number so I could try to find who owned him. I called the chip company's rep in Canada; they said it wasn't theirs. Puzzled, I called the company's rep in America, and asked for a supervisor who informed me the batch from which that chip came was split- half to Canada, and half to Mexico. Error number one: don't split a batch of chips with a country "sandwiched" in between. Send half to Zimbabwe and the other half to Australia or whatever. So, I called up the chip's reps in Mexico; fortunately, they had an English speaker there who gave me a clinic name. I thanked them, and went to the clinic's web page: they charge US$300 for chipping a dog (!). Someone must have loved that dog very much. I called the clinic, and nobody there spoke Spanish. "Manana," I was told- call back tomorrow. I did- still no English speaker. By this time, the dog had contracted kennel cough, which meant its time was limited. I found a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend in the chemistry department who spoke Spanish fluently, but she was in the middle of an experiment. I was going to check in with her the next day, but by that time they'd destroyed the dog. All this because someone paid $300 to chip the animal, but didn't bother to file the paperwork. I was furious.

A longshot, but has he been checked for ehrlichia? Any blood tests to show there's anemia and low platelet counts? Any purple or red spots- little hemorrhages- on the skin? I wish someone would offer studies on anti-angiogenesis drugs in the canine. For a lot of untreatable tumors, it would sure make managing the disease easier. ETA: If you have a veterinary oncologist locally, you might inquire as to the potential for joining in any trials such as those for anti-angiogenesis drugs.

Baytril is enrofloxacin, which belongs to the fluoroquinolone class of antibiotics- which includes such fave-raves as everyone's anthrax-beater "Cipro." FDA approval is strictly for animals; they pulled it from poultry use a couple of years back, when concerns were raised that throwing fluoroquinolones down the gullet of the animals on which we feed might not be a good idea because of bacterial resistance. If expense is a serious consideration, you might ask your vet if Cipro (ciprofloxacin) is a suitable substitute, what with them both being in the same class of drugs. However, Cipro is labeled for use in humans, and not pets; its use in companion animals is strictly off-label. Alternatively, the Merck Veterinary Manual advises that enrofloxacin, orbifloxacin (Orbax), difloxacin (Dicural), and marbofloxacin (Zeniquin) are all approved for treatment of UTIs in dogs. I suspect none of these are off-patent and, therefore, will be just as expensive or moreso than Baytril. The Wal-Mart page on the subject advises both 250 mg and 500 mg ciprofloxacin fall under their $4 scrip policy. I do not see any others in the fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

Have you tried... a tennis racket?

I'm split. I wouldn't use it on my own yard or hounds, unless there were problems that could not be overcome with more suitable candidates. Carbamates are just slightly friendlier than the nicest of the organophosphates (like Malathion), and the really nice thing is that it's virtually non-toxic to wild birds. However, it is highly toxic to honeybees and other insects. It breaks down quickly in soil, with a half-life of about 1-2 weeks, depending upon conditions. And then you read all the stuff about how relatively safe it is, and then you find out the allowable daily intake (ADI) is 0.01 mg/kg/day, meaning a person who weighs 80 kg (176 pounds) should get no more than 0.80 mg of the stuff in a full day- or about 1/600th the weight of a 500 mg aspirin tablet, and you realize- holy heck. You get that much just opening the box it came in. The EPA considers it a "likely" human carcinogen. Unfortunately, the ultimate use of the compound isn't very helpful as the cicada killer wasps have it in for the cicadas, not larger animals. Only the females will sting, and even then it's very uncommon for them to do so.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but LS is a degenerative disease; IIRC, Porky's first symptom was acute hind-end paralysis one morning, yes? I would think it would be unexpected to see that as the first presentation of the disease, particularly now that he's able to stand and jump on the couch and run up the stairs. I don't have a copy of the greyhound medical manual- can anyone in there cite what is to be done after an FCE? Is confinement a necessity? I thought it was a self-limiting thing, i.e.: if the dog is willing to do it, they should be allowed to do so. Am I wrong? If confinement *is* required, how well does he do in an X-pen?

Combine that with what it looks like on a human; the anatomy is analogous.

About as low as you can go is raw feeding. Have you considered that option?

I should have added- if you don't already, add a fish oil capsule with food once a day. It'll help the new coat come in all nice and shiny and soft.