Perianal Fistula

amyh521 · 07-26-2009, 02:18 PM

I apologize in advance if this topic has already been covered (which I assume it has) but I had no luck with the search function.

I have a 9 ish year old rescued female named Lola. We rescued her in 06. She has been relatively healthy up until this spring when she had a Grand Mal seizure.

Right now we are dealing with several issues. She has begun itching terribly. About a month ago she was rolling around in the yard and I noticed that her rectum was super inflamed. Off to the vet with 2 weeks of antibiotics.

We have noticed very little improvement, so we went back to the vet yesterday and saw another vet who believes Lola has fistulas. She didn't seem too alarmed and put her on a different antibiotic and told us to get some Preparation H to put on her bottom to make it feel better.

From searching online, I am alarmed at the severity of this issue. I am not willing to amputate her tail. I feel like she is too fragile to go through something that drastic.

ANY advice would be so appreciated. I love this old girl so much that the thought of her suffering breaks my heart.

BowWowMeow · 07-26-2009, 03:37 PM

I am so sorry to hear that your dog is going through this. I would recommend Calendula Cream and Aloe (at different times) to soothe the inflammation.

There is more info here: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubb...rue#Post1136147

You can also pm board member srfd44-2 as she was involved in helping to treat a shelter dog with pf.

Brightelf · 07-26-2009, 04:14 PM

How about trying Traditional Chinese Medicine? It gave my 11 year old GSD 4 years with no more fistulas. He had been getting them every other month, a new draining tract. My vet was a holistic vet who was against tail amputation. She put him on a Chinese herbal mixture. It was either Long Dan Xi Gan Tan or Xiao Chai Hu Tan. I forget which one was for the PFs.

If you want, your vet can get this compounded and sent to you. Best is to find a TCM vet near you to assess the dog and monitor how she is doing on the herbs.

I cannot guarrantee every dog will have the same results from these herbs that my Chell did. But for him, it really made the difference.

agilegsds · 07-26-2009, 04:33 PM

There is no need to ever consider tail amputation, that was mistakenly done in the past before much was known about the disease. There are medical treatments for it now. Cyclosporin is often used and I successfully treated my female with Tacrolimus, also known as Protopic, which is a topical ointment. It's been years since Star had PF so I haven't been keeping up with everything going on with treatment. But I suggest you join the PF-L on Yahoo which is a very busy messageboard and I think you will find help there. Here it is:

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/PF-L/

amyh521 · 07-27-2009, 07:57 AM

Thank you all for your insight. I have applied to the Yahoo! group but haven't been approved yet.

I had a very rough day yesterday, Just was feeling so sad for my girl.

I actually just had to have my labs tail amputated because of a terrible case of happy tail, and when I read about that option of treatment for this I freaked out LOL

I am very interested in the Chinese Medicine, and also the more traditional treatments.

I forget which antibiotic she is on now, I will look it up this evening when I get home.

07-26-2009, 02:18 PM	#1 (permalink)
amyh521 New Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 15	Perianal Fistula I apologize in advance if this topic has already been covered (which I assume it has) but I had no luck with the search function. I have a 9 ish year old rescued female named Lola. We rescued her in 06. She has been relatively healthy up until this spring when she had a Grand Mal seizure. Right now we are dealing with several issues. She has begun itching terribly. About a month ago she was rolling around in the yard and I noticed that her rectum was super inflamed. Off to the vet with 2 weeks of antibiotics. We have noticed very little improvement, so we went back to the vet yesterday and saw another vet who believes Lola has fistulas. She didn't seem too alarmed and put her on a different antibiotic and told us to get some Preparation H to put on her bottom to make it feel better. From searching online, I am alarmed at the severity of this issue. I am not willing to amputate her tail. I feel like she is too fragile to go through something that drastic. ANY advice would be so appreciated. I love this old girl so much that the thought of her suffering breaks my heart.

07-26-2009, 03:37 PM	#2 (permalink)
BowWowMeow Crowned Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 14,798	Re: Perianal Fistula I am so sorry to hear that your dog is going through this. I would recommend Calendula Cream and Aloe (at different times) to soothe the inflammation. There is more info here: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubb...rue#Post1136147 You can also pm board member srfd44-2 as she was involved in helping to treat a shelter dog with pf. __________________ Ruth & the 4 Legged Rescue Gang Rafi the malaroo http://www.dogster.com/dogs/693238 Gio & Varda, the krazy kittens ....In my heart: Cleo Kitty Chama Kai Basu Massie

07-26-2009, 04:14 PM	#3 (permalink)
Brightelf Crowned Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 9,357	Re: Perianal Fistula How about trying Traditional Chinese Medicine? It gave my 11 year old GSD 4 years with no more fistulas. He had been getting them every other month, a new draining tract. My vet was a holistic vet who was against tail amputation. She put him on a Chinese herbal mixture. It was either Long Dan Xi Gan Tan or Xiao Chai Hu Tan. I forget which one was for the PFs. If you want, your vet can get this compounded and sent to you. Best is to find a TCM vet near you to assess the dog and monitor how she is doing on the herbs. I cannot guarrantee every dog will have the same results from these herbs that my Chell did. But for him, it really made the difference. __________________ Patti Frauchen von: Grimm van den Heuvel, aka "The Doofinator" My strong-minded, very loving boy

07-26-2009, 04:33 PM	#4 (permalink)
agilegsds Crowned Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Illinois Posts: 8,075	Re: Perianal Fistula There is no need to ever consider tail amputation, that was mistakenly done in the past before much was known about the disease. There are medical treatments for it now. Cyclosporin is often used and I successfully treated my female with Tacrolimus, also known as Protopic, which is a topical ointment. It's been years since Star had PF so I haven't been keeping up with everything going on with treatment. But I suggest you join the PF-L on Yahoo which is a very busy messageboard and I think you will find help there. Here it is: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/PF-L/ __________________ Sandy UCD UAGI Starine CD RAE HT OA OAP NAJ OJP HCTs NAC NJC TC CGC Kayto CD RAE2 MX MXJ OF AAD ASA AJ AG SS SR EAC EJC OCC TG-O TN-O WV-N CGC FFX-AG UAGI Astro AX AXJ NAC NJC JS-N Rio RE OA OAJ CGC TDI & the Pack

07-27-2009, 07:57 AM	#5 (permalink)
amyh521 New Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 15	Re: Perianal Fistula Thank you all for your insight. I have applied to the Yahoo! group but haven't been approved yet. I had a very rough day yesterday, Just was feeling so sad for my girl. I actually just had to have my labs tail amputated because of a terrible case of happy tail, and when I read about that option of treatment for this I freaked out LOL I am very interested in the Chinese Medicine, and also the more traditional treatments. I forget which antibiotic she is on now, I will look it up this evening when I get home.

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