Any ideas as to what this could be??

[Rachel]

I know of another Weimaraner living in Essex with exactly the same markings on the nose I have photos I can email you Lynn, its identical. The vet put the dog onto antibioitics and steriods, and then it flared up again, and now after more treatment it is going down. It must be something seasonal.

eosinophilic furunculosis is what the vet called it.


Rachel

[Weims]

This is Morgans nose this morning. Just come back from the vet and she said she haas never seen anything like it before so as I had the info and pics there she has taken that on board and given him steroids (6 twice a day) and steroid gel (twice a day) and more AB's so hopefully that will do the trick and he will start to get better.

Thanks for all your help
Lynn

[weiz4eva]

owww poor baby, hope this works well soon

Claire

[christina]

Hello Lynn,

Poor Morgan ( that looks so painful - but very similar to Kimber's nose at the time.

You say 6 steroid tablets twice a day .... Did she give him prednisolone, and are they 5 mg each? If so, that would be 60 mg preds daily (divided into 2 doses), which is a fairly high dosage and should hopefully do the trick. - I am guessing that Morgan weighs roughly 30 kg ?? In which case your vet has prescribed 2mg per kg body weight, which constitutes an immuno-suppressive dosage.

I would imagine that Morgan will be on this dosage for about a week and then she will reduce the steroids - probably by halving the dosage for another week and then halving it again and so on. This would be the textbook treatment.
You should see a marked improvement within a couple of days or so.

I don't know if you are familiar with steroid medication and its side effects.... In case you are not - please prepare yourself for Morgan becoming ravenously hungry and thirsty. He might have accidents in the house or start leaking, particularly at night. He can't help it, this is a side effects of the preds and it will pass when he is weaned off. Be careful about leaving anything edible (or assumed edible by Morgan) lying about. Even the best behaved dog will turn into an inventive counter surfer and shameless food thief whilst on steroids. He might also put on some weight, particularly around the belly... hopefully all of this will subside when he is off the preds. If it also quite possible that he might lose a lot of coat.... again, all this is a side effect of the preds, so don't get alarmed. Hopefully it will all heal ok and the preds can be reduced soon. Please be aware that whatever happens, to never stop the preds abruptly. This can be extremely dangerous. You have to reduce gradually.

I am not so sure about the steroid gel... I would have thought that keeping the scabs dry would be better - but I'm not a vet. I just kept Kimber's scabs dry and tried not to pick at them, but wait until they would come lose and fall off.

One more tip .... the antibiotics will have killed off ALL of the bacteria in Morgans intestines - making is easy for the bad bacteria (yeast) to get the upper hand. IMO it is vitally important to replenish the good bacteria with probiotics immediately when the course of antibiotics is finished. Personally I would feed probiotics even during the course of a/bs, but at opposite times to giving the antibiotics, so that at least some of the good bacteria gets replaced until the next antibiotic pill will kill it all off again. The last thing you'd want, is for Morgan to develop yeast overgrowth, which could lead to further serious health problems. Do feed lots of plain yoghurt during the day, that will help, and most dogs love it.

Please keep us posted on how he is doing. I keep everything crossed for a speedy recovery. - and please do remember the thyroid check when he is off the preds - unless you have done this already.

Best wishes,
Christina

[christina]

Hi again,

I have forgotten something very important... Since Morgan is on a high dosage of steroids, it is important to protect his stomach with a gastroprotectant like Zantac for instance. High pred dosages can lead to ulcers, so it would be prudent to take precautions. You can get Zantac over the counter or ask your vet. Please follow the instructions on the leaflet. Some gastroprotectants need to be given some time before you give the preds.... and preds must always be given with food.

Christina

[Weims]

Hi Christina,

Thanks for the info.

Prednicare is what is says ont he bottle and they are 5mg. Yes morgan is 29.3 kg. yes he on the tablets for a week and then she wants to see him again. I know that they have to be reduced slowly.

Morgan hasnt become ravenous (yet!) and he isnt drinking much more than usual. I would be happy for him to put a little bit of weight on as he needs it.

I will get the probiotics into Morgan as soon as possible. I didnt think of that! He has a weeks worth of AB's.

Isnt Zantac an indigestion remedy? The vet never said anything about steroids leaving ulcers behind? he has already had 2 1/2 days worth? Whats the likely hood of that happening.??

By the way his nose is almost healed, looks 150% better than 48 hours ago, The irritation is gone and no more new "blisters" have broken out. I think he is on the mend.

Lynn

[christina]

Hello Lynn,

I am soo pleased that Morgan is on the mend It is incredible how quickly the steroids work. Just be patient... don't be too tempted to pick at the scabs - let them fall off naturally, that reduces the risk of scarring.

Yes, Prednicare is fine - that's the generic form of prednisolone....the same thing. It's good that Morgan hasn't become a little food machine (yet)... he might not, but most dogs will. It's early days. Just be prepared if/when it happens.

Yes, Zantac is an indigestion remedy. It will line the stomach. Most vets don't think about recommending a gastroprotectant. For small amounts of steroids it would not be necessary, but Morgan is on an immunosuppressive dosage, and this can irritate the stomach lining and cause ulcers. Better safe than sorry. It does not matter which product you chose - Zantac is fine, but you could use another. Do ask your vet or the pharmacist which they would recommend. Most of them have to be given one or two hours before you give the preds. It will tell you on the leaflet. They are all different. But Zantac is what most people use.

Please choose a probiotic that is specially formulated for dogs (best to buy from vet), because the dogs stomach acids are very strong and they might destroy a great deal of the good bacteria from a lesser product before it reaches the gut, where it's needed. - also feed lots of plain yoghurt. I am sure Morgan will love it, and it does help replenishing the good bacteria.

Big hug for the brave soldier - he'll be as good as new soon....

Christina

PS - please do remember to have the thyroid checked when the preds are finished. It is highly likely that Morgan is hypothyroid.

[Weims]

Here is a pic of morgans nose today, loads better the difference is amazing

thanks christina for the help

lynn

[christina]

You're very welcome I am just pleased that Morgan is now on the mend. It seems to be healing very quickly. - Please let us know if he tests positive for his thyroids.

All the best,
Christina

[weiz4eva]

wow that look SO much better, well done

[Cheryl]

Thank you Christina, I've been missing in action for quite awhile with birds, coops and pens.

Everyone and Lynn, especially, I use the Hemopet for Misty Rose and Slade's testing. Its taken ages, but our only local vet just last month finally decided he'd like to switch labs to use "mine" he called it as "his" lab results didn't come out as a dog being hypothyroid when they clearly, by symptoms were suffering from it.

Christina has helped me learn so much about my two short hair weim's condition and prior to that, I only felt Slade would be the one to have it but was shocked that Misty Rose was also afflicted w/this condition because the only symptom she had was cold intolerance.

I have so far refused any steroid treatment for Slade, preferring to try to change his diet to raw and no corn along with a daily spoon of honey but he's showing his "bumps" again so I know Christina has been right on or spot on all along, having learned the hard way, also... so its time I listened to her again! Big hugs Lynn, to you and your boy, its an easy fix once on medication and daily medication:)

Thanks for alerting me, Les, I've been missing a lot of important stuff around here! HI to all Boris' family, hugs, too. Cheryl

[europeword]

He surely needs antibiotics. That doesn't look good and it may look even worse.
Make sure a vet will see him.

[Peter]

This post is almost 7 months old...
what's your point in lynn taking morgan to the vet now...

[Cheryl]

I think the slang term used is "strangles" and I wonder how this turned out for Morgan, Lynn? I saw it afterward on a golden retriever when I was doing dog rescue a few years ago, the scarring afterward. I didn't know what it was back then. I never did respond since what I have since learned, was from Christina's urging and help with my two wei's that are hypothyroid; Misty Rose and Slade. Slade continues to be "bumpy" on his back and sides, even now when we have snow (more so from May to September as an allergic reaction) but not what Morgan's pics show. Mine are due for blood/soloxine levels testing.

[wimmyweimaraner]

How is he doing now? I thought it was just a scratch but I think it's worse than that. What did the vet tell about it?