# puppy strangles-1 year old



## Bichon_lover (Oct 6, 2008)

hello,
i have a gorgeous one year and 3 month old bichon called molly
however has what looked like an a terrible bacteria infection for about a week an a half suspected to be autoimmune disease ( very scary)
anyway i was a nervous wreck all weekend and the vet called today and said the biopsy results said it was puppy strangles Juvenile cellulitis http://www.acacanines.com/canine_puppy_strangles.htm and to come back on saturday
she has been taking steriods the last week and has improved x 100.
she is back up ,running around , barking and her eye swelling is gone down about ten times and becoming a healing pinkish colour.h er glands are also not up at all she is still quite tired.
However the vet has not seen her in ten days and on the phone he said it will require treatment and it could take weeks or even months ?

i am very confused and all the sites i look up says its nearly unheard of in over 4 months,

will it take a lot longer to go ?she seems to be doing great but his prognonis seemed like it was going to be a long haul??
is it better that she has puppy strangles and not auto immune ?

i would be greatful for any help


Regards

x 

http://www.dogforums.com/picture.php?albumid=131&pictureid=1044


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## chrisb (Jul 14, 2008)

I'm so sorry to hear about your puppy. I've never heard of this condition, and actually thought your post was about your puppy strangling a 1 year old child. I hope you get some answers for your questions.

chris


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## secondchance (Sep 9, 2008)

I cracked up when I read your post Chrisb!!
I have never heard of a dog that old getting Juvenile Cellulitis but just because something isn't common or normal doesn't mean it can't happen (normally it is seen in dogs 4 to 16 weeks of age). It is great that your dog is responding to the corticosteroids and I hope you continue to have success with your dogs recovery. I would be inclined to watch the dog carefully after the treatment is finished because I imagine if it was indeed something autoimmune the symptoms would return...??
As far as strangles being better than auto immune.... i would imagine that it is because it is easily treated but I don't think that this is a relevant question. You get the hand you are dealt with, and if that happens to be something that is diagnosable and treatable take it and roll with it!!
It sounds like you are pretty confused and concerned though, don't hesitate to go back to your vet and ask more questions. Having the dogs progress checked at this point is probably a good idea anyways. If your vet is not willing to help inform you or do any follow up you can always go to another vet. Even if you are mid treatment it would be worth the hassle of switching so that you can feel confident everything is on track and under control.
Good luck


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## chrisb (Jul 14, 2008)

Well you know i kept picturing a dog that was chained up outside. And a toddler getting caught in that chain. 

chris


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## secondchance (Sep 9, 2008)

Well that is terrible! Can you imagine...? 
It just sounded so funny the way you said it!
Hope everything is going ok with the lovely bichon, keep us posted!


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## secondchance (Sep 9, 2008)

Any progress Bichon_lover?


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## ema943 (Apr 1, 2009)

my puppy has strangles right now too. I've only been treating him for about two days but his symptoms are supposed to be gone by the end of the week. I know that he has to continue his steroids for a few weeks afterwards because you have to wean them off the steroids because their body becomes dependent on it (humans are the same way when given steroids as funny enough I was given prednisone for a really inflamed throat a couple years ago and I had to be weaned off it). 
I don't know if your doctor mentioned it but my vet said that a disease called pemphagus (i think that's spelled right) has the same symptoms and is chronic. This disease would occur in dogs over 4 months of age and is typically seen in adult dogs, not puppies. I would ask your vet about it if you think that could be it. I believe a biopsy is necessary.


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## tut078620 (Feb 5, 2009)

chrisb said:


> I'm so sorry to hear about your puppy. I've never heard of this condition, and actually thought your post was about your puppy strangling a 1 year old child. I hope you get some answers for your questions.
> 
> chris


I thought the same thing too.

I hope your puppy gets better. Sometimes it's good to get a second opinion before starting treatment as it could be something else that won't respond to the treatment.


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