New to forum- Chopper, 14yo border collie mix (trilostane/Vetoryl)

[Chopdog]

Hi- Our 14yo border collie mix, Chopper, has had Cushing's for a couple of years now and we have been treating it with trilostane...now vetoryl...which seems to be working okay. A recent blood test found that Chops has high liver and kidney values. Our vet suggested one of their Hills foods, but I am looking for other options. Does anyone have any food suggestions? I was considering cooking his meals for him, but am concerned about feeding sufficient/proper amounts of nutrients. Thanks!

[Franklin'sMum]

Hi and welcome to you and Chopper,
He is absolutely gorgeous! :) About the diet... there are many members much more knowledgeable than me, but I'll ask a couple of questions, anyway.
Would you post the abnormal lab results, and their reference ranges, please? The more info the members have, the better.

You say Chopper has high kidney values. Did your vet say if he should be on a low protein diet?
Does he have any other health problems? Pancreatitis, high blood pressure, thyroid, gallbladder? Has Chopper had a urine test done recently? Each individual medical issue has its own dietary needs, and some of those needs conflict with each other. A few folk have a doggie dietary nutritionist to help guide them. If you do a google search on "Monica Segal" you will find one of the top dieticians, if not the top. A lot of our people swear by her. There are others, as well.

My little boy is currently having a proteinurea issue, but we're not sure if its an ongoing thing, or just a once off. We've just joined a yahoo group, k9kidneys to try and figure things out. Also there is a yahoo group, k9kidneydiets, so that might be worth a shot too.

Looking forward to hearing more,
Jane, Franklin and Bailey xxx
________
Lovely Wendie (http://www.lovelywendie99.com/)

[littleone1]

Corky and I would also like to say hi and to welcome you and Chopper to very wonderful group.

At one point, Corky's liver enzymes and his kidney values had been elevated. I do home cooking for Corky. I feed him 93% fat free ground beef and turkey, which I mix with bread. I either boil it or put it in a frying pan with water. After they are cooked, I rinse them off to make sure any grease that is left is rinsed off. He also gets boiled boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders, rice, sweet potatoes, and unsalted green beans. His liver enzymes were back in the normal range and his kidney values were only slightly elevated when he had his last blood work done.

There are also several members here that use formulated diets from Monica Segal. She has a Yahoo group called k9 kitchen. I'm sure others will be along to offer you advice.

Terri

[Chopdog]

Thanks for these suggestions...I am going to look into all of them! Our vet suggested Hills' KD specifically, but they always offer a new food (that they only sell at the vet) whenever something comes up, so I am very hesitant to just start buying it.

[Casey's Mom]

Hello and welcome to you and Chopper. I think some members have found issue with Hills food in the past. Someone here posted a link to a dog food review site: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

I found it very helpful and my 14 year old border collie mix ;) is doing very well on a mixture of Fromms Duck and Sweet Potato dry and my homemade recipe which is brown rice, ground turkey, sweet potato, carrots and beans that I make up and freeze. Just thaw out and add a few tablespoons to her dry food.

I also give her L-Glutamine which was recommended by Monica Segal to one of our members, glucosamine and salmon oil.

She also gets monthly Adequan shots from the vet for her arthritis. She runs around and goes for daily 30 minute trots in our park - honestly she is doing better now than a year ago - before her cushings was diagnosed and treated with Lysodren and before I found my wonderful friends on this site.

Hugs to you,

[Chopdog]

Thanks, Ellen! It's so neat to see another 14yo border collie. We're in a rural area and don't see many dogs-especially not beautiful border collies like Casey! :) Too bad they can't have a play date together. Anyway, I wanted to ask you if the diet you mention is specifically designed to help increase kidney function? I've been researching other foods my vet has recommended to help with kidney function and they all have junk in them like a lot of corn. We've been feeding Chopper Orijen, which is very high protein, and I don't think that's helping his kidney function.
Thanks for the advice,
Jessi & Chopper

[lulusmom]

Hi Jessi,

Cushing's does impact the liver and kidneys; however, if the disease is effectively controlled, elevated liver and kidney values usually decline and can normalize. These often transient elevations do not mean that the liver is being permanently damaged or that a dog is in renal failure; they are, in most cases, secondary to the disease. The reason I mention this is because unless a dog has been diagnosed as being in chronic renal failure, restrictions in protein are normally not necessary and can actually be harmful if restricted too much.

It would really help us understand what is going on with your boy if you could please respond to the following questions/requests:

1. Has Chopper been diagnosed as being in chronic renal failure?
2. Please post the actual results of Chopper's last bloodwork, which I believe showed elevated liver enzymes and kidney values. Please remember to include the reporting units and the normal reference ranges.
3. Did your vet rule out excess cortisol (uncontrolled cushing's) as the reason for the increase in liver and kidney values?
4. Has your vet prescribed liver support supplementation such as SamE and/or milk thistle for Chopper?
5. Please post the date and results of the last acth stimulation test.
6. Was the last acth stim test done at the same time Chopper's bloodwork was done?
7. Was the last acth stim test done within 4 to 6 hours after dosing?
8. How much does Chopper weigh and what mg of Vetoryl is he getting daily?

Sorry for all the questions but your responses will make a huge difference in our ability to provide appropriate and meaningful feedback. We'll be looking forward to learning a lot more about your beautiful boy. I would have to agree that Chopper is a seriously handsome guy.

Glynda