Dog in vets with suspected Alabama Rot /Seasonal Canine Disease

SaharaS

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Hello all.. two dogs currently scaring us..my Bella & bf's lab.

Please can we have some HHo vibes for Rolo my bf's parents lab who is being kept in at the vets.

Sores appeared on his dew pad and pad yesterday. I only hope they didn't leave it too late in going this morning.

My Estrela Mountain Dog Bella had sores appear on her pads and between her toes(near hind) on monday and I spoke to the out of hours vet when I found them(typically 1050pm)took her in for bloods first thing tues morning, which they ran immediately and have given fucidin steroid cream which seems to be healing or at least reducing the sores which ulcerated very fast..it spread up the left side of her pad and when that started responding to the cream it appeared in the middle(furriest bit).

her Urea levels were high but her crea levels were spot on which was good news.I have been allowed to bring her home for close monitoring with these bloods as a base line if any more appear we are going for second bloods tomorrow. Rolo is much worse tho so can only hope its not AR for either

I am in Shepton Mallet area Somerset and Rolo is Warminster area.we walk in woods but not together. We know of fatalities over the last few weeks in both Malborough and Salisbury..can only pray we are lucky.

can anyone add any info or areas..any input greatly appreciated..please share to keep people in the know. There are great images of the sores on anderson moores the specialist vets fb page if you are unfamiliar its worth checking your dogs more frequently as apparently the ones admitted are usually getting to the vets too late. Not sure anything can be given as kidney/renal support as a precaution or if indeed poor Rolie is confirmed..again any vet input would be awesome..would protective boots make it safe?also us it airbourn or ground bacteria?

everything very crossed for Rolo and Bella and that Fern and Connie don't get it. I should add the four dogs are friends but dont mix regularly and not seen each other since Christmas so this is two separate incidents x
 
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I will keep everything crossed for your dogs.
We have had a lot of cases in our area a while back, and its a constant worry, our local vets have really no idea about cause, disagree about location hot spots etc. Xx
 
Thank you Twiggy & Sprout-did any survive? I made sure I googled frantically before going in with Bells -my vets are great and she has been following the areas online too..tho they did say none in our area yet...I did point out every area at one point had no cases and everywhere will have a first in the area case..
Dobiegirl, thank you-I walk in beacon hill woods and collett park a lot and near my house which is treelined..Rolo is walked in Heytesbury/Warminster sometimes Shearwater area but I havent asked bf's Mum too much yet as shes understandably shaken..will update recwnt walks as and when I can and progress too.on the shepton subject..please be aware there is a woman walking a brindle long tailed boxer off lead.it attacked me mum & my two when it was off lead before Christmas..sge was several fields away and never once tried to stop it or call it off even tho I was hanging on to my two spinning thru long wet grass and dog /cow poo face first.had to have ambulance and police and it really was not playing..please make your fosterers aware so they can avoid her.Police interested to trace her!
 
Thank you SS, Ive contacted 2 rescues to let them know your news, I will also post about the Boxer, did you contact the dog warden about the dog.
Have left a message but have previously contacted her- the response I got each time was not her problem...she took almost a year to respond to a voicemail when I found a dog(and kept him till I traced owner) & when another dog kept escaping and worrying my sheep she said it was down to me to follow up with the owner as she was busy..and then rang me to chase up if I had been yet and why not(I have not got access to addresses from numberplates tho knew roughly where)...so i left amessage this time,no response but I honestly did not think it would be overly productive:-(often see her van at b&m tho..I might try a face to face approach.thanks for sharing locally
 
They tell people to avoid wooded areas but those are the areas that hounds go in and dogs used for shooting yet as far as Im aware none of the above have been affected which is strange but perhaps not reported. It is very worrying, my 2 Dobes have both skinned their foot pads but they do this regularly on the garden path, Ive bought boots for them now so no chance of picking up any germs but I check their paws and legs regularly, its easy enough with short haired dogs but longer coated ones must be very difficult.
 
They tell people to avoid wooded areas but those are the areas that hounds go in and dogs used for shooting yet as far as Im aware none of the above have been affected which is strange but perhaps not reported. It is very worrying, my 2 Dobes have both skinned their foot pads but they do this regularly on the garden path, Ive bought boots for them now so no chance of picking up any germs but I check their paws and legs regularly, its easy enough with short haired dogs but longer coated ones must be very difficult.
Rolo was easy to spot,bf's dad told hom he was licking..looked sore,so bf checked again having not yet had chance to tell them about Bella as he had been here & found Rolo was also sore on his lower pad..almost raw flesh like a peeled tomato. Bella is like a yetti in comparison esp between her toes/pads so I was checking her but had she not been sniffing/licking a couple of hours after I checked, I wouldn't have seen close up till next am ..then Connie started worrying about her paw and indicating to me(I had missed her licking but found paw wet) so I looked & my heart just froze..vet straight away.thank God for fb pics recently kept me aware
 
Sending vibes- the little bit of knowledge I have heard is if caught early ten survival chances are good- it often is just sores and doesn't progress but as I say I don't know a great deal about it.
Hope all dogs are ok!
 
Thanks for the thread, hope all dogs affected recover well. I'm in Frome and walk Shearwater often, Longleat too so am really glad you posted this.
 
In today's "dog world" there are confirmed cases of Alabama tot in Wiltshire with 4 confirmed cases bring walked in Marlborough woodland.
I have read that washing off dogs legs feet and belly after walking in woodland is a good idea. I took some dilute hibiscrub with me after our last wood walk so dogs got rinsed before getting in the van To go home
 
This disease is terrifying - we're near where several cases have occurred so are being very careful where we take ours for walks staying away from the woods. Horrible that they have yet to isolate how it's spreading other than woodlands.
 
Gosh SaharaS I knew nothing at all about this condition until seeing your thread - have googled, how awful! I really hope your two dogs don't have it, but it seems that you have done brilliantly by spotting the problem early and getting them to the vets. Sending vibes to you all x x
 
Hello..sorry for silence..my phone playing silly uggers again..good news Rolie is home..but phone switches iff each time I try to call so I am trying to get hold of bf for details -will update as soon as I know..thank you all for vibes..tho I don't know how out of the woods we are yet.Bella doesnt seem to have any new areas which is fantastic..I only hope we did catch it in time, if indeed it was AR and how she will be if I stop the cream..so speaking to vet in morning.poos looking good still touch wood tho being such a super chilled lady..she has been scaring the hell out of me all day being super relaxed..made up for it just now tho as she was doing zoomies before we went for a bounce round the lanes...I dont think she walked normally once it was bounce,prance & airs above the ground all the way..I think she likes her new gaffer tape puddleproof boot..its a pretty tesco bag for life baby blue!it makes her go faster!:-D will update soon as I have spoken with bf..xx
 
Thanks for the update - everythig still crossed. Xx
..not managed to get much info at all from bf..all his parents would /could say is he is home,had all the tests spent a night at vets and cost over£500 & that hes fine & sores look much better. They are insured luckily.They first said their vets don't do out of hours(*hmmmm...) which is why they went the next day.

as far as I know the only tests they can do is monitor bloods over three days repeatedly if needs be, to check renal function and that they are unsupervised at night there...the vets faxed the insurance while he was being admitted!

as far as bf is aware no meds were given.no meds or creams have come home..so I cant really advise any more. I do think that is horribly expensive tho. Bella was £71.99 including consult,fucidin, taking bloods ,spinning them, getting results(within 40 mins) and VAT...Rolos results were next day.on arrival they were told yes the raw open sores Rolo had were in line with AR and when he was sent home they were told they were nothing like those of AR despite them being just like those on the confirmed photos. No explanation or possible other causes given...thoroughly confusing really..and very glad I am with my vets not theirs,as they took it very seriously immediately and are still on phone for updates plan of action etc& did everything there & then-perhaps this is because they are a mixed species practice of companion and farm animals.. not just a small animal vets...I dont know.

My vet has discussed openly what they know, which is very little at the mo and reliant heavily on current research and been very active googling and on computer/with specialists for latest info on areas etc and advised always wash off asap after a walk and protective boots if possible...Bellas pads look much better today tho the sore on her muzzle is bigger it hasn't got any more raw thank God.
Boots ordering this weekend if anyone has any input on good brands or ones to avoid -currently socks & gaffer tape with cut up bag for life! Thank you all again for vibes for both dogs..please update with any areas that have issues esp if not woodland linked
 
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This all sounds very positive. I was going to take the boys to the woods today but pulled a muscle taking out the naughty one. Don't know if I should or shouldn't tomorrow.
 
I have canine equipment ultimate trail boots-
They are really good- last well and stay put even when Labrador goes for an impromptu swimming session

Thank you very much for this..I'd not liked the ruff wear grip tex reviews for the price tho their polar grip tex look better as taller and more straps..then I started looking at sledding equipment ...yours sound ideal!

This all sounds very positive. I was going to take the boys to the woods today but pulled a muscle taking out the naughty one. Don't know if I should or shouldn't tomorrow.
Thank you..yes it does...tho my white boy has started refusing his feed(another sign)&being sick..tho hoping its his b12 deficiency being rather than this..all I can say if you do go..wash off after asap and be vigilant.Keep an eye on internet for your area and if you can get boots for them my vet seemed confident this would be safe.I think checking for tiny cuts wounds prior to going would help also -then you can cover them up or avoid going as it would be an obvious entry point for bacteria to get in faster(makes sense)..hope you aren't aching too much today!x
 
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