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Swollen Neck Glands And A Huge Wattle!


Guest JsMom

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Aspirin is a more dangerous NSAID than Rimadyl. It's one of the worst for causing stomach/gastro bleeding.

 

If your pup doesn't get along with Rimadyl, ask your vet about Deramaxx or Metacam instead.

 

Hope you continue to see improvement!

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 Illinois
We 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.

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I hate to say it but my guess would be lymphoma. I lost both my greys to it within the past year and am now dealing with it in Riley, my English Pointer foster (what are the odds right?).

 

Riley presented the same with enlarged glands under the neck then a wattle that grew at a fast rate. The wattle was from the lymph nodes draining. The rescue group would not OK aggressive treatment so he is on prednisone. The results are impressive; the wattle and lymph nodes receded within 24 hours after only 2 doses. We are almost 6 weeks post diagnosis and he continues to do well.

 

Unfortunately, I have become something of an expert on the topic so if the diagnosis is lymphoma please feel free to pm me with any questions.

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I hate to say it but my guess would be lymphoma. I lost both my greys to it within the past year and am now dealing with it in Riley, my English Pointer foster (what are the odds right?).

 

Riley presented the same with enlarged glands under the neck then a wattle that grew at a fast rate. The wattle was from the lymph nodes draining. The rescue group would not OK aggressive treatment so he is on prednisone. The results are impressive; the wattle and lymph nodes receded within 24 hours after only 2 doses. We are almost 6 weeks post diagnosis and he continues to do well.

 

Unfortunately, I have become something of an expert on the topic so if the diagnosis is lymphoma please feel free to pm me with any questions.

This is not what I wanted to see, for so many reasons (my dog, your dogs...) but I am so glad you posted. I am trying to stay positive and focus on the fact that the initial labs came back not definite for lymphoma, but part of me is really scared that we are being a little too relieved right now.

 

Did your greys exhibit any other symptoms? Other enlarged nodes? Lethargy? Change in appetite? Or was it just the swelling in the neck?

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Did your greys exhibit any other symptoms? Other enlarged nodes? Lethargy? Change in appetite? Or was it just the swelling in the neck?

 

With Fiona it was a complete accident that we caught it early; the vet found a lump in her groin while doing her dental. She had not presented with any other symptoms.

 

Andy had swollen glands under his jaw. The vet could feel that some of the other glands were slightly enlarged. He did not have any other symptoms although I thought he had seemed a bit more lethargic that usual and his appetite was a little off. On the other hand he could be finicky so we didn't really think much of it if he didn't finish his meal every time.

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With Fiona it was a complete accident that we caught it early; the vet found a lump in her groin while doing her dental. She had not presented with any other symptoms.

 

Andy had swollen glands under his jaw. The vet could feel that some of the other glands were slightly enlarged. He did not have any other symptoms although I thought he had seemed a bit more lethargic that usual and his appetite was a little off. On the other hand he could be finicky so we didn't really think much of it if he didn't finish his meal every time.

Thanks. I always laugh when the vet asks if he's lethargic. He's not only a greyhound, he's one of the laziest I've ever seen. Our first vet got very concerned when I told him he doesn't get up and greet us when we come home after being at work all day. He said that wasn't normal and there must be something wrong. All blood tests came back normal. He's just not a very excitable dog. There's a reason he never made it to the track. (He has been playful and up and ready for walks every day, so I don't think lethargy is an issue here.)

 

And he always gets finicky in the summer, so I have no idea if he has an appetite change or if it's the heat. Same with vomiting. He gets sick a few times during the summer. So unless he's refusing fresh meat and vomiting daily, I have no way to know if he's got these symptoms.

 

We're on day 2 of the antibiotics. I hope they kick in soon.

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Please stay positive until you know what's going on, OK? As I'm sure you know, it's the doctor's job to rule things out based on the symptoms, including lymphoma. Be patient and optimitistic :)

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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.

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Guest caiteag

 

Thanks. I always laugh when the vet asks if he's lethargic. He's not only a greyhound, he's one of the laziest I've ever seen. Our first vet got very concerned when I told him he doesn't get up and greet us when we come home after being at work all day. He said that wasn't normal and there must be something wrong.

 

Silly vet. Our Choo doesn't get up to greet us when we get home either.. she is of the opinion that it is our job to come and greet her. That is just the way some greys are.. :) Sadly, I have no help to give in terms of your poor boy's health issues.. but I'll be sending out good thoughts and love for him!!

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Thanks, Cara-Lea. Show looks EXACTLY like our dog, at least from that angle in your pic. (Well, and our dog now has a shaved, red, swollen face, but other than that...)

The vet just called and its not tick fever. They are still waiting to see if the antibiotics work and for the rest of the blood test results. WBC and kidney/liver numbers were normal.

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I don't know what to make of this...

Every day he has looked different. Not better, not necessarily worse, just different. Saturday he woke up with swollen gums/lower jaw and a bloody mouth. That cleared itself up by yesterday. This morning the edema/puffiness is mostly gone, and he's nearly back to looking like he did on Tuesday, when we first realized he was in pain. But I can't take off his martingale without him screaming in pain. This is the first time since Wednesday we haven't been able to take it off. It LOOKS better, but now he's crying again. The lymph nodes are still swollen, but the fluidy/jowly stuff has mostly subsided. I would have thought the swelling would have made things more painful, not less.

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Two years ago, my 8 greyhound Sierra developed a waddle under her neck and her face swollen. The vet decided they needed to do further testing. Her lymph nodes were swollen and it was causing the swollen neck and head. They did needle aspiraitons and also though that she had lymphoma. We had been into the vet for diarrhea, not eating, lethargic, weight loss, fever and now the swollen neck. Sierra had histoplasmosis. Its not a common thing, but I hope your vet is also testing for this as well. Sierra did amazingly well with her treatments and is fine today. It can be a trickly disease to treat. Keep us posted on her test results.

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I'll ask the vet if this is being considered, as she hasn't mentioned it at all. (We are testing for Valley Fever, which is similar in that it is in fungus spores in the soil.) He has no other symptoms at all, and definitely not those associated with histoplasmosis, so I'm guessing it's unlikely, but it can't hurt to ask.

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You bet, I asked all kinds of questions and wanted to know if they thought of different diseases or diagnosis since they couldn't figure out what was wrong with Sierra for a few weeks. Good luck to you, I know how it is to sit and wait. Hoping for a good outcome.

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Just heard back from the vet -- all blood tests are back and nothing is out of the ordinary there. She doesn't think it could be histoplasmosis. We'll continue antibiotics & Rimadyl for a couple of weeks and see what happens...

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no advice, just sending prayers your boy gets better soon! You both must be frustrated and miserable :( :(

Kim and Bruce - with Rick (Rick Roufus 6/30/16) and missing my sweet greyhound Angels Rainey (LG's Rainey 10/4/2000 - 3/8/2011), Anubis (RJ's Saint Nick 12/25/2001 - 9/12/12) and Zeke (Hey Who Whiz It 4/6/2009 - 7/20/2020) and Larry (PTL Laroach 2/24/2007 - 8/2/2020) -- and Chester (Lab) (8/31/1990 - 5/3/2005), Captain (Schipperke) (10/12/1992 - 6/13/2005) and Remy (GSP) (?/?/1998 - 1/6/2005) at the bridge
"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut." -- Ernest Hemmingway

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Thanks. Fortunately, he's NOT miserable! He's acting completely fine, except for not wanting his martingale slipped over his head. Otherwise, he's running, playing, eating, sleeping normally and doesn't seem to be in any pain at all. But yeah, *I'm* frustrated! I'm hoping that since he IS acting ok in every other way, it's just something that will run its course/be fixed by the antibiotics and be done. It seems like it'd be kinda weird for it to go any other way at this point...

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So sorry you have to go through this. It is so frustrating for them to not be able to talk to us! Hope things are figured out quickly and that it will be cleared up faster than that.

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Guest ChasesMum

weird.

 

Did they run a tesdt for ehrlichia? one if the things they notice with Chase was that she had eye pain and occular muscle swelling. Often that goes along with not opening their mouth well or not eating well becuase of the pain.

 

jsut a random thought.

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Yup, no erlichia, no other tick-borne diseases, no Valley Fever, no ... nuthin'! Which is great, and even better if the drugs alone do it. But geez, it was SCARY those first few days, and then the vet tosses around "lymphoma" like it's nothing. She said it is still a consideration that it could be in the early stages, as we have no way to know what the "atypical" cells were about, but that if things clear up with the drugs and he's still acting fine then we'll just have to chalk it up to one of those things we'll never know, as it could be an insect/spider bite/sting or just an infected something or other.

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Dental abscess? Foreign body lodged in the mouth or throat? Some kind of bite? I suggest asking for whatever imaging techniques will show things like wood. Are there any swollen points--like from a bug bite? My first GH, Cosmo, got bit by a copperhead on the snout and the glands in her neck looked like tennis balls even after the anti-venom injection.

Donna
Molly the Border Collie & Poquita the American-born Podenga

Bridge Babies: Daisy (Positive Delta) 8/7/2000 - 4/6/2115, Agnes--angel Sage's baby (Regall Rosario) 11/12/01 - 12/18/13, Lucky the mix (Found, w 10 puppies 8/96-Bridge 7/28/11, app. age 16) & CoCo (Cosmo Comet) 12/28/89-5/4/04

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Donna, they're thinking it could be dental abscess or infected salivary gland, as his teeth are pretty bad. Also a bite of some sort is very possible, as we have lots of stinging/biting things out here, but we can't find a location. Ultrasound is the next step if things don't improve, but we don't have a ton of "extra" money for tests like that, so unless it's absolutely necessary (i.e., it gets worse/not better) I don't think we'll do that. No swollen points that we can find, and he's not a big eater of things that aren't edible. (We never had an issue with chewed-up remotes or furniture like lots of grey owners with newbies have. He even seems to know which plants in the yard are okay to eat and which aren't -- we were going to rip out some of the poisonous shrubbery that was here when we moved in, but he never gave it any notice. The grasses, on the other hand...) So I doubt it's wood or a foreign object. I'd be VERY surprised.

 

Gloria, thanks. He is doing much better today. The glands are STILL swollen, but seem to be shrinking and feeling more firm, so I guess that's the swelling and edema going down. Hopefully it'll all be gone within the next week and maybe we'll know and maybe we won't.

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Still shrinking... and today he lunged and growled and snarled at every dog we saw on our walk, then came back home and tore up the living room with his fit of zoomies. Apparently, he's feeling MUCH better!

 

Thanks for sharing your experiences and for all the support! I was really scared... Still am, a little, since we may never know what the "atypical cells" on the first test were about.

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