Babesia Canis, Low Positive

[ElizabethGPAPS]

I think you can just google "imidocarb side effects" and get quite a bit of information, including this little nugget:

 

"One of 13 healthy dogs used in a pharmacokinetic study of imidocarb dipropionate died due to difficulty in breathing, tachycardia, weakness and profuse diarrhoea. Autopsy findings showed marked pulmonary congestion and oedema. Kidneys were grossly enlarged and markedly congested with extensive haemorrhage in the cortex and medulla. Marked tubulonephrosis was also exhibited microscopically. Liver and spleen were moderately enlarged and congested. The adverse effects of imidocarb may be due to excessive acetylcholine action."

 

Yikes.

[greyhead]

Eeesh! yikes is right!

[Guest Energy11]

Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you. Yes, the shots are painful, and they are given into the muscle. Also, they BURN like heck. Not only that, as Elizabeth has pointed out in her post, there are A LOT of side effects. I have seen all of them in the dogs I gave the shot to at the adoption group I was with. Some did well, some did not. Benedryl also give intra-muscular prior to the shot, seemed to HELP the side effects a little.

 

This is a little detailed, but it does explain the disease and it's treatment. The action of the drug causes the side effects, and pre-administering Atropine or Benedryl is recommended. NONE of the dogs I gave this to died or anything, but they did go through some pretty nasty side effects, which wore off in a few hours after giving the shot. http://www.vetlearn.com/Media/PublicationsArticle/PV_27_01_33.pdf

 

Good Luck and do keep us posted!

[Burpdog]

We already tried glucosamine/chondroitin

 

I have found people who say that haven't used the right brand or amount to give.

 

With blood work like that, I would not treat but that is my personal opinion. Just FYI, his HCT is fine, but should not go under 50

 

PCRs are not the end all because the particular sample taken may or may not have critters in it. In other words, your dog can be positive for a particular disease and have it not show up.

[Batmom]

PCR is more sensitive than thin blood smear, so I'd say it's pretty accurate. PCR and smear are the only ways to be certain the dog has the disease rather than just antibodies to it. If the dog has the organism, it's going to leave some DNA in the blood. The neatsy keen thing about PCR is that you can detect, amplify, and type the teensiest bit of DNA.

 

(Sorry, don't mean to be tautologic, obnoxious, etc. This technology is just so cool. I get excited every time I think about it.)

Edited January 28, 2010 by Batmom