At last.... some good news for Lovely Pip (few pics too)
Posted: 12 Apr 2015, 21:40
Hello all,
I go on the site most days and catch up with what's happening.....Today is the day, I can post what I have wanted to do for a very long time. Some of you may be aware that me and my lovely cuddle monster Millie were lucky enough for Pip to come and live with us mid September last year. She has severe allergies to dust mites and storage mites - she is a supported by LRNW and is on an immunotherapy injection which, to date, has not made any difference to her allergy but we need to persevere for a few more months to be sure.
At long last, the vets have been able to get hold of some Apoquel - a medication that works on the immune system to help with itching. (Pip had tried Atopica a few months ago but after 2 weeks showed no improvement at all, so it was stopped). Pip has had about 6 doses of apoquel now and has shown a really encouraging response. She is hardly scratching at all now and her eyes are much less red and swollen. Her nose and muzzle are still blistered but much less red and sore. As you can imagine, I am sooooo pleased for her - the poor love had been scratching almost all the time and I was having to sit with bags of frozen peas wrapped in a tea towel held against her face/eyes to take away some of the pain/redness/swelling - we had also got to the stage where she was wearing her comfy cone more often than not because she was rubbing her eyes, scratching her face and neck and causing a lot of damage to herself. She is so much more relaxed now and is sleeping well at night (pacing around and scratching before). I really hope that this treatment will do the trick and her skin will start to heal. She will continue on the immunotherapy injection and will probably need a new supply in a couple of months. I'm sure you will agree that this is the best news for her and I hope it continues and she can get some real quality of life. I'll take her back to vets on 22/4 where she will reviewed again and the dose will hopefully be reduced, so less expensive.
Pip is very settled now with us and is a sweet, happy, cheeky girl despite her allergies. Her general condition seems much improved and she has responded to just good old care and love (and lots of supplements, good food and plenty of sardines!!)
Here's a few pics...
Not a bad view....
Drying off in the sun after a paddle - You can see that she is getting a good coat on her back where she can't reach to scratch or chew!
Having a snooze - not long after I got her so face much better as just finished steroids.
A pic that shows her poorly face - she has a cute trick of sticking her head through the cat flap when she has finished her food and wants to come in - she also sticks her head out of the cat flap to check the weather before a walk (non too keen on rain!!)
And finally, my lovely cuddle monster Millie who loves having a little sister
I go on the site most days and catch up with what's happening.....Today is the day, I can post what I have wanted to do for a very long time. Some of you may be aware that me and my lovely cuddle monster Millie were lucky enough for Pip to come and live with us mid September last year. She has severe allergies to dust mites and storage mites - she is a supported by LRNW and is on an immunotherapy injection which, to date, has not made any difference to her allergy but we need to persevere for a few more months to be sure.
At long last, the vets have been able to get hold of some Apoquel - a medication that works on the immune system to help with itching. (Pip had tried Atopica a few months ago but after 2 weeks showed no improvement at all, so it was stopped). Pip has had about 6 doses of apoquel now and has shown a really encouraging response. She is hardly scratching at all now and her eyes are much less red and swollen. Her nose and muzzle are still blistered but much less red and sore. As you can imagine, I am sooooo pleased for her - the poor love had been scratching almost all the time and I was having to sit with bags of frozen peas wrapped in a tea towel held against her face/eyes to take away some of the pain/redness/swelling - we had also got to the stage where she was wearing her comfy cone more often than not because she was rubbing her eyes, scratching her face and neck and causing a lot of damage to herself. She is so much more relaxed now and is sleeping well at night (pacing around and scratching before). I really hope that this treatment will do the trick and her skin will start to heal. She will continue on the immunotherapy injection and will probably need a new supply in a couple of months. I'm sure you will agree that this is the best news for her and I hope it continues and she can get some real quality of life. I'll take her back to vets on 22/4 where she will reviewed again and the dose will hopefully be reduced, so less expensive.
Pip is very settled now with us and is a sweet, happy, cheeky girl despite her allergies. Her general condition seems much improved and she has responded to just good old care and love (and lots of supplements, good food and plenty of sardines!!)
Here's a few pics...
Not a bad view....
Drying off in the sun after a paddle - You can see that she is getting a good coat on her back where she can't reach to scratch or chew!
Having a snooze - not long after I got her so face much better as just finished steroids.
A pic that shows her poorly face - she has a cute trick of sticking her head through the cat flap when she has finished her food and wants to come in - she also sticks her head out of the cat flap to check the weather before a walk (non too keen on rain!!)
And finally, my lovely cuddle monster Millie who loves having a little sister
Oh Debs this is good to read, I'm so pleased for you and lovely Pip! Sending buckets of positive thoughts and best wishes from us for continued improvement,
to both Pip and Millie.
I too hope that she continues to improve with her new medication and the manufacturers can keep up with demand - it sounds like the new wonder drug for allergies. 