Monday, September 20, 2010

Sort of good news

Mom had the day off today. He job gives her a free vacation day just for being born, so she picked today to take it. Her birthday is actually Wednesday, but she has class and training, blah blah blah. To celebrate being born, she got a crown which SO not the same as a tiara, by the way.

Anyway, mom was snoozing on the couch, letting the drugs wear off when the vet called. Our vet has us on the Plechner Protocol, which is a treatment for hormone imbalances which lead to hypersensitivities to foods, fleas, etc. We've been on it since March and have made some really impressive progress.

We used to chew and scratch ourselves bloody.

Petunia's cheek. When mom left for work
 it was normal. This is 8 hours later. 
Mom bought Benadryl all the time, 3 8-ounce bottles a week. We had to wear clothes all the time to keep the chewing down. It was sad. But since we started on the protocol, things have been radically different.

The vet said that we are stopping with the injections for now. Petunia is like a new dog, with thick beautiful fur. Tallulah has not done so well, although the itching has stopped. The vet thinks that she might not be handling the cortisone very well, causing her fur to thin and her skin to get sunburned.

Turns out, our outrageously expensive test results are not improving like they should. They certainly aren't reflecting the kind of results that our non-itching has shown. Our vet thinks we are an anomaly, so she's writing to Dr. Plechner himself to see what's up.

So the good news is that we might be able to stop the medicines and not be itchy. That's what we are hoping for. We will let you know!

On a related note, TG for pet insurance. If you don't have it, you might think about it. Our blood tests are $648 each time. Since March, we've cost mom over $3000. Pet insurance paid 80% back. That's a lot of bully sticks.

3 comments:

  1. That is great Petunia is feeling new and normal! It tooks a double read to undersatnd the crown...hee hee =) Happy early birfday to the Mom!!

    Hugs,
    Sequoia Tuni and Jenn

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  2. Ooooo. It looks painful. I am glad your feelin better!

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  3. You poor puggies. Mack also struggles with the hidden itchies. His fur is fine but he and humom and the vet have tried a lot of things to help. Hope it improves. You guys are so pretty!

    Drools and licks,
    Minnie and Mack

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