jessg Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 (edited) Hi I am at a loss. My boy was diagnosed with aspergillus a couple months ago after about 7 months of not knowning and treating it as allergies. He then got a secondary pseudomonas bacterial infection. I just got his cultures back today and we only have one drug left to try. He was on Timentin for about 3 days and was improving then the stupid drug became resistant. It is now resistant to everything else (we have tried so many and then they become resistant) but one that causes potential kidney problems. Oh and about a week ago he was diagnosed with cushings! Which would explain why the infections dont want to clear. He has started Vetoryl but dont really think its kicked in yet as he is still drinking heaps! He doesnt have a huge amount of snot anymore just when he sneezes. Before it was constantly running. So something worked for a little while My vet has told me this is our only option and then there is no more. He is not a candidate for surgery because of his age (11) and his cushings. Does anyone have any advice or have they dealt with pseudomonas. Are there any alternative things I could try. I am desperate and will try anything cos I dont want to lose him!! Edited September 20, 2013 by jessg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandgrubber Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 I know nothing about this complex of problems. Just want to wish you and your boy the best. It sounds awful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teekay Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 (edited) If you are out options could you give Manuka Honey a try? There was a thread a while ago about a cat with a resistant infection and the vet had basically given up but the owner used Manuka honey and the infection cleared. Slowly, but it did clear. ( Actually I can't remember if the thread was on this forum or another I used to be on) Good luck with your boy. Edited September 21, 2013 by teekay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
temperamentfirst Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 I had a dog with golden staph. all antibiotics failed. I put her on Manuka honey and used manuka wound gel on the wound. Miraculous turn around. Vet was stunned! It is really worth trying, but make sure the honey is factor 10 or above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westiemum Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 (edited) Hi Jessg, I'm really sorry to hear this. My Mac had a chronic resistant pseudomonas infection and unfortunately it was bad news. Same here - I reckon we went through every last drug known to man - and then some. He became resistant to Timentin and then we flew another drug in from Sydney - zeniquin (?) - and he became resistant to that too. So at age ten he had a complete left ear ablation. Best decision I could have made - his left ear was so infected it was the only solution and despite being a deaf old boy he hasn't looked back. Remember these infections are terribly painful. I'm curious as to why you/your vet wouldn't consider surgery? Or does your boy have other probs which would make surgery too risky? I so feel for you and your boy - it's such a virulent resistant infection - and although i believe in them, I doubt alternative therapies would work in this case and your drug options narrow all the time. Revisiting the surgical option if at all possible would be my suggestion. Good luck. Edited September 21, 2013 by westiemum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessg Posted September 21, 2013 Author Share Posted September 21, 2013 Thanks for your replies. It's so frustrating as he looks a d acts like normal you wouldn't know he is unwell apart from the snot! I am calling the specialists on Monday before the last drug is used to see what they think. I am kinda thinking try and give him another week without antibiotics to try and let his cushings pills kick in and help his immune system but not sure if leaving it will cause issues. I think the vet was not keen on the surgery because of his cushings but if I were to have it done I would get the specialists anyway. My theory is with alternative things they can't hurt so might as well try them. THe final drug is the same as you tried. I am hoping for some sort of miracle but trying my hardest to get the immune system up before! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessg Posted September 21, 2013 Author Share Posted September 21, 2013 I spoke to someone at the heat food shop here an they said that only the super markets have manuka honey and it been diluted. And you can't bring it in to perth. Anyone used it from perth? Am try collodial silver for now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westiemum Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 (edited) Hi Jessg, I buy the strongest Manuka honey I can find online from New Zealand - website is Green something or other - worked fantastically with Kennel Cough - so you might be able to source source it that way, but I have to say that I doubt it will do any good because pseudomonas is such a bastard of an infection. And I know 20/20 hindsight is a wonderful thing - but my only regret with Mac was I mucked around with him for months - drugs and other alternatives - and all the time he was in pain and the infection getting more and more entrenched. Not to mention the huge amounts of money which got spent which might have gone to his surgery. I think we are talking about a really really nasty bug here - which is incredibly adaptive and resistant to drug therapies - which is why I'm sceptical that any alternative therapies will work. And yes if you go down the ear ablation road, IMO it's specialist surgery - although according to Rappie, some non-specialist vets may have had training but I'd be careful to make sure they have sound experience in the area if you use a non-specialist. I'm sure there are specialist surgeons in Perth you could get an opinion from. Maybe the vet school at Murdoch? Just a thought. Anyway - I used a specialist surgeon for Mac who was brilliant. It was long difficult surgery - four hours - and two big GAs. But best thing I did for Mac. They removed the ear canal, ear drum and inner ear which was chock a block full of infected pus - and they removed all that as well. The surgeon rang me afterwards and said it was so bad there was no way we would ever have got on top of it clinically and surgery was the correct and only decision. And%2 Edited September 21, 2013 by westiemum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessg Posted September 22, 2013 Author Share Posted September 22, 2013 Unfortunately it's in his nose not his ears so I think the only surgery my normal vet was suggesting was to drill into his nose and put port to flush directly into the nose. I have has the surgery talk with the specialist yet. I had taken him to the uni doctors and for 6 months they kept telling me it was allergies. Only when I took him to another specialist did they say it was fungal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teekay Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Hi Jessg, I buy the strongest Manuka honey I can find online from New Zealand - website is Green something or other - worked fantastically with Kennel Cough - so you might be able to source source it that way, but I have to say that I doubt it will do any good because pseudomonas is such a bastard of an infection. And I know 20/20 hindsight is a wonderful thing - but my only regret with Mac was I mucked around with him for months - drugs and other alternatives - and all the time he was in pain and the infection getting more and more entrenched. Not to mention the huge amounts of money which got spent which might have gone to his surgery. I think we are talking about a really really nasty bug here - which is incredibly adaptive and resistant to drug therapies - which is why I'm sceptical that any alternative therapies will work. And yes if you go down the ear ablation road, IMO it's specialist surgery - although according to Rappie, some non-specialist vets may have had training but I'd be careful to make sure they have sound experience in the area if you use a non-specialist. I'm sure there are specialist surgeons in Perth you could get an opinion from. Maybe the vet school at Murdoch? Just a thought. Anyway - I used a specialist surgeon for Mac who was brilliant. It was long difficult surgery - four hours - and two big GAs. But best thing I did for Mac. They removed the ear canal, ear drum and inner ear which was chock a block full of infected pus - and they removed all that as well. The surgeon rang me afterwards and said it was so bad there was no way we would ever have got on top of it clinically and surgery was the correct and only decision. And%2 For your interest Westimum, it appears Manuka Honey works in a completely different way to antibiotics and they have been unable to make an infection resistant to Manuka honey. It is scary to trust something so 'natural' and I admit I would still be hesitant to completely trust it (Personally I haven't had to use for anything) but the evidence is out there. Here is a couple of quick links to studies on Manuka honey and pseudomonas infections http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23082035 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23594187 Not sure how effective it would be in this case as the infection site is probably difficult to get to, as it is in the nasal passage. Wishing you the best of luck with you boy Jessg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schnauzer Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Where are you located? One of our rehomed dogs had Aspergillus and had the surgery as an older boy with great success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 (edited) Unfortunately it's in his nose not his ears so I think the only surgery my normal vet was suggesting was to drill into his nose and put port to flush directly into the nose. I have has the surgery talk with the specialist yet. I had taken him to the uni doctors and for 6 months they kept telling me it was allergies. Only when I took him to another specialist did they say it was fungal. Jess I have seena dog who had to have holes drilled into his sinus and had liquid- cannot remember for the life of me what it was called - flushed thorugh his sinuses once a week for a few treatments. They had tried all sorts of drugs and had resistance issues. The flushing - also they plugged up his nostrils and filled the area with the solution and let it sit in there before flushing it through - worked and he had another 4 or so years before passing away from something totally unrelated. You cannot bring Honey products into WA however Jarrah Honey, raw, from down the southwest has medicinal properties similar to manuka honey. Edited September 22, 2013 by OSoSwift Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessg Posted September 22, 2013 Author Share Posted September 22, 2013 (edited) I think the drilling into his head is the surgery the general vet was talking about. I am going to speak to the specialist about it though. It's nice to know it has helped someone's dog though!! One of his biggest problems is the fact we didnt know about the infections for so long. Maybe I could try the Jarrah stuff. He is a fighter so I am hoping for a miracle! Edited September 22, 2013 by jessg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessg Posted September 22, 2013 Author Share Posted September 22, 2013 schnauzer I am in Perth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Yep the Jarrah stuff has a rating like the manuka stuff. TRy health food stores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florise Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 If you are using honey for medical purposes, please use the sterile surgical type, not supermarket stuff. http://www.thehoneyfarm.com.au/acatalog/Medihoney_Antibacterial_Wound_Gel.html#a572 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raffikki Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 (edited) In 2008 my bull terrier had Nasal Aspergillosis, he was 13&1/2 at the time. He had the procedure where they drill holes into the skull, but had to have it done again about 4-6 weeks later to totally get rid of the fungus. He was fine after that and lived another year, completely snot free, before succumbing to Lymphoma If you can get to Murdoch to see the specialists, I'm sure they could advise you of the best approach for your boy :) Edited September 22, 2013 by raffikki Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rappie Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 I think the opinion of a medical specialist is probably worthwhile. Pseudomonas is known for being multi-resistant and it is an opportunistic infection so the long term aspergillosis (and subsequent damage to the nasal passages) and the diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism are certainly contributing factors. It's a difficult location to treat but a specialist may have some ideas about how to help with some of the physical factors. Anything that can reduce the bacterial load before adding another antibiotic will increase the chances of it making a difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trinabean Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 In 2008 my bull terrier had Nasal Aspergillosis, he was 13&1/2 at the time. He had the procedure where they drill holes into the skull, but had to have it done again about 4-6 weeks later to totally get rid of the fungus. He was fine after that and lived another year, completely snot free, before succumbing to Lymphoma If you can get to Murdoch to see the specialists, I'm sure they could advise you of the best approach for your boy :) As an added bonus, you might be lucky like I was, and meet Raffikki and the lovely Electra. :D Good luck with your dog Jessg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trinabean Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 I can also recommend Steve Metcalfe at Applecross Vet hospital as a really good vet, who is good with difficult cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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