Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
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Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Hey wonderful people.....
My name is Christian and I live in London UK. I have a female Chow called Agatha and she is now 2 1/2 years old. She is a beautiful red chow with a stunning face I hope you agree. Well trained, very good off the lead, calm, polite and gentle. In essence by best friend. Chow love just can not be replaced.
As a pup
Enjoying the frost earlier this year
I have for a while been browsing through the site but worked/schedule etc had prevented me from getting involved. Sadly, tragedy struck in April of this year. I guess I am using this forum to spread the word of something called UVD or Uveo Dermatological Syndrome. Some may have heard of it but seemingly having spoken to many Chow breeders in the UK, whose collective experience stretches over 60 years, there are very few cases of it. As I understand it UVD can affect Spitz-type dogs such as the Chow. But as i stated is a very rare condition.
In April of this year, one saturday, having returned from a walk in the morning I noticed that Aggs was blinking irregularly in her right her. It just caught my intention and so had a peak in it. Nothing seemingly wrong so gave it a wipe with some cotton wool and tepid water in case there was anything there. Nothing apart from a very slight discharge which I guess could have been mistaken for normal eye gunk. Called the vet as I suspected that she had a case of Conjunctivitis. Went to the vet on the Saturday afternoon and got some Maxitrol drops. Monitored across Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of that week and nothing bad and she was herself! Through thursday and friday however I noticed her blinking again so I called the vet and went to see them again on the saturday. The vet said that there was nothing there to see having done a very thorough eye exam and said to stop the maxitrol which I did. Over that weekend she got worse. Very swollen conjunctiva gland on both eyes ( no discharge) and certainly on sunday evening she was struggling to keep her eyes open. She also seemed very clumsy. I was terrified. Monday morning I went straight to the vet and this time they refused to treat and could not even diagnose. After a phone call to an opthalmic vet, I drive 1/2 way across London to a Canine Opthalmologist. I waited for an hour or so as we had no appointment.
JB the opthalmologist did a thorough eye exam and told me straight that whatever was causing this we are looking at a very serious case. He had no idea of what was the root cause and therefore immediately admitted her. I was devastated as he stated that she probably has no sight as he saw signs of odema (blue/grey in the eyes) and possibly the onset of glaucoma. He and I did various sight tests and there was no reaction.
I just can not express how I felt. But I know those of you who will read this will know exactly what I mean
So 7 days from having noticed Agatha had a slight blinky eye (non technical word!) she was now being admitted to hospital and had lost her sight. I went home and wept. My partner was away which made it all the worst.The empty house.....horrendous.
Monday night update - she was calm and relaxed and as they had no idea what the cause was they were treating the symptoms only.
Tuesday - Calm, bright, eating well, but no reponse to treatment. Pressure behind eyes high and not in the safe zone. JB the vet had been in discussion with a Professor who specialises in canine opthalmology about Agatha's case and he had suggested that it could be UVD. So JB on advice had changed the treatment and was treating her with some immune supressant drugs. He warned however that these drugs are horrible and can have other side affects. He said that if this does not work given the fact she had detached retinas that there may be a need to remove her eyes as the only way to save the situation.
Wednesday - JB calls me and says they have no change in the situation (a good thing!) and that the pressures in her eyes were stabling. Still doing well and the inflammation was still there. He suggested a visit that evening which we both jumped at. Well, when we walked in the hospital and went to the 'ward' so to speak she went crazy to see us!! Brought tears to the eyes I tell you! Kissed us until our faces melted. We took her out in the garden and just watched in amazement as she wondered around, albeit seemingly clumsy as she was wearing a lampshade. Gave her a good brush and feed her some treats before heading home.
Thursday - JB calls us to say that unless he was mistaken he was convinced he caught Agatha following him as he walked passed her. He suspected that as the pressure had started to drop behind her eyes and she probably had less of a headache, she MAY have a small % of sight but he just did not know at this stage. All being well and the stabilisation continued she might be able to come home the following day.
Friday - We got a call to say that all being well she could go home that evening. JB believes very strongly in getting pets home for rehab. He was happy with the progress and hoped that, although early days, the medication was the right ones. So we collected her that evening and brought her home. Even better as it was my birthday!
So where are we today....
Well here I am!!
2 months since she got home and she is doing well. By some miracle the sight in her right eye corrected itself and she has vision although not great after about 50 feet. Her left eye is blind and has glaucoma in it but the pressures are not getting any worse. We go to the vet every two weeks and all her blood tests show that her body is coping very well with the medication. She is a real fighter!!! I am lucky that since February I have not worked therefore I have been able to devote all my time to her. We have to administer 16 cycles of drops every 6 hours and tablets every other day. She is very patient and just sits there when we do the drops so our live is made very easy. Still tough to get back walking again and yes I know what Chows are like but she is most definitely tougher to encourage to walk. Once in the park she loves it but it's just avoiding that 'donkey walk' to the park we have to work on. She struggles around other dogs as I guess her ability to see/avoid danger is not as strong as it was but still loves meeting with her three best mates consisting of a greyhound and two rottweilers! She walks mostly off the lead, has incredible dominance in her smell understandably and romps like normal. Frankly, you would not know any different!
UVD is a horrible syndrome for her to have. We do sort of live on a knife edge and we are seeing some signs of UVD affecting some skin around her nose but this could also be an affect of the steroids. Vet is on friday so he said he will make a judgement call then. It's sad. Everyday I am sad but comforted and happy that we may have caught this in time to keep it at arms length for now.
I wanted to just make people aware and I hope that you find my story informative enough that you just keep an eye (no pun intended) out for any symptoms as I would hate for another beloved Chow to go through this. The veterinary care from JB is just too incredible to describe and the support from my good friend Liz the breeder has helped us cope with some very dark times. Bless you all!!
Wow...a long first post! Mods if you feel my post would be best dealt with in an other area of the forum please feel free!
Regards
Christian
My name is Christian and I live in London UK. I have a female Chow called Agatha and she is now 2 1/2 years old. She is a beautiful red chow with a stunning face I hope you agree. Well trained, very good off the lead, calm, polite and gentle. In essence by best friend. Chow love just can not be replaced.
As a pup
Enjoying the frost earlier this year
I have for a while been browsing through the site but worked/schedule etc had prevented me from getting involved. Sadly, tragedy struck in April of this year. I guess I am using this forum to spread the word of something called UVD or Uveo Dermatological Syndrome. Some may have heard of it but seemingly having spoken to many Chow breeders in the UK, whose collective experience stretches over 60 years, there are very few cases of it. As I understand it UVD can affect Spitz-type dogs such as the Chow. But as i stated is a very rare condition.
In April of this year, one saturday, having returned from a walk in the morning I noticed that Aggs was blinking irregularly in her right her. It just caught my intention and so had a peak in it. Nothing seemingly wrong so gave it a wipe with some cotton wool and tepid water in case there was anything there. Nothing apart from a very slight discharge which I guess could have been mistaken for normal eye gunk. Called the vet as I suspected that she had a case of Conjunctivitis. Went to the vet on the Saturday afternoon and got some Maxitrol drops. Monitored across Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of that week and nothing bad and she was herself! Through thursday and friday however I noticed her blinking again so I called the vet and went to see them again on the saturday. The vet said that there was nothing there to see having done a very thorough eye exam and said to stop the maxitrol which I did. Over that weekend she got worse. Very swollen conjunctiva gland on both eyes ( no discharge) and certainly on sunday evening she was struggling to keep her eyes open. She also seemed very clumsy. I was terrified. Monday morning I went straight to the vet and this time they refused to treat and could not even diagnose. After a phone call to an opthalmic vet, I drive 1/2 way across London to a Canine Opthalmologist. I waited for an hour or so as we had no appointment.
JB the opthalmologist did a thorough eye exam and told me straight that whatever was causing this we are looking at a very serious case. He had no idea of what was the root cause and therefore immediately admitted her. I was devastated as he stated that she probably has no sight as he saw signs of odema (blue/grey in the eyes) and possibly the onset of glaucoma. He and I did various sight tests and there was no reaction.
I just can not express how I felt. But I know those of you who will read this will know exactly what I mean
So 7 days from having noticed Agatha had a slight blinky eye (non technical word!) she was now being admitted to hospital and had lost her sight. I went home and wept. My partner was away which made it all the worst.The empty house.....horrendous.
Monday night update - she was calm and relaxed and as they had no idea what the cause was they were treating the symptoms only.
Tuesday - Calm, bright, eating well, but no reponse to treatment. Pressure behind eyes high and not in the safe zone. JB the vet had been in discussion with a Professor who specialises in canine opthalmology about Agatha's case and he had suggested that it could be UVD. So JB on advice had changed the treatment and was treating her with some immune supressant drugs. He warned however that these drugs are horrible and can have other side affects. He said that if this does not work given the fact she had detached retinas that there may be a need to remove her eyes as the only way to save the situation.
Wednesday - JB calls me and says they have no change in the situation (a good thing!) and that the pressures in her eyes were stabling. Still doing well and the inflammation was still there. He suggested a visit that evening which we both jumped at. Well, when we walked in the hospital and went to the 'ward' so to speak she went crazy to see us!! Brought tears to the eyes I tell you! Kissed us until our faces melted. We took her out in the garden and just watched in amazement as she wondered around, albeit seemingly clumsy as she was wearing a lampshade. Gave her a good brush and feed her some treats before heading home.
Thursday - JB calls us to say that unless he was mistaken he was convinced he caught Agatha following him as he walked passed her. He suspected that as the pressure had started to drop behind her eyes and she probably had less of a headache, she MAY have a small % of sight but he just did not know at this stage. All being well and the stabilisation continued she might be able to come home the following day.
Friday - We got a call to say that all being well she could go home that evening. JB believes very strongly in getting pets home for rehab. He was happy with the progress and hoped that, although early days, the medication was the right ones. So we collected her that evening and brought her home. Even better as it was my birthday!
So where are we today....
Well here I am!!
2 months since she got home and she is doing well. By some miracle the sight in her right eye corrected itself and she has vision although not great after about 50 feet. Her left eye is blind and has glaucoma in it but the pressures are not getting any worse. We go to the vet every two weeks and all her blood tests show that her body is coping very well with the medication. She is a real fighter!!! I am lucky that since February I have not worked therefore I have been able to devote all my time to her. We have to administer 16 cycles of drops every 6 hours and tablets every other day. She is very patient and just sits there when we do the drops so our live is made very easy. Still tough to get back walking again and yes I know what Chows are like but she is most definitely tougher to encourage to walk. Once in the park she loves it but it's just avoiding that 'donkey walk' to the park we have to work on. She struggles around other dogs as I guess her ability to see/avoid danger is not as strong as it was but still loves meeting with her three best mates consisting of a greyhound and two rottweilers! She walks mostly off the lead, has incredible dominance in her smell understandably and romps like normal. Frankly, you would not know any different!
UVD is a horrible syndrome for her to have. We do sort of live on a knife edge and we are seeing some signs of UVD affecting some skin around her nose but this could also be an affect of the steroids. Vet is on friday so he said he will make a judgement call then. It's sad. Everyday I am sad but comforted and happy that we may have caught this in time to keep it at arms length for now.
I wanted to just make people aware and I hope that you find my story informative enough that you just keep an eye (no pun intended) out for any symptoms as I would hate for another beloved Chow to go through this. The veterinary care from JB is just too incredible to describe and the support from my good friend Liz the breeder has helped us cope with some very dark times. Bless you all!!
Wow...a long first post! Mods if you feel my post would be best dealt with in an other area of the forum please feel free!
Regards
Christian
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
I'm just new with the forum and I think this is very informative. While I was reading your story I was thinking of my chow Koojo. He has allergies. He gets teary eyes and sneezing during this time of the year. The vet gave him eyedrops for it. He scratches his eyes on the grass outside or on the floor inside the house. Winter time he is fine. Thank you for your story.
Joyjo
Joyjo
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Hey All and a Happy New Year from London!
I thought I would update this thread and let you know how she is getting on.
Last Thursday we took the decision to have her left eye removed as the glaucoma was chronic. You could tell that her mood was suffering and she was very reluctant to walk.
Well we are just on a week after the operation and she is very, very energised!!! Healing well and getting back to normal - albeit throughout this ordeal I am forgetting what that is like! Vet very happy with her and hopefully we can look ahead now with some smiles rather than tears.
Wishing you all the best
Christian
I thought I would update this thread and let you know how she is getting on.
Last Thursday we took the decision to have her left eye removed as the glaucoma was chronic. You could tell that her mood was suffering and she was very reluctant to walk.
Well we are just on a week after the operation and she is very, very energised!!! Healing well and getting back to normal - albeit throughout this ordeal I am forgetting what that is like! Vet very happy with her and hopefully we can look ahead now with some smiles rather than tears.
Wishing you all the best
Christian
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Iam so glad to hear Agatha is doing better after removing the eye! One of my chows had melanoma in the eye which cause glaucoma so we too removed the eye and Oneill went from being depressed to a happy chow after too! And she did just fine with one eye that had some small issues but nothing stopped her from a good squirrel chase.
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
So sorry to hear what Agatha been going through but so great to hear about her fast recovery, she's so lucky to have you. She's definitely brave and adorable, welcome!
"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. "
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Hey All
Well, the girl is doing ok. We sadly had another episode of high pressure in her remaining eye which caused further damage, a 3 night stay in hospital. But as ever, she was patient and relaxed. The latest onset was so quick but luckily enough I got her straight to the opthalmologist who started her on an aggressive course of meds to reduce pressure. We are still giving eye drops every 4 hours and the tablets she is on are reducing. We are resigned to the fact her sight is bad but it's all in the attitude!!
There is no doubt she has suffered further loss of vision but Agatha being Agatha and me being me we just forge ahead and act like nothing has happened. She is so strong and motivated to just get on with it!
Thanks for your kind words.
Few shots below
Well, the girl is doing ok. We sadly had another episode of high pressure in her remaining eye which caused further damage, a 3 night stay in hospital. But as ever, she was patient and relaxed. The latest onset was so quick but luckily enough I got her straight to the opthalmologist who started her on an aggressive course of meds to reduce pressure. We are still giving eye drops every 4 hours and the tablets she is on are reducing. We are resigned to the fact her sight is bad but it's all in the attitude!!
There is no doubt she has suffered further loss of vision but Agatha being Agatha and me being me we just forge ahead and act like nothing has happened. She is so strong and motivated to just get on with it!
Thanks for your kind words.
Few shots below
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Hi All
Well I thought I would offer an update to how my girl is getting on. After her last small increase in pressure on her eye in February I think, she was doing so well. Sadly 6 weeks ago we had another terrible attack plus she had an ulcer on her cornea. Whether the ulcer was caused by a scratch we just do not know.
The poor thing had to stand another week in hospital and we had to have some very horrible conversations with the vet with regards to removing her remaining eye.
However within 24 hrs of having had the conversation to our delight her eye started showing signs of improvement and the ulcer was going. Pheew!
She is now totally blind. Pretty sad for a 3 1/2 year old. However I have a 'dog is a dog' attitude (however much I love her) and there was no way we would treat her any different to a sighted dog. It's taken about 3 weeks of patience and concentrating on sense of smell but she is doing fab. Such a wonderfully positive girl and I am so proud of how she has improved. Nothing phases her at all. Just trots along and plays when she feels like it.
I borrowed my friends dog Judy who Agatha has known since she was a pup for a few days to get Agatha used to dogs and being totally relaxed around them as ever since she lost her sight she is nervous around dogs. I guess her 'fight or flight' sense is a little wobbly around other dogs.
We have also teamed up with my other friend who has a 4 mth old Rottweiler who loves Agatha. I say let nature show me the answer!!!
We are also going to look at some puppies next week as I think another chow to keep her company and show her the way will really help her continued improvement.
Speak soon
Christian
Well I thought I would offer an update to how my girl is getting on. After her last small increase in pressure on her eye in February I think, she was doing so well. Sadly 6 weeks ago we had another terrible attack plus she had an ulcer on her cornea. Whether the ulcer was caused by a scratch we just do not know.
The poor thing had to stand another week in hospital and we had to have some very horrible conversations with the vet with regards to removing her remaining eye.
However within 24 hrs of having had the conversation to our delight her eye started showing signs of improvement and the ulcer was going. Pheew!
She is now totally blind. Pretty sad for a 3 1/2 year old. However I have a 'dog is a dog' attitude (however much I love her) and there was no way we would treat her any different to a sighted dog. It's taken about 3 weeks of patience and concentrating on sense of smell but she is doing fab. Such a wonderfully positive girl and I am so proud of how she has improved. Nothing phases her at all. Just trots along and plays when she feels like it.
I borrowed my friends dog Judy who Agatha has known since she was a pup for a few days to get Agatha used to dogs and being totally relaxed around them as ever since she lost her sight she is nervous around dogs. I guess her 'fight or flight' sense is a little wobbly around other dogs.
We have also teamed up with my other friend who has a 4 mth old Rottweiler who loves Agatha. I say let nature show me the answer!!!
We are also going to look at some puppies next week as I think another chow to keep her company and show her the way will really help her continued improvement.
Speak soon
Christian
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
I teared up reading your posts. Hope everythings fine with Agatha, and with you as well.
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Hi...don't be sad for us. Currently Agatha is doing well and we celebrate everyday that things are fine. Currently laying by my feet after a nice walk.MeZeKa wrote:I teared up reading your posts. Hope everythings fine with Agatha, and with you as well.
The situation is sad don't get me wrong. I feel that if i let it get to me she will suffer more based on how I am feeling. So we move forward positively. She truly is a great girl.
Regards
Christian
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
Thought I would post a little update. She seems to be doing fine at the moment. No real problems and so we are all happy and calm.
As of sunday she got a new sister - Gladys an 8 week old Newfoundland
Agatha loves her little puppy and after 3 days is happily trying to play. Gets a bit tough for her as she is blind but she loves the little one. They are great rompers together at the moment. Wonderful to see. Attached some photos and a video link where my girl Aggy is playing with her other Newfy friend Lilly (6 months).
1) Practising some sitting
2) Having a sleep
3)
Lilly and Agatha sharing a bone...who said Chows were grumpy uh!
http://youtu.be/xHRy5SFMRrc
Take care all
Christian
As of sunday she got a new sister - Gladys an 8 week old Newfoundland
Agatha loves her little puppy and after 3 days is happily trying to play. Gets a bit tough for her as she is blind but she loves the little one. They are great rompers together at the moment. Wonderful to see. Attached some photos and a video link where my girl Aggy is playing with her other Newfy friend Lilly (6 months).
1) Practising some sitting
2) Having a sleep
3)
Lilly and Agatha sharing a bone...who said Chows were grumpy uh!
http://youtu.be/xHRy5SFMRrc
Take care all
Christian
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
I am so sorry for all you have been through! How dedicated you are to Agatha! I think a companion is a great idea. We have an 11 year old chow, Loki, who as had his share of medical issues over the last few years. Coincidentally, we also have a Newfoundland named Frisco who is ten. Both are males and were rescues. At first we were reluctant to take Frisco as we felt there might be dominance issues but I am happy to report they are great buddies. They insist on being close to each other when we go for walks and sleep side by side.
Bless you for all the effort you have made to help Agatha and best of luck with your new puppy. You have a beautiful canine family.
By the way, we lived in England for several years and really enjoyed our time there.
Bless you for all the effort you have made to help Agatha and best of luck with your new puppy. You have a beautiful canine family.
By the way, we lived in England for several years and really enjoyed our time there.
Re: Chow Chow - Agatha from the UK
So, here is Aunty Agathas' new sister Gladys now 3 mths old.
Both are getting on fine. Play can be spirited but Agatha has a wonderful way of just saying enough is enough. I am amazed that even though blind she plays happily and equally amazing is that she directs play to the side of her removed eye. Nature and canine instinct is so cool.
Little video - You can't beat a snoring Chow
https://youtu.be/71nTPteBS58
Take care all
Christian
Both are getting on fine. Play can be spirited but Agatha has a wonderful way of just saying enough is enough. I am amazed that even though blind she plays happily and equally amazing is that she directs play to the side of her removed eye. Nature and canine instinct is so cool.
Little video - You can't beat a snoring Chow
https://youtu.be/71nTPteBS58
Take care all
Christian