Could this be SM?

About 9 weeks ago our 8 year old blenheim came down with a very intense localized itch on her right side that is towards the top of her back. She was in a lot of discomfort so we took her to the vet who first treated her for an allergy. This treatment did not stop the itching so we took her back and we've been treating her for sarcoptic mange. While her itching isn't as bad as it was at first, she is still in mild discomfort on a sporadic basis. Our regular vet and the dermatologist have pretty much ruled out that her itch is a topical itch caused by allergies or mange.

It's crossed our minds and been brought up that she could have SM although she does not have any of the "typical" symptoms. She does not "air scratch" and does not have any sensitivity around her ears, head & neck. She's been very healthy up until now and as I mentioned her itch which came on very suddenly is very localized. She tries to bite, chew, lick it. When i touch the spot it is sensitive. I know this can only be diagnosed with an MRI but does it sound like this could be SM?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

What kind of treatment did your vet give your dog?

Two weeks ago, our seven-month old Cavalier pup suddenly started itching and scratching horribly, and was literally pulling the hair out of her skin, on top of her rump, until it was almost bald. It was really quite horrifying to watch. (and no fleas!)

Our vet put her on Temaril-P and told me if there was relief in 48 hours, it was an environmental allergy, and if no relief in 48 hours, it would be a food allergy.

Sophie got 99% relief in less than 48 hours, so we're sure it is environmental. Vet also said they've seen a LOT of this type problem in the past few weeks. It's been hot and very dry here....

Hope this helps.

One can never be sure, syringomyelia is a complex condition, but it does not sound typical of SM.

I would be taking time to check out other possibilities first

waldor said:

What kind of treatment did your vet give your dog?

Two weeks ago, our seven-month old Cavalier pup suddenly started itching and scratching horribly, and was literally pulling the hair out of her skin, on top of her rump, until it was almost bald. It was really quite horrifying to watch. (and no fleas!)

Our vet put her on Temaril-P and told me if there was relief in 48 hours, it was an environmental allergy, and if no relief in 48 hours, it would be a food allergy.

Sophie got 99% relief in less than 48 hours, so we're sure it is environmental. Vet also said they've seen a LOT of this type problem in the past few weeks. It's been hot and very dry here....

Hope this helps.

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For the allergy, the vet gave her a shot of prednisone in her side as well as some prednisone tablets for us to give her daily and benadryl. This treatment didn't do much for her itch. For the mange we've treated her with revolution, ivermectin, benadryl & prednisone. With this treatment the itching has plateaued but it's still there and the right side does bother her. We put an e-collar on her about a month ago and oddly enough that has been the most effective thing to keep her from scratching her side.

What is Temaril-P?

Because her symptoms are so atypical of SM (from what we understand) and we know from her breeder that her pedigree is relatively SM free we really want to explore all other options before we start her on a trial SM treatment. As a side note we can't do an MRI b/c at 8 years old she has a grade 2-3 heart murmur and our vet advised against it at this point.

Thanks again for all of your thoughts and help. We are stumped!

Well, if no other cause can be found, one idea would be for your vet to consider trying some of the medications for SM -- you can get info on this from Clare Rusbridge's website (link pinned at top of this forum) or download her treatment diagram at www.smcavalier.com.

Again. if no other cause can be found, it may be worthwhile seeing a neurologist anyway as they can do some clinical tests for limb weakness etc that might indicate SM but may not be apparent to a vet.

In other peoples experience how long does it typically take the SM medication to work and does it take the itch away?

After 2 general practioner vets, 1 dermatologist and 1 neurlogist suggested that we give the SM medicine (gambapentin & prednisone) a trial use, we went ahead and started using it last week because we had no idea what else to do.

We aren't seeing a huge improvement. It's been about 8 days. She's still trying to lick bite chew scratch the same area on her right side and she's getting crazy hungry because of the prednisone. We have a follow up with the neurologist next week.

Any other thoughts or ideas of things this could be that we've overlooking? Thanks again!