Bach is a lovable three year old Chow who has been battling IBD since the day he was brought home at 10 weeks of age in March 2003. His medical history is quite extensive as is the emotional roller coaster we've been on during this time.

Upon bringing Bach home as a puppy, there was something wrong. He was constantly coughing, vomiting/regurgitating white foamy liquid and undigested kibble. He also had chronic diarrhea. When we'd go for a walk, he'd only be able to walk a few blocks at a time before having to lie down and rest or literally be carried home. I was told he had kennel cough which turned out to be aspirative pneumonia. From there the bad news just kept coming.

As a puppy, Bach was in and out of his vet's office about every two weeks. During this time our primary vet treated us with different courses of medication trying to eliminate causes of the illnesses: Clavamox (for kennel cough), Chloranphenicol (for pneumonia), Baytril (tablets), Pepcid (acid reflux), Metronidazole, Benadryl, Vetalog, Prednisone, Albon, Megesteral, Pepto Bismol, and Tylan powder. When none of this seemed to help, we decided to change his food to Hills Science Diet Ultra z/d allergen formula. In hind sight Bach never responded particularly well to this food, but seemed to be holding his own. Of course he was still regularly experiencing vomiting and diarrhea and his weight would drop about 20 percent (from an average of 53 pounds down to 42 pounds at his lowest).

This brings us to November 2004, during which Bach was neutered. Shortly after this surgery, Bach's health quickly slid down hill. We were referred to a GI-specialist and had an appointment for April 2005, two years after bringing Bach home.

After talking with the GI-doctor it was decided to do an endoscopic procedure. The results of the biopsies revealed not only IBD, but mega-esophagus as well. Specifically the small intestine/colon was classified as follows: enterocolitis, lymphoplasmacytic and eosinophilic variant, mild, widespread, chronic. He was diagnosed with a mild eosinophilic component that suggested the presence of a predisposing allergic/type 1 hypersensitivity disorder.  Blood work also revealed that his cobalamin (B-12) and folate levels were elevated indicating SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth). My head began spinning and hasn't stopped since.

On first news of the diagnosis the specialist and I decided to try to manage the IBD through medication.

What follows is some of the medication which was tried: Metronidazole (Flagyl), Tylan powder, Metroclopromide, Prednisone, Tetracycline, Sulfasalazine, Lukeran, and Immodium. After 12 weeks of not only making no progress, but watching Bach become more ill, it was decided to try a different approach, as clearly he was not responding to conventional medical treatment.

We decided to change his diet. Through an elimination diet the following foods were found to cause problems: beef, lamb, turkey, chicken, bananas, cottage cheese, white rice, potatoes (white, sweet, boiled, baked, mashed), cheese, yogurt, boiled hamburger, steak and yes, pumpkin. I know pumpkin is supposed to be a firming agent, but for Bach it didn't work. The doctors then decided we should try a single novel protein, so I began cooking rabbit for Bach. This was a disaster. He became violently ill, needing IV-fluids twice within a week. Finally, after researching commercial dog foods, it was decided to try Natural Balance Venison and Brown Rice. For one whole month I had a healthy dog!! This brings us up to September 2005. Since then he has had his ups and downs again.

Bach remained on the venison and brown rice until December at which time it was determined that he could no longer tolerate the food. So, he was switched to IVD vegetarian formula. Then in late January, Bach wasn't feeling well and after visiting the vets it was decided he had an upper respiratory infection. He was given a shot of Prednisone and Baytril. Within 24 hours, Bach was back to the picture of complete health. Even his IBD seemed under control. We were sent home with a prescription for Baytril pills, but as soon as he would take a pill, he would begin vomiting within a couple of hours. After a day of this, it was decided to give Bach daily injections of Baytril and Prednisone. Currently 68 mg of Baytril is administered along with 20 mg of Prednisone. Since then we've been able to reduce the Prednisone to 10 mg. per day while maintaining the Baytril.

At one point we tried taking him off the prednisone but within days the diarrhea would return. He did really well for 2 1/2 months until late March 2006. At this time he licked a bowl which had held chicken broth. This sent him into a tail spin. He was put on a triple antibiotic therapy and the prednisone was upped to 20 mg/day. After a week of this, he went back to the prednisone and Baytril. So far, this combination of drugs seems to be managing the IBD and possible SIBO overgrowth. It is our hope that we can get him off the Baytril and just use a minimal amount of prednisone and diet to manage his IBD.

He is also currently taking 1/2 tablet of Duralactin (an anti-inflammatory) twice a day along with one manna cleanse (a digestive supplement) pill a day. I should mention that in the middle of all this, Bach started losing all of his fur and his skin was turning black. Bach was diagnosed with Alopecia X disease.

We did see a dermatologist in September who ran blood work to check his thyroid level. Bach was diagnosed with sick euthyroid syndrome. In other words his GI disease was slowing down his thyroid. A urine test was also run to rule out Cushing's Disease which we did. We also began to see a holistic vet during this time that started Bach on herbal supplements. However, he responded poorly to these.

Fortunately, during the last couple of months we've had more good days than bad days. Even on the bad days, Bach is a trooper!! I couldn't love him any more and that's why this condition is so heartbreaking.  He's such a great dog. I wish I could do more for him, to figure out why his own immune system is attacking his body. There are times when I feel powerless, but when that happens, after I have a brief emotional breakdown, I just keep searching for more information about IBD and the latest management options. 

I refuse to give up not only on Bach, but on believing that one day we will have this under control, or that someone will find a way to treat his IBD.