f your dog is healthy and younger than 10 years old, you probably don’t need to read this. It is not pleasant.
Gogo is a 10 years old little poodle girl. She is happy and makes people happy. She always run, chasing squirrel, and etc. And every parents think their pets are special.
Until early April she was diagnosed to have Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia (IMHA). It is basically for some unknown reasons her body kills her own red blood cells.
After two blood transfusions and 7 days hospital stay, she is back to life. She is on two steroids to suppress her immune system. Starting with three tablets of prednisone 15mg daily, every three weeks got blood work done and reduces the prednisone by one tablet.
10 days ago she was on one tablet per day and she was perfectly happy and even walked a 7 k trail without any problem until the vet reduces her prednisone to half table per day, then she had the relapse.
She was rushed to the same hospital and had another transfusion, stay overnight.The second day the vet calls saying Gogo is fine. And can go home now.
Gogo got home and immediately got worse. Not eating anything, Not drinking. No energy at all. ……
This is too much pain for me to continue in details. I just give the lessons I learned through this ordeal now, hoping it is somehow a little helpful for others.
Lesson learned:
No. 1 Never reduces the steroid to minimal dosage. The underlined disease, the relapse kills your dog way before the side effects of steroids do.
No.2 Don’t force feed your dog.
No. 3 Some vets lie (they don’t want to have your dog dies in their facility)
No. 4 Don’t wish miracle can happen. Put her to sleep before she suffers the unbearable.