Lyme Nephritis and C6 of 748

[Dr. Jeff]

Hi @everyone-

Many of you know that my pup Vanya passed away from protein (albumin) loss in her urine, from kidney dis-ease associated with Lyme, last Friday night.

On Saturday, I had a full blood test panel run on my other pup, Archie.

Unfortunately, his blood albumin is also borderline low and his Lyme antibody (C6) is as super high at >748!

It's possible that his low blood albumin is from intestinal loss from the chronic diarrhea he's had off and on since I got him.

But before I decide what to do next, I want to rule out Lyme kidney dis-ease, like with Vanya.

When my urine dipsticks arrive, I'll do a home screening check for protein in his urine.

If it is positive, then I'll also quantitate the protein loss by catching a morning urine and running a protein:creatinine ratio at the lab. No matter what the result is, it will be his baseline.

The UPC will also help provide lab confirmation and further context for deciding whether to disrupt his microbiome with the anti-biotic doxycycline.

In the meantime, I am focusing on maximizing his therapeutic engagement, happiness and supportive supplements.

I have not modified his diet. The last few were mainly raw meat (Rawganics), blueberry-kale, sauerkraut and some Farmers Dog cooked fresh food.

In addition to his homeopathic medicine, he's taking SmartZYME DHA, LD Support, VRS TruHepato liver and energy support, an individualized flower essence blend, and Xymogen Probio and CoqMaxOmega:



Fortunately his BEAM is almost 100% and he seems to be loving his extra engagement, walks, hugs and treats!

I'll update this thread as Archie's Lyme story unfolds.

 

[novasimpson]

Thank you for sharing all this information Dr Jeff! Lots of loving energy being sent to Archie

Should c6 be checked regularly with labs? Toshi had ?signs of ?chronic lyme like shifting lameness...I wonder if we should of had her c6 tested earlier? I think it was in the 200s when we checked (after her other labs indicated Lyme nephritis).

Would you/when would you consider using doxycycline? From what I have learned in people, doxycycline helps more as an anti-inflammatory with Lyme and so question if it is really ever needed? But in dogs is it known to help prevent Lyme nephritis or lameness?

 

[Julie W.]

This is a great thread. I look forward to reading more. My dog Logan had very high lyme and his BEAM was normal.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

You're welcome Nova, and yes this is a difficult but important question Julie.

Wonderful questions about monitoring C6 and using doxycycline, Nova!

The answers depend on the context of the pet.

In asymptomatic cases where you are deciding what to do, yes monitoring C6 every 3-6 months can be useful. Even more sensitive and specific would be to do the Cornell Multiplex test a few times/year.

Less frequent monitoring may be indicated for pets who are already sick. Here, there are already enough symptoms to monitor. C6, Multiplex or any other test result is just one of the internal and external symptoms that help decide what to do.

Regarding my next steps for Archie, I am doing HMDM Step 2 (research and information collection).

I have an internal medicine consultation set up for today and will be checking his urine for protein loss as well as either doing a C6 or Multiplex for confirmation this week.

Regardless of what I decide to do, I feel very appreciative that he is continuing to love his extra engagement, including walks, play sessions and therapeutic touch every few hours.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Here's my ~3 month update on Archie:

He's awe-some as usual!

99% normal BEAM. The one change in hi B(ehavior) is not wanting to go far on his walks when we leave the driveway. He still super-happy to go for long walks if we drive somewhere. He also often walks around sniffing for awhile if he doesn't go for a longer walk.

His playing is great and may even be more vigorous than ever.

He's been having a raw egg with MoringaPet Balance sprinkled on top as a first morning treat, as part of his happiness-boosting protocol. Also, to hopefully help increase his albumin.

In addition to his frequent feedings/treats, I’ve also been working on optimizing his happiness with extra playing, loose leash sniff walks and manual therapy (petting/massage).

At the same time he is being treated with homeopathy, herbals and immune modulators/stimulants.

Hie is also having mucus eye discharge for the first time since we rescued him 7/1/18.

That makes two EWS (early warning signs) that are als signs of homeopathic re-balancing and healing.

His last home urine check for protein was normal.

All else is unchanged.

He is due to be retested (Lyme C6 and chem/CBC) by next week.

I'll update here when I know more.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

A big part of our focus on happiness is lots of little treats! Eating is Archie's biggest joy.

Here's the raw egg and MoringaPet Balance treat he gets in the am (after his pre-pre-breakfast Wisdom treat):

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Here's the update on my last update.

Archie continues to do well thankfully, with gradual improvement in his not wanting to go for walks if we leave from the driveway (he walks fine if we leave from anywhere else).

Since the higher potency of his new remedy ~2 weeks ago, he is walking further and further, so we'll see what happens.

I also rechecked his blood and urine on Monday. Including a Cornell Lyme Multiplex which gives the most info. of any Lyme test. Since I wasn't expecting such a super high C6 when I checked his Lyme in September, I unfortunately don't have a Multiplex from then.

His blood and urine results just came in...

Great news, marked improvement!!

His borderline low albumin (a hallmark of early Lyme kidney) dis-ease is way up and his C6 is way down. The C6 is still elevated, but is just a fraction of where it had been.

It looks like his body is healing as hoped, helped by the vital albumin of the raw egg + MoringaPet Balance in the am.

I will post his trended bloods and update about his C6 as soon as I get them.