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Charlie's got spots :(

Maxxs_Mummy

Well-known member
Poor Charlie has been very itchy the last couple of days so I bathed him and then re Stronghold'ed him but still he won't settle.

This morning when he was on my lap I noticed lesions on the top of his legs and his bib so, tonight off we went to see Uncle James....

He found loads more of them on his tummy & tail, poor love they are popping up all over :(

Looks like he might have an allergy so we've had some blood tests done and tomorrow I have to pick up some anti-histamines for him. These lesions look really similar to the ones Zack has in his picture :(

If it's not an allergy we're off for an MRI scan just to double check that it's not SM and he's biting himself where he's itchy with the pins and needles feeling :(

Please everyone, send him your healing thoughts. I think he's been through enough in the two years he's been on this Earth and he's only just feeling settled :lotsaluv:
 
Oh don't do an MRI if he has little lesions! Then it is certainly something causing the bumps and SM won't cause bumps like that. I am sure it is an allergy or something he has encountered recently if this started all of a sudden.

PS can you try him on a little benadryl?
 
Sorry Karlin, I wasn't very clear then was i? He's been itchy and scratchy on and off for a while but has now come up in these lesions. James isn't sure if it's an allergy - hence the bloods. OR if the bloods come back negative then he thinks it could be where he's been biting himself - we'll just have to wait and see what the tests say....

Fingers crossed eh?

I wondered about Benadryl but which one is safe for dogs? There are two - acrivastine formula and cetirizine formula!!!!
 
I'm so sorry to hear about charlie's itching and bumps!
it does sound quite similar to zack's symptoms of the past week.
it's pretty certain that what zack has on his skin is pyoderma. in fact, i would say it's as certain as anything. his bloods showed acute infection, and something chronic too although #2 vet said that was normal, no follow up ?

the bumps on zack are hard and rough and irregular. the area around is pink but not swollen, the diameter of the pink area isn't very big. i would say they don't look dramatic, but they feel quite distinct and pronounced. The centers are grayish yellow, what today's vet called 'pustular.' it's a bacterial infection (someone told me it's usually staph). It's almost always secondary to something else. Today's vet (#3) who describes herself on her website as a skin specialist said her theory is that it started with fleas. the weather has just gone hot, and the fleas always come out at this time. she said probably fleas attacked him and then he got a skin infection. she said he definitely does not have a flea allergy (thankfully). she actually didn't say anythnig about allergy or immune reaction--just fleas and infection.

Could charlie have any fleas in recent weeks?

In zack's case, benadryl has seemed to be helpful. I didn't know there were different formulae, and don't know what kind i have. I got it at the drug store, it's a generic brand, and it says on the box it's for children. I would like to learn more about there being different formulas. Is it a safety issue?

The vet said 25mg. According to the box instructions, that is high for his size (if he were human) but i read on the web last night that antihistamine treatment for itching dogs is rather effective, the main problem being sometimes a high enough dose is not given, or not enough is given. I gave it to zack when he got itchy Tuesday night and he settled down after that, and didn't itch again until today, right after we got back from the vet.

i sure hope his scratching isn't from SM. In the case of zack, he itched and rubbed his body agaisnt things and licked his paws for almost 3 days before the bumps emerged. good luck donna, i really feel for you and charlie. is he acting ok other than scratching, no general systemic malaise, i hope?
 
If Maxx has been scratching more recently, it would support the same diagnosis for him as Zack has. Maybe poor Maxx has had fleas--causing the scratching--and then the lesions/infection appeared.

Hope Maxx is just suffering from fleas and an infection. Not that I wish him ill, but it sure beats SM!!
 
Hi Judy,

Thanks for posting. First off, Charlie has had no fleas that I have noticed and I dose him with Stronghold every month anyway as we get lots of hedgehogs and birds in our garden as well as the odd cat so I am always a bit iffy about fleas and ticks anyway!

Charlie's bumps do sound identical to Zack's :? He's been a bit off in himself over the past few days and he also feels really hot to the touch - not what I'd call a normal heat as the weather has been scorching. He's still eating anything and everything though, unlike poor darling Zack.

Could you have a look at your Benadryl box for me and see what the active ingredient is please? I can go and pick some up from the chemist tomorrow but as I said we have two formulations here - cetirizine and acrivastine :roll: I don't want to make him worse!

I too am hoping it's not the dreaded SM - I already have one dog with it :?

How is Zack doing now? Is he any better? I hope so, I really hate to see them poorly, it really upsets me :(

Moviedust - Maxx hasn't got fleas either but he's already got SM - we found out last year and he's on Frusemide for it - I wouldn't wish it on anyone or their baby :(
 
Maxxs_Mummy said:
Moviedust - Maxx hasn't got fleas either but he's already got SM - we found out last year and he's on Frusemide for it - I wouldn't wish it on anyone or their baby :(

Oh, sorry to hear that. :( So much for being hopeful and not having SM. :?
 
It's OK !!!! It's Charlie who's poorly now and tbh I do suspect SM - we'll see what the bloods come back with.....
 
First off, Charlie has had no fleas that I have noticed and I dose him with Stronghold every month anyway

Then it wouldn't be fleas, i would think. Unless he got bitten before the flea died, if that's possible, i don't think it is. but maybe it could be a spider. I am having a hard time thinking it was fleas with zack because when the symptoms first started, i looked all over him and could not find any sign of fleas no bites, no dirt, no crawling ones. The vet checked him over two days later and said no fleas on him. A second vet saw no fleas on the 5th day. The first time i started seeing fleas on him, coinciding with the temperatures going up, was Monday, the 6th day. so i dont' know about the flea theory. it's possible that from the brewers yeast, garlic, neem oil and diatomaceous earth, fleas were not staying on him but may have still bitten, but i didn't see bites, nor did vets.

Charlie's bumps do sound identical to Zack's :? He's been a bit off in himself over the past few days and he also feels really hot to the touch - not what I'd call a normal heat as the weather has been scorching. He's still eating anything and everything though, unlike poor darling Zack.

The appearance of the bumps is what suggests pyoderma which just means a bacterial infection of the skin--as opposed to hives or various other kinds of bumps. Apparently it can develop resulting from any number of things, like something that would cause an imbalance of the normal fauna of the skin where usually different organisms keep each other in check.

About Zack's eating, one thing was dramatic to me. During the worst of his prostration, when he did eat, because i gave him canned food, he ate very hungrily and eagerly, so i don't think his stomach was off at all. It's normal for him to act standoffish toward kibble. It just seemed like he didn't want to stand up, unrelated to his stomach. I thought he felt hot too. the vet said temp was normal.

Could you have a look at your Benadryl box for me and see what the active ingredient is please? I can go and pick some up from the chemist tomorrow but as I said we have two formulations here - cetirizine and acrivastine :roll: I don't want to make him worse!

Uh oh. mine doesn't mention either one of those! For the active ingredient, it says diphehydramine HCI. That's all. It has a bunch of disgusting sounding inactive ingredients like red dye and stuff. The pharmacist said it was definitely Benadryl, even though it was generic so it didn't say benadryl. I checked on a box labeled benadryl and it said it contained diphenhydramine. It's alcohol free.

i just checked google--acrivastine is a nondrowsy antihistamine which carries the benadryl label. I'm confused. I did a search for 'generic benadryl' and it says diphenhydramine. but there is also something called Benadryl that doesn't have diphenhydramine, only acrivastine, and Benadryl Plus which also contains pseudephedrine (decongestant). I couldn't find cetirizene as benadryl at all.

How is Zack doing now? Is he any better? I hope so, I really hate to see them poorly, it really upsets me :(

It's the worst. thanks for asking about zack. I am afraid he's suddenly gotten worse. i'll put that in another thread. sigh. but glad that it seems not to be SM. i will hope and pray that charlie has something else, not that.
 
Oh Poor Charlie Warley...so sorry to hear this Donna, what a month :(

I hope it is "just" skin inflammation, I know you've had your suspcions about SM for a while though.

Good luck with the blood tests...but I wonder if it would be worth having an MRI, at least you'd know then?
 
Fingers crossed he is okay, my mob are sending big licks.... have they been anyway where someone has sprayed pesticides or anything?
 
Morning girls,

Thanks for all the replies :D :flwr: . Firstly, no, Charlie hasn't been anywhere that they've been spraying & I'm really careful about what I use/plant in the garden too - even my holly and daffodils are fenced off out of their way. I only use 'Growing Success' garden stuff too as it's organic and perfectly safe to pets, wildlife and children.

Nicki, I think I'm just on the lookout for signs of SM all the time, having already got one baby with it. Does that make sense? I try not to be paranoid about it though - unilke some people we know ;) :badgrin: (no one who posts on here but you and Alison will know who I mean :badgrin: ) *Slaps own wrist*

Judy, bless you for your detective work :flwr: Benadryl is available here in all the formulations except for Diphenhydramine HCI (Hydrochloride) ... http://www.pharmacy2u.co.uk/searchresults.asp? I've posted a link so you can see the difference!

Diphenhydramine is found in Benylin & some OTC sleep remedies - I have some Benylin in the kitchen so if his tablets don't come in soon, I'll give him 1/2 tsp and see how he gets on. He's running around like a lunatic at the minute but still feels really hot to the touch, poor love :? . There is definitely a difference between his and Maxx's temperatures as Maxx just feels 'normal'!

I know he's not himself though because he adores my eldest son (they play rough together & Charlie loves to 'attack' him). However, when Rhys got in from work last night, Charlie didn't even get up from the sofa to greet him and when Rhys went over to tickle his tummy, Charlie pushed his hand away and moaned :(

Will go and check Zack's thread now, I hope he gets better soon, poor baby :lotsaluv:
 
Maxxs_Mummy said:
... Benadryl is available here in all the formulations except for Diphenhydramine HCI (Hydrochloride) ... http://www.pharmacy2u.co.uk/searchresults.asp? I've posted a link so you can see the difference!

for some reason i can't open the link. If i delete the last part, /searchresuls.asp?, the site opens up. but if i leave that part on, the page won't load, it just sits there. I tried deleting it, getting onto the site and then typing benadryl into the search field, but then the page just sits there. don't know what's wrong.

...He's running around like a lunatic at the minute but still feels really hot to the touch, poor love :? . There is definitely a difference between his and Maxx's temperatures as Maxx just feels 'normal'!

How's Charlie doing today? Does he still feel hot?

I know he's not himself though because he adores my eldest son (they play rough together & Charlie loves to 'attack' him). However, when Rhys got in from work last night, Charlie didn't even get up from the sofa to greet him and when Rhys went over to tickle his tummy, Charlie pushed his hand away and moaned :(

It's that kind of thing that tells us when something is wrong, that's when i get worried, when things like that happen.

I hope Charlie is improving--if he has pyoderma, maybe that can explain his abnormal behavior and moaning. Zack sure was miserable for 3 days. But it was when the lesions appeared that he started acting a little better and steadily improved over the next 24 hours. Anyway, pyoderma, i read, is almost always secondary to something else. So it may not be the lesions that are causing the dog to feel crummy..
 
Hmmmm, that's weird that the page wouldn't open :? Have a look on the Boots website and see if you can open that www.boots.com and type in Benadryl - Boots is probably our biggest chemists chain here.

Charlie's tablets didn't come in until mid afternoon at the Vet's yesterday so I gave him 2.5ml of Benylin (diphenhydramine) which knocked him out :)

He's now had two of his tablets and is still a bit itchy scratchy but nowhere near as much. He's also cooled down loads too :D He must be feeling better as he's running round like a flipping loony having one of his mad zoomy fits :lol:. Maxx doesn't do this anymore as he's too old and dignified so it's nice that Charlie does :D Maxx stands and watches him with this look on his face that semms to say :roll: kids! :roll: .

How is little Zack today? I sure hope he's feeling better :flwr:
 
So pleased that Ickle Wickle Charlie Farley :lol: is feelling better, bless him.

I have TWO running around doing those mad zoomy moments, then they get a bit rough and it all stops! SO funny to watch, and it's lovley to see TedBear play. He forgets everything for a few minutes, but it doesn't last long :(
 
Awwww {{{{{{{{TedBear}}}}}}}} bless your ickle furry paws :flwr: .

It's nice that he has got Jack to run around with though, Nicki. Charlie just runs around like a loony by himself. My friend brought her Cav girl up a couple of weeks ago (the one I looked after, before) but she keeps growling at Charlie and he's scared of her so not much playing went on :lol:
 
Maxxs_Mummy said:
...he's running round like a flipping loony having one of his mad zoomy fits :lol:.

How is little Zack today? I sure hope he's feeling better :flwr:


:lol: dog zoomy fits are great--you're lucky, very entertaining. zack doesn't have zoomy fits. he does do this wiggle waggle thing where he wags his whole body instead of just his tail but he doesnt' zoom around. my last dog that i had before him, Frank, used to have mad zoomy fits. i loved that.

zack is fine and normal now, except for the bumps that are still bothering him--on his upper legs, he has whole areas that are clusters of bumps, and a couple of times today he's been licking them a lot, but they are definitely healing, the scabs crumbling off.

i saw on another thread that you were at the vet with Charlie, hemorrhaging money. i do relate. :? any thing new? any info on what's going on? has he had any bloodwork?
 
He's had bloods taken and also skin scrapings. He's now on antihistamines (Tavegil - clemastine) until we get the results. I am convinced he has SM and has come up in bumps with the stress of it all :roll:
 
poor boy, you said you've suspected SM for a while--what makes you suspicious, the scratching is scary, if no other cause. does he have other possible symptoms too? It must be so scary having gone through discovering it with maxx. does the frusemide keep him feeling ok most of the time? damn disease.

i hope the blood tests come back with some more treatable explanation. Zack's hasn't turned out to be allergy (though i've gotten contradictory messages from vets, including from the same vet)--but one thing that's similar to charlie is that the bumps popped pup later, not in the beginning of the scratching. but in zack's case it was on the 3rd day. i think you said charlie's been scratching for a while.

when if first got zack when he was just under 4 months old, he was scratching a lot, so much that even though i'd always avoided using the insecticides before, i did have Advantage put on him, that's how much he was scratching. and one day he had a screeching shrieking fit while he was scratching, he continued to screech after he stopped scratching and ran in the house. :(. there was no obvious explanation for the scratching, so i was very worried it was SM. but he also had intermittent bloody diarrhea and intermittent vomiting (mostly on different days from the diarrhea) and when that was finally treated successfully after finally being correctly diagnosed, the scratching went away along with the diarrhea and vomiting so it looks like something related to the worms/parasites made him scratch--three negative stool samples and no sign of worms.

so hopefully there might be something like that going on for charlie. 4 out of 5 vets i saw had no idea at all that it could be worms/parasites. he had been dewormed previously.

hoping for the best for you and charlie
 
Thanks Judy. Poor Zack :( he's really been through it, hasn't he?

With Charlie, he does this thing where he is scratching and licking at the same time and he appears to be in a trance - it's almost like a fit of some sorts. He also squeals sometimes when he scratches. He bites his front paws and he sometimes face rubs. Maxx face rubs when he's eaten but as soon as his mouth is clean he stops :lol: He's just a minger who likes to wipe his dinner in my legs or the rug :roll: :lol:

There's just something about Charlie that I can't quite put my finger on, behaviour wise. He's most certainly not 100% normal! We love him all the same but I want to get to the bottom of this and get him the treatment he needs and deserves. After all, he didn't exactly have the best start in life - we're his 4th home and he was only 2 in March (that's not including the breeders home either). None of this was his fault and I know he now feels really secure with us. I do wonder whether he has been abused at some stage too (not in his last two homes for definite). Last week, Maxx was in the recycling bag, helping himself to a takeaway curry carton (he's now got a red chin :roll: ) and I caught him. I took the carton off him, sealed the bag back up and said 'Bad dog' in a stern voice. Maxx knew I meant him and gave me a filthy look, huffed and then went and peed on my water feature in a typical 'up yours' attitude!

Poor Charlie, however, was standing in the garden (I was in the garage) and he immediately ran and hid in between the sheds. It took me ages to coax him out again :( I felt awful but I had to berate Maxx or he'd have thought it was OK!!!!

He's not really a nervous dog but he does cower at certain things. we're trying to break him of this and he is doing OK but it's taking time. I just do not and never will understand anyone who harms animals or terrorises them :(
 
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