When did your dog first show symptoms of blasto?

[carolh]

Good idea, Kash, to data mine the forum for when blasto symptoms first became obvious.  I'm sure my vet would be interested in results and would have connections for passing along  the info where it might be useful.  So I hope we get a lot of responses.  I'll create a handmade chart so I can take results to him.

Mika's first appearance was in November.  Relapse in January.
Zephyr (died in 94) was first symptomatic in Dec.

Carol

[Jen]

Good idea.  Sad to think about though. 

  Bud, Henry and Curly all showed the same symptoms (non-productive cough and wasting) in May, and all 3 died in June.  That was not long after my huge dump-truck-loads-of-mulch project, spring of 2006. 
  Charlie followed with the same symptoms, but he presented and died very quickly in November.  Dirtbike came here to live in December, and got sick by April of 2007.  She was the only one that lasted long enough to present with lesions (possibly because she was only a year old).  She was also the only one to be diagnosed, treated and to recover.  
   At about that time, I was almost done in with pneumonia and my joints had become so swollen and arthritic that I could barely walk or move, and I didn't know why.  I'm a lot better now, but the joints are still burned out, I have a permanent limp, a handicap tag, and crutches in my car in case of emergency.
   After that, I worked to make sure that stuff was tilled under, sprayed daily with bleach, dried out, grass sown over it...

   That's too much lost to something so menial as mulch and as regrettable as ignorance.  
I remember how hard I worked, wheeling and spreading those huge piles while the dogs dug and rolled, having a wonderful time.  I also remember thinking, "Geeze this stuff is kind of dusty & mouldy...wonder if I can spread it all before it heats up and catches fire?"  I had no idea at the time, but looking back on it, I'm just mortified and so full of regret.

  

[ZoethePug]

Zoe first showed signs of Blasto in mid April of '08.  Her symptoms began with a urinary tract infection followed by the cough a few days later.  Depression, lethargy and breathing problems followed about a week after that.  When began treating her for blasto (although it went undiagnosed until June 2nd) the 2nd week of May, which was when the vet finally listened to me a took a chest x-ray.  She died on June 4th, 2008 and she had just turned 5.

[Wilson3]

July 2006   Wilson got a puncher wound on inner thigh causing air to go under his skin       
               It is beleive, because of Wilsons life style he could be exposed to it all the time,That   
              that this is how wilson got blasto through the wound one being it started then
                  after  it happen and second he favored that leg and hit his lungs last
Nov 2006  last 4 month would favor that leg when out on long runs playing frisbee any exercise

end of Nov it finally started to really take hold worse everyday spent nights in ICU
 
Jan 2007 finally we found out and treatment started he was on treatment for 8 months


i have read many times that a dog or even a human can have the spores in the body but when the immun system is not stressed the body can keep it under control and dogs may have it and we never know only "if" the body is stressed will it take hold


good idea to make a chart
wilson3

[carolh]

I've begun a chart.  The stress theory, and the understanding that cold does cause stress, is a good one.

JEN,  have you been tested for Lyme's disease?  Your symptoms sound like the aftermath of untreated Lyme's.  Certainly worth checking.  We're not only in blasto central but also in Lyme's and erlichyiosis central.  My husband as had Lyme's twice and I've had erlichyosis twice.  Fortunately, docs always check for that around here and we've been lucky that we can kick the disease so far.  Untreated Lyme's is really devastating.  It causes arthritis and can move into the nervous system.  Please get that checked.

Carol

[Jen]

  You are right, Carol.  My doctor hasn't checked, but he did mention that it could be burned out Lyme Disease.  He also says that it wouldn't make a difference now anyway; as the damage is done. They never did understand what "wildcrafting" was, and that it was how I made a living at the time.
It's ok.  I've taken the lesson(s) learned, and won't make the same mistakes again. Between the dogs and my mom, I've seen enough fungal infections to last me a lifetime. Hopefully.

j

[carolh]

Jen,
Your doctor is dead wrong.  Lyme's doesn't "burn out."  Yes, damage is done but it is a "gift" that can keep on giving and there is something that can be done about it.  Please, do the research!  Get the test.  Best to you, Carol

[mhitesman]

Comet's first visible symptoms were an eye "infection" which was misdiagnosed a number of times before blasto.  Prior to that, however, he had months of treatments for chronic ear infections, including two back to back ear hematoma surgeries where no ear infection was found -- all on the same side as infected eye.  So, he was on constant antibiotics as well as steroids for months, suppressing his immune system (if not otherwise related directly to blasto) and making him more susceptible.

Not one ear infection or hematoma since blasto.

[Kash-]

Knight became symptomatic in January.

While we were living in Michigan's Upper peninsula at the time, we were frequent travelers to Central Wisconsin and had hunted in 5 states that fall.  So there's no possibility of determining were the exposure happened.  Although the U.P. and Central Wisconsin are both good and likely culprits.

Knight had a swollen front leg that rapidly (I mean really rapidly) expanded up the leg and then a toe erupted with a draining sore.  We waited about 4 or 5 days for Marshfield clinic's cytology to culture for blasto, but put him on Sporonox a day before the results were in.

I'd also bring up, again, (I know, I'm a broken record) that we used a combination of Ampho-B and Sporonox.  It's my highly emotional and anecdotal opinion that using Ampho-b to break the high fever was crucial to our personal success.  But Knight was a very strong and fit candidate for this therapy.  As much as I'm a proponent for combination therapy, I'd equally reject the combination for weak or otherwise compromised dogs.

I think that a competent vet that's well versed in Blasto is probably more important to successful treatment.