The Derm Diary was written by Lianne McLeod DVM about two of her dogs, Asia and Simba, two itchy dogs with skin allergies. Many viewers followed along, hopeful that there would be a "magic answer" at the end of the story, after visits with veterinary specialists and various medications. In this final update, Lianne gives viewers a recap of what they have tried and how her beloved dogs are doing today, two years later. She also sent in a few updated photos of Simba and Asia, along with two new canine additions to the family.
Dermatology Diary Table of contents
Dermatology Photo Gallery
Derm Diary "chapters"
Part 1 |
Part 2 |
Part 3 |
Part 4 |
Part 5 |
Part 6 |
Part 7
Part 8 |
From Lianne McLeod DVM
Update Jan 2010: Two Years Later and Counting ...
Not much has changed with Simba and Asia since my last entry in the dermatology diary, which I just realized was well over 2 years ago (!). I am little saddened to realize that we are at pretty much exactly the same spot as we were way back then.
We eventually elected to skip the attempt at desensitization. It had a lot of potential for making things worse with having to lower the dose of prednisone (the only medication that ever seemed to help with the itching) with not much promise of helping. In the end, though keeping them on prednisone for the rest of their lives is not ideal, it does make them feel better and we decided that is the most important thing to achieve. I worried about having them on prednisone continuously, but they have tolerated it fairly well (knock on wood).
They do have very thin coats which may be at least in part due to the prednisone, and they have a bit of a pot-bellied appearance which can be a side effect of prednisone (sometimes due to weight gain but also due to weakening of the abdominal muscles – the latter being more noticeable on Asia because she is very lean otherwise. Simba’s belly is more in keeping with his general weight issues!). So far they have avoided other potentially more severe side effects, and my fingers are crossed that it will stay that way.
About a year ago, we did try them each on a series of doses of a medication called Ivermectin, at doses effective against Sarcoptes mites (external parasites that can cause severe skin problems). A veterinary dermatologist I spoke to at a conference recommended treating for Sarcoptes as a routine course of action in the early diagnostic phase of any itchy dog case, because the mites can be difficult to detect but respond dramatically to treatment. Simba and Asia did not really fit the profile for sarcoptic mange, but at this point we felt it couldn’t hurt and it would be awful to miss such an easy solution if it worked. However, no effect at all was noted after treatment. Sad, but not unexpected.
So, here we are. Simba needs antibiotics probably 2-3 times a year when he flares up badly and ends up with infected skin. For a while he seemed a bit resistant to treatment with antibiotics, and he ended up on a six-week course of the antibiotics. Since then he has responded very well and seems to need the antibiotics less often. I adjust their prednisone to the lowest dose possible based on their symptoms at any given time (they are definitely more itchy in the fall). Asia is not as badly affected as Simba; she has rarely taken antibiotics and I keep her on lower doses of prednisone than Simba. She doesn’t seem to get as excruciatingly itchy as Simba, but I can tell when she needs a little dosage boost because her skin gets very red.
This journey has been incredibly frustrating –- but mainly because I wish every day that they did not have to go through having these severe allergies. They are such wonderful dogs we have been blessed to have them in our lives, no matter where this journey takes us!
