Dogsey

Methicillin-resistant Staph Injections It was 1999. I can't remember the month but I remember the day. Josh and I wanted a dog. We phoned a number of places, we were looking for a Beagle, we found a Cocker Spaniel instead, we found Cactus. She was tiny and rambucious. She squirmed and tried to tackle tasks too large for her tiny stature. We took her back to our basement apartment where you weren't allowed dogs and we made her a nook in our kitchen. She hated it in there. On more than one occasion I'd find Cactus chewing up newspaper and stuffing it into a corner so she wouldn't get in trouble. She'd gotten excited once and peed on Josh's back when he was sleeping. She screamed and cried and demanded attention all night so we tried to keep her awake in the evening as much as possible so her cries wouldn't rat us out and she'd sleep through the night. She was adorable. She was loved. She snored within the first week and we found it completely irresistible, she is still a snorer to this day, only the decibel level seems to have increased. She was a trouble-maker but you couldn't be too mad at her for too long, she was too smart for her own good so you couldn't really blame her when she came up with an ingenious plan. When we moved to Maryland she didn't mind at all. She took no time at all getting used to grass, and relished in chasing and intimidating squirrels and the local outside cats from the neighborhood. One time Cactus gave a opossum the business and was proud of the encounter for days following the event strutting around the house like she was queen. Cactus loved sleeping under blankets and putting her rump up against, well pretty much anything. She was a dog with a sock fetish and a precocious eater. I'll never forget the first time she took different pieces of food out of her bowl to eat them one at a time. She hated the rain, she loved the couch. I remember when her allergies started. She was around three years old and we didn't really know what to do. From there the ear infections and rotating course of antibiotics started. If I knew then what I know now I can't help but think the outcome ahead of us would be different. If I had thought to question our veterinarian about blind antibiotic choices or demand cultures, I can't help but think she would be better off. If I had known that the skin problems she had weren't a cause of her allergies but infection, I would have been able to act. If only we took her to Dr. Patterson sooner, and to think we only did that to try to get out of her ear ablation surgery. If only. I don't think enough people are aware of this perpetual problem permeating through the world of veterinary medicine. I don't think it gets enough press or attention. I think if owners knew what it meant to not culture, if they knew what the possible future repercussions would be they would demand them, in comparison to losing your pet the cost in nominal. Let me tell you Cactus' story, beyond taking her home and getting to know her wonderful personality. Like I said Cactus had chronic ear infections, something I was reassuringly told was an unfortunate drawback of the breed. I didn't question, seven years, I didn't question, every time I was told it was a "Cocker Spaniel" thing. This was obviously something I'd have to live with, something she'd have to live with. It was normal. Because she was always being treated for these ear infections, with varying, rotated antibiotics her body became a breeding ground for some of the nastiest bacterial infections. What her vet and myself failed to see was her ears were really a symptom of a much larger problem. Cactus had MRSI, a canine variant of MRSA (the common human form of methicillin-resistant staph infection), a horrible hard to to kill staph infection. When I finally took her to Dr. Patterson (a veterinary dermatologist) he was the first vet to culture her skin to find this out. The stuff in her ear? It was something different. Her ears? They became a lost cause. Now what I've wondered, and what I'm never going to have an answer to, is how long was Cactus suffering from MRSI before I came to Dr. Patterson's office? It's one of those nagging inquiries you can't help but make with yourself, and I will always wonder. Dr. Patterson found the answer and we worked on making my Cactus better. She was on a very aggressive mix of a special three time a day antibiotic called Chloremphenical, baths every other day, Atopica (a pill to help suppress the immune system to help it focus on the infections and not her own body), foot cleansing and hair trimming, ear cleanings, and not to mention special dog food made of kangaroo just in case she was allergic to her food. After about three months she was getting better. Her hair was growing back, she was happier, she was healthier. Enter setback number one, October. I went to Hong Kong on a business trip, I left both Cactus and my other dog NieA with Josh's parents, it didn't keep her from getting upset. The poor girl chewed on her foot until an abscess was created and then ruptured. When I got back from my business trip I took her to Dr. Patterson, prognosis? A different staph infection. He put her on the same antibiotic she was on before because she had other symptoms that made him think perhaps that infection was back too. What I didn't know before any of this was these staph infections are very isolated to where they will let on that they are present, i.e.; pimples, skin flakes, etc. She got better. For the first time it seemed that things were looking up and Cactus could finally get the ear surgery she so needed. She was operated on in December. A result of the surgery, a common complication, was facial paralysis, she'd never blink her left eye again, or smile with both sides of her face. It was a small price to pay by the time she got better. February was one of the best months my darling Cactus ever had. Free of infection, free of pain, she was happy. It was wonderful. Enter March. Cactus started chewing again, the abscess came back on her foot, along with a sore on her neck. I took her to her regular vet and this time I demanded a culture. The result was devastating. Cactus had MRSP, another staph infection, the only thing? This one had only one antibiotic that it was susceptible to, it's an injection called Amikacin. This drug I was told was very dangerous, possibly causes kidney failure, but it was our only option. I agreed to give it a try, I administered the drug myself daily, on top of her regular maintenance of bathing and trying to keep the wounds clean so they could heal. I even put her on Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and tried medi-honey on the open wounds to help her body fight the infection. I went into this fight guns blazing, I was giving this everything I had. Over the course of this treatment Cactus has lost her hair around her face, she is obscenely itchy, and often scratches herself so much she causes herself pain. She's only at peace when she's sleeping, otherwise she's chewing or scratching something. It's now six weeks of daily injections, and weekly urine samples later, and I finally asked my regular vet the question I needed to ask, was she going to get better? The response was not as definitive as I needed so I made an appointment to see Dr. Patterson. Yesterday we saw Dr. Patterson...final setback, she has bacteria and yeast on her body, even in the presence of the Amikacin she has another infection. Now if it wasn't obvious by now, I love my dog. I've fought for her and I've made my life revolve around her all in the hopes that she would get better. Though Dr. Patterson told me there were options if I wanted to go down that road, I knew the reality, we were out of options. After years of fighting, Cactus and I had lost our battle. We fought the bravest fight we could. I gave her everything I had, she gave me every ounce of spunk she had in her, but it wasn't enough. A victim of bad genes and poor choices, sitting in Dr. Patterson's office I had to wave the white flag and admit defeat. He thoughtfully told me he respected my decision, that the choice I was making was humane and an act of love, and that I did everything I could do and he kindly told me, I did nothing wrong. I look at Cactus now, she's laying next to me, sleeping, being spoiled rotten during her last weeks with me. I look at her and I can't help but think of all the memories and I think about all the things I could have done differently, but I know it's too late. I can only share this story with you, I share our story because I don't want anyone else to find themselves on that side of the room, a victim of overuse of antibiotics, and out of options. I share our story because I want you to know you have choices, you can question your vet, you can demand and should demand cultures of infections, and if your dog (or cat) has a skin condition your regular vet can't explain clearly enough, seek out a veterinary dermatologist. Do this not only for your pet but for your peace of mind. If I had done all the things I eventually did do, but sooner our outcome would be different. Cactus would be healthy, Cactus would be seeing another birthday and another New Year, she wouldn't be leaving me and I wouldn't be crying. I haven't chosen the day yet, but in the next two weeks I'm going to lose my companion of 10 years. I can't express you the sadness I feel in my heart. Please remember us if you do find yourself on the other side of the table, don't let your pet become another victim of methicillin resistant staph infections. Thank you for reading.