Low platelets and higher WBC - very lethargic Husky needs help!

[ehsang]

My dog, Kobi, is a Husky, about 4.5 years old. Last vaccinations were done when he was about 6 months old. Everything has been fine up until recently.

Kobi started vomiting about 5 days ago and stopped eating about 2 days ago. We took him to hospital on Sunday. After 5 hours of exam and tests here is the problem:

Low platelets, high WBC, no diagnosis. X-ray only shows a lot of gas in the duodenum, small intestines area;

Otherwise, stomach, spleen, lungs, large intestines, liver, and kidneys were ok. No sign of diabetes, Parvo test was negative.

The resident doctor said she does not really know why the platelets are low and would need to do ultrasound to test for pancreatitis, lymph nodes, etc.

Subcutaneous fluids and anti-vomiting medication were injected.

She sent us home asking us to watch for three signs: vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy.

After about 36 hours, Kobi is drinking, eating, NOT vomiting, no diarrhea, but very lethargic. There are bouts of play and activity for about 5 minutes, but then he lies down and doesn't want to move the rest of the day.

Any ideas? Shall we go do the ultrasound? Shall we change the vet?

Outside third party blood test results were normal, the doc says. A little higher glucose levels but doctor said may be due to the blood sitting there for 24 hrs.

I checked the postings here earlier and here are some other observations:

We don't use products made in China. We also don't have rat poison lying around.

In our backyard, there are lots of flies and bugs coming from surrounding creek; We also have some construction materials lying around because we are making improvements to the backyard, putting in a pond. I was worried that maybe Kobi is infected by some kind of disease via insect bites or by chemical poisoning by maybe licking some kind of building material like cement, chalk, or cleaning solution. I really don't know but these are possible.


Please help ;) We don't want to lose our Kobi! What other tests or exams can be done or should be requested?

Thanks,

[Jaybay]

It's definitely time to move on to further testing, so I would opt for the ultrasound as a logical next step.  If your vet is still baffled after that, you can ask to go to a referral specialist hospital like a university.

If you haven't already done so, please copy your post and put it on the Ask a Vet forum here at Med Help.  Participation is free, but I believe there is a 4 question per day limit, so keep trying.  I'm sure either Dr. Cheng or Dr. Sims will have some good suggestions for you to discuss with your vet.

Keep us posted, OK?

[lonewolf07]

I have had Siberian huskies for years and they can get really sick and hide it really well.  I agree with Jaybay - try asking the MH vets and if you have confidence in your vet have the test done - it's painless or find another vet.  Huskies are worth it; all dogs are worth it.

Hope he is alright.  Good thoughts and some milkbone to Kobi from Miss Puff, husky princess  = )

[sassys_dad]

don't know much but i will share my experience a little.  Hope it helps.  If you haven't already have your dogs blood tested for bile content.  It can give difinitive answers concerning liver shunts which are very treatable, but can be deadly if not caught early enough.  My dog Sassy exhibited lethargy, loss of appetite, increased drinking......and we may have waited too long.  She is now in an almost comatose state trying to clean her body toxins caused by the shunt to get her healthy enough to have the surgery.  If her liver is still even 15% funtional she has a good chance at survival.  Only time will tell.  

[ehsang]

Hi everyone,

Thank you all for your caring and thoughtful responses. I have good news: Kobi started to get better. Every night he got better and ate more. In the mornings, he was still lethargic to some extent but every day he gained more energy to the point that he is now almost back to normal. We still don't know exactly what caused the whole sickness, whether it was bugs, chemicals, or anything else.

I checked with the vet and she said we can bring him to do a follow up check-up and take care of some vaccinations next week. Please keep your fingers crossed that Kobi is going to do much better.

Thank you all so much for your support ;)

Ehsan.

[ehsang]

Hi all,

Kobi is now all fine, at least on the surface. He eats well and is active. However there is recent development that I am worried about.

I am not sure if I this is connected with the last problem he had, but I noticed a week ago that Kobi's urine contained a few drops of blood especially at the end of doing his business. Yesterday, I noticed that again. I only can see it over the weekend when I take him out on the street or to the beach. During the week, he is roaming in the backyard and it's hard to see if the urine contains blood.

I have called and left a message with the doctor this morning to see what needs to be done. But any suggestions on your end would be very helpful and appreciated.

Thanks!

[jakeknaupe]

Our dog was recently diagnosed with a disease called immune mediated thrombocytopenia.  It's a genetic autoimmune disease causing her immune system to attack her platelets and destroy them.  She is experiencing vomiting, lethargy, and red spots on her stomach, eyes, and gums.  

You might want to ask your vet about it and check.

[poodlemama]

Have you had your dog checked for Ehrlichia? It sounds like that might be what he has , Its brought on by ticks. Its treatable if caught early enough ,but left untreated its fatal.

[Shearosche]

My dog is going through something very similar and has had all the tests. He has been on 2 antibiotics and  also steroids for a week and the platelet count became normal but WBC went up. This is baffling to the vet at this point. He has been tested for tick borne disease, auto-immune (which was negative but does not necessarily mean negative), had an ultra sound, blood path tests, etc. He is an American Eskimo/Shih Tzu. His name is Oliver and we are just praying for  his recovery - only 2 years old. On the meds he has an appetite, plays way less than normal, no vomitting, and normal BM's.... He is just not his same old self at this point with blood results that have not told us anything....Did you find out what it was?

[ehsang]

Thank you all for your comments.

Kobi is all together now, healthy, and strong again. It turned out the blood in the urine was temporary and most likely linked to becoming sexually aroused if anything. That phase passed quickly and didn't last for more than a week.

We never really found out what was going on but our suspicion and follow up research and reviewing everything led us to two options only:

(a) sharp bone in food may have injured him internally, or
(b) ingesting foreign materials or substances in the back yard.

I believe we were really lucky that temporary treatment helped him recover.

Thanks for all your feedback and good luck with yours! I hope you'll be very happy with the recovery of your pets as well as we are.

Ehsan.

[kcatbat]

It seems my dog had tonsillitis for quite a while before it was diagnosed and he was started on antibiotics.  When the antibiotics did not seem to help...he still was not eating and he became lethargic, sleeping most of the day, then blood tests were done.  Blood work showed that he had low platelets, low red blood cells and low hemoglobin.  His liver and  kidneys tests were normal.  

My vet started him on Medrol (a steriod) and clavomax the second antibiotic to treat his tonsillitis.  The Medrol was to increase his platelets.

Two weeks later, Dougal (my dog) is eating well (thanks to the steriod).  His red blood cells and hemoglobin increased and is in normal range, but despite the Medrol, his platelets have not changed.  They are still low at 45, with 170 - 400 being normal range.  In addition to this bad news, I was told that NOW (not present on his first CBC blood work) he has elevated white blood cells...my vet thinks he may have a blood infection.  I think of septicemia when I hear this, but my dog is eating, and although not his old self, he is still fairly active (although I give the credit to the steroid he is taking.

I see the vet tomorrow to pick up two more antibiotics.

Has anyone had a similar experience?  Can anyone make a suggestion?  I am sick with worry.  At this point my dog's blood work shows there is a serious problem, but my dog still has strength and appears okay.  I want to be sure I do everything I can before it is too late.  I wonder if he should be getting intervenous antibiotics.  I wonder if I should be taking him to a university vet.  It is difficult for me to do this at this time because I am recovering from recent surgery and I'm unable to travel the distance to a university.  

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!  Thank you,  Karen