# Valley Fever



## billt (Nov 15, 2007)

Has anyone experienced valley fever with there golden? My veternary has Sam on a anti- fugal medicine called C-Fluconazole 280mg 2 x a day. We had his blood check after 30 days and it is hurting his liver. So now we have him on Denamarin and C-Fluconazole. The Denamarin is suppose to protect his liver from damage. He is panting most of the time and drinking tons of water.....Has anyone had any luck with these medicines ? I feel like I'm going to loose him soon.

Thanks
Melanie T


----------



## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

I'm sorry your going through this. I don't have any experience with this as I am in the Pacific Northwest. However the Golden Retriever News just came and it has an article in it about just this thing. I'll go back and read it to see if there is anything that might help you.


----------



## billt (Nov 15, 2007)

Thanks much. Melanie T.


----------



## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Kerri is in AZ and has had this issue with some of her crew. I'll contact her on FB and ask her to answer. Having been raised in the Sonoran Desert, I am well aware of Valley Fever but haven't experienced in one of my dogs.


----------



## billt (Nov 15, 2007)

Thank You Much
Melanie T


----------



## Cam's Mom (Apr 13, 2007)

I have esperience with it in humans...my son was on fluconazole for a few years, but not dogs. Milk thistle is a good liver support too. You should be able to find a reference to it on this forum. I'm surprised the vet waited 30 days to check his liver. My son had bi-weekly checks the first month, weekly for 3 months then monthly.

Is the valley fever in his lungs? Might explain the panting, besides the liver issues.

You could take a look at this site too.
http://www.vfce.arizona.edu/VFCE OLD/ValleyFever/canine/canine.htm


----------



## billt (Nov 15, 2007)

He had bronchitus from the valley fever. . 
I keep him in the house all the time, until it cools off he likes to sit outside, but I never leave him outside. He does sniff the ground allot and that concerns me. 

Thanks for the website and all information

Melanie T


----------



## kerribear's golden kids (May 17, 2007)

Hi Melanie 
I just got word that you need info on Valley Fever, so sorry to hear your dog has got it, it can be deadly to dogs IF untreated so glad to hear he is being treated for it.


There is a GREAT webiste on it here: 
http://www.vfce.arizona.edu/VFCE OLD/ValleyFever/canine/canine.htm#get

It is thru ASU and it known to be the best place for this info...

1 of my Goldens does have it, has had it since he was 8 months old, he is now 5 yrs old. He is in remission as of May of this yr. I do have his blood checked twice a yr. 

As for the med's effecting his liver, he has not had that problems so I can not help you on that, but Please look at the website, it does have tons of info on it, it was also mentioned to use Milk Thistle for the liver which is a great thing for that...

If there is anything else I can help you thru please feel free to ask away, I am here to help if I can...


----------



## billt (Nov 15, 2007)

Thank You So Very Much! There is a Great Group of people on this forum.

Thanks Again
Melanie T


----------



## *~*2Blondes*~* (Nov 29, 2007)

I just found this thread and thought I would post despite how old it is. I hope that your Golden baby is doing much better. 

Our Golden contracted Valley Fever a year ago after I took her out for a hike. I was just trying to be a good doggie mom and being new to AZ, I had no idea about Valley Fever. The first month was horrible. You can probably find my thread on here about how she wouldn't eat ANYTHING. I thought for sure we were going to lose her. Finally things turned around and after being on fluconazole for 7 months she has finally kicked it. She has now been off of it for four months with no problems. Her titer is still 1:2 and the vet says that she may remain this way for the rest of her life, but it is nothing to worry about. She turned two in December, so I'm sure that her young age had a large part in her very fast recovery, however, if you are still battling VF, I have two recommendations: 1) the most progress in our battle against VF was made after I requested that we try the fluconazole in a non-compounded form since sometimes the compounding can lessen the effectiveness. 2) We started including two teaspoons of "The Missing Link with glucosamine" supplement powder to her food (was Fromm, but is now Before Grain food) twice a day. I personally feel that the extra nutrients were crucial to her quick recovery as her body likely needed it to put up a strong fight against the disease. We still have her on the supplement and will keep her on it going forward. Her coat is amazing because of it and I feel good hopefully preventing any joint problems later in life with the glucosamine. 

I know this isn't a whole lot of information, so if you have questions, please let me know and I will try to help. I am hoping that things are looking up for you now! Best of luck to you!


----------

