# Worried - Low Platelet Count



## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I brought Swizzle to the vet for his rabies shot. He was given an exam and they took blood. They told me he looked great - in fact she said he had the excellent patellas and a beautiful bite and teeth. I got a call Sunday night from my vet. She said his platelet count is a little low - 133,000. I am bringing him in today. She is going to do a blood smear slide and take a look herself instead of sending out to a lab. Swizzle is a very high energy dog, his stools are not black and his is pink, his gums look a healthy color and his eyes don't look bloodshot. Can anyone here give me any information or guidence? I am worried sick but my husband thinks there is nothing to worry about. It is hard to look at him having zoomies and think that he could be sick.


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

I would seriously not worry until they recheck it! Even though it is a "low" platlet count, it is not horrible. It could have easily been from the blood draw. Perhaps the blood started to clot before they got it in the tube, it was not a "good" stick and there was more trama to the vessel, maybe there was too much/too little blood put into the tube so the anticoagulant level in the tube was off. All of those and more could cause a low platelet level that has nothing to do with how the dogs real level is. 
Im sure when they recheck it they will be very careful to have a good blood draw to eliminate all those possible mistakes. Its good that your vet is rechecking it though and not just blowing it off.


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## Ms Stella (Aug 16, 2010)

That count is only a tiny bit low...I work in a hematology office (blood doctor) and people can have surgery with a platelet count of 50,000. I would not worry. If it stays at 133,000 for the entire life of your dog that would be ok. If it is dropping lower and lower then you will need to look into it more. A virus, medications, and just the machine that counts the platelets can cause platelet counts to measure low. If there is any clumping the machine counts several platelets as one and can result in a false low count. I agree with Bigpoodleperson...no need to worry, just recheck and go from there.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Thank you so much for the replies. I feel so much better after reading your posts - I have been a nervous wreck today. They took blood again tonight but I did not see it done. She is suppose to call tonight or tomorromow. I am sure it will be tomorrow as it is almost 8:30 now. Hopefully I will be reporting it was just a false reading.


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

CT Girl said:


> Thank you so much for the replies. I feel so much better after reading your posts - I have been a nervous wreck today. They took blood again tonight but I did not see it done. She is suppose to call tonight or tomorromow. I am sure it will be tomorrow as it is almost 8:30 now. Hopefully I will be reporting it was just a false reading.


Just saw this thread, and I am counting on it being an erroneous reading that means nothing. I only wish you didn't have the worry, but how can you not when you love every hair on Swizzle's body and beneath with every fiber of your being! You are now protected by the wide, strong net of PF member concern and good wishes._ It will work!_ Give us good news tomorrow. And have some herbal tea and a good night's rest. I'll be looking for your update.:clover:


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

CT Girl said:


> Thank you so much for the replies. I feel so much better after reading your posts - I have been a nervous wreck today. They took blood again tonight but I did not see it done. She is suppose to call tonight or tomorromow. I am sure it will be tomorrow as it is almost 8:30 now. Hopefully I will be reporting it was just a false reading.


Just checking in to see what Swizzle's re-done blood work results show. Hope you hear something good soon and can fill us in. Thinking of you!


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

The vet has not called yet. I will call her sometime today. I kept 2nd guessing myself (I wanted to call yesterday) and made myself wait. Since my appointment was for 5:45 Monday I thought she would be open just as late last night but she was closed when I called. I will post once I know something. I want to thank everyone for their good wishes.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I got a call from the vet tonight. She examined Swizzle's blood smear herself and she believes the lab's result to be correct as when she examined each field his count was low. She sent me an article on this. 

Major causes of thrombocytopenia are [ 01 VeterinaryPartner Home Page - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company! ] /Content.plx?P=A&A=1412&S=<%= SpeciesID %>&EVetID=<%= EVetID %>immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (an autoimmune disease), bone marrow cancers, infectious diseases, hereditary diseases (von Willebrand's, for example), drug/vaccination reactions, vasculitis (leading to deep vein thrombosis), and disseminated intravascular coagulation. 

I am going to keep an eye on his gums and look for pin sized bruising. There is nothing diet or supplement wise I can do for this. I am at a loss. Could his count be somewhat low but stable? Has anyone here had any experience with this? What is the likely cause with a male toy poodle that is a little over a year in age who has tons of energy and a good appetite?


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

Hmmm, do you have confidence in your vet? My neighbor's dog, a terrier mix, got very sick several months ago. I think the blood count was very low, they had him overnight, etc., and the owner was very very worried that he had cancer, or worse. I suggested he take Bou to a holistic specialist and we went to see a vet, Barb Royal, who is very well known. They ran lots of tests, blood, etc. (It was not cheap) but determined that a change in diet, etc., was needed and he is doing great. I don't know all the details, but I do know there were discussions on bone marrow cancer, etc. and all kinds of things that compromised his immune system. And, today, after another opinion, he is doing great. Is that an option to get another opinion? I might try that first.


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

*CT Girl*:I'm sorry you're dealing with uncertainty here, but I'm certainly glad to hear little Swizzle is his happy, busy self. Maybe his breeder has some thoughts on what might be going on? I'll be watching for suggestions from members in the know, and keeping my fingers tightly crossed for your dear little tpoo to frolic on merrily for_ many, __many, many_ years.:clover:


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I have complete confidence in my vet. She has a great reputation and people with difficult to diagnois dogs seek her out. I have not contacted the breeder yet as I just had the low platlette count confirmed last night. This cannot be improved by diet. Swizzle is fed commercial raw - Aunt Jenni and I think his diet is excellent. Swizzle will get another blood smear check in a few weeks and another exam and see what has happened with his blood count. I have to start investigating all the possible causes and rule them out. Thank you for your good wishes.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

Jake loved Aunt Jeni --- great food!


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

CT Girl said:


> I have complete confidence in my vet. She has a great reputation and people with difficult to diagnois dogs seek her out. I have not contacted the breeder yet as I just had the low platlette count confirmed last night. This cannot be improved by diet. Swizzle is fed commercial raw - Aunt Jenni and I think his diet is excellent. Swizzle will get another blood smear check in a few weeks and another exam and see what has happened with his blood count. I have to start investigating all the possible causes and rule them out. Thank you for your good wishes.


*CT Girl*: I'm so sorry to hear about Swizzle's health scare. You're doing everything you can and I know it's easier said than done, but take a step back, breathe and tell yourself everything will be okay. :grouphug:

Getting him rechecked on a regular basis and keeping an eye on his gums, etc., is an excellent plan of attack. Research will also help you figure out what may be the cause or if it's idiopathic. At least you'll know what you're dealing with and what to expect down the road. (I'll see if I can find anything in my holistic dog books.)

I'll be curious to hear your breeder's thoughts and if she's encountered this condition before (in her puppies or in other poodles). 

Give Swizzle a big hug and kiss from me and the boys. I'm sure he's wondering what all the fuss is about!

ETA: Do you have problems with ticks? Tick-borne illnesses came up in my search for "low platelet count/dog." You live in NE, right? (Tick central.)
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/pets/msg0413274126124.html
http://www.mirage-samoyeds.com/tick.htm
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/pets/msg051704328613.html?4
http://vetmedicine.about.com/u/ua/diseasesandconditions/Thrombocytopenia.htm
http://www.vetinfo.com/dthrombo.html#b

Towards the end of this page is a good description of platelet counts and importance:
http://www.fetchdog.com/learn-conne...Dogs/D/300600/P/1:5:55:601:6103/I/AR000010025


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

CT Girl said:


> I have complete confidence in my vet. She has a great reputation and people with difficult to diagnois dogs seek her out. I have not contacted the breeder yet as I just had the low platlette count confirmed last night. This cannot be improved by diet. Swizzle is fed commercial raw - Aunt Jenni and I think his diet is excellent. Swizzle will get another blood smear check in a few weeks and another exam and see what has happened with his blood count. I have to start investigating all the possible causes and rule them out. Thank you for your good wishes.


Swizzle couldn't be in better hands, or more hearts. Please keep us posted!


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## Ms Stella (Aug 16, 2010)

Again..if the count remains over about 80,000 then it wont hurt the dog. If it is in the 100's for the rest of his life it would not be a problem. Of course if it falls more then you want to find out what the reason is. Im not sure of the range for dogs but in people 133,000 can be considered normal. Any range is just an "average" of so many. There are immune causes, one being ITP that are common in people...and it doesnt cause any harm unless the counts fall really low. I think if the dog is happy, healthy..then you just recheck the count in a couple of weeks. I understand though how you feel..we dont want anything to be wrong with our little ones.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Possible Causes
immune-mediated thrombocytopenia
bone marrow cancers
infectious diseases
von Willebrand's
drug/vaccination reactions
vasculitis
disseminated intravascular coagulation
Ehlrichia
Babesia
Anaplasma
lepto
heartworm disease
vitamin K antagonism
bacterial or fungal sepsis
systemic lupus


This is what I have come up with as possible causes of a low platlette count. Thank you for all the links Rowan. The vet told me she ruled out tick born diseases - I did not ask how. He also tested negative for heartworm.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Well it has been 2 weeks since Swizzle's blood smear and so I brought him into the vet this morning to get him checked again. Great news - he has lots more. The vet did a smear and said he has a lot more platlettes and the size of them was good and she could see new ones developing (I may have details wrong but the gist is it is good news). She is holding off vaccinating him because she does not want to provoke an immune response. She said the low count may have been the result of a virus. He never looked or acted sick so I kind of counted that possibility out. Evidently they can get a virus and not show it. We are going to check his blood in another month to be on the safe side and decide at that point on if we vaccinate more or not. She said if he was older she would not but if we can it would be good for him to have distemper shot. I am so happy - I was scaring myself silly.


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## petitpie (Nov 16, 2011)

It's good to hear that Swizzle is better and that you feel relieved.


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## Hayley22 (Sep 21, 2011)

CT Girl said:


> Well it has been 2 weeks since Swizzle's blood smear and so I brought him into the vet this morning to get him checked again. Great news - he has lots more. The vet did a smear and said he has a lot more platlettes and the size of them was good and she could see new ones developing (I may have details wrong but the gist is it is good news). She is holding off vaccinating him because she does not want to provoke an immune response. She said the low count may have been the result of a virus. He never looked or acted sick so I kind of counted that possibility out. Evidently they can get a virus and not show it. We are going to check his blood in another month to be on the safe side and decide at that point on if we vaccinate more or not. She said if he was older she would not but if we can it would be good for him to have distemper shot. I am so happy - I was scaring myself silly.


So happy to hear that Swizzle is okay! It is so scary when our little ones are sick.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I am so glad to hear such good news - I am not surprised you were scared, having seen the list of possible causes.


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

CT Girl said:


> Well it has been 2 weeks since Swizzle's blood smear and so I brought him into the vet this morning to get him checked again. Great news - he has lots more. The vet did a smear and said he has a lot more platlettes and the size of them was good and she could see new ones developing (I may have details wrong but the gist is it is good news). She is holding off vaccinating him because she does not want to provoke an immune response. She said the low count may have been the result of a virus. He never looked or acted sick so I kind of counted that possibility out. Evidently they can get a virus and not show it. We are going to check his blood in another month to be on the safe side and decide at that point on if we vaccinate more or not. She said if he was older she would not but if we can it would be good for him to have distemper shot. I am so happy - I was scaring myself silly.


That's excellent news. It's only natural to worry because unlike human patients they can't tell us how they feel and we must therefore trust in the blood test results and heed our vet's advice. Give him a big hug and kiss from me and my boys. (And tell him it's not nice to make his Mom worry so much!)


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Update on Swizzle. His platelet is now normal.:dancing2::elephant::horn: The vet says we may never know what caused it but from now on we should be especially careful of every vaccine and pill he takes (which was my plan anyway). He did get a distemper shot Friday. She said in 3 yrs when it is time to do again we will take titers. I just wanted to let everyone know in case someone's dog has a low platelet count it does not have to be the worst case scenario which was what I was finding on my Internet searches.


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

*CT girl: *Doing the happy dance right along with you! Glad you let us know Swizzle's good results, and appreciate you sharing the wisdom you acquired during the "scary" time.:dance2:


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

That's awesome! Such good news  Have a GREAT Saturday!


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## cliffdweller (Jan 31, 2011)

Along with all the others, I am happy that Swizzle's blood count has returned to normal. He is in good hands, yours.


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

That's excellent news, CT Girl! I'm so happy Swizzle is back to normal. And that's a great reminder about vaccinations and meds. I recently decided to not vaccinate mine against Lyme's and test them twice a year instead, if not more often.


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

Happy to know that Swizzle is doing fine. You can finally sleep well now


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## Kloliver (Jan 17, 2012)

That's very good news. Now..... how's _your_ blood pressure? Returning to normal? :hug:


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

Fantastic news! You must be incredibly relieved!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Such good news - and, as you say, so reassuring for others going through the same anxiety.


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