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[Carrie]

My beloved dog Molly began her fight with blastomycosis unknowingly in June.  She was misdiagnosed with kennel cough and given antibiotics.  The antibiotics helped a bit, but within weeks she began her annoying cough again, we chalked it up to allergies, she was sneezing and coughing quite a bit.  Unfortunately it slowly got worse, so in August we returned, they took x-rays and put her on two weeks of antibiotics for pneumonia.  Didn't help, she was really struggling took her back again, the x-rays showed no difference in her lungs so they did a stronger antibiotic thinking it was a really bad case of pneumonia.  As you can tell now, September we returned she was coughing and gasping, finally the vet said you need a specialist I think I was wrong it could be a fungus.

It's all been downhill from there.  Molly is on Spornax twice a day, but has completely stopped eating.  I have researched this awful disease like crazy and have been reading your posts for a month gathering advice and ideas on how to help her.  It truly has been a Godsend.  Today, I finally am brave enough to write and say I am at a loss.  She is being force fed, down to less than half of her body weight, all of her bones are showing and I have no idea what to do.  I have been giving her butter, peanut butter and Ensure forcing it down her mouth and holding it shut to get at least some nutrition and her medicine down her.  Yesterday, finally I thought this is not a life for her, she has stopped coughing except when someone comes in the room or to the house, but I don't know what to do with her.  I had a glimmer of hope last night I set a fresh cooked turkey in front of her and she ate several bites (like 6).  Today, she turns her head again and refuses to even look at food.

Should I continue the meds?  Should I accept we have done all we can for her and the great fight she has put on?  How long do they not eat?  How small can they get?  I need advice from the pioneers of this disease, the meds have been in her system for 3 weeks, how long before they start to eat?   

[evayola]

I am so sorry Carrie that you have to join us here because of this awful disease. My advice that I give may not be right so I would run it past your vet first. This is what we did with Marge, we allowed her to have a "break" from her meds for 2 days and then when we started it again, we gave her a low dosage and worked our way up. How much does Molly weigh and how many mg are you giving her? Obviously every dog is different and reacts differently to medication. My heart breaks for you that you have to experience such extreme weight loss. It is a hard battle that many of us have fought. Molly seems like a fighter so you gotta help her out. Ask your vet what the range is for the mg for Mollys weight. Marge's dosage can range from 300-600 mg daily and she weighs 145 lbs. Where are you located? Does your vet have any experience with blasto? It sounds as though you have tried everything to feed her. Marge lost 25 lbs when she was sick but she is a st bernard so that is very very skinny for her. Has she been keeping her food down? I really hope that your vet gives you some suggestions. Have you thought of giving subcue fluids at home? When the dogs arent eating or drinking they become very dehydrated so getting liquids in her is vital. When we started giving Marge fluids at home it was amazing how much it helped her bounce back. If you need anything else please ask away! We are all here to help. Hang in there and stay very positive for Molly! She needs to make sure you arent upset at her or that she is letting you down.

Hugs,
Eva

[Carrie]

Eva,

Thank you for your kind words.  Our vet has not had experience with this, so it's been difficult.  I have been learning from this site and the research I have been doing online.  Molly is a small lab mix we rescued from the pound when she was 8 weeks old and she is now 6 years old.  She weighed 40 pounds, but now is about 25-28 lbs.  She was taking 200 mg spornax in the am and pm.  I didn't know if others had tried a break for a couple of days.  Your encouraging words mean a lot, I just want to make sure we are doing the right thing for her and not making her suffer for selfish reasons.  I will try to continue getting fat into her and pray we see some improvement.  I did not expect the highs and lows of this disease and definitely the lows are tough on her and those of us watching.  I will keep you posted and keep looking at everyone's ideas on how to pull her through.

Thank you,
Carrie

[carolh]

Hi Carrie,

We're all standing with you as you tackle one of  the toughest jobs in the world, watching a loved one suffer.  As you read through posts, you'll find that sometimes even when owners thought it was hopeless, people went on and their dogs pulled through.  Sometimes they went on and the dog didn't make it.  Keep trying everything that Molly may respond to.  A friend of mine here got KFC every day for her dog and it worked.  By that, I mean Orion would take an occasional bite but it was enough to help him survive.  You are doing yoeman's duty with the force feeding.  There are others on this forum who have done the same.  Some have happy outcomes. 

Ask your vet if he/she knows of someone practicing in a blasto ridden area and see if you can get a referral for a phone conference.  You need a good experienced vet in your corner.  Otherwise, call the Univ of Wisconsin Veterinary School in Madison, WI and ask to talk with someone knowledgeable about blasto (they are doing lots of research on the disease there).

Were with you, sending good thoughts of support your way.

Carol

[evayola]

I looked back at the chart for dosage for itra and based on 40 lbs, molly should be getting 183 mg/daily and thats on the high end. It says 5-10mg per kg. Breaking down her weight to kg she is 18.14 kg so *I* personally think she is on way too high of a dose and that could be it. If I were you, I would cut her pills down to once a day. I will bump the post back up to the top for you to see. Wilson copied it out of the vet journal.

Eva

[gunner]

Sorry to hear of your battle with blasto.  I agree with Eva that I think the dosage is too high.  Gunner weighed 50 lbs and was on 100mg/day.  The disease will make them annorexic and the meds do that sometimes as well.  I think too much medication will be sure to turn their stomach to food. 

When I was force feeding Gunner, I got a/d dog food from the vet, mixed it with ensure plus and used a large syringe to squeeze it slowly just inside her jowls and on the outside of her back molars.  She was able to get enough calories into her that way and she didn't seem to mind too much either.  I just held her head slightly elevated to let gravity do it's work and didn't have to hold her mouth shut because it entered at the back of her mouth and about her only option was to swallow.  She didn't fight.  You have to be sure to go slow enough so that she doesn't drown.  It is difficult when you are getting started at force feeding but you will be deft at it in no time, just don't give up the fight.  I think if you back down from the medication a bit, she will get on much better.  HANG IN THERE!
All the best to you both,
Joyce

[Jen]

Hi Carrie-
   I can't help but agree that the dose seems high.  Dirtbike was about 66 lbs (down from about 100) when diagnosed.  She was given 150 mg. of Itra per day.  At about the 3 week mark though, she was around 45 lbs and exhibiting the same behavior you are dealing with, and had to be force-fed for some time.  This was also about the time that she turned around and began getting better - just when I was almost ready to put her down.  Take everything as it comes - blasto is very unpredictable.   
Good luck-
jen
   

[Carrie]

Thank you everyone for your wisdom.  Molly ate a couple of bites of turkey tonight, about 3.  I was so excited, little things like that give me hope.  I will definitely call Wisconsin to talk with an expert, lower her meds tomorrow and continue force feeding.  This weekend I had finally come to terms with possibly needing to put her down, but now I feel hopeful again.  Thank you.

Carrie

[Cathy, Bailey and Duke]

Hi,
  My Duke almost died twice from Blasto!! Please do not give up hope!!!!! Don't forget, feed fat with the sporanox, it absorbs much better!!!! Salami works great and they love it!  Great thoughts for Molly coming your way!!!!! (HUGS) Cathy

[evayola]

With this disease there are so many ups and downs. You have to keep your eye on the prize which is getting Molly better. It is truly amazing at how excited we can get over something so small as watching them take a bite of food. I know that it takes a lot for them and they want nothing more than to please you. I will be praying for Molly and hopefully cutting her dosage down will do wonders. I can imagine that taking such an extreme dose gives extreme side effects. Make sure you monitor those kidneys and liver too. Give Molly tons of hugs from us!

Eva & Marge

[Wilson3]

I am so sorry to hear about Molly
i agree she sure sounds like a fighter 
I also agree her dose sounds very high
wilson weighed around 50 pounds
he was on 125mg  2x's a day for 10 days I was told no longer then that ( they wanted only 7days days at this but I Begged to do it for a few more days because he was so bad but his vet sad NO longer then the 10 days at such a high dose it wasn't safe)
then 125mg for 3 months and then we incressed it to 175mg for 5 months his was increase because it seemed he was not improving as well any more kind of staying the same 175mg was the highest "safe" dose for his weight
It sounds promising Molly is eating a bit and every bit counts praise her up like crazy when she does the high baby talk that gets them so excited
always stay positive Molly knows when you worry to much and stat doubting
you will will know in your heart if Molly has given up when you look at her it sure sounds like she has not
many had sad Wilson would never make it ,he did as many others where also told
I tell everyone this... sit with Molly and talk to her about the happy times and the fun things you still want to do picture them in you mind
tell her just how much you love her always and how much you need her but also let her know you are ok with what ever she decides on doing
and lots of praise for everything she does (which I am sure you already do  )
Molly is very lucky to have you as you her you guys have come a long way already you will have a long way to go still but the battle of knowing what she has finailly is good wilson would really only show improvement once a week
he was on treatment for 8 months but now 2 yrs later he is greater then ever
please keep us poste and like eva said ask anything on here someone will have an idea
as for feeding right now feed anything that she will eat smelly stuff worked great with wilson i also would hand feed him with a spoon I prentend to eat it myself going mmmmmm this is soooo good then i would offer him some it did help my other 2 dogs would stand there drouling so that encouraged him to eat
your family is in my thoughts
wilson3
 

[Teddy]

Carrie,
So sorry to hear about the struggle that your beloved Molly is going through. It's a hard thing to see a member of your family suffer. I layed home next to my dog Ted just a short month ago wondering how many more of those hard labored breaths he could take.
You are getting good advice about Molly's dose here. In the research I have done recently the recommendation for dogs is 5mg/kg/day some papers suggest that 10mg/kg is recommended. I have read that dogs do as well on the 5mg/kg dose if they are to be cured by Intraconozole as they do on 10mg/kg/day, with fewer incidence of negative side effects. So Molly weighing 25kg right now makes her 11.3398kg x 5=56.69.   
My dog Ted at 108 pounds was on 300mg/day with no results. The doc upped the dose to 500mg and he started to come around. I was getting anxious about the mega dose he was getting and did alot of reading that convinced me to adjust the dose. After about 2 weeks we reduced his doze to 240mg/ day and he is now doing well.   I never thought I would be so happy to see him beg again!
Ted has never been a very big drinker, but when we started these meds I spent alot of time splashing around in his water bowl trying to get him to drink, and was grateful for any little drop of water I could get into him. The water is important. Both my husband and my neice have since been diagnosed with Blasto. Both had to be put onto IV fluids during there hospital stays due to dyhydration from the fevers and anorexia they experienced. I would suspect Molly also may be dehydrated, I am sure she too has a fever fighting this thing!
Good luck to you and Molly. Sending Big Hugs and Puppy pats!

[Carrie]

WOW!  I am feeling really energized from everyone's positive encouragement!  I honestly was not prepared for the ups and downs, but feel like the knowledge I am getting from everyone is priceless.  Molly has taken a few bites each day since Sunday.  I tried buying a McDonalds burger for her last night, thinking it smelled pretty good, but she wouldn't even think of it.  Our other dog (Lucy, who is overweight) was more than happy to help her out:)...  We cut down the medicine and she seems more responsive, I am so thankful for your wisdom, it could really help us save her life.  I will continue keeping everyone in the loop and loved the idea of salami (I am stopping by the store on my way home) keep your fingers crossed.  I am praying for each one of you and your dogs.

Carrie

[Cathy, Bailey and Duke]

 For sure keeping my fingers crossed for the salami. Another one I thought of was liver sausage, not as much fat but might be tempting. Also scrambled eggs. Cathy

[Cathy, Bailey and Duke]

Oh, I forgot, melted ice cream (not chocolate though) The vet told me about the ice cream.