Sigh...

I have to keep repeating to myself that I love the big dumb dog. Apache is having all sorts of assorted issues right now. The lip thing I can't seem to get to stop completely & is now around the front part of his mouth, now he's had diahrrea for days.... He loses weight every spring and fall due to allergies and all, so I am always thrilled when I can get him up over 70lbs, which is quite rare. I always try very hard to get extra weight on him in the winter, but I've never been able to get him over 75lbs. Most people that see him think he weighs much more than that, but he doesn't. It's mainly fur and the fact that he's always on his toes and his bold personality shines (yes, I said my dog has personality, better than a lot of people I know). He stops eating when his stomach is upset or when he's full (I wish I could learn THAT trick). Every time something happens with him, I'm afraid it will be his 'last' relapse. I do so love him, but occasionally wonder how I can afford to keep him & if he'll survive regardless of how much effort I put in it. So yep, a deep sigh about sums it up right now...

Progress

Apache is making some progress. Not as quickly as I would like, but progress none the less. He's happy and obnoxious as always, but I let him be. He's been doing the whole raw feeding thing for over a week now, but I only started the whole benedryl a couple of days ago. He is still improving, but with the weather steadily getting warmer, I expect a lot more 'interesting' problems to crop up. I'll try and remember to track them & hopefully my 'successful' attempts at cutting them off and putting him back towards remission. He does worry me so.

Chip is doing well while practicing obedience, but every dog is 'perfect' in their own yard. I'm thinking of entering him in a trial in June, but haven't made up my mind yet. I really should get him to more matches/run thrus before then (practice dog shows, much cheaper, and lets you know where your dog is at). I am so not serious enough about these things. I should be practicing daily, but am often too tired to care (not stellar as far as competitive prep is concerned). I need to devote more time to training my own dogs.

Why I track this

I guess for myself as well as others... I forgot that last year around this time Apache got sick, not the whole lip thing (as he never seems to have the same reaction twice), but diahrrea and loss of appetite. I finally remembered that I had given him Benedryl (extremely small dose for his size) for about a month. I have been giving him a tablet at each meal - with all of his other pills - for the past 7 days. His lips are again sealed, but still very pink in the corners. I am also going back to strictly raw feeding schedule for now. He is an expensive boy, I started totaling all his medications and suppliments, and made myself stop - it was rather depressing & I hadn't even taken his food/feeding into consideration. Jeez, what am I doing.

As I said, this is just to possibly help others, and primarily for me to track his progress and declines...

He's such a sweetie though, hates the pills, but a really great dog.

UGH!!

It's never easy with this stupid disease. It was a beautiful/sunny 70 degree day here in Pittsburgh yesterday and today. Of course, yesterday Apache went to the vet and it was uneventful. This morning I notice the corners of his mouth/his lips are drying up and flaking off again!! UGH!! I REALLY hate spring. His inhallent allergies have always been off of the charts, & I've been struggling with whatever reaction he has every year, but fearing this particular allergy response could be his last...which would break my heart.

I could take another day off work and take him to the vet, but honestly, I don't think it would make a difference. They are kindly and try to be helpful, but this is really out of everyone's league (including mine). I'm switching to raw food, keeping him inside and out of the 'pollen' etc.. and hoping/praying for the best...

He does make me crazy, but I love him. This is another example of when I have to stay calm around him when I want to jump up and down and scream at the top of my lungs! Oh well, pray for him (& me too LOL).

Good Vet Visit

Apache's visit to Beaver Animal Clinic went well this morning. It's a bit of a drive for me, but the vet there is willing to work with me and is hopefully tracking all we're learning about CH in a manner that MAY help other vets if they encounter this disease. Apace is doing better than anyone could have hoped or would have guessed. He did crack a tooth on a cooked bone I was quite stupid to give him, since cooked bones are harder and more brittle than raw ones. I've thrown all of them out now, but the damage is done. At some point he's going to need it removed, but both vets hesitate to put him under to do it when it's not bothering him. Before I forget, STRESS can also trigger CH... The most difficult thing I had to do when this whole thing started was not to stress about it around him. If I was crying, which I did a lot in the beginning, he would stress pant & yawn around me, so I was actually making it worse. When I find a lump on him, I just make a mental note, and remember to check there a week later. They occasionally flair up, then disappear again depending what is going on. He does have one CH lump on his ear, but it is one from the original outbreak that never did reabsorb. I know exactly where it is, the vets can never find it without my help, but they know I'm watching it.

Apache sees a lot of vets, obviously, but for different reasons. I do make sure he gets a check up at the holistic vet at least once a year so they can continue to document the progress of this disease and his remission - which I hope will continue forever LOL!!

Side note, these guys are filthy and need a bath. I'm a big fan of those 'self dog washes' that have been cropping up. You go there with your dog, you bathe them, use their tubs, towels, etc... and they clean up - How Great is That?!?!?! Two of my three blow so much coat after a bath I do feel bad leaving the place like that, but I guess that's what they're there for & thank goodness for that!

Allergies

Since it is allergy season & CH is a royal pain during this season, I thought I'd make a post on my experience with my dog's allergies - I have them too, but we're talking dogs LOL.

There are degrees of allergies. Dogs get sneezy, weeping eye type allergies just like we do based on the inhalant type allergies. Food allergies are normally identified as: recurring ear infections, raw/itchy feet, & stomach upset. Apache's problem (ok, one of Apache's problems) is that he has both inhalant and food allergies. Talk to your vet if you think you're looking at food allergies - it's normally grain based (corn meal, etc..), and/or protein based. Protein based (in order of most common to cause reaction in my experience) start with beef, then go to chicken, turkey, pork, lamb, etc.. Apache has allergies to the first 4 every time he even accidentally encounters them, but the lamb depends on where it's from & if there are hormones, etc.. involved. Any food based allergy response should move to food 'trials', but you have to be extremely patient, as the switch to a new food should be gradual and then monitored for at least 3 weeks once the dog is entirely on a new food. Your vet can help you with that though, as food allergies are actually becoming pretty common in dogs. Inhalant allergies are trickier actually, as you have to find out what it is - most dogs are like people - dust, mold spores, certain plants, etc... Lots of dogs have runny eyes, and sneezing & reverse sneezing as a reaction. I'm not a steroid fan personally, and I know vet's love to prescribe it, but I often reach for a benedryl type allergy product and give the lowest dose imaginable. I know Apache has issues every single spring and the thing with CH is that once he has a reaction and histiocytes start to appear, his body starts to have a reaction to the histiocytes themselves. It can grow exponentially... I have been lucky, as when I switch to an all natural and raw diet for even a week, it tends to allow his body to stop over reacting & recover. I do feed him the most premium and natural dog food I can find on the market when he is in remission, but use the raw to attempt and snap him out of a reaction. Some people ask me why I don't just feed him raw rabbit all the time.... Well, I am afraid if he has a reaction when he's on the raw rabbit that I won't know what to switch him to to try and get him out of it... It's kind of reassuring that I can use it in emergencies, but I'm running out of options & never running out of emergencies with him.

BTW: Apache's lips have healed over and are no longer raw and scabbing over. He ate raw rabbit, rice boiled with vitamins, sweet potatoes, lamb lung, & celery for about 7 full days. His lips are still quite red, but have sealed anyway. We are going to the Holistic vet on Tuesday just to have another set of eyes and to fish for ideas. Unfortunately this disease has resorted me to doing a lot of my own research, weighing what the vet says, and then making a decision (and then praying it's the right one). I have found the holistic vet most responsive to alternative treatments, obviously, but he has also prescibed things to help the dog's immune system (CH does havoc on their immune system, as it is an auto immune disease). I don't recommend discounting your vet entirely, but if it's something they've never treated or seen, make sure you also do your own research and come armed with any information you think may be helpful for them and your dog (and potentially any dog they may see after)...