tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7467425833527005893.post1447276309050245133..comments2023-09-04T08:32:15.127-06:00Comments on Dawn Kairns and Maggie the Dog: Advocate for Your Pet: Misdiagnosis Happens! Part 2Maggiethedogwhochangedmylifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09809205852096254803noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7467425833527005893.post-4017276305780259092009-08-07T22:29:42.031-06:002009-08-07T22:29:42.031-06:00You're very welcome. Best of luck with Mulliga...You're very welcome. Best of luck with Mulligan ...Dawn Kairns, Author of MAGGIE: the dog who changed my lifehttp://www.dawnkairns.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7467425833527005893.post-4894514670471198432009-08-07T18:13:37.751-06:002009-08-07T18:13:37.751-06:00Thank you so much for your thoughts and advice! We...Thank you so much for your thoughts and advice! We have an appointment with another vet in a week. Regarding the testing and diagnosis, I'll definitely bring to his attention that she was diagnosed with the disease within a week of receiving the lepto combo vaccination. I dont think the PCR test was done on the blood culture, but I'm not positive. The website you found was so helpful. Thank you again for your help!TheDailyFruithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08237040712266071783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7467425833527005893.post-2398965106942154042009-08-06T20:35:14.487-06:002009-08-06T20:35:14.487-06:00I am so very sorry for what you and your husband a...I am so very sorry for what you and your husband are going through with your dog, Mulligan, and how much money you've had to spend on a dog you just adopted. First, you have to know I am not a vet and not really in a position to advise you medically. My understanding, though, is that leptospirosis can become life-threatening so if you are not trusting or feeling good with the vet you are with, I'd get a second opinion without delay. Did a blood test come back positive for leptospirosis? Is that how he diagnosed Mulligan? I sure understand your concern about a vaccine reaction and I always think it's important to trust and bring your intuition to the table with your pets. According to the information below that I copied from <br /><br />(http://www.marvistavet.com/html/canineleptospirosis.html),<br /><br />treatment is with a penicillin type drug, not another lepto vaccine. I'm not sure what else was in the combo vaccine that your vet wants to repeat, but if it's crucial to receive the 2nd shot to confer immunity, say to parvo or distemper, you can ask for the vaccine to be give as a single vaccine without the leptospirosis component. Interesting that the information below states that testing is difficult to interpret if a lepto vaccine was recently given. It also calls for a second titer to confirm diagnosis:<br /><br />"TESTING<br /><br />Blood testing to detect antibodies against Leptospira interrogans (“microscopic agglutination testing”) can be performed. While a value of 1:800 or higher is supportive of a positive diagnosis, confirmation is not made until a second antibody level (called a titer) is run between 2 & 4 weeks and shows a four fold increase. Vaccination may interfere with testing since obviously the entire point of vaccination is to generate antibodies. If the dog has been vaccinated in the last 3 months, testing will be difficult to interpret; however, a single titer of 1:800 or higher against a serovar for which there is no vaccine is considered a positive result. The PCR test, which amplifies small amounts of DNA, would be an excellent test if vaccination has been recent but PCR testing is not available in most reference laboratories."<br /><br />I sure hope this helps you.Dawn Kairns, Author of MAGGIE: the dog who changed my lifehttp://www.dawnkairns.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7467425833527005893.post-10289980881327849082009-08-06T13:42:20.219-06:002009-08-06T13:42:20.219-06:00My husband and I are undergoing a similar situatio...My husband and I are undergoing a similar situation with our dog Mulligan. I found your blog and was wondering if you might be able to give us some advice. Two weeks after adopting her from the shelter, she started acting very lethargic and her hips seemed to be giving her problems. Our vet performed a series of tests and after we spent almost $1000 in procedures he diagnosed her with leptospirosis. One thing that always bothered me with the diagnosis is that she had a combo booster just days before her sickness occurred. The combo booster included a leptospirosis vaccination. The doctor now wants to perform a follow up lepto vaccination. After doing extensive research, I am almost positive that she had an adverse reaction to the first vaccination, which makes me wary of giving her the second. Because she has been tagged with this illness, kennels, groomers and obedience trainers will have nothing to do with her until she is cleared of the sickness. Do you have any suggestions for us?TheDailyFruithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08237040712266071783noreply@blogger.com