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Question
My 4 year old GSD bitch Sheba has been diagnosed with anal
furunculosis 2 weeks ago. She has been on antibiotics, 4 tablets
a day of amtiriod 150mg. The vet wants to operate but I dont want
her to have to go through the surgery and she will be put on steriods
for the rest of her life! The steriods will slowly kill her. I would
like to know if there is any other option or the most humane thing
to do.
Paul Mercer - Preston |
Answering questions:
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS from
Vet
Help Direct |
| Answer |
Hi Paul,
I’m sorry to hear that Sheba has anal furunculosis. This is
a really nasty problem that affects German Shepherd Dogs more commonly
than other breeds. It causes ulceration and inflammation around
the anus and can be very painful and distressing. Anal furunculosis
is thought to be caused by a problem with the immune system, but
it is still not fully understood exactly how this happens.
Unfortunately
there is no one cure for anal furunculosis that will work in every
affected dog.
Surgery
can be very successful in treating anal furunculosis, rates as high
has 94% have been recorded for an acceptable quality of life after
the surgery. The downsides of surgery are that it can be very complex
and can result in complications such as faecal incontinence.
Recently
there have been a lot of studies into the use of Atopica (cyclosporine)
to help with anal furunculosis. Statistics vary but this is reported
to give approximately 60% chance of a complete cure in 8 weeks and
improvement in approximately 90% of dogs. Cyclosporin can cause
side effects including vomiting and fur and skin problems, but these
tend to be mild and clear up when the treatment is stopped. Atopica
is a very expensive drug and this can restrict its use for a lot
of owners if their dogs are not insured.
There
have been studies that have used Atopica in combination with another
drug called Ketoconazole. Ketoconazole is a much cheaper drug and
it reduces the dose needed of Atopica. The drawback of this is that
Ketoconazole is not licensed for use in dogs which means that its
safety and how well it works in dogs has not been fully tested.
Having said that, some small trials using the Atopica Ketoconazole
combination have been very successful and alot of vets have used
the combination successfully. If this is the only option due to
financial constraints it may be worth discussing the pros and cons
with your vet.
Surgery
and Atopica have been used in combination, Atopica being used first,
if the furunculosis disappears then obviously surgery is not necessary,
if the furunculosis improves but doesn’t get completely better
this could mean less invasive surgery.
Unfortunately
anal furunculosis can reocurr after successful medical or surgical
treatments and none of the forms of treatment guarantee a cure.
I
would suggest you go back to your vets and chat through all of the
different treatment options and work out the best approach for you
and Sheba. You mention the most humane option, by which I am assuming
you are referring to euthanasia, for dogs that do not respond to
treatment this can be the kindest option, but since there is a significant
chance of success with treatment it is certainly worth considering
treatment for Sheba.
Best
of luck with this.
Kind regards,
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS www.vethelpdirect.com |
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D for Dog www.dfordog.com |
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