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[MurphyMann]

Hello Everyone,

Before I begin I just want to thank everyone for sharing their stories with me.  I am just devasted about this diagnosis for our 5 year old Golden Retriever Murphy, and everyone's feedback and information has been wonderful.  We never heard of blastomycosis before yesterday, and while the vet said that it is rare in Saskatchewan, Canada...I am beginning to see that there are so many pets that are sufferring from this terrible disease.  He had his first dose of Intraconazole yesterday, and today he is favoring his hind leg...which is a new symptom for him.  I understand from some comments that he might get worse before better..so I am curious when I could hope to see some improvements?

We took him in 2 weeks ago, because the side of his face swelled and lymph nodes were swollen, so the vet removed an absessed tooth.  After 7 days of antibiotics after that surgery, and still no reduction in swelling...I took him back to the vet where they biopsied his swollen lymph - and that is when they found the blastomycosis. Our pup has really gone through the ringer lately, and while he seems very tired, he has still been eating and drinking some.

We are worried about Murphy's future, but are prepared to do what we have to to see this through.  Once again, thank you everyone for your insightful information.  My thoughts and prayers are with all you and your four legged friends.

[Lolasmom]

I'm sorry to here about your pup, but you've found the best place for this terrible disease. 

All Blasto comes in different forms and NOTHING is normal.  The one constant is that it does tend to get worse before it get better.  Typically the 3rd day of treatment it starts to get bad.  By about the 7-10th day it starts getting easier.  It can be a real roller coaster for the first month or so but YOU CAN BEAT this.   Stay strong and know there are many of here to lean on. 

Any eye or lung envolvement?  Lose of appitite?  Have you read the new members info?

[MurphyMann]

Murphy did have an xray that showed some signs of blasto.  He began coughing in the last 4 days on occassion.  The vet seems to think we are early in the disease so that gives me some hope.  She checked both of his eyes before we left with an otoscope...and said that they were clear..but I am concerned because his left eye is tearing.  (this is the same side of his face that the 2 teeth were removed, and the vet said that the infection from the abscess had gone into the sinus cavity - and thats why he might be tearing up)

What are the odds that we take him in for a dental surgery...and a few days later he is diagnosed with this awful disease??  We are already up to $2000 in vet bills between the dental surgery, xrays, labs tests, biopsy antibiotics and Metacam (NSAIDS)...we just got the prescription for the first month of Itra which was $299.  Thank you everyone for all your good tips on possibly where to find the Itra a little less expensively!  We are kinda regretting not getting pet insurance now...

Ive spent some time looking at some of the fantastic posts...this information has been great...and thank you for your kind words Lola's Mom...your support helps more than you know!

 Im still pretty new at this blogging thing...so if I figure out how to do an attachment...I will put on a pic of Murphy's Xray.

[benniesmom]

 Hi. Welcome to the board. We are all here to help you through this......  so one of the folds who has a lot of eye experience is a apope, Izzies mom.... you might look at her posts. and you should know that if there is eye involvement, you would want to be on lFluconazole, not Itra, asFluco will cross the barrier.. also if there is CNS, central nervous system, involvement..... Itra isn't so effective against those two possibilites. this horrid disease can get going in a lot of places in the body, and it will try to move its home around to lodge somehwere as you fight it off... Your doggie is going to be miserable for a while, but in time the blasto fades away........ I will bump the all important newsletter for you so it wil be at the toop again.
Fight on!
Barb

[Ty823]

Our 5 year old golden retriever is into her 3rd month of Itra treatments and doing great. You would never have known that she was sick. We caught it early and it sounds like you did too, so I hope your pooch has a similar outcome!
Please shop around for your medication as $299 for 1 month is way more than you should be paying (we're paying around $35/month)
This would be the first case I've heard of Blasto coming out as an infected tooth, so they could possibly be unrelated, but who knows. This is a weird, nasty disease. 

[apope43]

My goodness, these diagnoses come in waves!!!!!!! 

Watch the tearing -- that's how Izzy's eye involvement started.  Talk to your vet about fluconazole as an option if the eye is tearing and your pup is favoring a leg. 

Stupid class!!  Be back in a couple of hours for more.......time to put on the blasto armor to help you guys fight (and keep up our own battle!!)
AP

[Lolasmom]

I love that analogy.."time to put on the Blasto Armour and help you fight"!

I am so appreciative for all the support I got on this site that I feel a deep obligation to help others with their battles.

Lolas eye teared for weeks (still does occassionally).  It terrified me.  I'd watched it like a hawk but it never seemed to progress from there.  Lola has mainly lung problems but she did have some swelling in her back legs.  She licked them a lot too.  I think the Blasto effects the joints.  Have you check down around her toe nails for leissions?  That's a common place for them. 
Just. Know we're all here to help you fight and keep your sanity.

[Lolasmom]

This disease is a great pretender.  It can fool you into thinking its any number of things.  I originally took Lola in because she was drooling excessivey. I found out her Heartguard had failed and she had heartworms (stage one). They took an xray of her chest and that's when they found the first spot on her lung.  My vet had no idea what it was at first.  He sent the xrays to a radiologist at Auburn Univ who thought it might be an enlarged throratic lymph.  They put her on immune suppressant steroids and in 2 weeks it was all over her lungs.My vet said Blasto or Cancer. We started antifungals.  Took an antibody test - negative.  Antigen test #1- neg. New xrays back to Auburn - radiologist couldn't differetiate cancer or blasto.  My vet theorized that the Dexamethasone may have thrown off the test.  We waited 3 wks past any steroid and did another antigen test - positive.  It took 89 days.  But I'm lucky because my vet suspected Blasto.  Who knows how manydogs are put down because it isn't suspected.  So the heartworms pobably saved her life.  Maybe your pups bad tooth saved his?  And the Heartguard company is gonna pick up the tab for treatment when we get there.  Still.....I've spent a fortune.

[MurphyMann]

Oh my goodness!  We are overwhelmed by everyone's kindness, and cant thank you all enough for your support, and information.  Bless you all and your 4 legged families!!!   

[MurphyMann]

...by the way your dogs are all so beautiful!!  Thank you for sharing your photos...its nice to have names to go with muzzles!   

[benniesmom]

Your dog is beautiful, too. Courage! Fight on. It is a war. Many do so well. especially dogs whose people look for help here....... and know that it is different for each and every dog, the only normal is anything .... and we are here for you!
Barb

[apope43]

You mentioned the abcessed tooth...it may be that the infection at the root was blasto.  Izzy had a mouth sore for a while, that thankfully started draining quickly.  Could have been your warning side -- who knows how long it would have been if the tooth hadn't been taken care of!

[Lolasmom]

Wow... come to think of it....so did Lola.  When she started drooling, I couldn't even touch her face.  She would yelp if she even thought I was going to touch her mouth.  Initially, that was what I thought was going on. I thought she had a bad tooth or something stuck in her mouth.  My vet had to put her to sleep to do a full mouth exam. 

Here's something else interesting that happened with Lola.   At one point my vet went to take blood from her neck.  His assistant took a hold of her head and chest and pulled her towards herself to hold her.  Just then Lola went limp and fell to the ground.  My vet said his first thought was that she died.  Then he looked at her and before he could say "this dog is having a seizure" she was back up on her feet and fine. He determined it was from pain.  Maybe when the vet tech pulled her head towards her?  So wierd! 

[Cosmo]

Hoping the best for Murphy!
Jacci

[MurphyMann]

Good News everyone!

So far Murphy has responded well to the Itra!    Thank you for all your support, prayers, and crossed fingers and puppy paws!

He regained full use of his back legs, and is able to go for walks no problem now.  His depression and fatigue has also lifted which is really nice to see as well.  At one point the lmyph nodes in his neck were about the size of a grapefruit, but they have also gone down substatially.  I was very concerned about weight loss for him because at first his appetite was not great - and he is already a very lean and active dog....so we have been feeding him liverwurst, hotdogs, and weiners to get the medicine down...(he really hates the medicine-but loves the food that Im hiding it in!)...so he has gained about 8 lbs right now, which is not a problem given that he is generally quite a lean Golden retriever. 

The vet has been really great, we took him in to check his liver enzymes, and biopsied the lymph again.  His liver seems to be ok, with the Itra so far (fingers crossed), but his biopsy is still showing that the blasto is still in his system.  The vet has recommended that we monitor his blood work and re-biopsy monthly, and continue with the Itra until we are sure the blasto is gone.   Its a long haul - but we are so happy that our Murphy has been responding well to the treatment!  Thank you everyone for you support...Im not sure I could have gotten through all this without your words of wisdom and the knowledge learned through this site!!  I will continue to keep updating as we go along through the process.