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11-15-2010, 02:18 PM | #1 |
YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Posts: 3
| Muscle issues combined with itching and needing help Hello, I am having some issues with my Yorkie, Bentley, and would love some advice. Just a little background, he is 19 months old, and very active/happy dog. In the past few months, we have noticed some issues and have (of course) brought him to his regular vet and also another vet for a second opinion. His symptoms are: constant itching - of face, ears, legs, abdomen. chewing of feet muscle spasms light muscle fluttering oily coat - it becomes oily quite quickly B had an ear infection about 3 months ago - it was fungal and was given an anti-fungal, which cleared it up. I clean his ears regularly, and they do, once again, seem a little pink. The itching started when it changed to fall. But has gotten worse lately. This is combined with muscle spasms and twitching. First vet -- who also sees the breeders other dogs/puppies, so knows the blood line well -- stated that he was having allergies and to change up his food and give him benadryl. The benadryl works for a short time and I switched him from Wellness small breed to a grain-free Orijen. She thought that the spasms were due to gas and stomach issues from the current food, but wanted me to monitor him. Second vet - she believes that he was having allergies, suggested the same thing, but also left the horrible image of Bentley possibly having a degenerative muscular disorder, which is not curable. And stated that neurological testing must be done - which I am fine with, if it comes to that. Logically, I shouldn't be obsessing, but Bentley is like my baby and I worry that I have no idea what is going on. When he sleeps, his muscles twitch a lot - not viciously, but often. The last few days I have noticed that he spasms more when he is most itchy. . His muscle spasms are in his legs and I have felt and tested his muscles to see if there was pain - which I found nothing, nor did the vet(s). He does have the normal physiological response of tensing up the muscle that we constantly touched. But humans do this as well. Last night he had a twitch that turned into, what I can only describe, as a donkey kick. He then jumped off of me and kicked his leg out - chewed his paw, and all was fine. Bentley loves walks (he gets a long walk daily - rain or shine), running, playing - doesn't seem lethargic, at all. He is a very happy Yorkie. He is just itchy and has spasms. His gate also seems fine, though when he is really itchy he will seem a little tense, but once he itches all is fine. We use a mild oatmeal (professional) shampoo. He has Frontline on and has no fleas - nor do we have them in the house. I am at a loss and am probably just freaking myself out because of the image that the second vet gave me. Has anyone else experienced this? I do not wish to use steroid injections. We would appreciate any advice. I am losing sleep and concerned due to not knowing what is wrong with him. He has another appointment tomorrow, for the first vet, to see if anything has changed. Thanks, Melissa and Bentley |
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11-15-2010, 03:50 PM | #2 |
Furbutts = LOVE Donating Member Moderator | Oh boy...this could be complicated. Were either of the vets you saw specialists? If not, I always feel that when you're not getting answers, that's the time you should really consult a specialist. In Bentley's case, it sounds like maybe the place to start would be either an Internist or a dermatologist - or both. While a Neuro may be good too...I'd be wondering if this is as simple as allergies, if this were me. Recurring ear infections, chewing paws, scratching, oily coat etc can all be symptoms of allergies. Check his tummy, arm pits, neck, inner legs for any redness/red 'spots' or brownish spots bc perhaps he has pyoderma (also can be a sympt of untreated allergies). Some allergy dogs will twitch their paws when they are really irritating them. My Marcel does that once in a while. If the Benadryl relieves symptoms...then that also tells you something. Remember that Benadryl has a very short half-life and has to be given 3-4x a day for ongoing relief. Watch the pollens in your area at www.pollen.com - I get daily pollen-level emails from them (I know, DORK). Cushings also popped into my mind bc of recurrent skin and ear issues...but there would have to be other things present as well (most common are excessive drinking/peeing, pot belly, increased hunger, back leg weakness/muscle wasting, hair loss...and their are several more). It may be wise to do a skin scraping, check for mites, fleas etcetera. Again, a vet derm would be very helpful here. If this were me, I'd not see a generalist at this point...and I'd move on to a specialist. If it is enviro allergies, options are OTC anti-hists, Temaril-P, Atopica, allergy shots. Please keep us updated!
__________________ ~ A friend told me I was delusional. I nearly fell off my unicorn. ~ °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° Ann | Pfeiffer | Marcel Verdel Purcell | Wylie | Artie °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° |
11-15-2010, 07:51 PM | #3 |
YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Posts: 3
| Thank you, Wiley's mom. I appreciate the advice. I will contact our vet tomorrow and get information regarding a derm and Internist. I looked at Bentley's arm pits and tummy - and he appears to have slight pink-ish tint, but no real "red spots" or brown spots. It is always hard to check the entire body because he is steel/silver and has blue appearing skin on top (due to coloring of his hair - he is not blue). His ears are a little red again, smell slightly, I will clean them again this evening and put some of the medicine in his ears. Poor guy. He does respond to Benadryl. So, you are probably correct. He did twitch at times before the itching issues, which I think is pretty normal in animals. Or, at least, what I have seen with my friend's animals. I just find it alarming and am being overly sensitive to his issues. If he could talk he would say "please stop, mommy - you are embarrassing me ...". I thought of Cushing's also, but his hair is healthy (other than on the oily side), no biting off of fur - abdomen is flat and healthy, and he is currently running around playing with my fiance's credit card, jumping in the air and running around - happy as a clam. He doesn't seem to have any muscle weakness. I've watched him run and he doesn't ever hesitate or favor one leg over the other. I will keep you updated. I appreciate the help. I love my Yorkie. Melissa and Bentley |
11-16-2010, 07:41 AM | #4 | |
Furbutts = LOVE Donating Member Moderator | Quote:
I agree...it doesn't really sound like he could have Cushings (altho, my Wylie had flat tummy and was totally active before his Cushings diagnosis too). Eh, just file it in the back of your mind or something. I know you feel funny about steroid injections, but sometimes they really do have great benefit (esp. if short term). Steroid injections *tend* to have better efficacy for allergy relief in enviro (pollen, dust, etc), as compared to a food allergy (keep in mind food allergies really only account for 10-15% of canine allergies, the rest being enviro. Anyway, one thing a vet may try is giving a steroid shot, to be able to observe whether or not there is a response to it....bc knowing the response may be helpful. Also, if you'd rather give a 24-hr (once a day) anti-histamine, there is Zyrtec or Claritin. Thanks for the update. I know how frustrating allergies / skin issues can be .
__________________ ~ A friend told me I was delusional. I nearly fell off my unicorn. ~ °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° Ann | Pfeiffer | Marcel Verdel Purcell | Wylie | Artie °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° | |
11-16-2010, 10:40 AM | #5 |
YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Posts: 3
| My apologies, it's Wylie - not Wiley (as I am sure you noticed). Bentley's vet wants to give him a steroid shot today, to see if symptoms go away. I have a few hours to think about it. She also said that she would give me numbers for internist and derms that she knows within the area. I love my dog and I hope that if it is something more serious, that he will be okay. I'm really worried and just need answers at this point, but know that any medical conclusions take time. I will keep you updated. Thanks again!!! |
11-16-2010, 10:52 AM | #6 |
I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Posts: 18,866
| Hi and Welcome to YT! Sorry that Bentley is having problems... praying that a diagnosis is quick and effective treatment begins soon....
__________________ Kat Chloe Lizzy PeekABooTinkerbell SapphireInfinity |
11-16-2010, 10:54 AM | #7 | |
Furbutts = LOVE Donating Member Moderator | Quote:
Shots can be scary, but even my Marcel once had a steroid injection (he is only a 3lb adult) during an emergency visit (where we weren't sure what was going on) - and he did 100% fine with it. Whatever you decide, only you know what's best for your kiddo .
__________________ ~ A friend told me I was delusional. I nearly fell off my unicorn. ~ °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° Ann | Pfeiffer | Marcel Verdel Purcell | Wylie | Artie °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° | |
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