[BonBon]

Originally Posted by BonBon

This was interesting - the doctor Maddox saw this morning is off duty now. But, she called to talk to another vet about Maddox. After discussing his case, they wanted my permission to send off a sample of the stool/blood that I took in this morning. They want to send it off to Oklahoma State University where they're conducting a study into a new parasite that's recently been found in Oklahoma. The study is a free one, open only to cases that fit a strict criteria. He said those results won't be back for a few days.

The doctor happened to be in the lobby when I picked Maddox up, so I asked him about this case study and the new parasite. He had his next client just coming in behind me, but he did give me the name, Heterobilarzia, better known as "the blood fluke". Here's one article I found when I googled it Heterobilharzia: Liver & Intestinal Parasite of Dogs.

This discussion, Heterobilharzia americana infection in a dog. [J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2002] - PubMed result, says "Although this is the first report of canine heterobilharziasis in North Carolina, it suggests that heterobilharziasis is underdiagnosed in dogs that have contact with water frequented by raccoons. Inappropriate diagnostic procedures can foil accurate detection of this parasitic disease."

I do have raccoons in my area, so maybe they're on to something.

Maddox is home and seems to be feeling well. He's greeted his playmates, drank a nice bit of water and is checking things out right now. And Kathy - I followed your advice and thoroughly checked the back yard a bit ago. There was nothing, no sign of anything that he may have ingested. Of course he may have swallowed the evidence!