My dog's blood work is confusing: is she anemic? Found roundworms.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Why was the blood work done, is Harlow sick? If she is sick can you repost with her symptoms. Also it would be helpful to see the blood report as reference ranges are different. If Harlow just had routine blood work done and is normal then I wouldn't worry about the results and I would recheck the CBC in 1 month if she is still acting normal. Have a good day!

Hello, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You're right that Ghontu tested positive for Ehrlichia - but keep in mind that is an "antibody" test, meaning it tests for *exposure* to a disease and doesn't necessarily mean she has Ehrlichia. If a dog is exposed to Ehrlichia and their immune system does its job and successfully clears the body of the Ehrlichia infection, they will still show a positive result on that test. So it's not cause for panic! I defer to your regular vet to determine how worried they are, based on Ghontu's exam and other findings. If they feel treatment is appropriate, they will probably start Ghontu on a 4-week course of medication. The ALP is a bit elevated, but that elevation is quite mild and wouldn't have me too worried. Again, I would defer to your usual vet. But unless they had reason to worry about the ALP specifically, I wouldn't think twice about that ALP value. Hope this helps!

Blood results always have to be interpreted with the results of a hands-on exam and medical history in mind. Numbers alone cannot give a diagnosis. Your veterinarian should have explained those results to you as he also did a clinical exam and knows why you went to the vet with your dog. That said I can give you a general idea: The lab was looking for blod parasites, but did not find any. This can mean that your dog is blood parasite free or just that in the sample they had, there were no parasites visible. This is not proof that your dog is parasite free, it just means they did not find any. The PCV is high, that means your dog is likely somewhat dehydrated. He also has too many neutrophils and too few lymphocytes which is most often a sign of infection. Your veterinarian should explain to you what he suspects your dog is suffering from. The blood parameters alone are just a small part of diagnosis and in your dog's case not very specific.

A platelet count of 73 (which is actually 73,000 due to the way machines read this value) is decreased, but that level of thrombocytopenia is not likely to result in "spontaneous" bleeding--meaning he (she?) has enough platelets for his body to go through day to day normal low key activities without bleeding. However, this is a level (73,000) would be a red flag to avoid putting the dog in situations where we CREATE bleeding--ie we would be cautious if a surgery were needed, etc. A 73,000 thrombocytopenia is most likely "consumptive," meaning the platelets are being used up faster than the body can make them. In his case (her case? I don't see it specified) likely due to gastrointestinal bleeding resulting in the black stools. Therefore the body is doing 'ok' at keeping the bleeding under control in terms of preventing anemia, in that the platelets are doing their job. This is why the Hct is still normal. Additionally, and the reason for the comment of "possible slight anemia" is that the Hct will drop when the pet is better hydrated. Think of it like more concentrated iced tea, then you add some more water and its a little less concentrated. The Hct is 44, but once there is more "fluid" portion of the blood, the red blood cells get diluted a bit, so it may be more like in the high 30s (depending on the severity of the dehydration which I cannot gauge without a physical exam. ) I hope that is helpful! Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Ginger! It may be best to discuss this via consult, I have many questions: how old is GInger? Can you post images of the blood work to show how anemic she is? Can you post the X-ray images? Severe anemia can cause "passing out" episodes due to lack of oxygen delivery to the tissues. Severe anemia causes weakness and collapse. Both of these things can be why she vocalizes and stretches out (passes out or collapses from the anemia). The big question is why is she anemic. Causes of low red blood cells is either from decreased production of red blood cells from the bone marrow (from cancer or fibrosis, toxin, drugs, hormones or immune destruction), blood loss (gastric ulcers, bleeding in to the abdomen) or destruction of the red blood cells from immune destruction (from vaccines, drugs, cancer or the immune system went crazy one day. I would recommend an abdominal ultrasound and further testing for immune mediated hemolytic anemia. Make sure she doesn't have an infected uterus. Hormones from not being spayed can cause bone marrow issues. If the ultrasound is normal, her estrogen levels are normal and she doesn't have immune mediated hemolytic anemia I would recommend a bone marrow aspirate. I hope this helps and I wish Ginger the best!

Hello, and thank you for your question. It is difficult to interpret the results accurately without a medical history, however, in general: - white cell count is within normal range, indicating no sign of infection or inflammation - hemoglobin and PCV are slightly high, which usually indicates mild dehydration. This can be due to not drinking much water for a few hours prior to the blood sample, or from fluid losses through vomiting or diarrhea - MCV is an indicator of red cell size, which is only relevant if the pet is anemic (which Coco is not). I hope this helps, and that Coco is doing okay!

Anemia should be ideally retested. At this stage, with the clinical informations you provided, is mild to moderate and could have been caused only by inflammation. I would recommend to retest the anemia when both the abscess is completely resolved and the course of treatment over. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.