Canceling our visit with other Cavs...for a sad reason

[GraciesMom]

By any chance do Gracies eye tears smell weird? I am a bit worried about Coco's eyes now because when they do get weepy it is clear, but smells kinda funky.

Vet said that is same thing in her ears... yeast. The high humidity here past 4 weeks is likely a factor along with the resulting fungus that grows on everything in the summer. If only affecting her eyes, I think there are drops you can get for just that.

[Karlin]

Really sorry you are in this difficult situation of not knowing what is going on.

I think I'd be inclined to guess the sudden things and head shaking are maybe more likely to be some other cause than SM or PSOM unless you have been seeing things going on for a while and this isa slow build to this behaviour. That kind of behaviour is pretty typical of ear mites if it just suddenly starts up.

At the same time, if there are issues on walks then you may be looking at SM or PSOM. If the scratching is air scratching it is unlikely to be PSOM. Probably less likely to be PSOm with scratching on both sides as well. Perhaps just CM on its own.

The difficulty is it could be a transient ear issue but an underlying problems with something neurological or PSOM. Only an MRI will give you some idea. However if the vet turns up something to do with her ears I'd treat that and hold off on a neurologist until you see if other symptoms remain persistent or increase.

It is very, very frustrating that the neurological issues are so much harder and costly to diagnose and that symptoms are often so close to other simpler health issues. Best of luck with the vet.

[GraciesMom]

It is clear that the vet himself is not sure this is all about the ear infection and allergies. We are going to treat that first and see if it helps the other symptoms or not. Gracie had a period of this early on... at 8 months or so. Mostly scratching on walks, but no major head shaking. She got better and very little scratching on walks for months until this past week. There are times I wish I had the money to just get the MRI done anyway for peace of mind.... but going to try this route first. I also will go to a different vet if this does not work out... she is much more knowledgeable about Cav issues generally and has better connections with vets at North Carolina State University and other specialists.

Really sorry you are in this difficult situation of not knowing what is going on.

I think I'd be inclined to guess the sudden things and head shaking are maybe more likely to be some other cause than SM or PSOM unless you have been seeing things going on for a while and this isa slow build to this behaviour. That kind of behaviour is pretty typical of ear mites if it just suddenly starts up.

At the same time, if there are issues on walks then you may be looking at SM or PSOM. If the scratching is air scratching it is unlikely to be PSOM. Probably less likely to be PSOm with scratching on both sides as well. Perhaps just CM on its own.

The difficulty is it could be a transient ear issue but an underlying problems with something neurological or PSOM. Only an MRI will give you some idea. However if the vet turns up something to do with her ears I'd treat that and hold off on a neurologist until you see if other symptoms remain persistent or increase.

It is very, very frustrating that the neurological issues are so much harder and costly to diagnose and that symptoms are often so close to other simpler health issues. Best of luck with the vet.

[LoneStar Hoopy]

He did find a moderate ear inflammation with yeast... and yeast in eye discharge too. He Said Gracie also sounded a bit congested....and I agree. So we do have new ear cleanser and ear drop meds called Mometamax. He also wants her to take an allergy med that has prednisone in it and am not so crazy about that. It is called Temeril-P. Any thoughts on that med??Anyway...he did see a bit of her head shaking and scratching. His thoughts are to see where we are in about a week. He is familiar with SM and PSOM, but not totally. He did say he was not sure the treatments would fully address her symptoms, but give it a try. He did add that he knows a vet who has treated these conditions and would talk to him. I think he said it was Dr. Olby at NC State University. Karlin, you may want to move this to Health and Diet since we have now moved on to treatment.That is all I can report for now. Thanks for your support and knowledge.

I hope this has all been down to her ears. At our clinic they are now introducing a new ear med called Posatex. It seems to be getting better results with not as many dogs needing refills. Temaril-P is a fantastic rx that is on high demand during allergy season, we are currently on back order of 4 months at out clinic, so Bobo is taking 1/2 tab pred twice daily & 25mg benadryl. I'm not for giving lots of meds but I do prefer the Temaril-P!

Hope it all goes well.

[Blondiemonster]

Mine does this occasionally. Scratching at both ears and cinstantly shaking her head especially right after as if trying to clear somrmething. It cones out of nowhere and can last a few days. She does have psom. Hope u find out soon... I hate to hear this news.

[mommytoClaire]

Did you decide to go ahead and try the Momentamax this time around? But do think about the Zymox for the future. I know you will be happy with it.Keeping you and Gracie in my prayers. Won't your insurance pay for the MRI?

[GraciesMom]

Did you decide to go ahead and try the Momentamax this time around? But do think about the Zymox for the future. I know you will be happy with it.Keeping you and Gracie in my prayers. Won't your insurance pay for the MRI?

Hey...I am trying the Mometamax just for this round but have ordered Zymox. It should arrive this week. I do think the Mometamax is a VERY bad idea for any dogs older than 5 years based on what I was reading after you brought this up. Looks like worst issues have happened with older dogs, like my neighbor's pug.

So far, her symptoms are much better, but somewhat hard to tell with the other medication making her so sleepy. But so far, much less scratching. I also found a well hidden mat under one front leg that I clearly had missed and cut it out. I also ordered some Thorn It to help with red itchy area around her mouth. She gets that after she goes outside and sniffs in the grass. Not sure what it is causing it, but something is!!!!

If her symptoms do not improve significantly and stay improved, we will look at neurological referral to local vet school, which is very well respected. I have 2 good names already. Insurance would pay for MRI but only if a neurologist orders it. So that may be down the road but so far the allergy and ear treatments eliminating some symptoms that worried me. Thanks so much for checking on her.

[Cathy T]

Just now seeing this.....temaril-P is excellent in the short term. I've used it on Jake (flea allergy dermatitis) but prefer to address the origin of the problem (fleas) rather than just the behavior (scratching). The Temaril-P stops the scratching so we nip the problem before it gets to hot spots. I've learned now that when he starts scratching we need to address the skin right away.

As far as the ears...I've been using K-9 liquid health ear solution for about 3 years now and with 3 dogs, knock on wood, haven't had an ear issue in those 3 years. I clean the ears with the solution about every 10 days.