Swollen foot and death in a dog.

Dr. Marie replied:

Oh, I am so sorry to hear about your ordeal with Sugar and that he did not survive.

I did take some time to read your blog. It sounds like Sugar had excellent vet care.

You mentioned on your blog that Sugar was diagnosed with Ehrlichiosis. This is likely that cause of all of his symptoms.

Ehrlichiosis is spread by ticks. Sometimes a tick can be present on a dog and not be found.

Here is a link to some good information on ehrlichiosis.

One of the most significant things about ehrlichiosis is that it causes really low platelet numbers. When platelets are low it will cause the body to bleed very easily. In your blog you mentioned several signs of bleeding:

-Blood in stool
-bruising on the foot and leg
-the black stool (indicates bleeding in the stomach)
-pale gums
-the tiny bruise marks on the abdomen

I can think of two possible reasons for the serious problem with the foot. The most likely is that Sugar had an infection in that foot possibly as a result of a small wound. But, because he was really low on platelets he could not heal the wound properly. Where a normal dog would have a small bruise, he just kept on bruising and swelling.

The second possibility is if he had something called "vasculitis". Some dogs in the end stages of ehrlichiosis can get a serious problem where the immune system causes tiny molecules to form that can block blood vessels. This causes extreme swelling and purple discoloration.

I am so sorry for all that you went through. From what I read on your blog it sounds like all of the right things were done in his treatment, but sometimes we just don't win against serious disease.

You are definitely welcome to post my reply to your blog. Please rest assured that you did all you could. It sounds like Sugar was a really important part of your family and will be sorely missed.

Dr. Marie.

---This question was asked in our Ask A Vet For Free section.---


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