A trip into the unknown

I'm taking Boris on a little adventure today to see his favourite vet Tania for a second opinion, it's taken me some time to track her down since she swapped practices

Photo Description:- A head shot of Boris the Black Cocker Spaniel facing the camera with a wall of autumnal dead bracken behind him 

I felt at his recent yearly check up at our regular practice that some niggling concerns I've been having about his health in general were brushed aside as nothing much to worry about

Boris has a complex autoimmune condition called Staph Pseudintermedius (MRSP) it's extremely rare and difficult to diagnose as it mimics other conditions, it's also resistant to all standard antiboitics and steroids

A few years back we spent 18 very painful and stressful months trying to discover a reason for the open sores that kept reappearing on Boris's body, as well as many thousands of pounds trying to discover what exactly was wrong with him (we couldn't have done it without our Pet Plan insurance)

Until one day we met Tania as a locum vet at our practice, she recognised it immediately as potential MRSP and took skin cultures to grow and confirm that it was indeed Staph Pseudintermedius 

Treatment started that very day with a different steroid and specific antibiotics were ordered that vets don't usually hold

By the time the results were confirmed by the cultures grown, Boris's skin was already looking a lot less raw and starting to dry up

At the moment I'm now currently struggling to keep any weight on Boris, he eats more than double the amount I feed Eko and is still feeling so skinny

In the past I've always had to closely monitor Boris's food intake as he was prone to gain weight very quickly, a dog with Arthritis does not want to be carrying any extra weight as it badly affects their quality of life

Boris also has a suspicious lump growing under his ribcage on one side, it feels totally different to all his fatty lumps

When it had a needle biopsy done a few months back the results were inconclusive, as it was so small the needle may have taken a sample from behind the lump, so we opted to monitor to see if it would grow

I raised the fact that it had grown quite a bit at his yearly check up and got told not to worry it's just another fatty lump, yet no second needle biopsy was offered even when I asked for one I was told it wasn't needed

My search for Tania began that day as several other concerns I had at his yearly health check weren't met

Am I being a neurotic pet owner?

Yes probably, but in the past when I felt something wasn't right with Boris I've sadly been proved correct

I'm no longer a fan of the wait and see option, I like to get any tests or imaging done right away, I'm more than happy to be proved I was worrying for nothing, than find out several weeks later my niggling worry was correct and any treatment has been delayed by waiting

I really hope Tania finds absolutely nothing wrong with Boris this afternoon and it's been a total waste of time and money

But past experience has taught me to act on my gut feeling and not to ignore it. So it's all fingers and paws crossed that we discover I'm just a being a neurotic pet owner

🤞🐾🤞🐾🤞🐾

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