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My wonderfully talented 4 year old male lab just died from this terrible disease. I have been told that it is very rare, however, I am hearing of several cases in MS within the last 6 months.

If you have had a dog with this disease please contact me via pm, as I am in the process of determining how many affected dogs have been in our area and why the increase.

Pythiosis is an infectious disease caused by a fungus-like organism, Pythium insidiosum, that naturally inhabits wetlands, ponds, and swamps. The disease usually is manifested by gastroenteritis or dermatitis. Presumably dogs become infected by ingesting, or swimming in contaminated water. Young male retrievers are particularly at risk.
Successful treatment of dogs with pythiosis is difficult. It is essentially resistant to antifungal drugs. The only treatment option available for a potential cure is surgery and the goal is complete removal of the affected tissue. But the prognosis is poor.

It is not transmitted from dog to dog.

If you want read more please visit these links:

http://www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/1999/spring/pythiosis.shtml

http://medtech.cls.msu.edu/medtech/mendoza/

http://www.rottweilerhealth.org/pdfs/july_pythiosis_grooters_02.pdf

So very sorry Tammy. What a shock to read this post. I hope you are coping with the situation as best you can.

I have never heard of the disease. Very glad you brought it to the attention to the board?

Glenn

Glenn,

It is devistating. You know how much of our hearts we put into these dogs.

There were few symptoms. Occasionally he wouldn't finish his food. Sometimes they run a fever, but not always. He threw up only once until his last day.

I could tell he just didn't feel his usually 150%. I think that LSU puts out a blood test now for this, but I will find out this morning.

Tammy

Sorry for your loss.....

Bill

Tammy this is Jeremy from Oxford sorry to hear of your loss. Is this the dog you brought when you trained with us?

Tammy, so sorry to hear this. it was prime time for him, and 'wonderfully talented' is exactly right. he had a wonderful owner/handler too. I wish you the best in dealing with this.

I know of one other dog lost to pythiosis recently, I'll get the info to you.

Steve Ward

fclauncher wrote:Tammy this is Jeremy from Oxford sorry to hear of your loss. Is this the dog you brought when you trained with us?

Yes, Jeremy, that was Rusty.

Duck Chaser wrote:Tammy, so sorry to hear this. it was prime time for him, and 'wonderfully talented' is exactly right. he had a wonderful owner/handler too. I wish you the best in dealing with this.

I know of one other dog lost to pythiosis recently, I'll get the info to you.

Steve Ward

Thanks, Steve, you are so sweet! I am cherishing every moment I was able to stand on the line with that dog. He taught me so much.

Thanks, again,

Tammy

Tammy,

So sorry for your loss...Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

Tammy I know that was a devastating loss. I enjoyed learning from Rusty and yourself. He was a very talented dog. Our prayers are with you and your family

Sorry for your loss.That is scarry how they get this.I jsut had a 11 week old CF pass away with leptospirosis of all things.Seems the shots just cover 2 types....while there is 6 types out there.Theres a new shot that you can get that cover four types,and the other two there is no shot for.They seem so vulnerable,I almost wanna keep my puppies indoors until they are 4 months.

Tammy,

We are sorry for your loss. Rusty was a joy to watch. Our prayers are with you and your family.


Cindy and Pat Gandy

Tammy - I have a 2 yr old that has had some sort of dermatitis for about 3 months. I have been to the vet to be told it is allergies. We moved to this area about 3-4 mos ago and he got out for 2 days, the place was not secure enough. When he came in he acted sick and was covered with black gunk on the lower part of the body. I washed off but he got out again. Came back acting sick and I thought for a minute he was hit by a car or something. But that was not the case, he was some better by the next day, I washed him off pretty good then too. He is now on an airplane type wire run inside the pen so he cannot get out anymore (hope). Not long ago I was reading about the ponds and the fungus that is making these dogs sick. I realized after reading that article that I had to keep him out of these old ponds around here. I did not realize tho that it could cause dermatitis. Wondering about that black gunk that was on him, I could tell he had been wading in water somewhere. He is off his food a bit right now, but they all are, from the heat.

Will you tell me more about the blood test so I can talk with the vet? I would like to return to the vet and check him for that, I would hate to miss something and he take a turn and die. He is scratching a lot, giving him antihistamines right now. Thanks!

I would be glad to help you. The cutaneous version of this is an open sore that does not heal and grows fairly rapidly. The blood test is available from LSU. It tests for antibodies against pythium which they will all have since it is common in MS, but it will be elevated if there is infection from what I understand. You can also biopsy the open wound and send that in.

Read about that here http://www.rottweilerhealth.org/pdfs/july_pythiosis_grooters_02.pdf

There is also a vaccination available for horses which is fairly effective for dogs if caught in the early stages. That is available here http://pythium.pavlab.com/faq.html

I wouldn't think if she had the cutaneous version her appetite would not be affected. Poor eating would be more indicative of the gastrointestinal version which Rusty had. His signs were very subtle. We were thinking more tick borne disease.

Pythium is virtually invisible. It would appear as a slightly white substance on grass or lilies. I would doubt it would be that black substance yours brought back. But you know there are probably other bacteria and fungi that it could be.

Good luck. Please let me know if you need more help.

Tammy, check your PM