From The Past: June 14, 2007

We took Guido to the vet today to have a few things done, but mainly to have his armpit looked at again. We have tried three or four medicines to no avail. The skin under his armpit is black. He scratches it constantly making it look as though he has fleas. Trust me though, the Frontline is doing its job and he is flea-less (I know that’s not a word).

The vet told us the skin is irritated; he doesn’t know why, but it is. Now, because he has scratched it so much, the skin has become very thick. In addition, the scratching has caused something to move toward the area causing his skin to turn black. He used a word for this, but I cannot remember it. He also said the skin would always be black. He said he may be able to help alleviate the itching and the skin may thin some, but the black skin is there for good.

I just want him to stop scratching. If he’s scratching, that means the skin is itchy and I know how that feels. I go crazy when I have a little mosquito bite. I can’t imagine feeling that itchiness in my whole armpit.

The vet, a super-nice guy, gave him a shot of Prednisone which is a type of steroid. Next week, we will give him one Prednisone pill a day for 30 days. At the end of this time, we will see how he is doing and if this keeps him from scratching.

The vet told us these pills would make Guido eat more, drink more, pee more, and pant more.

Poor thing, I can’t imagine him panting much more. The vet was great, but he didn’t seem too optimistic that this “condition” would totally go away.