Inflamed right flank possible insect bite versus ?

[JeannieKayN]

Hi, I have a trauma sensitive Red Australian Heeler rescue for over a year. He is a male not neutered adult unsure of age, shelter listed 3yrs about 50 pounds. His BEAM until this morning was excellent, despite restlessness provoked by biting and licking at flank. He had 50 mg of Benadryl last night for incessant licking and biting at rear flank so his energy and behavior and mood are subdued but if I go outside he will happily get up to follow me and my other dog Bella around. He ate fresh cooked food as usual today, although a bit slower. He usually barks for me to come out and is more sleepy today but thankfully has a break from the incessant annoyance of his right rear flank and isn't biting at it every few moments. I was hesitant to use Benadryl but he needed respite.
Onset 10/18 after wake up with licking at the fur. I suspected possibly a fox tail although there have been rains and they aren't dry and stiff now. Then I thought I saw a dark spot the following morning after he removed some fur, it was round about 1 cm and I began to wonder if he had been bitten by a spider and has an allergic reaction. He sleeps on the porch( his choice) on his dog bed with blankets and a whelping heating pad set at 80 and put to one side of the large bed under the blankets.
He chooses not to be touched and I cannot leash him. I tried to apply a hot spot essential oil remedy but I am an elder, recovering from a broken leg and not quick enough to pat it on when he is close to me. He is very vigilant and coincidentally stays to my right or behind me so it is hard to get to his right side. I am giving him some of those essential oils internally with his food.
No other meds except Benadryl 25 mg, 10/21, and Benadryl 50 mg 10/22
I have some homeopathic remedies I ordered from Hahnemann Labs that just arrived.
APIS MELLIFICA, 30C, 1 oz, LEDUM PALUSTRE, 100C, 1 oz,RHUS TOXICODENDRON, 100C, 1/2 dram
I chose them because I thought it might be from an insect bite and searched Don Hamilton's book for remedies to try.
I will today's photo. I have a 15 minute with Dr. Christina tomorrow 10/23 at130.
I will watch the dosing webinar and wondering if I am on the right track with LEDUM PALUSTRE, and APIS, although APIS is recommended here for starting for insect bite so .
I would have to give with cream cheese as I can't put anything in his mouth.
I appreciate any guidance with these remedies especially dosing and timing for optimum effect. I would like to get started ASAP.
Thank you

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Hi Jeannie!

Welcome to HA! and thanks for making your first post.

Thank you as well for adopting a rescue pup!!

a trauma sensitive Red Australian Heeler rescue

Yeah, that trauma creates "energetic entanglements" that can require a lot of presence, patience and perseverance to iron out.

I'm sorry that his skin is "bugging" him, and I'm super glad to hear that his most problematic symptom is on the outside of his body vs. liver, kidney, heart, etc.

Dr. Christina will certainly discuss your remedy choices when you speak today. And I wonder what your pup loves to do (or eat) more than anything in the world? The reason is that dosing a little bit of joy, fun, happiness, play, etc. will help his skin, his behavior, and his quality of life.

Just ask Maya, who is my trauma-sensitive rescue (11/22/24):

Let Dogs Be Dogs: Maya's Zone of Joy and Journey from Fear to Joy on

By Jeff Feinman, VMD, CVH. The tiny puppy trembling in the Tennessee shelter had already lived a lifetime of medical interventions before she was twelve weeks old. Vaccines, rabies shots, spay

happyhealthydog.org

 

[JeannieKayN]

RuRu is responding to homeopathic remedies and is much happier today. Dr Christina was very helpful and explained how to use the remedies and to be patient and let them do their job balancing his vital force. I felt so relived to be able to help him.
As to what makes him the happiest…you will think I’m crazy…he loves me to sing Lakota Sundance Ceremonial songs or chant Nam Myo Renge Kyo and he lights up and taps Bella my elder Queensland Heeler to play with him, and begins to playfully prance move his body in silly postures or run super fast to entice her to play, if she is not interested he settles for licking my toes. His most favorite food is chicken liver.
I read Maya’s story. So happy she has you to care for her.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

he loves me to sing Lakota Sundance Ceremonial songs or chant Nam Myo Renge Kyo and he lights up

I love it!!

BTW, have you watched the Grandmother Nancy and Allen Schoen series of webinars about connecting indigenous wisdom with modern vet med?

 

[JeannieKayN]

I love it!!

BTW, have you watched the Grandmother Nancy and Allen Schoen series of webinars about connecting indigenous wisdom with modern vet med?

I saw those on the webinar thread a few days ago and was very happy they were there and looking forward to watching.

 

[JeannieKayN]

I wrote this yesterday, Friday, and thought I posted it but apparently I didn't post it. I was a bit distracted.
Yesterday I was happy the lesion didn't look much worse but feeling stressed not really seeing improvement and noting an increase in itchiness. The overall size of the area concerns me as well, from the beginning to now. The involved area is the size of the palm of my hand. It has been 7 days since the first symptom presented, licking his fur.
The appearance of the lesion area is about same as yesterday, it doesn't look worse but then it does, it waxes and wanes, the area he is licking as a clearing appears to be increasing daily. That concerns me. I didn't give another dose Thursday, last dose and only dose of RHUX T. was at 8 pm on Wednesday for severe restlessness and biting and licking the lesion area.
I tried to figure this out the day before my call with Dr. Christina and gave LEDUM P. 100 # 2 for 2 doses and a few hours apart for insect bites and stings and saw improvement of the lesion, lightening of the inflammation being the most improved sign.

About 5 hours after the second dose of LEDUM P, I gave the RHUX T at 8pm thinking I was treating the severe itchiness of the inflamed area and that was the symptom that remained and I hoped he would have a restful night. He slept well or at least didn't bark during the night.

Dr. Christina explained homeopathy doesn't work the way I was thinking and I didn't have to change the remedy to RHUX T and the LEDUM P should have done it. I have a lot to learn.
She said since I changed the remedy to RHUX T and it helped with the licking biting I should continue with it if he needed it again for increased licking and biting. He didn't need anything yesterday but Friday his attention to the area increased over the morning till I could see it was disturbing him often.
Friday his BEAM was increased restlessness and licking otherwise energetic, happy, appetite good.
I gave him RHUX T 100C #2 at noon after he had began licking and biting more frequently and restlessness increased disturbing him with persistent licking lasting minutes.
Saturday will be a week since the symptoms began.
I used to be a home birth midwife and sometimes I had to make the decision to change course and take the laboring mother and her unborn to the hospital, for the best outcome to occur in the situation. I decided I was at that juncture with RuRu, after I did a risk / benefit ratio of continuing or changing course.
This is a high risk situation for him as a trauma sensitive dog that cannot be handled without re-traumatizing him. He chooses to be an outside dog and I can't confine him on the porch to keep him from laying on the ground, the lesion is not resolving and has grown significantly since the onset, and there is a darker red line now at the outer edge of the inflamed area.
I can't take him to see a vet and there isn't one who will come to where I live.
I messed up because I didn't have the homeopathic remedies available or a plan what to use at the onset, or understanding of how to use the remedies. I tried but I wasn't prepared as I should have been to give him the appropriate remedy at the onset.
I made the decision to start prednisone this morning when there was still no improvement. I hope to see visual improvement by tomorrow morning. He's a tough little guy who has had a hard week dealing with this but it is good to see his resilience and optimistic mood despite the discomfort he is experiencing.
I will make more effort to learn homeopathy and have what I need at home and arrange for him to be an online patient. I am also studying essential oils now and realized I can only diffuse or give the oils internally with him and that is a shortcoming for using them if you can't do anything topical with them. Flower Essences are on my list to learn more about also.
First I will learn what I can about homeopathy here in this incredible resource. I can give Ru little white sugar pellets. I need to learn how use this healing medicine for him.

 

[GinnyW]

Yeah, Dr. C is correct, in that homeopathy does not work quite as you surmised. Perhaps back up a little and hold off on the pred. It is rather viciously suppressive of ALL functions of healing, hiding symptoms which are a needed part of the healing process. Don't be afraid to redose the remedy that worked, but wait until you see a clear return of the symptom. Note: I am NOT a certified homeopath, but I have a pretty clear grasp of the concept: more is not always better, either in potency, amount or frequency. One needs to wait for a definite return of symptoms, and then check to see (ask your homeopath, ideally) if the remedy still fits best. The body can use one dose and "cook" with it for a long time, depending on what else is showing up.
The pred is not healing, but is masking and suppressing what the body needs to do, even if it looks great. Never be afraid to wait, as healing is going on in its own time. He's not giving birth, he's not "stuck", he's doing the best he can. Keep up the singing, and joyfully expect healing, on its own time. All is necessary and your abundant love gets through to him.

 

[JeannieKayN]

He's not giving birth, he's not "stuck", he's doing the best he can.

Thank you Ginny, I needed this, it brought tears of laughter. I agree with you and I know it would have been better for him if I could have handled the wait. I wish I handled the problem before it grew to such a large inflamed area.
All these "ifs" ...if I known what to do, if I had the resources at home I needed earlier, if I had more confidence so I could hang in there without handholding, if Ru was a "normal" rescue that you can leash and take to health care, if I had a client relationship with a homeopathic vet that did house calls.

I know I am making this decision from fear. I don't know if it is appropriate to write all this here but I need to examine it.
He and I had a very very bad day a year ago when I tried to take him to a vet visit. I shouldn't have tried but a conventional well meaning provider and caring for rescue dogs people encouraged me, I tried every argument I could in my mind and to them and I intuitively knew don't do that, but I did try.

It started with him disappearing into the maze of the canyons on a walk.
We had a love trust freedom relationship and he would run home whenever I said let's go home and get there before me. He, Bella and I had been walking together for 3 months. We got separated on a walk together in the canyon and he got lost. We went through herculean efforts to find him, scaling steep canyon walls, miles of searching, flyers etc. I cooked food on the porch for 4 days and prayed and did ceremony. I called him for dinner the fourth night and after he didn't come I went back in the house. Soon afterwards he poked his head in the doggie door.
My heart sang. The Creator brought him back to me. We have been through a lot together.

After that, I was encouraged to have him chipped, and everyone but me wanted him neutered. I wanted to put a halter on him so I could leash him. These were all my wants and other people's wants. They were not appropriate for him. He wasn't ready and it would have all been without his consent and I feared it would be traumatic and it was.
Despite knocking him out with drugs, (which he obediently came to me every time I called and took a chicken liver laced treat), it was a disaster. His startle reflex is a 15 out of 10 and woke him up out of a deep sleep and he saw the wire crate and freaked and tried to dive off the porch under the rails and I grabbed him and he considered biting me, declined and wiggled out of my arms and crashed through the baby gate. He then was scared of me and tried to run away from me. He spent the rest of that cold November day pancaked in a corner of the yard and slept.
Frantically I called the vet and left a message. I texted later that I needed some support and how long would this last and what would he be like afterwards?
I got a text that it should last 6 hours and he would go back to normal. 12 hours later he was still laying on the ramp to the porch shivering in the dark. I called a vet tech friend and she told me to put bowls of cat food on the ramp to his bed so he could snuggle and warm up as he was at risk for hypoglycemia. That worked and he slept till the morning and barked for me in the morning and had a dazed look in his eyes for almost a week.

Then I had to earn again the sacred trust I had lost and learn to forgive myself.
He could feel that I felt I had done something wrong and it took many months till I could release that enough and a year till we could bond again like we were before. That healing began after I found Holistic Actions and webinars during energy month helped me release feelings and heal our bond.
I am still too frightened to take him walking again.
I don't want to ever have to ambush and trap him.

I am working on training him to use a crate, not a wire one.
I need to buy an extra large solid crate. I have one that is smaller and will put them both out with blankets and treats for both dogs, hoping they will decide they aren't scary and part of our afternoon games with treats.

Dr. Christine suggested getting him used to the car in consenting steps. I would like to do that but I have to open and close a large gate to the yard to do that, and by myself, I would worry he would leave the yard as I left it open to drive in and out.

I don't take him out of the large yards around my house which include a small densely brushed forested end that he enjoys and takes refuge in as needed and I call it his apartment. He loves when we visit his place.

I started working with a supportive trainer online that specializes in trauma sensitive dogs and Ru is gaining confidence and increasing his resilience. He is fun to be with and a good communicator too.
His nervous system is healing and I don't want to be in a position where I have to mess with this. This is the fear that stopped me and I have more work to do with it. I can say from my experience, caring for a dog like Ru is an incredible journey and can also be very isolating, emotional and worrisome.
I guess being the guardian of the well being of his mind is my first priority.
My mind needs a guardian too, he and Bella are that for me.

There is so much I don't understand. I really appreciate you reaching out and sharing your understanding of homeopathy. I am on the path and this is one of the lessons. Forgive the very long story. That's what happened and I have to remind myself not to believe the stories I tell myself about it.
grateful for your caring heart
jeannie

 

[Dr. Jeff]

I need to learn how use this healing medicine for him

Exactly! It sounds like your continued love, support and homeopathic treatment may be all that RuRu needs to help heal his internal issues.

Perhaps reevaluate his BEAM and overall status today. And give a 10 succussion ("whack") dose of the Rhus.

Whether or not you are also using pred.

My advice when doing so is to dose v Rhus at least 1-2 hours after giving pred (or any medication) to reduce the risk of anti-doting the remedy.

 

[GinnyW]

...And grateful to you for what you are doing for him, my dear. Your love shines through, to us and to him. First, as they say, it's "only a flesh wound". Healing of it will come in time, when he has learned what it has to teach. Dogs are incredibly resilient, and don't think of pain as do we.

I think a solid-wall Vari-Kennel style crate would be a good idea. And it needn't be huge; it's not a playground, it's a refuge. (My dogs used to love squeezing into a puppy crate...) Someone out there, a retired show person, rescue, former owner should have one. If you were any kind of close I'd give you one. Dogs actually LIKE the security a box crate gives, just as he likes his "apartment". If you were to obtain one, setting it out there, with a nice soft blanket in it, might induce his experimentation over some time.

It terrifies me to think of not being able to leash my dogs; I am disabled and move slowly, so I cannot risk letting mine offlead, even in our very safe neighborhood. There are many threats, especially overreaction by observers because of breed misperception. With that in mind, I would urge you to continue desensitizing to leads. Leave a couple lying around. Then, in the way so he has to step around or over them. Find a circumstance where you can innocently drag one near him; then - only when it's time - drag it so it touches a foot. Always reward him with a treat and (restrained) praise; then go right on with life. Don't push it.... probably your online trainer has advised similar moves. Dogs will always choose what feels best, so give him the chance to make those choices.

Proper homeopathy will let him think clearly, too. And a good homeopath can certainly address his perceptions, as far as the fear goes. Remember that his fears are real, concrete FACTS to him - just the way the world IS - so it's our job to present an alternative way of perceiving them, so that he can dismiss the preconception and build a new viewpoint. I know, easy for me to say... BUT...you already know the answer; it's love, lots of it, expressed in every way you can, and the giving of choices so that he can see and feel the benefits. And when proper homeopathy eases the abject terror, he'll be much more able to choose the ones that pay off

Ask more, and keep updating us. I'm not a homeopath, but understand it, and have seen some amazing turnarounds, both physical and mental. Hang in there, and bless you for your quest.