Would you like to hear more about Farletta's adventures outside her battle with ERU? You can "like" Farletta on facebook! Click the link then click "like" at the top of the page! https://www.facebook.com/pages/Princess-Farletta/160157960728355?cropsuccess#
Farletta is looking good today! I was out of town for a few days and am glad to come home and see her beautiful face again! She seems to be back to her "normal" phase and had no adverse reactions to the adequan injection a few days agol
Would you like to hear more about Farletta's adventures outside her battle with ERU? You can "like" Farletta on facebook! Click the link then click "like" at the top of the page! https://www.facebook.com/pages/Princess-Farletta/160157960728355?cropsuccess#
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Farletta is looking good and I am quite relieved. I'm hoping things will calm down with her eye now. There were only 9 days between the last two flare-ups...that is very scary!
Farletta started her new joint supplement today. She is switching off a feed-thru supplement and starting on Adequan (5 ml/month). The adequan is about $20 cheaper per month and supposed to be more effective. Here's hoping the Adequan works for Farletta's sore hocks and coffin joint! A spectuacular bonus would be to discover Adequan cures Uveitis! Dare to dream! Today is the last day for eye meds for Farletta's most recent flare-up. There is a concern for giving her too much of this stuff in her eye...I know the meds can be hard on her system.
I received a phone message from Dr. Shaarda yesterday -- he spoke to a specialist at MSU about the smaller pupil in the eye with the implant. The MSU doctor said the difference in pupil size is not a side-effect of the implant and he suspects it is representative of a continuation of her uveitis. They can't give me her odds of success or even maintanance at this point...hard to tell when they don't know how her uveitis would have progressed without surgical intervention. So, basically I gather they are telling me the implant has "peaked" in terms of effectiveness and she is having more frequent/severe flare-ups because the disease is progressing. I feel I'm back to square one: how long does she have to endure suffering these episodes? Is it time to remove the eye? Eye removal = end of pain and end of restrictions on turn out, etc. But eye removal also means no more right eye. This sucks. I visited Farletta today and worked her a little on the longe line. Afterward, I noticed her blinking and squinting a little in the uveitis eye (dammit!). The pupil was constricted to almost a slit and her eyelids started puffing up a little. I remember when I first came into the barn thinking her right eye looked a little tiny bit puffy but it was so subtle I discounted it as imagination.
However, as I was removing her surcingle and boots she got continually worse and it became quite obvious she was uncomfortable. Another flare-up just two weeks after the start of the last one. This is more like her pre-surgery timeline. Clearly she was in the very early stages and it was not too severe yet. I opted for a low 500cc dose of banamine, NeoPolyDex and Atropine. Laura continued with NeoPolyDex 3x/day until I decide to stop. I am really getting worried about this. Today is the last day of eye meds for this particular flare-up. Farletta is looking pretty good but I am concerned about her having such a severe flare-up. I'd say she hasn't had one like this since last fall (before the implant would have taken full effect).
I really hate to see her so tortured and I feel so helpless -- I just can't fix her and I hate it! The good news is she is feeling well now. I will remember how she seemed relieved to wear her post-surgery mask (with the fully enclosed eye) to hopefully give her comfort next time. I wish I still believed it was possible there would not be a next time. Med Notes: I kept her on NeoPolyDex 3x/day for the duration of this treatment -- more than we've needed to treat her since the surgery. I don't take that as a good sign that she is requiring more medicine to manage her uveitis than she was just a few months ago. Yay! Farletta looks much better today! She is eating and behaving normally again though I think she still has a bit of a headache (head shaking is the symptom). Her eye is nearly clear again though her upper eyelid still looks a tiny bit puffy to me.
Her eye is still dilated from the Atropine so I had her turned out with her post-surgery hood again. She said "Thank You" :-). Farletta is off the banamine for now and is also off the Atropine. She still gets NeoPolyDex three times/day. |
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