Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 Quinn donated blood about 2 weeks ago and has since been diagnosed as having Babesia Canis. He isn't showing any signs of it, so I'm kind of on the fence about treating him no or not........ Any suggestions? I don't quite understand the entire disease, so if anyone has had any experience with this I would appreciate any advice. Thanks Beth & Quinn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 If he has no signs, you can get a PCR DNA test done at NCSU (North Carolina State Univ.) tick lab. This tests for the organism's DNA in the bloodstream. Don't have the NCSU link with me here at work. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest crazy4greys Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 How high was his titer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burpdog Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 What was the titer? Quote Diane & The Senior Gang Burpdog Biscuits Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 What was the titer? I'm getting the lab results faxed to me. I don't have any data right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caro Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 If the test for Babesia was an antibody test they will give results as a titer. Titer is basically how high the concentration of Anti-Babesia antibodies is in the bloodstream. Ask your vet or the blood donor people if the test was an antibody test or an antigen test. An antigen test looks for the presence of the actual organism in the blood. The difference between these two test are pretty important and will tell you how best to proceed. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 Here are some good links: http://www.cvm.ncsu.edu/docs/ticklab.html#babesia http://www.cvm.ncsu.edu/docs/PDFS/ticklab/...s_treatment.pdf http://www.cvm.ncsu.edu/docs/PDFS/ticklab/...ples_9_2007.pdf You can have a high babesia titer for quite some time after clearing an infection. If my dog weren't showing signs of illness, I'd want that PCR before I treated. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 If he has no signs, you can get a PCR DNA test done at NCSU (North Carolina State Univ.) tick lab. This tests for the organism's DNA in the bloodstream. Don't have the NCSU link with me here at work. Is this something I acn do from a distance through someone up here? I'm not actually close to NC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 If he has no signs, you can get a PCR DNA test done at NCSU (North Carolina State Univ.) tick lab. This tests for the organism's DNA in the bloodstream. Don't have the NCSU link with me here at work. Is this something I acn do from a distance through someone up here? I'm not actually close to NC. Absolutely. Your vet draws the blood and ships it per NCSU's specifications. If you scroll to the top of that first link, there are some links at the top and I think one is "Shipping Instructions." Not too many labs do these tests on a regular basis. NCSU's lab is pretty much the gold standard for this type of testing. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 What was the titer? I'm getting the lab results faxed to me. I don't have any data right now. I just got h is results - his titer was 1:160...... Is that good or bad? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inugrey Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 That's not terribly high. I highly highly recommend NCSU for a test of active infection. The treatment for babesia can be very painful for the dog. If he's asymptomatic right now there is no rush to treat based on the titer. Wait for the NCSU results. Quote Colleen with Covey (Admirals Cove) and Rally (greyhound puppy)Missing my beloved boy INU (CJ Whistlindixie) my sweetest princess SALEM (CJ Little Dixie) and my baby girl ZOE (LR's Tara) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 Thanks for all the help and info. I am in thr process of getting an appointment with a good greyhound vet and sitting down with him to go over the details and my options. I'll talk to him about sending blood off to NCSU for further testing. Thanks again!!! Beth and Quinn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burpdog Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 That's not terribly high. I highly highly recommend NCSU for a test of active infection. The treatment for babesia can be very painful for the dog. If he's asymptomatic right now there is no rush to treat based on the titer. Wait for the NCSU results I disagree some. I'd take into consideration the symtoms and the blood work. If you wait too long, by the time you see symptoms, it's too late. Quote Diane & The Senior Gang Burpdog Biscuits Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inugrey Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 That's not terribly high. I highly highly recommend NCSU for a test of active infection. The treatment for babesia can be very painful for the dog. If he's asymptomatic right now there is no rush to treat based on the titer. Wait for the NCSU results I disagree some. I'd take into consideration the symtoms and the blood work. If you wait too long, by the time you see symptoms, it's too late. Agreed don't sit on it this titer and not do anything, do go get the test done asap. Since you are going to chat with your vet about it soon go in armed with this knowledge. He is currently not showing any signs of the disease, correct? I rushed to try to treat my boy who had no symptoms but a high titer (1:320 or so) and the vet calmed me down and sent the blood off for a PCR and voila he's got no active infection, just high antibodies. Very glad I waited for the test results rather than treat needlessly. Quote Colleen with Covey (Admirals Cove) and Rally (greyhound puppy)Missing my beloved boy INU (CJ Whistlindixie) my sweetest princess SALEM (CJ Little Dixie) and my baby girl ZOE (LR's Tara) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mightyquinn Posted October 15, 2007 Share Posted October 15, 2007 That's not terribly high. I highly highly recommend NCSU for a test of active infection. The treatment for babesia can be very painful for the dog. If he's asymptomatic right now there is no rush to treat based on the titer. Wait for the NCSU results I disagree some. I'd take into consideration the symtoms and the blood work. If you wait too long, by the time you see symptoms, it's too late. Agreed don't sit on it this titer and not do anything, do go get the test done asap. Since you are going to chat with your vet about it soon go in armed with this knowledge. He is currently not showing any signs of the disease, correct? I rushed to try to treat my boy who had no symptoms but a high titer (1:320 or so) and the vet calmed me down and sent the blood off for a PCR and voila he's got no active infection, just high antibodies. Very glad I waited for the test results rather than treat needlessly. He's not showing symptoms of anything right now - healthy as a horse...... except for those nasty little guys in his blood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest crazy4greys Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 My foster boy has a Babesia Canis titre of 1:320. He is going in on Thursday for his injection. Spender is also heathy, although he did have that nasty wound on his leg, which his all healed now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinw Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 phoenix was treated for babesia with two injections of imizol. his titres didn't look serious, but he was symptomatic (depressed, no energy and limping) and those nasty organisms were visible in his blood. i also suggest your vet check his blood for visible signs of the infecting organism. Quote Xavi the galgo and Peter the cat. Missing Iker the galgo ?-Feb.9/19, Treasure (USS Treasure) April 12/01-May 6/13, Phoenix (Hallo Top Son) Dec.14/99-June 4/11 and Loca (Reko Swahili) Oct.9/95 - June 1/09, Allen the boss cat, died late November, 2021, age 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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