Skipper the dog with an auto-immune disorder
When the Yolo County SPCA in California contacted us about a disfigured Schipperke, they were calling him "Patch" because of the way he looked. His skin was blistered and raw, he was missing a lot of hair, his ears were crusted, he scratched constantly, and he looked miserable. A vet told the shelter that he was a burn victim at some point in the past, and most likely his hair would never grow back.
We forwarded the photos that the shelter sent us to our internal medicine specialist in Missoula, Dr. Dave Bostwick, to get his opinion. Dave said the dog didn't look like a burn case because of the pattern of hair loss. Without seeing the dog, he couldn't offer a diagnosis, of course, but he suspected a skin disorder of some sort. About this time another vet told the shelter the dog might have lupus.
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Images open in a pop-up window
We asked the shelter if they could take Patch to a veterinary dermatologist for an exam, and said we would pay for it. It took a couple of weeks for the testing and biopsies to be completed, but we finally had a definitive diagnosis: he has a very rare autoimmune disease called pemphigus foliaceus, a blistering disorder of the skin.
In this type of pemphigus (there are several forms of it), the body's immune system mistakenly attacks the proteins that connect the skin cells to each other. There is no cure for the disease, but it is treatable. Patch will need to be on prednisone and a drug called azathioprine (brand name: Imuran) for the rest of his life.
The shelter started him on treatment, which he continues now that he's at the ranch. He's looking and feeling so much better that we've renamed him "Skipper" in honor of his Schipperke heritage. This breed was used as watchdogs on boats and barges in the Netherlands and Belgium. ("Schipperke" is actually a diminutive form of the Dutch word for "skipper," so there you have it.)
Now this little guy, who only weighs about 10 pounds, is a happy fellow who gets so excited at meal time…and whenever a cookie is present…that he literally jumps with joy. We're so glad that he's feeling better, and we can tell he is too!
Posted September 2007
