Ask Me Help Desk - My dog keep losing red blood cells and needs transfusion

Hi,

I have a 5 years old mini schnauser who is very sick right now.

Almost 3 weeks ago when my wife was walking him he ate something which she couldn't get it out of his mouth.

Following days, he started acting very slowly and eating less. During those 2-3 days, he ate very little and accordingly, he lost weight. Because he wasn't eating my wife took him to a clinic.

They put him on IV due to his weakness and being not able to eat for a while.After the test results came, they said he has an infection and needs to use antibiotics. If I'm not mistaken, Vet said it might be a pancreatic issue. Liver was fine though.

In the results, his red blood cells ratio was %21 at that time.

We got the antibiotics, gave him two times a day as it's recommended. We force feed him with baby food for few days and following days he got better, stated walking around. He also started to eat himself. We thought he will be fully recovered in few days but unfortunately he started acting slowly again which at the same time affects his ability to eat.

That started 3 days ago. We started to worry again because he was getting better everyday until 3 days ago.

This morning he started breathing really heavily and fast. We thought he is hot, might need to pee etc. We took him out and waited for a while but it didn't go away. After we checked his tongue which h was very pale we decided to take him to a hospital.

They put him in oxygen due to lack of getting enough oxygen. After the test results came Vet said that he is not getting enough oxygen and test results indicate that his red blood cells were in the ratio of %14 which is lower than the last time. She (the Vet) will get an x-ray and other tests to diganose properly to figure what's causing the issue.

She suggested a transfusion (blood change) due to his urgent condition and getting an x-ray.

Needles to say it's very expensive process and due to not being able to diagnose he might need another tranfusion.

That's all we know for now.

Does anybody know/have any idea what could it be ?

Any idea on why red blood cells decrease, and possibly what would cause that ?

Does anybody had similar experince with his/her pet before ?

Any suggestion, idea, recommendation will be highly appreciated.

Thanks

He has been diagnosed with

Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia

Just half an hour ago...

I'm very sorry to hear about your dog, but am glad you finally got a diagnosis. Here is what vetinfo.com says --

This condition will often respond well to very high doses of corticosteroids, such as prednisone. These medications suppress the immune system, allowing the rbcs (red blood cells) to escape destruction. Improvement usually occurs within 1 to 3 days, if the dog is going to respond. If signs of icterus (jaundice) are present, the prognosis is usually worse. Dogs with this symptom may benefit from very aggressive treatment with anticoagulants and cyclophosphamide, a potent immune system inhibitor. Blood transfusions can be used in dogs with IMHA if necessary but they can make the condition worse so most vets reserve this approach for dogs that appear to be in imminent danger of dying due to severe anemia. It is necessary to treat most dogs for a fairly long time to prevent recurrence of the disease and some dogs seem to require lifelong use of corticosteroids or other immunosuppressants. Splenectomy is done in resistant cases since it is a major site of red blood cell destruction.

He lived only a week after the transfusion and passed away. After the transfusion,he was really good for a day or 2 but started to get ill again.It was very painful for us. He started to eat less, lost lot of weight and his body couldn't fight against it. I still get really sad when I remember.My Vet friends also said that transfusion is very risky and has very little chance of saving the dog. It should have done few times if it's necessary but still chances are very slim. Each transfusion including side medicines and attention costs $1000.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wondergirl

I'm very sorry to hear about your dog, but am glad you finally got a diagnosis. Here is what vetinfo.com says --

This condition will often respond well to very high doses of corticosteroids, such as prednisone. These medications suppress the immune system, allowing the rbcs (red blood cells) to escape destruction. Improvement usually occurs within 1 to 3 days, if the dog is going to respond. If signs of icterus (jaundice) are present, the prognosis is usually worse. Dogs with this symptom may benefit from very aggressive treatment with anticoagulants and cyclophosphamide, a potent immune system inhibitor. Blood transfusions can be used in dogs with IMHA if necessary but they can make the condition worse so most vets reserve this approach for dogs that appear to be in imminent danger of dying due to severe anemia. It is necessary to treat most dogs for a fairly long time to prevent recurrence of the disease and some dogs seem to require lifelong use of corticosteroids or other immunosuppressants. Splenectomy is done in resistant cases since it is a major site of red blood cell destruction.