Notices
General Chat This forum is for general topics and chat type threads.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:29 PM  
Link to this Post
#1
emmafleur
Very Serious Dibber
 
emmafleur's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 18
Mobile Does anyone know about meningitis in dogs?

My poor little girl, Penny, has been really poorly for 10 days. The vet originally thought she had slipped a disk in her neck but finally she was referred to a specialist vet on Wednesday who has diagnosed meningitis and encephalitis. She has had huge amounts of medication and spent two days in the vet hospital where it was touch and go. Luckily, she has begun responding to treatment and is now home with lots more medication. She isn’t great, very wobbly on her back legs and sleeping most of the time. I can find lots of information on the internet about symptoms and initial treatment but very little on the long term issues and what to expect over the next few days and weeks. The vet said to take things slowly and be guided by her but I don’t know if she will just gradually get better or be up and down or whether the long term prognosis is not good generally. Does anyone have any experience of meningitis in dogs and could give me any advice on getting things sorted in my head please?
emmafleur is offline Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:39 PM  
Link to this Post
#2
Floridatilly
Imagineer
 
Floridatilly's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 13
Mobile

I don’t have any experience sorry but I just wanted to say I hope she continues to respond positively to treatment. X x
Floridatilly is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:44 PM  
Link to this Post
#3
lov2dibb
VIP Dibber
 
Join Date: Nov 07

theDIBB Guidebook
Guidebook Photos: 11
Guidebook Reviews: 7
If it’s the Steroid responsive meningitis you’re talking about then that’s what mine had at 18 months.
It was very distressing initially but not quite as bad as yours was by the sounds of it.
She was on very high dose steroids for a few weeks - was pretty much back to normal after just a few days and was then gradually weaned off over 6 months with careful monitoring for return of symptoms.
She’s been totally fine since then (3 years ago) Hope yours recovers quickly.
lov2dibb is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:48 PM  
Link to this Post
#4
Marie1989
Surfing at Typhoon Lagoon
 
Marie1989's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 20
Sorry to hear about Penny. Our Westie was 3 years old when she suffered a seizure & was referred to a specialist vet. It was touch & go for a few days, and they eventually diagnosed viral meningitis. She was sent home with anti seizure medication, steroids & pain medication. She was wobbly for a few weeks & it took at least a month to get the steroid amount at a level her body could tolerate. My hubby ended up sleeping downstairs with her for months because she needed the toilet multiple times in the night. It took a year to ween her off the steroids and she still has daily anti-seizure tablets. She’s now 7 and has a 3 monthly check at the vets but I can happily say she’s fine (maybe a few little quirks that weren’t there before!) and she’ll probably be on the medication for the rest of her life (only £12 per month). Am eternally grateful to the vet who saved her & love her even more than before xx
Marie1989 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:52 PM  
Link to this Post
#5
emmafleur
Thread Starter
Very Serious Dibber
 
emmafleur's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 18
Mobile

Originally Posted by lov2dibb View Post
If it’s the Steroid responsive meningitis you’re talking about then that’s what mine had at 18 months.
It was very distressing initially but not quite as bad as yours was by the sounds of it.
She was on very high dose steroids for a few weeks - was pretty much back to normal after just a few days and was then gradually weaned off over 6 months with careful monitoring for return of symptoms.
She’s been totally fine since then (3 years ago) Hope yours recovers quickly.
Ah thank you so much. Yes, she’s on high doses of steroids now she’s back home. I think it was so bad because it took ten days from the onset of symptoms to get a diagnosis and start treatment. By the time we got to the specialist she was completely paralysed in her back legs and very weak on her left side. I’m hoping she will pick up quickly now she’s being treated properly. Thank you so much for sharing your experience, it makes me so much more hopeful that she will get back to normal eventually 😊🤞🏻
emmafleur is offline Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 10:57 PM  
Link to this Post
#6
emmafleur
Thread Starter
Very Serious Dibber
 
emmafleur's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 18
Mobile

Originally Posted by Marie1989 View Post
Sorry to hear about Penny. Our Westie was 3 years old when she suffered a seizure & was referred to a specialist vet. It was touch & go for a few days, and they eventually diagnosed viral meningitis. She was sent home with anti seizure medication, steroids & pain medication. She was wobbly for a few weeks & it took at least a month to get the steroid amount at a level her body could tolerate. My hubby ended up sleeping downstairs with her for months because she needed the toilet multiple times in the night. It took a year to ween her off the steroids and she still has daily anti-seizure tablets. She’s now 7 and has a 3 monthly check at the vets but I can happily say she’s fine (maybe a few little quirks that weren’t there before!) and she’ll probably be on the medication for the rest of her life (only £12 per month). Am eternally grateful to the vet who saved her & love her even more than before xx
Sounds so much like what Penny is like! My daughter is sleeping downstairs with her at the moment and we have bought a sling to help support her when she goes to the toilet because she’s struggling to stay upright long enough to have a wee. Great to hear your doggy has made a good recovery. I can live with daily medication too, if needed, as long as she’s happy and not in any pain. Thank you for sharing. So much better to hear first hand experiences rather than googling it and getting horror stories online 😊
emmafleur is offline Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 11:40 PM  
Link to this Post
#7
Abbysmum
Apprentice Imagineer
 
Abbysmum's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 07
I'm so sorry to hear your girl is poorly but glad to hear she is on the mend.

Our boy Flynn had this when he was around 9 months, originally we thought he had hurt his neck but was quickly diagnosed with Steroid Responsive Meningitis-Arteritis (SMRA). He was quite poorly but was back to himself after only a few days however he did have to stay on a reducing course of steroids (prednisolone) for approx 12 months. The steroids made him very thirsty and he drank so much water, as I was working in the mornings I arranged for a dog walker to come in mid morning to let him out for a wee but as the steroids reduced so did his thirst, he also had a lot of muscle wastage around his face again a side effect of the drugs. He's 4.5 now and following the initial illness has not had any relapses.

This is a really good article - fitzpatrickreferrals.co... rteritis-srma/
Abbysmum is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Jan 21, 11:57 PM  
Link to this Post
#8
emmafleur
Thread Starter
Very Serious Dibber
 
emmafleur's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 18
Mobile

Originally Posted by Abbysmum View Post
I'm so sorry to hear your girl is poorly but glad to hear she is on the mend.

Our boy Flynn had this when he was around 9 months, originally we thought he had hurt his neck but was quickly diagnosed with Steroid Responsive Meningitis-Arteritis (SMRA). He was quite poorly but was back to himself after only a few days however he did have to stay on a reducing course of steroids (prednisolone) for approx 12 months. The steroids made him very thirsty and he drank so much water, as I was working in the mornings I arranged for a dog walker to come in mid morning to let him out for a wee but as the steroids reduced so did his thirst, he also had a lot of muscle wastage around his face again a side effect of the drugs. He's 4.5 now and following the initial illness has not had any relapses.

This is a really good article - fitzpatrickreferrals.co... rteritis-srma/
Thank you for that 😊 not quite sure what Penny has exactly. It says on the discharge notes that she has meningoencephalitis but the cause is unknown. She is drinking lots more but keep waiting for her to want to wee loads and she’s not lol. I’ll probably regret saying that when she has us up all night wanting the toilet 😂 thanks for sharing 😊😊 glad your boy is feeling better now ❤️
emmafleur is offline Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 06:06 AM.


Powered by vBulletin - Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
DIBB Savings
AttractionTickets.com

Get £10 off each Disney Ticket with the code ATDIBB10

Get up to £50 off per room at Disney or Universal with the code DIBBHOTELS


theDIBB Blog
One of the the five worlds found in Epic Universe, How to Train Your Dragon... Read More »
Disney announced that a new nighttime show, “Disney Dreams That Soar,” will run nightly at... Read More »
Walt Disney World Resort guests can get ready to have a “glowing’’ good time when... Read More »


theDIBB Menu


Exchange Rates
US Dollar Rates
ASDA  $1.2354
CaxtonFX  $1.2305
Covent Garden FX  $1.2544
FAIRFX  $1.2350
John Lewis  $1.2380
M&S  $1.2178
Sainsburys  $1.2354
TESCO  $1.2364
Travelex  $1.2353
Updated: 05:00 29/03/2024
Euro Rates
ASDA  €1.1447
CaxtonFX  €1.1419
Covent Garden FX  €1.1526
FAIRFX  €1.1432
John Lewis  €1.1457
M&S  €1.1263
Sainsburys  €1.1440
TESCO  €1.1445
Travelex  €1.1435
Updated: 05:00 29/03/2024

DIBB Premium Membership
Did you know you can help support theDIBB with Premium Membership?

Check out this link for more information and benefits, such as...

"No adverts on theDIBB Forums"

Upgrade Now



X