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Ask the Veterinarian/MASTICATORY MUSCLE MYOTISIS

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Expert: - 4/26/2011


Question
I would appreciate any information you could offer on this illness that my 6 year old lab contracted.  I guess you could say that I am looking for a miracle cure, but would except any information that you would offer to help him recover from this illness an regain any of his 80%+ loss of muscle.  He weighs about 120lbs and is on 80mg predisone daily, but since he has been on he has lost more muscle mass but regained some jaw movement and can chew.  Should I be adding any supplements or feeding special foods to him?  Should I get him to chew as much as possible for physical therapy for his muscles?  He has been on preds since April 11th

Answer
This is a really tough disease Gale and I hope that your doctor did a complete workup to come to this diagnosis due to the extreme amount of steroids that the dog must be on.

You do not want to make him chew more than normal. With the destruction of the cells of the jaw and top of the head, making him chew more will not do anything but possibly worsen his condition.

Soft food is actually recommended. If he doesn't improve rapidly he should have a feeding tube inserted into his esophagus surgically so that you can tube feed him. There are special foods like A/D and others at the vets that will boost his nutritional needs without extra things he doesn't need, such as supplements. I don't know of any supplements that can help, but a holistic VET or a herbally-inclined veterinarian could help you that way. Do NOT use a human only herbalist as they will not know which herbs are toxic to dogs or the correct doses.

I have no information on whether or not acupuncture can help this condition or at least the immune-mediated portion of it. It might be worth looking into.
Again, only use a veterinarian that is trained in these things.

Here are some articles that might help you a bit:

http://www.petplace.com/article-printer-friendly.aspx?id=4428

and this one:

http://www.michvet.com/library/neurology_masticatory_myositis.asp

I will keep him in my thoughts and send him vibes of healing energy. I hope that he recovers well. Please let me know how he does.

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

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I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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