I have posted before with regards to this problem but it is on-going.
Our little spaniel has been presenting with a strange lameness.  She alternates which leg she limps on and the vet has said that this is because she is sore on all legs and needs to work out which is sorest.  She diagnosed polyarthritis and started treating this with prognisarone steroid tablets.  Her temperture was also up slightly.  Well, that was 2 weeks ago and she has been coming on great.  Still got a strange wobbly walk/limp but much happier and seemingly pain-free.  So after a check up on Tuesday, we were told that she can go out walks again.  Normality resumed.
We took her out for a walk(off-lead, grassy field) on Wednesday morning for about half an hour with her pals.  She had great fun.  Not a lot of running but joined in the barking, etc.  When we got home, I noticed she was taking longer to get up from lying down.  This has progressed into her having a major episode.  She is as bad as ever.
We took her back to the vet today and got told that we need to do immune suppresents to rid her of these symptoms.  I was really pushing for more testing as apart from bloods and an x-ray, (which showed nothing but I had to push those) she hasn't had much.
My vet seems to think that she will do all these tests and they will be inconclusive as what she thinks Saff has, isn't found with testing?  She said the only thing she 'maybe' would do would be joint fluid, but I don't want to do this.
Has anyone got any thoughts or ideas for my dog?  I know it's strange and everyone involved(breeder included) is totally baffled.  Has anyone else heard of any illnesses that present this way?
PS  It's not a trapped nerve.  She has no swelling in her joints at all.  A slight raised temp today(normal on Tuesday).  Clear water in her anal glands.  No swelling in her lymph glands.  Not off her food or water.
Just a very depressed, sore dog with no sign of getting better.  The vet is even talking PTS now as her quality of life is so bad.

I think if this was my dog I would be asking ( no demanding ) to be referred to a specialist. Are you insured? as they can be quite costly, but if the life of my dog was in the balance I definitely would not take the word of my Vet. A vet has to refer you if you ask, and I think the sooner the better, as a specialist will know exactly the tests that need to be done.

Have you got pain meds as well as the steroids to keep her painfree whilst you are waiting for a proper diagnosis? I too think when it comes to out of the ordinary conditions you need speciallist advice so things are sorted sooner rather than later.

Steroids and pain meds are often contra-indicated. :-( It's often one or the other.

I have nursed many patients on both, the steroids alone are not working which is why I asked about pain meds to keep the dog comfortable.

the steriods she's on can't be mixed with pain meds as it will eat a hole in her stomach.  She had to be off the metacam for 48 hours before starting the steroids.
I lifted her onto the sofa when we came home at 3pm and she is still lying, shaking, where I put her.  She's not so much as turned over.  I'm very worried as she doesn't seem to have picked up at all considering how well she did the last time.
I think the referal will be the next thing but I'm not sure if she is putting me off over christmas?  The only thing I have said no to is the joint fluid tap and my vet admits that it is unlikely to work as her joints aren't swollen, making it harder to get fluid.  I don't want this done.  Anything else, I'm fine with and she knows this but she just isn't sure what's going on.  Maybe she's not sure where to refer us too?  Like department wise? 
She has ruled out loads of things and she is pretty sure it's the immune system attacking the dog.  It just seems to be having a field day at the minute.

Hi,  My dog had IM poli-arthritis...he had swollen joints and had a joint tap to confirm, it can however present without the swellings and just stiffness and pain with a temp.

If your Vet is sure there is no infection present then treatment is high dose of steroids to suppress the immune system, if the dose isnt high enough the effect of the steroids will be minimal

Its a serious illness that needs a vet that knows what they are dealing with. If your dog is insured then consider a refferal to a Specialist in auto-immune conditions. They will know the correct treatment protocol

There are good ones at Cmbridge and Glasgow ..., im sure else where too .If your Vet rings Cambridge Vet School they may know a good one near to you
Good Luck
Jan

You need to get her back to the vets for adequate pain relief if she is so bad she is shaking and unable to move, most dogs hide pain till it gets too bad and they either ,shake, whine or both.

I agree with jayp, IMPA takes high doses of tablets and usually quite a considerable time to become symptom free with a slow weaning from the tablets. Exercise when on steroids should be on lead as can lead to loose ligaments (think that's right) but anyway it can cause further problems.

I thought the only actual diagnosis for IMPA was a joint tap?

I hope I'm allowed to mention another site, apologies if not
Google CIMDA, lovely helpful people and lots of auto immune info
Jx

Jayp2008, this is what I was told today.  They have given her an injection followed by 1 and half  of 5mg predinsolone twice per day.  She weighes 12 kgs.  This has now been upped to another fast/longer acting steroid followed by 3x5mg of prednisolone twice per day.  They think they just gave enough to suppress the symptoms but have upped the dose to suppress the immune system.
I am near Glasgow so I will ask for a referal.
If she recovers, I've to phone the vet on 28th December and work out where we go from there.  If not, then she is to go back sooner.
She was also sick through the night a couple of times.  Still quiet and the same but the shaking has stopped.  She is still tremoring slightly.  Just really not moving much at all except to snuggle in with me.  She just wants to sleep and snuggle all day(this has been from first thing).

Steroid dose is 2mg per Kg normally but if dogs dont respond then other immune suppressing drugs may be added.
The steroids should work pretty quickly.
Your vet should also have given you a gastroprotectant as high dose steroids are hard on the stomach...Zantac can be used ( over the counter human )  this really is a MUST for such high doses, may explain the sickness !
Ask your Vet for dosage for dogs....I will try to find it for you in a minute

There are two kinds of IM poliarthritis, erosive and non-erosive. Glasgow Vet School is excellent.

Its very painful for the dog, hence the shaking etc. It is usually diagnosed with joint taps, otherwise the only way diagnosis can be made is to rule out everything else. With some auto-immune disease this is the only way.

If you Google it you will find many sites explaining the symptoms

The cimda group mentioned is fantastic, they are so knowlegable and helpful

Hope you get a diagnosis and your dog recovers well....with the right treatment they usually do well
Jan

http://whippet-health.co.uk/#/polyarthritis/4543492869

Above link is to our health site for whippets....hope this helps x

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Ranitidine-prod11204.html

It is important to speak to your Vet as there are contra-indications for this drug...ie liver or kidney disease and some meds

Its recommended by every immune-support group im on...but always check as I dont know your dogs medical history

OMG, Jayp2008, am I glad you have answered my post!!  I think everyone is thinking I don't want what's best for my girl but I am just really reluctant to do the joint taps.  We have been through OCD(different breed) and had joint scrapings which I know are tougher but still, as soon as that joint was operated on, my dog suffered with such painful arthritis.  I swore I wouldn't open a joint again.  It would take an awful lot to persude me.  My vet is almost 100% that it is the polyarthritis and the dose wasn't enough the last time.  I don't know if it is maybe a bug that the dogs have caught as my other dog has thrown up now too.  Maybe fighting a bug as well as the illness is just maybe a bit much for teeny at this time.  I'm hoping the steroids kick in soon though as she is really suffering this week.
Thanks for the links too.  I will go off now and have a nosey.
Thanks so much for the info.  You made the 'vet language' understandable!!
A very merry christmas.

Hi - sorry your dog is having such problems . I have also had a dog with polyarthritis - her joints were not swollen at all but she was very lame, stiff on different legs and very lathargic , she had joint fluid taken from many joints under sedation by the specialist and was no worse after.
Other things that can cause similar signs and which my dog was tested for are myasthenia gravis ( blood test) and polymyositis ( blood test for muscle enzyme) .
You can ask to be referred as an emergency before Christmas if you are worried she is getting worse.
I am also a member of CIMDA and can't recomend them enough as the information there has been do helpful .
I hope your dog improves soon .

Im only too pleased to help cracar, a co-breeder and I did the website as we had so many people needing info and not knowing where to go for help. Many vets are at a loss sometimes as they are so difficult to get a definitive diagnosis. Ive known more than a few whippets that have had a spinal tap for Meningitis that has come back normal but when re-tested showed positive. Thats also why bloods should rule out any other disease as suggested by the last poster.

The joint taps are a much less risky than a spinal tap and dont involve opening the joint , just removal of fluid with I assume large needle under sedation.

The most important thing is to rule out infection and is why Vets quite rightly wont just dole out steroids with no diagnosis , obviously if a dog is fighting an infection the last thing you want is to suppress the immune system designed to fight it

Many dogs are diagnosed by ruling out everything else...then something has to be done or the dog may die, then when the steroids do work when anti-biotics, anti-inflammatories etc have all failed you can be pretty sure the dog has an immune-mediated disease.

My dog had swollen feet, joints, head and just stood there shaking, I was lucky as my Vet knew to hit it very hard with high dose steroids for a week ...then reduce very very slowly over 4-6 months

Please get the gastro-protectant...Zantac its very important if your dog isnt to suffer gastric bleeding

Also be aware when on high dose steroids they are very open to infection in the same way people are when on chemotherapy drugs.....so keep her warm and quiet and away from infection ...ie places where lots of people walk their dogs. Its not necessary to isolate her from your own pack just keep her away from unknown infection

I wish you all the very best and if you need any more help you can email me on...pencleave@hotmail.co.uk  if I dont respond on here....sometimes I forget to look !!!

Love Jan and a Merry Christmas to you x

Thanks Reddog and Jayp2008, I have had a good look around the website you recommended.  Seems like we aren't being aggressive enough with the amount of steroids.  My vet ruled out infections and the like before whitling it down to AI.
We were not told to keep her away from other dogs/dog places and were infact, told to start walking her again as her muscles were wasting!  She, of course, came back with a lovely bug which made her throw up!! And brought back the AI problems majorly!!  I can't believe that I had her running around with a pack of dogs at the park!
I had no idea that this was so rife!  I knew of breeds which were more prone to AI diseases but I had no idea it was such a major thing nowadays.
Also nice to know that I was OK to treat her the way I did.  Everyone's vet seems to do the same thing with this illness.
Thanks so much for your advice.

Sorry to hear about your problems and it is hard when you cant seem to find the right answer,we went through this ,but just wanted to tell you that our dog peggy(saluki) has been on steroids for 7 years,next year she will be 13,could not get a proper diagnosis,finally went to orthopedic vet who said best guess rheumatoid arthritis,blood tests ect not conclusive.
steroids saved my girls life,started on a massive dose(i thought my dog was cured) knew so little at the time,posted a million times on here and was so grateful for all advice,but just wanted to tell you that although we did not want long term steroids, we have been able to keep our dog pain free and happy for a long time.
Managed to get her off steroids for only three months,she also built muscle that was wasted but sadly was ploughed into by her brother( all my fault) which set her back,we might try again in the future but now back to a very small dose every three days.
It can be hard giving a drug that you know in the end will cause more problems day in day out,but at least we still have our girl with us today,wishing you the very best ,
Ashlie.

Thanks for sharing your experiences.  It is hard when you can't get a diagnosis but I am just glad that she seems to be in recovery.  We have been blasting her with steroids to shut down the immune system but I'm hoping we can begin to reduce the dose this week.  Great that your Peggy has been good for so long.  Gives me hope.