# MMM in dogs



## FEWill (Sep 2, 2009)

MMM in dogs, also known as Masticatory muscle myositis is an extremely frustrating condition for your pet, as well as a very serious threat. It can cause your dogs head muscles to shrink as well as causing excessive salivation.

But that is only the minor problems it causes. It can become so painful to your dog that they can not open their mouth normally, or in some cases, they will just quite trying because of the pain.

It is severe enough; it will also cause your dogs eye to bulge. But the real danger starts with the complete loss of nutrients that may follow as the result of their inability to chew or eat.

MMM in dogs is an especially dangerous condition where your pets own immune system attacks itself, and as a result, causes inflammation of the mastication or chewing muscles. It is very unique in that it attacks specific muscle fibers that are not found anywhere else in your dogs body and it is very effective in this attack. It is so effective, that the inflammation destroys the cells totally.

This disease can affect any dog at any age, but it does seem to have a preference. It seems to attack young and middle aged German shepherds, Doberman pinchers, as well as all Retrievers, including Labrador, Golden, Chesapeake Bay, and Flat-coat.

The muscles that are attacked in this vicious self destruction include the cheek muscles, the temporal muscles, which are on top of your dogs head, as well as what is known as the pterygoid muscles. These muscles are extremely unique in your dog as they are found nowhere else in their body, and they consist of two parts that operate every aspect of the chewing process in your dog.

These muscles close your dogs jaw, open it, as well as elevating it and pulling it forward.

They are also made up a unique fiber and it for this reason that is believed to be the cause of the bodies attack against itself. Your dogs body naturally releases antibodies to fight anything that it believed to be invading the body, and when an auto-immune response does occur, it actually attacks itself. Because of the uniqueness of these muscle fibers, for whatever reason in these particular breeds, their system does not identify them properly, and the vicious attack starts.

MMM in your dog can occur in two different forms; acute of chronic. The chronic form of this disease is the most common, and when this occurs your dog has a very difficult time in opening their mouth in a normal fashion.

In some cases, they may not be able to open it at all. Although this form of the disease is extremely frustrating to both the dog as well as the owner, it does not cause your dog a lot of pain. They just simply can not open their mouth.

This form may also cause what is called atrophy in your dogs head muscles, which is medically described as a wasting or decrease in the size of a body organ or tissue. In this case, it is your dogs head. This usually causes a rather pointy appearance in your dogs head that will also cause their eyes to appear sunken.

But despite this appearance, it is not dangerous, as they are still very alert and active; they just cannot open their mouths.

If this condition is acute, it has now suddenly become much more severe. In the acute stage, your dog may develop a fever, excessive salivation that may lead to infections, and they will not let you touch their head as it has become very painful to touch. Because of this pain, they will not want to eat anything and this is where the real danger comes in.

Symptoms:

The symptoms of MMM in dogs will all depend on which form it is. With the chronic form, your dog will generally only show two symptoms: the loss of ability to open their mouth normally as well as shrinkage in their head muscles. However, once the head muscles do shrink, you may see a slight bulging of their eyes.

If they have the acute form, the symptoms will be much more severe. They will develop a very high fever that is usually accompanied by a swelling of the localized lymph nodes. This will than cause a swelling in their facial and forehead muscles.

Once this occurs, their eyes will actually start to bulge rather than appear sunken. This may also trigger a protrusion of their third eyelid, which is both painful as well as a nuisance to your dog.

This is where they also start to salivate excessively as it becoming extremely painful to open their mouth. Because of this, they will not want to chew or eat anything at all.

Similar diseases:

MMM in your dog has several similar diseases, with the most common being a tooth abscess or oral ulcers. Locked jaw is also very similar, but MMM does not result in the jaw locking; it just does not work properly. Polymyositis, also referred to as PM, is also very similar, except it will affect several muscles in your dogs body, while MMM only affects the jaws.

There is also a neuropathy condition that can affect your dog where the jaw actually drops and your pet can not close their mouth, but again it is different because with MMM they can not open their mouth. Finally there is an infectious form of myositis, but it also affects several different muscles.

With MMM, it is isolated specifically to these one sets of muscles.

Treatments:

Once MMM in your dog is properly diagnosed, the treatment is geared toward inhibiting the immune system form attacking itself in both forms. The goal will be to slow down or mediate the antibodies destruction against itself. Prednisone, which is a corticosteroid, is usually very effective. However, there are some cases where this will not work, and other steroid therapies may have to be used.

If the steroids are not immediately effective, your dog may have to be placed on a feeding tube to get nutrients back into their body as quickly as possible.

This sounds quite drastic, but there are several very effective and relatively painless ways to do this, including a small tube placed in your dogs nose. This is not that painful and produces very good results.

Summary:
MMM in dogs can be very painful for your pet, and once you identify the symptoms, the sooner you can get them treated the faster they will recover.

However, with any type of steroid treatment, there is always the possibility of side affects. Infections are the most common, and if you see any difficulty in urination or blood in your dogs urine, you will need to notify your veterinarian immediately.

You dog will also drink an excessive amount of water, and they may also pant more than normal. But in most all cases, once treated, your dog will be able to open their mouth again and return back to normal.

Liquid Vitamins for Humans Cats and Dogs


----------



## Spellweaver (Jul 17, 2009)

Thanks for posting this. Myositis is a horrible condition and we nearly lost Quinny, our young border collie because of it. He had an acute attack, brought on the vet thinks by a massive allergic reaction to Frontline, although Frontline categorically deny that this is possible.

Quinny was just under a year old when he started to become ill. Because in its first stages myositis has symptoms similar to other autoimmune diseases, it was not apparent at first what what wrong - the vet started by thinking Quinny had Addisons Disease and we went through a whole gamut of tests before it was finally diagnosed as myositis. His masticatory muscles were not affected, thank goodness, but he lost muscle tissue around his legs, and his temporal muscles just wasted away. Here is a pic which clearly shows how this looks - you can see the unnatural thinness around the top of his head.










He was on a huge dose of steroids, and when he was at his worst he just lay there, not even twitching his tail when I came home from work. It was heartbreaking to see him. We had actually got to the stage where the vet was saying that nothing was working, he had no quality of life, and perhaps we ought to start thnking of "what was best for Quinny". That was on a Saturday, and we went home for the weekend to think about it .......... and believe me, miracles still do occur. Some friends came around to see us, upset by the news, and for the first time in over a month Quinny was trying to get up to play with their dogs. From then on he started to get better. It was a slow process, but four months later he was off the steroids and, touch wood, he has not needed them since (its just over a year ago now). We have had a special exercise program (mainly walking up and down a hill with a hard surface) to build up the muscles in his chest and legs.

And in December, just one year after he was so ill, we entered him in his first show since he became ill - and he won 1st place in his class (Post Grad). He's at his first champ show this month. We are so proud of him, and the way he has overcome this illness and got back to normal. This is him now:










Sorry about this long ramble - but I guess what I wanted to add to the OP was that if your dog is unlucky enough to contract myositis, never give up.


----------



## FEWill (Sep 2, 2009)

Hi Spellweaver,

That was not a ramble--it was a show of love. And your dog is beautiful--there is nothing more important to me, other than my wife and two daughters, than our dogs. Dogs make life interesting and fun--ramble all you want--we all love dogs. And if I can help just one dog every day, the hours that I pour into writing articles is all worth it. I could care less about any money. I just love to help and talk about dogs.

Thanks,
Frank


----------



## paradiddle (Jan 15, 2012)

We have a hound mix named Pokey who has been diagnosed with chronic MMM after he had a tonsil cancer tumor removed. He had the muscle atrophy on his head and inability to open his mouth. On a post exam 1/12/12 under sedation the vets had great difficulty opening his mouth and that's when they found the MMM. He was not given any CK tests but he was given prednisone at 20mg - twice a day.

At the moment he has regained some jaw movement and can drink water and eat a little but we have to force feed him to get the rest in. He had a feed tube in after his tonsil surgery and it was thought that he would not open his mouth because he was guarding but it may have been MMM along.

He is just lying around a lot and we think he is going to let go any minute. We have to force feed him but he can drink water on his own now. I know we have to get more food in him. Then he fools us and we took him for a very short walk and he sees a cat and its like his old self. My problem is I think our vet is not being aggressive enough with the Prednisone. Pokey is about 20Kg ( 45 lbs ) and he is getting 20mg 2x a day. All the literature I see says to give 2mg/kg BID and that would be 40 mg 2x a day.

The story about Quinny sounds very similar to us and I think we are looking at Pokey the same way. I hope he pulls out of it.

before photo: 









I want to add that Pokey was given a new anti-Tick med called Certifect from Frontline about one month before the first instance of decline. I noticed he was very lethargic after this application. It has fipronil.


----------



## cindywhit (Jun 24, 2012)

My 17month old Golden Retriever was just diagnosed with MMM after vet did lab work and muscle biopsy from his jaw. I think it first started about 2 weeks ago when we noticed his left eye was swollen as if he had been stung or bitten by an insect. We dosed him with some Diphenhydramine and the swelling went away considerably. We noticed his facial features were almost like he was starving, you could see his bones around his eyes pretty clearly, even though he is a healthy 90lbs. Then several days later his right eye swelled and he started to "slobber" HORRIBLY. It was to the point we had to take a towel every where and kept several laying around the house just to wipe his face. I thought that maybe he was stung or bitten by an insect inside his mouth or had bitten into something and it left a splinter and was causing an infection.

We decided to take him to the vet after last Sunday night he refused to play with his toys, stopped fetching and would not chew his treats. Monday he refused to open his mouth at all ...all you could see was the tip of his tongue when he was panting. After searching the internet for hours I can across some information about MMM and the symptoms and was like "THATS GOTTA BE IT!" We had vet appointment on Tuesday and the vet did x-rays to rule out abcesses or tooth infections and x-rays were perfect. BUT even under sedations the vet could not open Buddy's mouth. I mentioned MMM and the symptoms to the vet and he was a bit reluctant to even consider it since he had never come across this disease in the 13 years he had been practicing. He said he was going to consult with a specialist and have him review Buddy's x-rays just in case. We took Buddy home and received a call later that evening from the vet stating his x-rays were indeed just fine. The vet said his collegue recommended he test for MMM since Buddy presented the classic symptoms and even though its rare it does appear in large breed dogs. 
We scheduled a muscle biopsy on Wednesday morning. The vet said the disease is progresses rapidly and diagosis and treatment needed to be started ASAP to prevent permanet damage to the muscles in Buddy's jaw. Buddy did AMAZING with the biopsy and we brought him home a few hours after the procedure and a steroid injection as soon as he woke up from anesthesia. He has been put on aggressive Prednisone therapy - 60mg every 12hours for 2 weeks and today (Saturday) we got the results of the biopsy proving that Buddy did indeed have MMM (much to my vets surprise but not mine). Yesterday we started seeing improvement and today has been even better. Buddy seems more like himself, wants to play (even though the vet said to keep him calm and cool) and is even starting to chew his food and treats. We have been softening his kibble with water and feeding him 3 smaller portions a day. He gets his frozen raw nuggets in the morning as normal. I'm hesitant to have Buddy on such high dose of steroids and from what I have read, it seems he will have to be on them for a long period of time but it seems to be working and at this point will do anything for my dog. 

I'm interested on finding as much information about this disease and possibly alternatives and/or more holistic forms of treatment. This is the first forum I have found regarding MMM in dogs after searching the internet tirelessly. Any information no matter how big or small would be appreciated and most helpful as my vet does not have much experience with this disease and that scares me. I want to do whats best for Buddy. I want to eventually convert Buddy to a raw diet as he has problems with gas and since substituting just the 1 meal in the morning to frozen raw diet a few months ago the gas has resolved. Being diagnosed with MMM and on steroid therapy has me concerned about continuing to feed him the frozen raw diet due to bacteria that may be present and the steroids compromising his immune system. I feed him premium grain-free dry kibble now for lunch and dinner (soften with water) as he absolutely cannot tolerate any kibble with meat by-products or grains. My vet does not approve of the frozen raw portion but to me the results speak for themselves. 

Anyway sorry to go on and on. Any thoughts or suggestions would be much appreciated.


----------



## paradiddle (Jan 15, 2012)

All the info we found on MMM was from the internet and that's how our vet found it. The ER vet missed it when we brought Pokey in around Dec/1/2011 when they could not open his mouth without him yelping. We had a dual problem with the cancer and the MMM. Poor Pokey lost his battle to the cancer and had a hard time eating. He died on Jan 23, 2012 - very short time. He was 7 yrs old. As far as I know its auto - immune. I wish I could show an after photo but he was a classic MMM case with the loss of muscle. Good luck with your pup.


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi I am also new to this site. And as my dear Lilly has just been diagnosed with MMM (test result to come but my vet almost sure). I too have been trying to find all info I can.
So to Cindywhit perhaps we could work together for our dogs on this. Lilly is now on 50mg a day, and seems to be responding to this. My vet is very open to using herbs along side steroids so any info we can find would help us all. I have heard of transfer factor plus is something good to help build the immune system and apparently can be used alongside steroids. I have found several owners that have used this and had really good results. I am due to see my vet at the end of week with Lilly, so will find out anymore and let you know. In the meantime I will continue to research this. Regarding her food Lilly was on a raw diet but she got colitis (immune again) so had to take her off it. She is now on salmon, potato with added prebiotics/probiotics, some fruit and veg. I buy the dry food from croft and tinned from nose-2-tail.co.uk. The dry food I soak it in hot water and she manages this. It is important that your dog takes pre and probiotics to combat the steroids.
Perhaps we could link up with our own e-mails and go from there.
We will get there and help our dogs- positive thoughts
Gail


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Just to update you on Lilly. Been to vets today, blood test back but not muscle biopsy. Blood test showed slight raised levels for MMM but a bit inconclusive, he thinks we picked it up quickly and she is responding to the steroids. Confirmation will be from the muscle testing. She has made improvement since sunday, a little bit down on the steroids but that is one of the side effects, Graham has also put her on the K9 Transfer Factor which helps rewire the immune system. She is staying on 50mg steroids a day for 3 weeks and if she continues to be stable/improve he will slightly reduce it. If all goes well with both she only has to stay on steroids for 4 months. So fingers crossed, prayers and lots of TLC for her.
Any further info I find out will let you know.
Gail


----------



## Spellweaver (Jul 17, 2009)

Just noticed this thread had been revivied. All fingers and paws crossed here in the hope your dogs get through this ok - as I said in my first post never give up, even when it all seems hopeless. And don't worry at the huge dose of prednisolone they may be given - Quinny was on such a high dose that it made his gums bleed, but he is as fit as a fiddle now three years on.

Can I just ask: can any of you link the beginning of your dog's illness with using Frontline? The vet is certain that Quinny's myositis was brought on by his immune system having a massive allergic reaction to Frontline, but the makers categorically deny that this can happen because Frontline is non-systemic. However, Quinny started to be ill a couple of days after we first used it on him; and he started to get better exactly a month later - which (co-incidentally?) is the period the company said it takes for the Frontline to start to wear off. I just wondered if anyone else had noticed a link.


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi Spellweaver,
No Lilly didn't have frontline, I wont use it, as I have heard from others that it caused a reaction. Garlic helps keeps the pesty at bay. I also have concerns about their injections, Lilly did have one injection when she first came to us last year, but I refuse to let her have any more. Have heard not very nice things from those either. Lilly is a rescue dog so not sure what crap etc she had in her life. We have another English Setter Addy (he too rescue and had a dreadful life in ireland) bless him, he to developed a cancer last year but hopefully he is doing well at the moment, he is on a raw diet as is shining because of it, I also give him Chaga mushroom helps boost the immune system to fight the bad guys. I am now also giving him the K9 transfer factor.
What a strange world we live in even the poor animals are fighting dreadful diseases, time we lived in a less toxic, less stressful, less technology world too many things flying around us!!!! LOl.
Gail


----------



## cindywhit (Jun 24, 2012)

update on Buddy
Buddy has been responding wonderfully to treatment. No more swelling, no more pain and no more drooling! He is drinking a huge amount of water and constantly going potty as a result so we have had to monitor his water intake otherwise he will go potty every 15 minutes it seems. I'm anxious to start the steroid weaning process so that he wont be so thirsty all the time. Vet mentioned trying him on Cyclosporine if he does not have good luck weaning off the Prednisone. Cyclosporine would have less side effects and it safer to take long term. I am PRAYING he can come off the Prednisone totally and stay off but I have to keep an open mind about it. 
We use Advantix II on Buddy instead of Frontline as I never had good results with Frontline. He is due for his monthly application next week so I will watch for any side effects (did notice some lethergy with last application but didnt think much of it). We did use Frontline and the Bio-Spot for awhile on our first dog, who we sadly said goodbye to last Feb due to liver disease. I am curious and scared about the fact these products could be causing sickness in our pets and kinda hesitant to apply the Advantix again. Mosquitoes are a HORRIBLE problem in our area (I live in Indiana, USA) and the Advantix II worked better at repelling them than all the others topical products we tried. I agree with Gail that we need to be less toxic to our pets and ourselves. Society has just pounded into our minds "take this for that and use this to prevent that" that its hard to put a stop to the cycle. 
I hope Lily continues to improve as much as Buddy is and will keep everyone furry and non-furry in our prayers! 
NOTE: I thought I had posted an update last night but I must have not posted properly....it was late and I was tired. Sorry if this is a duplicate.
Pictures attached:
Buddy with green bandana was taken in March before he presented with any "noticable" symptoms...now I see him and I can tell a definite difference in his face.
Buddy after his muscle biopsy.
Buddy 5 days on steroid treatment...his face is no longer swollen and his bone structure is very noticable.


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi,
Thanks got your reply, I am glad Buddy is on the right road. Oh awkward for you re mossies!!! I would be very hesitant like you to apply stuff especially as their immune system compromised!!!! Garlic has proven to work also essential oils help, have a research on essentials oils I know you can rub them into dog but you need to make sure it is ok for buddy. A good herbalist/homeopath person would help. I have started Lilly on K9 Transfer Factor, worth a good shot at have read good results about it. If you need some I can get it for you, otherwise I know the 4life transfer factor in usa have it, that is what my vet use to use until he swapped to this K9 one. Lily is still improving but gets a little down with the steroids. Do you know I have never heard of this thing and I have had dogs all my life so 59 years. And yesterday my husband came home and said his friends cat!!! has just been diagnosed with it and the vet has never heard of cats getting it!!! So the more I hear the more I am sure it is all this things we put in/on our dogs/cats.
Keep the fight going and I will do some more research for us.
Love and big hugs to Buddy. Gail


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi just found some more info out re mossies: Lavender oil/eucalyptus/lemongrass these are all non toxic add 10-20drops of each mix with 6-8ounces of filtered/bottled water shake it up. Use a spray bottle and spray your dog starting at back legs. Worth a go rather than that horrible toxic stuff.
Gail


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Just to update you on how Lilly is coming along. She is responding well with treatment, and is now just started on a reduced amount of steroids down to 25mg a day, she also takes the K9 transfer Factor and K9 Immunity and I think this is also helping. The american co I get them from now do the two combined so I have just purchased some, LOL it is cheaper for me to get them from USA than my own Vet in UK !!!She is hungry for all an drinks a lot and does have spells of being depressed, that is sad to see as she is such a get up and go girl!!! But I feel we are on the right road and hopeful that in another 3 weeks we can again reduce the steroids by half and so on until she is off them - we will celebrate them.
How is buddy doing.
Keep the faith 
Gail


----------



## cindywhit (Jun 24, 2012)

Update on Buddy.
Buddy is doing very well. He is down to 1-20mg prednisone tab twice a day and so far so good. We are hoping to decrease to 1-20mg tab once a day in another week or so. I am not liking the side effects at all though. He seems to still have an insatable thirst which results in more bathroom breaks and I have noticed his bouts of "depression". The worst thing is his incision on his cheek where the vet did the muscle biopsy is not healing quick enough. We had to give him a round of antibiotics since it seemed a bit inflammed and was still draining. The incision site has healthy tissue and is not bleeding, draining or inflammed anymore (thank God) but it still looks like it is open a bit. The vet does not want to put anymore stitches in and says the healing or lack there of is due to the steroids. Poor Buddy has to wear one of those awful Elizabethian collars. I hate that he has had to wear it everyday for 2 weeks now but every time I take it off he scratches his incision and it opens back up. We tried a soft collar but he figured out how to smush it down so that his back foot reaches his incision and of course scratches it back open. We are getting married Aug 3rd and had planned on him have a "doggy vacation" at our local doggie daycare place. He hasnt been to play since he got sick and I know that he is depressed about that. His favorite thing is to romp and play all day with his "Golden Girls" (what the day care attendents call his female golden retriever friends). I am hoping we have a miracle in the next few days and the incision heals completely by the time our wedding comes around. Until then the vet says no to any strenous activity by himself or with other dogs. Other than the incision issue he is doing soooooo well and I am so thankful we caught the disease in time before it resulted in any permanent damage. 
Its GREAT to hear that Lily is doing well too. Thank you so much for the Lavender oil/eucalyptus/lemongrass treatment for pests...I'm going to try it as soon as I get the ingredients. I'm also gonna look into the K9 transfer Factor and K9 Immunity. Maybe supplimenting with those will speed his healing process! As I mentioned earlier I am anxious to get Buddy off the steroids and for all of this to be over as I am sure you are too.
Will update soon.
Cindy


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi,
Just quick update on Lilly, had a slight relapse after 5 days on just 25mg of steroids, she had a slight problem yawning again. My vet has upped her again to 50mg for another 3 weeks, he wasnt over concerned as he said this can happen regularly when the steroids are reduced, he was following the plan!!! but not every dog is the same. He feels he reduced it too soon and by too much, I think so too I was a bit concerned about the high reduction after a short time. She is back fine today, so 3 more weeks on 50mg, then he wants to take her down to 40mgs and do it slower this time.
So positive thoughts and I know she will get there it is just getting it right for her.
Gail


----------



## cindywhit (Jun 24, 2012)

So sorry to hear about Lily's relapse! The vet told me the same thing when we started decreasing Buddy's steroid. Right now we are still at 20mg twice a day and have been for a week. Its so scary to know they can relapse and have to go back to higher dosage but at least the steroid helps and there is that option to go higher. Did Lily have any trouble going back to playing with her toys? I'm kinda concerned that Buddy refuses to play with what used to be his favorite toy - a squeaky red ball with a handle at the top. He used to carry it around in his mouth all the time and now wont even go near it. He doesnt fetch anymore either. Its almost like he was traumatized and is scared to play with some of his toys. He will chew just fine but just will not play with many of the toys he used to. Unfortunately we have no idea how long he had MMM before we actually got him treatment and if there was any permanent damage done. I am hoping its the steroids causing the issue...that maybe he is just depressed and anxious from the medication. 
2 weeks until our wedding....I was hoping Buddy would be to fully recovered by then so he could have his "doggy vacation" but doesnt look like he will be up to par. Poor thing, I feel like such a bad pet parent for not noticing it sooner. I'm inpatient I'm sure....this disease is frustrating for me and I know its just as stressful for Buddy. 
I hope Lily gets back to getting better soon! Keep me updated on her progress and we will keep you and Lily in our prayers!
Cindy


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi Cindy,
How is Buddy doing? Hope all goes with the wedding in a few days, we wish your a happy life together.
Lilly is doing fine again back on 50mg, I also think she has improved a bit in herself as she doesnt seem so down, and has more energy, playing with addy more times now. Even her coat is shiny!!!! And a big plus she picked up her soft toy and was throwing it around the room, she is also getting into naughty things again, oh I could have cried to see her beginning to enjoy life again.Eating for europe tho!!!! And has put on weight!!!!Sure it is the Immunity Plus that is supporting her, so hopefully we are on the right road and when we start to reduce her again it will be better. She sees the Graham her vet next tuesday and her 3 wks will be up on the thursday following that appointment.
So lots of prayers, love and carry on with the immune support.
Kind regards and best wishes
Gail, Lilly and Addy x


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi Cindy,
How was the wedding? Hope all went well. How is our buddy doing, hope is is on the road to recovery. Your always in our prayers and thoughts.
Lilly is slowly improving, she has managed to reduce her steroids from 50mg to 37.5mg and has been on this for 18 days and all seems well. They decided to reduce this time by 25% rather than 50% and the next will be down to 25mg, this should start this coming friday after I speak to Graham the vet tomorrow. Always a bit scary at first but I feel when a week has gone by and she still doing ok I relax just a little. A long journey to go but I really believe she will get there at her own pace. She is now getting some of her naughtiness back and it is a joy to see, she was actually playing with her tennis ball and chewing a log which meant she opened her jaw really well. I try to make sure she has some exercise of her jaw every day to keep it going.She has put on weight as she is starving for europe all the time, but I will deal with that when she recovers. I also believe the K9 Immunity Plus is helping her along her journey too. It quite exhausting at times as she eats disgusting stuff she finds, including poo, so have to be alert at all times, she cant afford to get any infections now.
Let me know how things are going.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you all. Hugs for all
Blessings Gail, Lilly and Addy xxx


----------



## cindywhit (Jun 24, 2012)

Hi Gail,
The wedding went wonderfully well, despite the heat. Thank you for the well wishes! Im glad its over though....now things can get back to normal. Buddy is doing much much better. He had a little set back right after our wedding. He caught a stomach virus from his time at daycare (due to the steriods) and his incision site swelled up (reaction from internal stitches) and had to be drained. So 2 antibiotics and 2 weeks later he is tip top thankfully. This week is his first week off steroids and so far so good. He is back to his normal self wanting to play and chew on sticks and wiggle upside down in the grass. He has gained alot of weight though...and still wants to eat everything on site. Thankfully the weather has cooperated and we have been able to get outside and play. Who wouldve thought 85 degrees would be considered "cool". 
I'm glad Lilly is doing so well! This disease is definitely a strain..emotionally for us and physically on our furry kids. Its nice to finally see some light at the end of the tunnel for both of us. 
Keep me updated on Lilly's progress and I'll do the same. You both are in my payers!!
Cindy and Buddy


----------



## DANZA39 (Oct 5, 2012)

Hello , I'm here because my dog Monty Bull Terrier Puppy has just been diagnosed with MMM and i just dicovered this forum searching through google. I would really like to chat with you guys about this disease .... my dog is still at the vet at the moment and this is all still very new to me , i'm scared :-( . Hope we can chat soon .

Kind regards, Dan .


----------



## Emerwood (Oct 25, 2012)

I also have a dog with MMM, but its not "classic". The only symptom is symetrical atrophy on his head. It has been 5 months now with no other symptoms. His 2M titer revealed amazingly elevated levels. We are going to start him on prednisone right away but has anyone have experience with only severe atrophy of the head? My dog has no jaw pain, eats fine, opens his mouth fine, normal otherwise. This has me stumped as well as my vet. 

Its great to hear everyones stories as well. So thank you all for your posts. 

Em.


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi Em,
I hadn't heard of MMM until LIlly got it and since searching around it seems to affect dogs in slightly different ways, some have the jaw and head, others just jaw or head, I have also heard how it can affect other muscles in the body, legs and chest etc. Lilly has had this since June and was very ill to start with she was on 50mg steroids a day, now she is recovering well and is down to 20mg steroids. My vet reduced them very quickly to start with and she reacted within a few days so now he jsut reduces them by 5mg every 3 weeks and this is suiting Lilly. I don't like her on steroids but it has helped her through, hopefully by xmas she will be off them and fit and well. I also believe that the K9 Immunity Plus I give her every day is certainly helping her on the road to recovery.
Regards Gail


----------



## DANZA39 (Oct 5, 2012)

Hi Gail and Em..... here is my story .


It started like this ...... Friday the 28/9/12 i awoke in the morning to find Monty's left eye swollen ... sort of a bulging out look , so i took her to the vet that morning and the vet said she may have conjunctivitis so gave me some antibiotic ointment to put in her eye and so i took her home . 



Monty started to become quiet , when i would chuck the ball she would run after it and always pick it up and bring it to me , but she had stopped picking the ball up , Monty had stopped barking and she was showing signs of lethargy although she was still eating, drinking at this point and her stools were fine and there was no vomiting she was just quiet. At this point i'm thinking she may just have a upset tummy or something ....i was not alarmed at this point as dogs can be quiet at times .



On the 3/10/12 i served up Monty's breakfast and for the first time she sniffed it and walked away and later just came and curled up beside me ,she was definitely not her normal self . When i was looking at her her eyes were not full and open and i could smell some bad breath coming from her mouth ... i tried to open her mouth, usually not a problem but this time she was not goin to let me . At this point I decided to take Monty back to the vet .



When i saw the vet i told her that Monty was quiet and not her normal self .... she's always full of energy and keeps me on my toes . I stated to the vet that i felt there was something lodged in her mouth or something, the vet then tried to look, but Monty would not let her . The vet then said that she would have to put Monty under anesthetic and take some xrays of her jaw to see if anything was wrong . I went home and in the afternoon i had a phone call from the vet nurse and she told me that the xrays came back fine and her teeth were fine too , as she is only just a puppy after all ( 10 months old) she also said that she could not open Monty's jaw under anesthetic and the she should be able too ... she then said that she clinically diagnosed Monty with Masticatory Muscle Myositis . 



The vet said Monty needed to stay with them and tube feed her and put her on a drip and start with Prednisolone injections .... she stated that this needed to be done asap as this disease is fast acting Monty stayed with the vet from the 3/10/12 to 6/10/12. When i went to pick Monty up her head on both sides had sunken in quite a bit , she looked odd .The vet nurse said that she could take blood and send it to California to be tested as this is the only place that tests for this disease , i declind to have her blood tested as the vet said even if the blood test comes back negative as it can happen in 20% of cases that the only treatment is steroid treatment and she would still need these steroids to start her jaw back up to work again , and after doing alot of reaserch on the internet myself when Monty was at the vet ... she showed all the classic signs for this MMM disease. 



Monty is currently back home again and the vet has started Monty on Prednisolone Steroid tablets 37.5 mg twice per day 12 hours apart with her breakfast and dinner and she is to remain on this for 21 days then i need to go back to the vet again with monty to see how she is doing . Monty does seem to be responding with this medication as she is eating and drinking although she just sort of like to lie around alot not her sparky self, poor girl . It must be these tablets that she is on ..... her stools are ok and there has been no vomiting, although she likes her food and drinks alot and is urinating alot more frequently and she seems a little vague not her peppy self if you know what i mean . I'm wondering if Monty will become more her self again once the vet starts to slowly drop her dosage down ? . By the way i Live in Australia . The vet also told me this is quite a rare disease locally but world wide it is common . 

Update as of Friday 26/10/2012 Been back to the vet with Monty and the vet has reduced Monty's steroids for the first time since going on them ...she now is getting 37.5 mg 1 x times a day , i'm not sure if this is a too bigger drop so suddenly or not . 



Kind Regards, Dan .


----------



## Gailhol (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi Dan,
Sorry to hear about you and Monty. It is so frightening to start with but there is light at the end of the tunnel. They reduced Lil's by half the first time round and she reacted within 5 days and couldn't open her mouth again, so now the vet just reduces it by 5mg every 3 weeks and this she is better on. This friday she comes down to 15mg. It is awful to see them just lie around and not be themselves, think it is part of the disease and also the steroids. Lil is now alot better and is playing more, and not depressed anymore. She chews well on her logs and balls etc. She has put on a lot of weight and is starving all the time and drinks/wees a lot. She can open her mouth almost fully now and hopefully that will come back with time, she still has some sunken parts on her face, not sure if that will ever come back. I do believe the K9 Immunity is helping her as well, have a look at the site Aloha Medicinals in America, these are the cutting edge of peopel that have done years of research for animals. They are expensive, then I believe that I should give my dogs the best chance in life they can have.
You will be in our prayers .
Kind Regards Gail


----------



## DANZA39 (Oct 5, 2012)

Hi Gail ,thanks for your response. I have just called my vet because since seeing the vet just friday gone Monty seems to have deteriorated quite dramaticaly she was on 37.5 mg every 12 hours ,but friday gone she was reduced down to one dose of 37.5 mg every 24 hrs which is halved. I have just called my vet tonight and told them that i'm seeing Monty changing for the worse since the reduction of the steroids.... she instructed me to go back to the dosage before that she was first put on.... until i have a phone call from the original vet nurse in the morning that's handling Monty through this disease . 

I hope everything will work out in the end.... i feel this is going to be a roller coaster ride up and down .

Gail what dosage did your dog start on ? I'm really worried and wondering whats going to happen next. It's really good that we can chat and interact about this subject ,it helps to keep you strong and have hope . I've been in contact with Cindywhit by email aswell. Will post again once i hear more from the vet nurse tommorow . Hope your dog keeps well Gail too Gail ...Best wishes your way and i hope we can keep in contact through here on the progress of our dogs .

Kind Regards , Dan .


----------



## mybestfriends (Aug 22, 2013)

Good afternoon, all. I am a newbie to the forum and found you in my researching about MMM in dogs. It will be two years ago, this coming September 12th that my golden retriever, Zeus, was diagnosed with MMM. 

It was a July summer morning, Zeus's day started out with what looked like a insect bite/sting to his face with swelling and pain/discomfort in opening his jaw-wide. After a couple weeks of his local vet treating him for an insect bite, then on to antibiotics and further examination/Xrays for possible foreign matter in his jaw/teeth with no conclusive diagnosis of his problems; the vet referred Zeus to a Veterinary Specialists Animal Hospital.

Zeus's 1st visit to the Vet Specialists included testing/ultrasound which revealed a 2cmx4cm mass on the zygomatic arch. They biopsied the mass, sent it off and put Zeus on Tramadol for pain. Re-exam a week later and biopsy results-not a tumor/no cancer. I was so relieved Zeus was cancer free.....But, the Vet wanted to do further testing so additional blood was drawn from that region and sent to a lab in California and the vet started Zeus on 30mg/day of Prednisone. Week later swelling had subsided and his jaw action had shown improvements so Prednisone was reduced to 20mg/day. Second week-lab result back and Zeus was diagnosed with Masticatory Muscle Myositis. WHAT WAS THAT??!!! 

Zeus was 1 1/2yrs old when the swelling on his face/jaw restriction initially occurred and at that time he was in training with me to become a Therapy Dog and had just completed/passed the Canine Good Citizen program. Next step would have been on to testing to be certified as a Therapy Dog but Zeus's journey in life (and mine) took a different path that day!

So here we are nearly 2 years later, with Zeus having had 3 re-occurrences/flair ups of his MMM and the back on-wean down-off of Prednisone. 

His re-occurrences/flair ups (face swelling/jaw movement reduction) were "immediate" results of; 1) coming off Prednisone "too" soon, the first time; 2) reactions to vaccinations-rabies and DA2PPLL (so no longer being vaccinated) and 3) reaction to Ivermectin-heartworm preventative. So far, he has not had any reaction to the heartworm preventative Sentinel (completely different ingredients).

In addition to his flair ups, Zeus has had continuous bouts with Diarrhea. His on again/off again of Gastro Intestinal vet food along with probiotics and other medicine has become the norm...but as long as he wants/can eat (which thankfully, hasn't been a problem)...life is good! Zeus loves to put everything in his mouth....from twigs to oak nuts to flower pedals, etc...so there in lies some of his bouts with Diarrhea. 

Zeus is a hefty 75 pounds and quite strong. He's still maturing and thus still very "puppy" acting. Besides being fixated on "fetching" tennis balls and chasing lizards...he's quite comfortable in helping me wheel the garbage container up the driveway...so who knows-maybe next year he may be mature enough to help youth/adults in rehab by becoming a wheelchair puller. He's quite good at pulling me....so I do believe there's hope! :smile5:

I hope posting an abbreviated version of Zeus's MMM journey in life, so far, will be educational and inspirational to those who find it/read it. I'm so blessed I found this forum and read others stories...it helped me, a lot. So, Thank you.....


----------



## abbiedabbie (May 12, 2014)

Hi everyone,

I have a mixed breed dog (German shorthaired pointer/dachshund/poodle, etc) who was diagnosed with MMM several years ago. She lives a very happy, full life and I just wanted to share with you all for those who have questions about a recent diagnosis.

We got Maia when she was a puppy, and we honestly don't know when the MMM came about. It wasn't a sudden onset which leads us to believe that she may have already had it when we got her at 12 weeks of age. As she grew, we noticed that she had a somewhat pointier head than other dogs, but just assumed that was the way she looks since she never had any symptoms that we noticed. None of our veterinarians noticed (she had seen several by the time she was a few years old - the vet at the rescue where we got her, and a couple others because we moved). Her third veterinarian is the one who "diagnosed" her - he made this diagnosis purely on the way her head was shaped and was very surprised that she didn't have much in the way of symptoms given her obviously atrophied muscles, aside from the fact that her mouth doesn't open quite as wide as her sister's.

Of course, we were immediately very concerned. It all made sense now why her head was so pointed on top! Being scientists, my husband and I immediately started researching this condition. The more we researched the more we became confused - mostly everyone online has dogs that have an acute bout of MMM followed by some flare-ups, but Maia at this point was already 3 years old and in the chronic stage. What would happen? Will she be ok? What can we do? Should we start her on steroids?

First, our vet didn't recommend any course of action. "As long as she isn't having any problems eating then we won't need to treat it.." But all the concerned pet parents online (most with acute cases) were treating with steroids. Through our own research we found that in cases of chronic MMM that steroids can actually make the inflammation and atrophy worse. We started making sure that she had something to chew on several times a week to keep her chewing muscles working, and that's all we have done for her.

She is doing great. We haven't noticed an improvement nor a worsening of her "condition". She is a happy dog, now 5 years old. Do we worry about her? Of course. Comparing her head shape to her sister's, the difference is striking and I feel like I should have known something was wrong so long ago! But there's nothing we can do about it, and she is living a very happy life. All we can do is provide her a loving, happy home full of chew toys.

The only other symptom we have noticed over the years which may or may not be related is her stools are consistently looser than her sister's. We have tried changing foods, using probiotics, and giving pumpkin with her food, all of which help a little. But her stools are nowhere near as firm as I think they should be! Of course, I do believe the rawhide and chew toys contribute to this as well, but I guess it is better to ensure her jaw muscles are being exercised than not. 

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Abbie


----------



## max everett (Jun 28, 2015)

HI my name is Max and I have an American Alsation called Barney 20 months old. He has MMM and has lost all the muscle on top of his head. He had symptoms of salivation and whimpering when eating .I have taken him to the vet where he had an inconclusive biopsy showing no activity . The conclusion was he had had a cronic bout off MMM but now in remission.
My vet then told me of a six year old dog and I asked if he would make 6 she told me he will make no age at all and to prepare myself for a difficult decision in the near future.
Barney ate all through his MMM and now eats well and has put on weight loves loads of exercise and swimming. Barks and chews a bit and can open his mouth not fully but 60%. He is a very happy dog .
My questions are . Do dogs live to an old age with MMM . Now he is fine at the moment no pain at all should I put him on a treatment to help suppress his immune system and what treatment . Will the muscle return to the top of his head .
He is a kind and beautiful animal and I want the best for him


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

There is also a sticky titled MMM help please that probably has more info in it than most vets know.Along with side affects and causes for many other issues that can fall in line with MMM.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

max everett said:


> HI my name is Max and I have an American Alsation called Barney 20 months old. He has MMM and has lost all the muscle on top of his head. He had symptoms of salivation and whimpering when eating .I have taken him to the vet where he had an inconclusive biopsy showing no activity . The conclusion was he had had a cronic bout off MMM but now in remission.
> My vet then told me of a six year old dog and I asked if he would make 6 she told me he will make no age at all and to prepare myself for a difficult decision in the near future.
> Barney ate all through his MMM and now eats well and has put on weight loves loads of exercise and swimming. Barks and chews a bit and can open his mouth not fully but 60%. He is a very happy dog .
> My questions are . Do dogs live to an old age with MMM . Now he is fine at the moment no pain at all should I put him on a treatment to help suppress his immune system and what treatment . Will the muscle return to the top of his head .
> He is a kind and beautiful animal and I want the best for him


To answer the questions dogs can live a normal life expectancy as long as the MMM is controlled and the muscle can return depending on how bad things got.If the muscles have turned to scar then there is nothing that can be done but as long as there is muscle then it can be brought back to the degree of that muscle bunch.


----------



## max everett (Jun 28, 2015)

Rott lover said:


> There is also a sticky titled MMM help please that probably has more info in it than most vets know.Along with side affects and causes for many other issues that can fall in line with MMM.


Thanks for your information its greatly appreciated . I am not up to speed with computer speak , can you tell me what a sticky is . Regards Max


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

FEWill said:


> MMM in dogs, also known as Masticatory muscle myositis is an extremely frustrating condition for your pet, as well as a very serious threat. It can cause your dogs head muscles to shrink as well as causing excessive salivation.
> 
> But that is only the minor problems it causes. It can become so painful to your dog that they can not open their mouth normally, or in some cases, they will just quite trying because of the pain.
> 
> ...


There are several mis communications in this.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

when you first come to the health and nutrition page the very first threads stay at the top of the thread.That is what a sticky is.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

If you scroll all the way up and click on heath and nutrition it will be one of the top few and if you post in there you will still get answers as well.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

abbiedabbie said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I have a mixed breed dog (German shorthaired pointer/dachshund/poodle, etc) who was diagnosed with MMM several years ago. She lives a very happy, full life and I just wanted to share with you all for those who have questions about a recent diagnosis.
> 
> ...





max everett said:


> Thanks for your information its greatly appreciated . I am not up to speed with computer speak , can you tell me what a sticky is . Regards Max


I believe this could be a case where maybe it started to set in and disappeared on its own.If it has not gotten any worse i would leave it myself.


----------



## Spellweaver (Jul 17, 2009)

max everett said:


> HI my name is Max and I have an American Alsation called Barney 20 months old. He has MMM and has lost all the muscle on top of his head. He had symptoms of salivation and whimpering when eating .I have taken him to the vet where he had an inconclusive biopsy showing no activity . The conclusion was he had had a cronic bout off MMM but now in remission.
> My vet then told me of a six year old dog and I asked if he would make 6 she told me he will make no age at all and to prepare myself for a difficult decision in the near future.
> Barney ate all through his MMM and now eats well and has put on weight loves loads of exercise and swimming. Barks and chews a bit and can open his mouth not fully but 60%. He is a very happy dog .
> My questions are . Do dogs live to an old age with MMM . Now he is fine at the moment no pain at all should I put him on a treatment to help suppress his immune system and what treatment . Will the muscle return to the top of his head .
> He is a kind and beautiful animal and I want the best for him


Hi Max - it is very possible that the muscle will return. Scroll up to the top of his thread and read my post about my border collie - he lost muscles at the top of his head but they came back (I've done before and after photos). He had also lost muscle from his thighs and legs and all along his backbone - his spine stuck up in a ridge. We didn't do anything directly about his head muscles, but he was on a program of exercise for his other muscles and his head muscles came back alongside the others.

As for life expectancy - as I put in my first post, never give up. We were at the stage when the vet was saying that nothing could be done for Quinny, that he had no quality of life and that we should be thinking about "what's best for him". He was just under one year old then, and he is now over seven years old and has an illustrious show career behind him. Touch wood, he has never had another attack since his first, although every time he was ill, every time he limped because he had stood on something, we were convinced that it was starting again! We have been very careful not to compromise his immune system - for example he does not have annual vaccinations and we have never used any flea treatments other than a peppermint based shampoo and garlic capsules .

To all intents and purposes he is a healthy example of a 7 year old border collie, so much so that we have had many enquiries about using him as a stud dog. People could not believe he had been so ill, and many were surprised (until we explained) that we had taken the decision not to mate him. However, even though the vet thinks it was caused by Frontline, and even though we went back through his ancestry and found out none of his forebears had suffered frm this, we did not want to risk breeding dogs that may have ended up with the problem. Better to be safe than sorry.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Spellweaver said:


> Hi Max - it is very possible that the muscle will return. Scroll up to the top of his thread and read my post about my border collie - he lost muscles at the top of his head but they came back (I've done before and after photos). He had also lost muscle from his thighs and legs and all along his backbone - his spine stuck up in a ridge. We didn't do anything directly about his head muscles, but he was on a program of exercise for his other muscles and his head muscles came back alongside the others.
> 
> As for life expectancy - as I put in my first post, never give up. We were at the stage when the vet was saying that nothing could be done for Quinny, that he had no quality of life and that we should be thinking about "what's best for him". He was just under one year old then, and he is now over seven years old and has an illustrious show career behind him. Touch wood, he has never had another attack since his first, although every time he was ill, every time he limped because he had stood on something, we were convinced that it was starting again! We have been very careful not to compromise his immune system - for example he does not have annual vaccinations and we have never used any flea treatments other than a peppermint based shampoo and garlic capsules .
> 
> To all intents and purposes he is a healthy example of a 7 year old border collie, so much so that we have had many enquiries about using him as a stud dog. People could not believe he had been so ill, and many were surprised (until we explained) that we had taken the decision not to mate him. However, even though the vet thinks it was caused by Frontline, and even though we went back through his ancestry and found out none of his forebears had suffered frm this, we did not want to risk breeding dogs that may have ended up with the problem. Better to be safe than sorry.


My question is this.If there was more than just muscle loss in the jaws what was it from?MMM only effects the jaw muscles.Was there another myocitis?There are other types that effect the whole body.Or was it from the steroids that were given?More to the point the muscle gain will depend on what stage the MMM has advanced to.If the muscle has turned to scar tissue then there is no hope of the muscle coming back.As long as the MMM has not hit that stage then the muscle can be brought back.There are many different things you can do to bring those muscles back as well.There is massage therapy and playing with balls and chewing on bones plus many other things.


----------



## Spellweaver (Jul 17, 2009)

Rott lover said:


> My question is this.If there was more than just muscle loss in the jaws what was it from?MMM only effects the jaw muscles.Was there another myocitis?There are other types that effect the whole body.Or was it from the steroids that were given?More to the point the muscle gain will depend on what stage the MMM has advanced to.If the muscle has turned to scar tissue then there is no hope of the muscle coming back.As long as the MMM has not hit that stage then the muscle can be brought back.There are many different things you can do to bring those muscles back as well.There is massage therapy and playing with balls and chewing on bones plus many other things.


As it was explained to me by my vet (and bear in mind this was over six years ago now) - myositis is an autoimmune condition that can and does effect all muscles. When the jaw is affected, it is called masticatory muscle myositis (or MMM). There is another name for when it affects the eye muscles - I remember the vet talking about the possibility but fortunately that did not happen with Quinny and I can't remember the name he gave it. Fortunately for Quinny, the disease was halted by massive doses of steroids before his jaw was greatly affected.

Not sure I understand your point about the steroids? The myositis wasn't _caused_ by steroids - Quinny was given steroids _because of _the condition.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Spellweaver said:


> As it was explained to me by my vet (and bear in mind this was over six years ago now) - myositis is an autoimmune condition that can and does effect all muscles. When the jaw is affected, it is called masticatory muscle myositis (or MMM). There is another name for when it affects the eye muscles - I remember the vet talking about the possibility but fortunately that did not happen with Quinny and I can't remember the name he gave it. Fortunately for Quinny, the disease was halted by massive doses of steroids before his jaw was greatly affected.
> 
> Not sure I understand your point about the steroids? The myositis wasn't _caused_ by steroids - Quinny was given steroids _because of _the condition.


The point about the steroids is it can cause muscle wasting mostly noted in the rear legs.It can also cause cushings disease along with a whole host of other issues.


----------



## Spellweaver (Jul 17, 2009)

Rott lover said:


> The point about the steroids is it can cause muscle wasting mostly noted in the rear legs.It can also cause cushings disease along with a whole host of other issues.


Well, all I can say is that in Quinny's case steroids saved his life.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Spellweaver said:


> Well, all I can say is that in Quinny's case steroids saved his life.


Not trying to say they did not.The number one treatment for any myositis is steroids.Usually prednisone or prednisolone.If really bad side effects happen then azathioprene comes into play.I was mostly wondering if the body muscle wastage was caused from the myositis or from the steroids.No offence meant.


----------



## max everett (Jun 28, 2015)

Thank you for all


Spellweaver said:


> Hi Max - it is very possible that the muscle will return. Scroll up to the top of his thread and read my post about my border collie - he lost muscles at the top of his head but they came back (I've done before and after photos). He had also lost muscle from his thighs and legs and all along his backbone - his spine stuck up in a ridge. We didn't do anything directly about his head muscles, but he was on a program of exercise for his other muscles and his head muscles came back alongside the others.
> 
> As for life expectancy - as I put in my first post, never give up. We were at the stage when the vet was saying that nothing could be done for Quinny, that he had no quality of life and that we should be thinking about "what's best for him". He was just under one year old then, and he is now over seven years old and has an illustrious show career behind him. Touch wood, he has never had another attack since his first, although every time he was ill, every time he limped because he had stood on something, we were convinced that it was starting again! We have been very careful not to compromise his immune system - for example he does not have annual vaccinations and we have never used any flea treatments other than a peppermint based shampoo and garlic capsules .
> 
> To all intents and purposes he is a healthy example of a 7 year old border collie, so much so that we have had many enquiries about using him as a stud dog. People could not believe he had been so ill, and many were surprised (until we explained) that we had taken the decision not to mate him. However, even though the vet thinks it was caused by Frontline, and even though we went back through his ancestry and found out none of his forebears had suffered frm this, we did not want to risk breeding dogs that may have ended up with the problem. Better to be safe than sorry.[/QUOTe


----------



## max everett (Jun 28, 2015)

Thank you for all the information . I am at the vets again this week and hopefully move forward with treatment. I feel a lot better gaining all the information from pet forums members . I feel that I should have Barney longer than the vet said and I intend to prove her wrong in the best way . I will keep posting on his condition . Thanks Max


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

I hope thing continue to get better for you max and keep us posted.


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Hi all

Looking for some help and advice please. 

I'm new to this forum and have registered as this is the only discussion I can find on MMM. 

My 9 year old Staffordshire Bull Terrier Bear had quite bad diarrhoea with signs of blood about 3 weeks ago. The vets put him on antibiotics and checked a sample of the diarrhoea for parasites, nothing was found. He started to get blood in his wee with the antibiotics so we stopped the course about 2 days short. Since the stomach upset and antibiotics he's been struggling to walk upstairs and jump onto the sofa. We figured it was due to the severity of the upset and that he was probably feeling a bit sore in his tummy. About a week and a half later my other half was playing with Bear in the fields on his walk, when Bear yelped when he went to open his mouth. I later opened his mouth to see if he had something stuck and he wouldn't let me, yelped and ran off (totally out of character) Long story short, we went back to the vets and all agreed to sedate Bear to check his mouth for tooth problems. No mouth/ teeth problems were found, X-rays showed no issues with his jaw or tummy and under sedation the vet could open his mouth fully. 

The vet is pretty certain it's mmm or polym so we have sent off a sample of blood for testing- apparently MMM blood can only be tested in America. Bear has lost muscle to the top of his head, some body muscle and is still stiff to walk. We have had him on 20mg x 2 per day of Prednicare for 1 week now and there's not been much change. His jaw is still stiff, he's struggling to get upstairs still and seems to spend all his time lying down, depressed and prefers to take himself off somewhere quiet. Bear is usually into everything and just the most happiest dog you could ever imagine. We also own his mum. They are both just wonderful. 

Last night we had a follow up visit with the vet. The vet thought he'd have shown signs of improvement by now so Bears having another week of steroids, same dosage. He's drinking and weeing a lot as seems to be the case with side effects. The blood test results for MMM will take about 2-3 weeks to come back so the vet has suggested (if no improvement) a CT scan in the meantime to check for lumps/ cancer. 

I've found this thread so helpful as we've gone through this with Bear. I just felt the need to post our situation in case anyone can help further. We are heart broken to see him like this. Are we expecting him to bounce back too soon? I get the impression this is a slow recovery. Can anyone suggest something we haven't done? We aren't 100% this is MMM but the symptoms seems most likely. 

Thank you for listening to my long post. 

All replies and advice greatly received.


----------



## rottiepointerhouse (Feb 9, 2014)

Hi @Clairesmiley and welcome to the forum. So sorry to hear about Bear that must be so upsetting. I have no knowledge of MMM myself but wondered if you had also seen this thread

http://www.petforums.co.uk/threads/mmm-help-please.388768/

@Rott lover will no doubt reply to you but as he is in the US and tends to post on week days so it might not be until Monday.


----------



## max everett (Jun 28, 2015)

Clairesmiley said:


> Hi all
> 
> Looking for some help and advice please.
> 
> ...


Hi Claire , My dog Barney an American Alsation got MMM when he was around 12 months old. We did not pick up that it was mmm for a couple of months as he looked so health,. He was taken to the vet when it was apparent that he was loosing muscle from the top of his head and was in pain when eating . This was the only symptom he had. The rest of him was fine . But loosing weight.
The vet gave a very poor prognosis and said he would not live long. I was devastated but took to the web to find out more..
We had a biopsy taken from muscle in his cheek but it was inconclusive as by then Barney was in remission.
The vet wanted too put him on a strong dose of prednisolone but I said no as he was in remission and later (2months)the vet agreed I was right.
Barney recently suffered another relapse (mmm) and we put him on a strong dose 75 of prednisolone. to start with. He is now down to 20 a day .
He eats like a horse and pees for England but he is happy and full of energy .
We feel that we will have him for a long time yet and he will be two soon .
The feed back I have is when he is in pain strong dose of prednisolone for a limited time and then wean of gradually . Time scale I cant tell you what is right but so far for us . 2 weeks at 75 and 2 weeks at 40 and then I will keep him on 20 for a month and then 10 for a month and then see if that does it .
We had no symptons of wasting muscle accept on his head but he does not hold weight .
I hope this is of a little help for you . Regards Max


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Thank you for your reply. 

Sorry, tried to reply last night but my message wouldn't post for some reason. It is very sad, I hate seeing him like this. 

I've read through the thread/ link you sent. Some very interesting points, and new info to help us along with this. 

Hoping to learn as much as I can. 

Thank you again.


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Sorry Max

Just getting the hang of posting replies. 

Thank you so much for sharing your experience with this horrible illness. Im sorry Barney has had another relapse. You sound as if you have have a plan of attack though as soon as another bout comes on. It's so hard isn't it because the symptoms arent very obvious straight away. Although I would imagine when Barney is well, you watch him like a hawk. 

I can certainly take from your post this is an ongoing fight which we shouldn't expect huge results over night. 

Some good news from yesterday, Bear tried to nibble his Kong bone with his front teeth and went to try to pick up his tennis ball. The ball was a bit too much though. He wanted to play but it wasn't worth pushing him. Think it wore him out as he slept like a baby all afternoon bless him. He's still very stiff over his body. 

Thanks again Max for taking the time to reply. 

Claire


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

@Clairesmiley ...RPH is correct i usually only post during the weekdays.I am sorry you are having these troubles.Did you read through the MMM help please thread?I find it a bit odd that when Bear went under GA that the vet was able to open his mouth.MMM is a muscle issue.If bear had MMM and as Oliver did then under GA the vet should have only been able to open Bears mouth a little way.As with Oliver when the vet put him under GA the vet could only open Oliver's mouth about two inches.The blood in the urine does sound concerning as well.Did they do blood tests to see about a UTI.Blood in the urine is also not a part of MMM.Did Bears muscle loss in the top of the head start before or after the prednisolone.There are actually two ways the recovery can gne is lightning in a bottle(very rare)that once the preds are givin everything comes back to normal fast.You still need to have the prednisolone for a 6 month period and reducing slowly.Then there is the slow(more commen)The recovery takes a very long time to see improvements.The preds themselves will cause muscle wasting all over the body and lathargy and tiredness.The drinking and the hunger are normal.


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Hi Rott Lover

Thanks for replying. 

Yes I read through the MMM help please thread, there's a lot of info to take in. 

In answer to your questions. The vet said that we could open his mouth under GA as we had caught this early and the muscles had not had chance to scar which reduces the


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Sorry I pressed post reply by accident. 

...movement of the jaw muscles.

Before Bear went under GA he could only open his mouth about inch. The blood in his urine was from the first set of antibiotics prescribed to recover from his stomach upset. As soon as we saw the blood in his wee we stopped the course. 

He hasn't had blood in his wee since and the vet did check his wee and temperature on Friday just gone. All ok. The vet thought we should have seen more improvement in a week of steroids - I think he mentioned the CT scan as he is concerned for tumours. 

I would say the muscle wastage on his head started after the steroids as he went on the steroids because of the jaw problem. The muscle wastage on his body has definitely happened after the steroids. 

To date he is still very stiff to get about and is weeing a lot more than during the first week of steroids. The whites of his eyes have a red tinge to them which I have no idea what could be from. 

I've tried him with a tennis ball today and I know he wants to pick it up but just can't. If I give him any hard treats he crys when he chews them. 

We feed raw diet, although no bones at the minute, so everything is soft for him to eat thankfully. 

I mentioned in my post the vet has sent off his bloods (taken before the steroids) to America to test for MMM, so hopefully in 2-3 weeks we should have an answer. My only concern is that whilst we wait for the results, he feels dreadful, and we have had him mis-diagnosed. 

I've read about Polymyositis, cushings, thyroid problems, cancer all things that can give these sort of symptoms. 

Felling a bit lost with it all  as I just want my little boy back to normal. 

Thanks again for your help. 

Claire


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

The eye thing does really bother me.That is concerning.The peeing a lake every time outside is fairly normal with the preds.Also the food thing would point to problems in the mouth.I would want to have the CT scan done as well just to rule anything else out.Did Bear drool excessively?One of the best things you can do is keep the jaw working.I know that if the prednisolone doesnt work you can also switch to azathioprene which also kills off the immune system.As with Oliver the prednisolone was not agreeing with him and he was very intolerant to it.This is not something you want to mess around and take time with.The faster you catch it and the sooner treatment is going the better chance you have of a good outcome.I would keep on the current course of the vet and see how things go.If Bear is constantly hot and panting or breathing hard all the time,Or if Bear is dragging his back paws or is just generally weak then have the vet do a blood test just to check all his levels.I dont remember which parts of the blood to test but Oliver was in a bad way with cushings disease from the preds.This disease strikes quick and shows no mercy and will take out a dog in no time.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

The other thing that bothers me is even from the onset MMM should have caused the jaw to not work right.See the scarring of the muscles is the end game but the beginning is started with muscle swelling from the immune system attacking the jaw muscles themselves.The swelling and pain immobilizes the muscles while causing pain.This is what keeps the jaw from opening.Then after the jaw not opening and the pain the immune system attacks the muscles even more which then turns to scar tissue.Once there is scar tissue then there is return.As long as you catch it before the scar tissue there is still hope of recovery.Even with some scar tissue being present there is still hope for some recovery.If Bear is having enough pain that he cries while eating hard treats and cant open his mouth properly then even under GA they shouldnt have been able to open the jaw all the way.I hope the vet didnt try to force the mouth open because this brings on even more issues.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

@Clairesmiley has there been any change?any new info ?


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

Hey there

Well not sure really. 

We went back to the vets on Tuesday last week as I found lumps in Bears neck. One on one of his lymph glands and one further down his throat near his collar bone. He also has another on the side of his tummy. 

Bear didn't pick up at all on the steroids, in fact he seemed worse, so the vet decided to stop the steroids and refer us to a specialist vet clinic. 

He is extremely stiff still to get about, his eyes are still red and he's very tired and withdrawn. 

Our appointment is Monday morning first thing. We were advised to make an appointment after the steroids were out of his system. 

We picked up some painkillers for him today, as he seems a little less active. Yesterday's half hour walk may have wiped him out. 

Hopefully on Monday we may have some answers. We are all trying hard not to think the worst. 

Thanks


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Let me know how things go if you could.


----------



## Clairesmiley (Oct 3, 2015)

We had to have little Bear put to sleep on Monday. The CT scan showed he had cancer all through his body, in his lungs, muscles, joints and spine. This is what was causing the jaw pain. 

The Specialist thought it best we didn't bring him out of the GA and to let him go without waking. 

We are all absolutely shocked and heavily heart broken we've lost our little man in such a way. 

Will love him and miss him forever.


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Clairesmiley said:


> We had to have little Bear put to sleep on Monday. The CT scan showed he had cancer all through his body, in his lungs, muscles, joints and spine. This is what was causing the jaw pain.
> 
> The Specialist thought it best we didn't bring him out of the GA and to let him go without waking.
> 
> ...


I am so sorry to hear this.My condolences to you and your family.

when they are set free

free in the spirit and free as the wind able to run where ever their hearts wish
They will spend much time with us looking over us and watching us
wishing they could make things better or easier but not knowing why we cant see
they will run through the long grass on the eternal warm summer days
always wanting and longing to see their long lost friends
day after day doing what they wish eating what they wish drinking what they wish
chasing the rabbits and squirrels and birds to pass the time
always keeping an eye on who they loved in their previous life
no longer having any pain or feeling old and grey
movement comes easy just like a pup
There is always a longing and a sadness in their heart
they want their loved ones to come see
they wish to show us that beautiful place where they run so wild and free
no longer in any of this worldly dangers
their only want is to feel that hand upon their head 
to lick the face of their loved one just like they did
for us to see them and call their name
that we cant see them is just a shame
they will be happy to know we continue to love
their loyalty is to make us happy
i for one will get pummeled when that day comes about
by many big boys and girls all wanting the same thing
i am still somewhat young and many more i will add
many many heart scars i will have
they will be set free one by one and meet them again i will
on the day when the lord sets me free
when my worldly journey is done i am sure i will meet all of them again
until then they will continue with the above


----------



## Debbie Barton (Dec 12, 2015)

cindywhit said:


> My 17month old Golden Retriever was just diagnosed with MMM after vet did lab work and muscle biopsy from his jaw. I think it first started about 2 weeks ago when we noticed his left eye was swollen as if he had been stung or bitten by an insect. We dosed him with some Diphenhydramine and the swelling went away considerably. We noticed his facial features were almost like he was starving, you could see his bones around his eyes pretty clearly, even though he is a healthy 90lbs. Then several days later his right eye swelled and he started to "slobber" HORRIBLY. It was to the point we had to take a towel every where and kept several laying around the house just to wipe his face. I thought that maybe he was stung or bitten by an insect inside his mouth or had bitten into something and it left a splinter and was causing an infection.
> 
> We decided to take him to the vet after last Sunday night he refused to play with his toys, stopped fetching and would not chew his treats. Monday he refused to open his mouth at all ...all you could see was the tip of his tongue when he was panting. After searching the internet for hours I can across some information about MMM and the symptoms and was like "THATS GOTTA BE IT!" We had vet appointment on Tuesday and the vet did x-rays to rule out abcesses or tooth infections and x-rays were perfect. BUT even under sedations the vet could not open Buddy's mouth. I mentioned MMM and the symptoms to the vet and he was a bit reluctant to even consider it since he had never come across this disease in the 13 years he had been practicing. He said he was going to consult with a specialist and have him review Buddy's x-rays just in case. We took Buddy home and received a call later that evening from the vet stating his x-rays were indeed just fine. The vet said his collegue recommended he test for MMM since Buddy presented the classic symptoms and even though its rare it does appear in large breed dogs.
> We scheduled a muscle biopsy on Wednesday morning. The vet said the disease is progresses rapidly and diagosis and treatment needed to be started ASAP to prevent permanet damage to the muscles in Buddy's jaw. Buddy did AMAZING with the biopsy and we brought him home a few hours after the procedure and a steroid injection as soon as he woke up from anesthesia. He has been put on aggressive Prednisone therapy - 60mg every 12hours for 2 weeks and today (Saturday) we got the results of the biopsy proving that Buddy did indeed have MMM (much to my vets surprise but not mine). Yesterday we started seeing improvement and today has been even better. Buddy seems more like himself, wants to play (even though the vet said to keep him calm and cool) and is even starting to chew his food and treats. We have been softening his kibble with water and feeding him 3 smaller portions a day. He gets his frozen raw nuggets in the morning as normal. I'm hesitant to have Buddy on such high dose of steroids and from what I have read, it seems he will have to be on them for a long period of time but it seems to be working and at this point will do anything for my dog.
> ...


I realize this was long ago but since my 7yo is being dx'ed with this I was hoping to hear more about your experience. thankyou!


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

here is the link to the whole story.
http://www.petforums.co.uk/threads/mmm-help-please.388768/


----------



## Rott lover (Jan 2, 2015)

Well that is my whole story anyway


----------



## Debbie Barton (Dec 12, 2015)

Thank you Rott lover, I'm one too. A Rott lover that is.


----------

