Zoe By My Side- Our Journey with Cushings

[molly muffin]

Hope there is good news at the appt Wed! Poor Koko. I'm sure he knows that Zoe isn't feeling well.
I say go for the cuddles!

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

I just stopped by to see how the appointment went--somehow I missed the part that it was changed to Wed.

I am glad you were able to go for a little chicken walk! And I'm sorry Koko is so sad. He knows something isn't right with his best buddy. :(

It is nice that the heat has finally subsided, but it is supposed to warm up and get humid again here starting tomorrow. I started teaching summer school this week and there is no a/c, so it gets pretty gross in my classroom.

Hannah is holding steady-eyes seem okay, and nothing else is any worse. She needs a haircut again (it's only been about 4 weeks) because it is so much easier to give her baths and keep her from getting all crusty from the licking when she has shorter hair. I can't get her in for a couple of weeks, which stinks, but of course I dread taking her and worry about her getting tired/sore/hurt the whole time she's there.

I hope the appointment goes well tomorrow, and that they see some kind of improvement with her eyes. I'll be looking for an update.

I'll say extra prayers tonight for Zoe!

Julie & Hannah

[mypuppy]

Hi sweet Addy,

I haven't been on too much (kids off for summer vaca). Just wanted to say I love you, precious Zoe and Koko, and mom too, very very much.

Tight hugs to all.

xo Jeanette and my puppy Princess:p

[MBK]

Hi, Addy -

Just stopping by to check on you and to see what the opthalmologist said today. I'm hoping for something positive.

Of course Koko knows Zoe is not herself...they are very smart that way! :rolleyes:

You guys are all in my thoughts!

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I was popping in to check too. Update when you can. Judi

[addy]

My cortisol is high from all the worry and stress:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

We are not out of the woods yet. We have five more days of all these 10 meds. We must continue aggressive treatment. Recheck in 8-10 days.

Pressure has stayed down so we can now back off the glaucoma meds to once a day until recheck.

Ulcer is not as deep as it was and the yellow ribbons are just about gone which means her eye was infected deeper just as vet feared and has responded to all the antibiotic drops.

We cannot tell if she is producing tears because of all the meds. She will most likely stay on Tacrolimus and Cycolsporine permanently.

I was given five more days of dog serum.:):):):):)

Guarded good news, we hold our breath as things can change so fast with the eyes.

I have been cutting back on the tramadol but think I will continue 3 times a day to keep her quiet for the next five days. She rests and does not try to play with Koko. I need five more days for her eye to heal better.

I did not give mid day dose today because of vet appointment and she was trying to bite me and wrestle Koko to the ground. I keep thinking -Zoe- your BACK!!!!! Then I thought, no I need you a bit more restful for five more days with all these drugs.

Vet said whatever we did for the last week really helped her. I told him we have not left her side. One of us has been with her constantly, keeping her quiet, keeping her away from Koko, pawing at her eye, etc and to put all these damn drops in. He said whatever we did worked.
Not sure my boss will remain understanding for another 10 days until recheck:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Thank you for your prayers.

Chocovino for everyone!!!!:D:D:D

I am too afraid too hope.

[MBK]

Great news, Addy! That all sounds very positive! I know you are being cautiously optimistic because this is all such a roller coaster, but remember...miracles happen!!! Sometimes big, sometimes small, but we take what we can get, when we can get them. Today sounds like a good day and hopefully it will continue in this direction!

I'll have a glass of Chocovine in celebration of Zoe's good report! Isn't that nice of me?! :p Seriously, Zoe is so lucky to have you to help her through all of this.

[molly muffin]

Yea Addy! Very good news that Zoe is improving. It's so hard to keep them still when they want to play isn't it.
I just had to pop in and see how she was doing.
Hugs,
Sharlene

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

That sounds positive! :) Your and your hubby's hard work is paying off! I hope the next 10 days go smoothly and do the trick with this infection and ulcer.

It was a great relief to hear from you this morning. ;)

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[addy]

Thanks guys, I think it is the dog serum. Eye vet went from being negative to encouraged. We are too afraid to be encouraged so are taking it day by day.

The glaucoma really scared me. He seems to feel it was secondary to the ulcer now. Thank goodness!!!!

I never thought I would say good dog- you are trying to bite me:rolleyes:

She has looked so bad and her personality so muted. Koko was so happy when she jumped on his butt yesterday:D:D:D

We told the clinic girls that we think we should have our own parking space with our name on it because we are sure we have set a record for number of visits in two years :D:D:D:D:rolleyes::rolleyes:

[marie adams]

Dear Addy,

Good report for Zoe on the eyes. :)

LOL on the parking space at the vet's. :D

Try Relora for the cortisol for you. I only started them a month ago so cannot tell for sure if working. It is a natural substance. :p

Take care my dearest friend!!! :)

((((HUGSSSS)))) :)

[jmac]

YAY!!!!!

I am so excited for such great news!:D:D:D:D:D:D

So glad she is a little perkier too! I bet Koko loved it!

I'll keep saying prayers for Zoe and you and hoping for continued improvement.

I need a spot at my vet too. I swear I give them the most money per year! :p

Julie & Hannah

[molly muffin]

:( I hear you Julie. My vet got a new car this year. I'm pretty sure I'm paying for a good chunk of it. Meanwhile just told my hubs that I'd be waiting to get another vehicle as the paychecks seem to be all for Molly right now. I'm not complaining, just that is my priority. But Drat that vet got a new car.
Abby, get that parking spot for all of us poor sods! LOL Zoe, way to go gf, butt jumping already! whooo hooooo

[Bailey's Mom]

Addy that is the best of news! Oh how you have hung in there and look where it has gotten you and Zoe. It's just amazing....your inner sense and all your research etc. You are quite the Mom. Kudos to you and to hubby!

Bailey is now jumping up the steps to get up onto the bed. I believe that brings us back to 100% recovery. It is so nice to see.

Love,
Sus

[addy]

Thanks guys, but I only administered the meds and watched her like a hawk. The eye vet gets the credit for treating her with all the meds and giving us the dog serum.

She is not yet out of the woods so we still have to be very careful with her. We dont know if the ulcer will heal. So we have to go day by day. Next Thursday's visit will give us more insight.

It has been hard as someone has to be here most of the time with her. After next Thursday I cant come home early from work anymore and hubby has to go back to his regular schedule so not sure what will happen then. That has been my fear from the beginning. I did not know how long we could properly take care of her and give her what she needs because we both work.

We have been taking one day at a time. What do we need to get through this day has been my focus. Normal chores and routines, shopping, family visits have been pretty much on hold. My work is piling up at the office, lots of stress.

Thanks for letting me talk about it. That helps.

[Altira]

Oh Addy this is so upsetting. Hang in there. It's a damn shame you don't live by Skye (Stromee). Taking care of other peoples dogs, sick or otherwise is what she does for income. She's really good at it. Maybe there is someone near you that does it.

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I hope Zoe continues to improve before your schedule gets back to normal. hugs on the pile up at work. where are those darn work fairies who are supposed to lighten our load?

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

Aren't there dogs at your office? Would it be possible to take Zoe to work with you for a bit?

I feel so bad for you with all you have going on and wish I could help in person. :(

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[addy]

Oh how I wish she could be in my office with me I would be so happy. Boss would never allow it and Koko cant stay home alone.

I am so worried Koko will injure her eye by accident trying to play with her. I am terrified to leave them alone together for very long.
Last night I tried to take a five minute shower and I heard Koko bark and went tearing out of the bathroom my heart in my throat because I wasnt with them for five minutes. We try to put her comfy cone on her when we need to but I can't leave her home alone with it on.

I just worry what if it doesnt heal? She cant walk around with a cone on for the rest of her life. She cant walk right any more with it on. She slips on the hardwood floor alot and her legs splay out.

I am sorry guys, for being down, I should be positive and happy. I was just so scared last night and it has me thinking today about what can I do if her eye does not heal? She injured her eye on June 29th.

I'm just scared for my little girl. She tries so hard. This just sucks.

[apollo6]

Dear Addy
dido, dido.
Know what you mean.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[molly muffin]

Oh Addy, super big Hugs for you today. This is all so worrying for you. :(

okay, pet sitter during the day while you are at work. That is the only thing I can think of that would give you peace of mind eventually. What do you think?

Any college students around that need some summer extra money? Someone to watch her, dedicate their time with her to making sure she is safe.

Can you put her in the bathroom with you while you take a shower? Molly will lay on the rug outside the shower till I step out if I put her in with me. That way you can at least get 5 minutes to yourself.

Really super big Hugs.

Sharlene

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

I totally understand your worries, believe me. But we are dedicated, diligent people who think about and plan for the future. That's what I tell myself about my worrying, at least. It is hard when you know that you won't be able to keep up with the same routine you've been able to do...which in my opinion, was nearly impossible as it is for two people who work.

I don't have any new suggestions for you. Is there anyone who could go over and give Zoe drops during the day, or who could actually sit and watch them for a few hours? I know she bites when she is scared or doesn't want something done, so maybe that is an issue if someone other than you or your husband tries to put in her drops? Izzy actually bites us more than others because she still has fear of strangers, so it's better for a stranger to do something she doesn't like.

Maybe you need to talk to the vet and explain the situation and just ask what they recommend. They know how dedicated you are and what excellent care you've given her. Ask what they would do in this situation. Maybe they'll even have an idea none of us have thought of???

Still thinking of you and Zoe every day and sending my prayers...

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

Julie- which cone do you use for Hannah? I bought a soft papery kind with a draw string from our GP but cant leave it on her when we are not home and we still have to watch her in it.

I saw a Cuddle Cone on line which is something like the Comfy Cone only it is made out of material not vinyl.

Our problem right now is her wanting to arrg arrg and rub when she is happy and also when she wants to wrestle Koko or pawing at her eye right after all those drops go in.

I am afraid to put her in a crate because she may rub on the wire crate or start pawing her eyes because she hates crates. In fact, I took Koko's crate out of the kitchen because she was slipping and sliding on the floor and almost crashed into it.

She still has pain in her eye but it could be from some of the drops too. I cut back the tramadol to BID the last two days. That seems to work okay.

I would have to find someone experienced with dogs and not sure how she will react to them. She is a Lhasa and is not fond of strangers if they come to her. I dont think that is the answer becuase they would have to come whenever hubby and I are not home. I can figure out a schedule for the drops, just means we have to stay up until midnight. It is when we are gone, how do I keep her safe?

When I say safe- I mean how do I keep her from injuring her eye again?

Stay cool dear friend, it is going to be hot, hot, hot. We are in severe drought in Milwaukee and they expect it to continue until October. Some peoples wells are needing to be made deeper. I had to put water in our pool and was worried about our well. I am not sure how deep it is but they have the well thing on the news every night and all the problems people are having with their private wells.

City water never looked so good!!!!:D:D:D

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

It is grossly hot here again. Not sure how I'll get through teaching summer school tomorrow morning in 100+ degrees, plus humidity and no air conditioning. It will be horrible! We haven't had a lot of rain, but it isn't like you guys.

As far as cones go, I just have the standard ones you get from the vet-the flexible plastic stuff. I only use it if I HAVE to because obviously they hate them, but the one I have for Hannah doesn't go too far past her face, but prevents her from getting to her eyes. Plus, she can still drink out of a large bowl of water.

Will you or your husband be able to stop in periodically during the day, so Zoe could have a break from the cone? I know exactly what you mean about them either playing or rubbing their eye with their paw. Hannah rubs her face on the floor, the couch, etc. so I always have to watch that carefully. I had to use the cone when I was gone when she had bad ulcers. Do you have a cone she can wear and still get drinks with? I don't put Hannah in a crate either because I am worried she would rip her toenails out trying to get out. I don't have any other ideas for you. :(

I'm worrying about my girl too. I think we'll be headed to the vet tomorrow. Hannah has been itching so much and I've found a few scabs on her from where she bites. I was just checking her over and her chin area (from the skin folds) is super red and raw-looking. It looks bad. I feel terrible. Her hair isn't short so I can't see it easily. I need to keep it shorter for that reason, and I can't get her into get groomed until the 5th of August. I don't know what I'm going to do. I hope it isn't infected. It looks so sore. I just wiped it with the chlorhexidine wipes like I'm supposed to, but then I used my hairdryer to dry that area because I don't want to leave it wet.

My poor girl. She has so many issues with her allergies. I don't know what to do anymore. I don't know if I should bite the bullet and try the oral cyclosporine or what. That takes a month to work, too, so I'm not sure it's the answer. I can still try the Chinese herbs from the holistic vet, but I'm a little worried about that too. Maybe I'll call them tomorrow just to see what they can tell me.

Ahhhhhhhhhh...if it's not one thing, it's another. Seems like there is always something to watch/worry about with Hannah these days. I have TMJ (from clenching my teeth at night) that I've had since my first year teaching and my jaws/teeth have been so sore lately. I also get headaches from it and I've had some form of one every day for a week. Not sure what I've been stressed about, but now I have something, so I guarantee it'll hurt tomorrow. ;)

Hope you'll figure out the best way to take care of your girl. Keep me posted.

Stay cool!

Julie & Hannah

[Bailey's Mom]

Julie-there is something you can use while you sleep. It's like the football players use. You can pick up a kit at the drug store or you can go the expensive route and have your dentist make one molded to your teeth, which would be more comfortable and last much longer. The one from the store is a rubbery plastic. You get it hot by putting it in hot water, I think. Then you put it in your mouth and clamp your mouth together for xxx minutes or seconds. This one is pretty inexpensive, if I remember right. After the time they say, you take it out and let it sit. That's it. You now have a molded tooth guard. Pop it in when you go to bed and go ahead and grind away....your teeth and jaw won't know you are. I've used one at night for tens of years.....maybe thirty or more.

-Susan

[Roxee's Dad]

Thinking about you Addy and hoping all went well today.

[molly muffin]

Addy, Hope today was a good day.

Julie's idea about a short cone is pretty good.

It's bloody hot here too, but now we are getting these short, heavy rains, that when they hit cause flooding big time. One area got a month's worth of rain in a few hours and now the park there has a HUGE sink hole.

Tomorrow is suppose to be a record breaker for heat, so everyone stay cool as they can.

Sharlene (and molly muffin too)

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Just checking in on you guys to see how today went. I hope everyone is still doing okay.

Susan, thanks for the tip on the mouth guard! :) I do have one from a facial pain doctor. I've been wearing it every night for about 9 years, but I still have flare-ups with headaches and jaw aches every once in a while. It must be when I clench really badly at night. Today I didn't need any ibuprofen for the first time in a week, so that's good.

Addy, please let us know how things are going. I get worried when I don't hear from you for a couple days. Hope Zoe is okay!

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

It has been a crazy few days. We put my mom's condo on the market for sale 1 1/2 weeks ago and had two offers Monday.:confused::confused: The average time has been to sell in her complex about 5 months so we were not expecting this. Mom is okay but very sad, brother did not want to make the decision to accept or not so I did and discussed it with mom. Only problem is now I have 4 weeks to get all the stuff we put in the garage.:(:(

Booked hubby and granddaughter's trip to Boston, trying to wrap that up, all the details:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

Zoe goes for re recheck tomorrow morning. I am afraid to say anything about her. She seems to be holding her own. I ran out of dog serum early, not sure why. I cut her down to about 6 mgs of tramadol BID.

Funny thing, she has not had an accident in the house since she has been on the tramadol. Weird huh?

Julie- Sorry to hear Hannah is so itchy. It is such a bad summer. My asthma is starting to act up from the intense heat so I can understand Hannah's allergies being bad.

Zoe and Koko are so funny. Zoe is now trained to go to the bathroom and wait for her drops. As soon as Koko sees her heading that way, he runs and waits with her.:D:D:D:D:D

Thank you for checking on us

[mypuppy]

Hi sweet Addy,

Saw you on and wanted to say a quick hello and to wish the Zoe the best at her appointment today.

Take care of you and much love.

Tight ones...xo Jeanette

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

You have had a lot going on!

I hope Zoe's appointment goes well this morning! I'm thinking of you and crossing my fingers for more good news! :)

Julie & Hannah

[molly muffin]

Sounds like you are very busy lady these days.

Good wishes for Zoe's checkup! Aren't Koko and Zoe hilarious together.

Sharlene

[addy]

Thank you guys, it did go well as far as the ulcer is not worse, she continues to progress but the ulcer is not healed, it may be a tiny bit smaller. We continue to cut back on the meds to try to wean her off but have to be worried it all goes south again, so to speak and recheck nine days before hubby leaves for Boston. We have to worry does the ulcer get worse or reinfected.

We talked about the cone, he said whatever we are doing is working because she is progressing so keep doing what we are doing but thats the problem:confused:

He said she needs to be a dog so let her play a bit with Koko and maybe we dont have to be quite so worried about her rubbing her eye. She would have to be doing it alot to make it worse so maybe we are being over the top protective which would not suprise me because that is who we are.:o:o:o:o:o:o

so recap- ulcer is still not healed but is not worse, eye is improving, cush does can take some time to heal.

I'm a nervous wreck and have to redo the drug chart again.

[Bailey's Mom]

I'm sending a HUG! Maybe that will help just a little.

Love,
Sus

[marie adams]

((((Big Hug)))) from me too!!

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I was just peeking in to see how things were. Someone had posted a pic on Facebook that had 2 dogs saying "It's all fun and games until someone gets out the cone!"

hugs, Judi

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Just checking in. I hope things are still going okay, and that you have your new drug chart all figured out. I struggle with the 9 pills per day that Hannah takes, and the two eye meds, but I can't imagine keeping all the drops straight and the correct number of minutes apart, etc.

The vet seems to be really pleased with what you're doing, so keep up the excellent work. Please let us know how she's doing (and how you're doing) when you have a chance!

Julie & Hannah

[apollo6]

You are in my thoughts and prayers.
Dido on healing.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[addy]

Hi Guys,

Well, we are still here. I changed my hours at work until September 1st.

I took her off the Tramadol completely. She was not right Saturday night and threw up after drinking a ton of water. Almost seemed like she had something stuck in her throat. Eye seemed to look worse when we switched the drugs around per vet. Seems to look better today. I switch drugs again tomorrow and Wednesday, recheck Saturday.

Her back legs are getting really stiff and she splays out when eating, reminds me of Kim's Annie. Will call IMS next week to discuss stim. It will be 3 months appx August 20th. Funny thing, she had no house pee accidents since being on the Tramadol. Wonder what happens when I now have stopped it and why that would be? I might try giving the Tramadol every other day once a day.

Just wondering where I am with her cortisol and how her eye will affect her stim so will call IMS depending on what eye vet says Saturday.

She is a happy girl. Even in this terrible heat. Not liking her leg weakness. Seems like it is worse- see that alot with Trilostane but could be arthritis. She has not been able to walk as much because of the heat and her eye so that may have made the muscle wasting worse.

Got mom's condo cleaned out, inspection went okay, just waiting for closing. Tip- dont clean out garages when it is 100 degress:rolleyes:

Hubby leaves for Boston next week.

Thanks for checking on us. She was a bit too awake today while we were gone- she was getting such a small dose of Tramadol- maybe that had nothing to do with it Saturday. I would feel better if she was sleepier while I am at work.

[frijole]

Addy, Just letting you know I do read your thread and yes... our little girls have a lot in common. I know your pain but am confident Zoe is in great loving hands. Hang in there - I know it can be difficult. Love, Kim

PS I think t was Sas that told me to elevate her food dish and that did help. In the end I really had to elevate it .. I took an antique crock bowl (large one) and those sturdy paper plates fit right on top. It gave her relief from bending over and it also kept her from having to dig food out of a dish .

[molly muffin]

Well Yay for being able to get your hours changed! Hopefully that will help you to have less worry.

Hoping for continuing improvement for zoe. Poor things, letgs splaying out. I was just reading on the Apollo thread about one of her notes being that Trilo caused weakening muscles. I wonder if that is why so many of these cushings babies are having the hind leg weakness. Not that suddenly arthritis has been unmasked.

Keeping you in our hearts.

Sharlene and the Molly muffing

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

SO glad your work was willing to help you via changing hours for a bit. I hope that takes some of the pressure off of you.

We had to elevate Ruby's bowls when she started having problems with drinking/eating then throwing up. It did help a great deal. Bricks plate has to elevated or he twists all up and flips over! :)

I hope things settle down a bit for you now that you have the house ready to go. I can't imagine being in that garage! :eek: Someone would have had to mop me up! :p

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[addy]

I think these last 3 weeks on the Tramadol and resting so much and the awful heat, she has not been abe to walk much, have made her legs worse.

I tried an elevated bowl when we first adopted her and she would not use it. She was afraid of it:rolleyes::rolleyes: Hopefully she will see it differently now.:)

She is not pawing at her eye as much, even without the Tramadol, she is not squinting or closing her eyes so I think all the lubricating gels and drops to keep her eyes wet are helping her with the pain.

There are improvements and set backs. We take it one day at a time. I am grateful work allowed me to switch my hours for awhile. It helps Zoe so much.

She is a fighter though, my Zoe. Slips all over the floor and then proceeds to do hop, hop, bark, bark for her food and then tries to jump on Koko's butt. Her personailty has always been larger than life, so huge.

It is hard, though. I try not to think of what is to come.

[molly muffin]

Awww Zoe. She is a fighter. I had to laugh at the hop, hop, bark, bark for her food and jump on KoKo's butt line. It is such a good visual.
Don't think of what is going to come or when, just try to enjoy the moments. I know you know that already though. What a precious little zoe she is. I just love those bigger than life personalities.

HUGS,

Sharlene

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

I know just how you feel. There is something exciting and positive and hopeful...and then there is the negative. It leaves you struggling to figure out how to even feel. Some days I feel so calm and so confident that Hannah has lots of time left, and others I worry that our days are limited.

I love the hop, hop, bark, bark and jump on Koko's butt line too! :D I can imagine just what it looks like. She is definitely a fighter and definitely still a happy little girl.

Hannah is slipping on the floor a lot lately too. She falls down when she is really excited and tries to move too quickly. I put two long rugs down in our hallway so she doesn't have to walk on the wood floor. But she still seems happy too, and that's what counts.

As hard as it is at times, we have to focus on the now. You are doing a fabulous job with Zoe. I am so impressed and your vet must be too. So glad you could adjust your hours. Keep up the amazing work! And enjoy the happy times with your sweet girl! :)

Julie & Hannah

[marie adams]

Dearest Sister Addy,

Yes there are the ups and downs to this disease and getting older.

I don't know if I ever told you the story of when Maddie was young--there was that commercial with the golden retriever who would climb the stairs from the beach--they show it as a young dog and then an older dog. Well, I would tear up because I never wanted Maddie to get old and weak--how silly I was because I had no power to keep her young, but to just enjoy her.:)

So enjoy Miss Zoe and Mister Koko!!! :):) I know you will worry because that is just the way we are....:p

(((HUGS))))

So glad work let you change your hours!!!! :D

[addy]

Sister Marie Irene, you are wise. Maybe I am not the older sister after all;):D:D

You are so right, and there is nothing we can do about any of us getting older, least of all our pups. I need to stop thinking about it.
When you catch me going ther, say "AHHHHHHH, haaaaaa":D:D;)

Wish I was going to Boston!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:p:p:p:p

[addy]

Zoe ophthalmologist update:

eye continues to heal, tear production normal, ulcer is smaller, blood vessels filling in to cornea, scar tissue on cornea starting to form. Start to cut back on pupil dilating drug and one artificial tears drop for the next week.

Next week we will have finally gone from 11 different eye drops to six different medications. Makes life easier if she can tolerate it.

Recheck 2 weeks not 10 days. She has huge improvement but he continues to tell me she is not out of the woods until the ulcer is healed. It is superficial and filling in. He will assess her eye in 2 weeks to tell me if he thinks it will affect her stim test.

She is not as sedated since stopping the tramadol and he is amazed that such a small dose knocked her out. I told him she had the same reaction only ten times worse to Rimadyl 4 years ago. He doesn't understand it.

I am worried she is too rambunctious. She tried jumping on Koko's butt in the examining room after her eye test:eek::eek::eek:

Maybe I should give her some melatonin.

Who's watching the London games? Everyone say "ME":D:D:D

[jmac]

Wonderful update, Addy!!! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

So glad there continues to be good news! That's all you can hope for. She must be feeling so much better too! What a good sign that she even wants to try to jump on Koko's butt in the exam room! ;)

The vet sounds wonderful-informative, practical, very good about sharing positives, concerns, next steps, etc.

I am so, so, so very happy for you and Zoe! :D

I'm curled up with a good book, so no Olympics for me right now. Enjoy your day!

Julie & Hannah

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

That sounds like great improvement from here! :cool::cool: An encouraging report, for sure! You have been and are doing a wonderful job juggling meds, play, work, and everything else life has thrown at you. Zoe is incredibly lucky she landed with you as her mom.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[Squirt's Mom]

Speaking of the Olympics...did you see the Queen's entrance last nite? I fell in LOVE with that lady then and there! :D

I enjoyed the opening ceremony and was surprised at some of the negative comments I've seen and heard this morning. That deaf drummer who feels the music; all those amazing and wonderful percussion instruments; the characters from children's literature; the deaf children singing; walking the flag by Ali; the up and coming unknown athletes lighting the cauldron - which I thought was gorgeous and quite stirring - I was enthralled.

Now the games themselves....I prefer the winter games but will watch some of the summer ones. The ones that involve squeaky tennis shoes on shiny floors drive me up a wall so those I won't watch. :p

[addy]

Thank you Leslie and Julie. Every time he cuts back on a med, I get anxious, but it was a good exam all and all. I told hubby he has to bring the vet and his assistant tee shirts from Boston:D:D:D


I did see the opening ceremonies though I do admit I fell asleep in the middle of them for about 30 minutes:o:o:o When you get up at 4:30am, it is hard to stay awake at night.:(:(:o:)

I havent had a chance to hear any of the negative comments today, that is too bad. I dont understand that. I thought the drummer was amazing and those were real doctors and nurses dancing-incredible!!!!! I give it ten thumbs up and I only have two thumbs:D:D I LOVED the parts I saw, so did hubby. The queen mum is a good sport if you are allowed to say that about a queen.:confused:

I love the winter games too but I like to watch the gymnastics, the swimming and the horses and well, I guess I like to watch the runners, the jumpers, so pretty much alot. And I LOVE to see glimpes of London. The first time hubby took me to London, it was like a fairy tale trip. I will never forget it. I was blessed.

Thank you for the kind words, Les. I think maybe I was the lucky one adopting my Zoe. It doesnt feel like I do a great job juggling anything. I am always so stressed:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

[jmac]

Oh Addy, you're amazing! I absolutely agree with Leslie! The lengths you go to in order to take care of your canine and human family members are extraordinary. Your Zoe IS lucky to have you! You're lucky to have each other! Keep up the fantastic work!

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

Thank you Julie. You are right, we are lucky to have each other.:)
As you and Hannah are. I hope sweet Hannah is not so itchy since the rain came in and it cooled off a bit. Seems to me, you go to the same extraordinary lengths too:D:D:D:D I think we all do.

Though, I think my boss secretly classifies me as extraordinarily NUTZO

not that I care one bit:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool:

Enjoy your book. I bought Emily and Einstein for summer pool reading. When grandkid gets back from Boston she has to read Wuthering Heights for her AP reading class. We are going to read it together and then have book club once a week. Any suggestions? She will have an exam on it the first day back to school:eek::eek:

[Steph n' Ella]

For Wuthering Heights I suggest either cheating and downloading a family tree from the web to keep track of the characters or creating your own as you read. It can get really confusing since there are two Heathcliffs and two Catherines!

[addy]

Good to know, I had forgotten that about the book :)

Little Miss Down and Out is no longer down and out. Zoe is up for another round- she just chased the plumber out the front door, trying to bite him:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

That's my girl:eek::eek::eek::rolleyes::rolleyes::D;)

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

ha ha ha! she's back, yay!

[Bailey's Mom]

:D:D:DYou go, Zoe, girl!!!! :D:D:D Yahooooooooooo!!!:D:D:D

[molly muffin]

Zoe! What a trooper! Man love that dog. Why do strangers who are working in the house, always think they have to make "friends" with the Little dog. Little dog will tear them up!

ROFL! Hey, obviously she could see him to get him out the door!! Eye must be doing better too.

Sharlene

[marie adams]

LOL about Zoe chasing the plumber out the door!!!!

Did I tell you about what the vet said about a blood test to see what Ella is allergic to? He said it is only $150 for the test and the shots should only cost about $75=$150 for a series of 6. I still need to research a little about it, but I think I am going to do it. If it means she will be cured--I am all for it!!!:D

Sending big ((((HUGS)))) and to let you know I have always known you are NUTZO--from one sister to another....:D:D:D

[molly muffin]

How is little miss zoe doing? hopefully still chasing plumbers and biting koko's butt.

Sharlene

[addy]

Thank you all for stopping by. At the moment Zoe's eye looks pretty darn good. We get rid of 1 more drop so we are down to five. That seems so much easier. I still fret she will reinjure it but 5 weeks ago it seemed like there was no hope.

She's a bit confused as hubby is gone and she is missing him, I think.

Marie- you would not have believed her, LOL, she is something else, that girl.

Sharlene, Susan, Judi- she is so awake and alert compared to where we were even a few weeks ago. BUT she was uo at 4:30 again this morning:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

Well girls, I am a single mom for four days. I get to park my car in the middle of the garage.:D:D:D:D:D:D

Kiss your pups for me:D:D:D:D

[Casey's Mom]

So glad to hear Zoe is better - fantastic news Addy :)

Love and hugs,

[addy]

Thank you Ellen. I did not think we would ever get to this point. I hope her ulcer is healed when we go for recheck next week. The backing off of the meds has not bothered her this time. Even my daughter is amazed at the difference in her eyes. They looked so bad before.

Our youngest granddaughter has been here for 3 days. Zoe has been so sweet to her, I am a bit in wonder of her.

I know now I will never get my dog back to the way she was 2 years ago but she seems to still be enjoying life and we will adjust.

Today is Koko's birthday. My little sweetie dog is five. I dont understand how that happened:confused::confused: Was it not just yesterday he was only two? He is so happy our granddaughter has been here. I have never met a dog who loves kids as much as Koko does. I still cant understand why no one ever looked for him at the pound.

Love you all

[mypuppy]

Awwwww, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you sweet KOKO!:) cha cha cha.
Wow, 5 yrs old--you the man. :D

Addy, I'm glad Koko is so great with little kids just like her cousin Princess. Trust me I get it. My Princess gets a real run for her money from her human little sister, my 7 year old.:eek:

So happy Zoe's eyes are improving and only 5 drops. Look forward to post which says "down to one eye drop per day".

We love you all sooooooo much.:p

Tight hugs. Xo Jeanette and my girl

[Squirt's Mom]

Happy 5th Birthday, Koko!!


And many more to come!

Leslie, Squirt, Trinket, Brick, and Tasha

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

I am ever so happy to read that Zoe's eye is improving so much and that the reduction in meds hasn't bothered her this time! :):cool::):cool: It's high time you and she have a bit of a smoother ride. I hope you continue to see improvement and that Zoe chases every repairman she sees plum outta sight! :D

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[Bailey's Mom]

You go, KoKo!! It's your day and you should be waited on hand and foot.
Bailey saga a large "woof!!!"
Hugs and sloppy kisses and inappropriate sniffs----

[jmac]

Glad to hear Zoe is still doing well!

Happy birthday, Koko! Hope you guys have a great day!

Julie & Hannah

[apollo6]

Happy, Happy birthday Koko.
Glad to hear Zoe is doing better.
HUg Sonja and Apollo

[addy]

Koko says woof, woof thank you for the birthday wishes:D:D:D:D


He is having a very special day though he misses his Papa a bit;)

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!:):):):):):):):):)

Today is a very good day.

[Nikki]

Happy Birthday Koko!!! :)

[Altira]

Happy belated Birthday from me too!

[marie adams]

Happy belated Birthday to Mr. Koko!!!:D:p:)

[addy]

You are all so sweet. Koko had a wonderful day. My youngest grandchild has been here playing with him, taking him out, he slept with her:):):) this morning he went back to bed to cuddle with her. Awwwwww, Kokomo:):):)

Zoe is missing her daddy at bed time. He is stranded in Hartford due to storms but we hope he will make it home yet tonight, albeit rather late.

Thank you, thank you, thank you:):):):)

[molly muffin]

Hope her daddy makes it home tonight too! So glad Zoe's eyes are better. Crossing fingers that they'll say ulcer completely healed at next appointment.
Going to have to give up that middle garage spot! LOL

Hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

Zoe has a cauliflower looking growth on her neck. I cant remember what IMS called it. I wanted it removed two years ago. She said they usually wait until they become a problem:confused: It has gotten bigger now.

This morning she barked for me to wake up. I picked her up, put her on the bed, she had a few licks of her human popsicle mom;) and then I put her on the floor and we went down the hall to the bathroom to put her drops in.

I turned on the light and her neck and shoulder were covered in bright red blood:eek::eek::eek::eek:

I figured it must be that damn growth again but have never seen it produce this much blood. I ran for a damp cloth to apply pressure to it and there was just blood everywhere.:eek::eek::eek::eek:

I kept applying pressure and it started to clot up. I took a medicated pad and wiped it all of to disinfect it and wrapped gauze around her neck. She was oblivious to it all and just wanted her breakfast:rolleyes::rolleyes:

I waited 45 minutes, unwrapped her neck and there was no blood on the gauze so I put her in the sink and rinsed all the blood off before it got too dried and put the gauze back on for 30 minutes.

I just took it off and there in no more blood. She is perfectly fine throughout this whole ordeal and I am hyperventilating and my pulse is about 300 beats a minute.

I am going to have to have the growth removed but I am really worried that her skin is so thin and delicate they wont be able to suture it.

I thought if I came here and wrote this down I would stop hyperventilating but I guess I better go get a paper bag instead:rolleyes::rolleyes:

You know dogs, always something!!!!!;);););)

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

A few years ago, Squirt had something like that on her cheek. I hadn't even noticed it until it ruptured. It bled and scared the crap outta me, naturally, but her vet in TN said the same thing yours did - we could remove it if it continued to grow and caused her a problem. It has filled and broken open once since then. I can't remember what she said it was, but she assured me it was nothing to worry about. I can't even feel the spot now. I hope this turns out to be the same for Zoe - nothing to worry about. ;)

Let us know what the vet says, ok?

Since your heart rate is up and your lungs have been cleared with excessive breathing, is coffee necessary? :D Perhaps CHOCOVINE? :p

Love ya, sweetie!
Leslie and the gang

[infoviewer]

Oh no Addy, you are right always something with these precious dogs. At least her eye is better and KoKo had a good birthday. Something to be thankful for. My CoCo had a diarrhea episode, he ate fresh grass, which I hope is what happened. He loves grass not because he is sick, just is a grass eater. I gave him some Pepto, I am hoping that is okay with the Trilostane. He seems ok so far. I would have freaked out if I saw blood on my doggie. You handled it so well. Maybe they can give you something and it won't have to be taken off. That is really scary, but evidently did not hurt Zoe since she did not notice it. Here is hoping for a better day and hubby will be home to help you. Love, JoAnne

[addy]

Thanks guys, it was the eqivalent to a bad nose bleed, looked worse than it was, bright red blood soaked all over her:eek:

The growth is about an inch long now and almost 1/2" wide. It kind of flops around as it is not tight on the skin, I cant explain it. It will just continue to get worse and will have to come off my guess if they can sutcher her up.

JoAnne, I hope Coco feels better. I think Pepto is okay with trilostane. IMS's collegue was going to give it to Zoe with an antibiotic when she wanted to treat her helicobacter.

I finally stopped hyperventalating and yes Leslie, I need a whole case of Chocovino!!! Where is Mary Beth????:D:D:

[molly muffin]

Can they do those butterfly thingee's? where they sort of tape the wound closed to heal, when they can't stuture it? Ask the vet about it at next weeks appointment and maybe they'll have some ideas.

Chocovino? Does one need to hyperventalate to get some of that? I think I can mange it if need be. ;)

Sharlene

[addy]

Well, it started bleeding again. I called IMS. She wants me to bring her in Thursday and leave her for the day. They will test her cortisol and then remove the growth with a local (hoepfully). I am to bring her medications.

I feel kind of sick to my stomach.

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

So sorry to hear about the bleeding growth. I'm sure it was incredibly scary. It is always something, isn't it? It sounds encouraging they want to remove it without putting her out. I hope that is the case. I hope it will stay under control tonight and tomorrow for you. I'll bet it's hard to wrap anything around that area.

I'll keep you guys in my thoughts and prayers,
Julie & Hannah

[addy]

thanks Julie,

It was like a bad nose bleed, a lot of blood. She acts fine though, it does not bother her but we dont want it to get infected either.

I wish we would have removed it two years ago like we wanted to.

Not sure how they will test her cortisol for the second draw if they put her in a crate. She will freak out big time.

I'll talk to them when we get there Thursday. I have a call in to the opthalmologist too. She needs a recheck Saturday. Maybe he can do it when she is there Thursday.

Her eyes looks sooooo good. She was doing so well, now this.

Wish I could swear.

[infoviewer]

Dear Addy, So sorry you are having such a hard time with Zoe. Just a worry every other day with these Cushing babies. I will be thinking of you and sweet Zoe. Maybe it will quit bleeding tonight. Love JoAnne

[addy]

Thanks JoAnne, I went to purchase some non stick sterile pads for tonight. We have a gauze wrap on it right now but if she turns or bumps it it will bleed again and go all over so I am trying to figure out the best approach to wrap it. I bought some flexi self stick wrap that does not stick to hair or skin but it is stretchy. If I use the gauze wrap over the sterile pads I have to use some kind of tape with it. The gauze is not stretchy. Not sure what to do.

I guess I should look at it that this happened for the best as it forces me to remove the growth and then she wont be so bothered by it. The vet tech told me she will try to make this as stress free as possible for me and that it is the right thing to do for me and for Zoe as worrisome as it may be right now.

I checked with the opthalmologist to make sure his care for Zoe is not affcted by this. It is hard to juggle a couple of specialists adressing Zoe's different problems.

I am sure it will all be okay. The doctors there are usually pretty good. When they had to go down her throat to retrieve that piece of Koko's toy, she came through that procedure just fine and they had to put her out for that.

I am just a nervous mama and have had so much stress with her eyes, kind of hard to take. I 'll look at it as Leslie once told me, kust another bump in the road.

[frijole]

Addy, I'm not sure what this growth looked like but it sounds like something that happened to Haley. She would get what I called schnauzer bumps but they were basically warts/infections. Only instead of being white the heads turned black after she got cushings. (Annie had the same thing happen after her cortisol was high from fighting her tumor).. anyway... this growth grew and grew and grew and I just left it alone but it was like 1/4 " wide and it got longer and longer til it was over 1/2" long.

One day it just cracked open down the middle and like you, it was a bloody mess and freaked me out. Haley was fine with it ;) It was on her back. It was a weekend of course and I didn't know what to do. So.. don't laugh too hard... I put a T shirt on her and put a panty liner inside the t shirt so it would absorb the blood. LOL But it worked!!

If nothing else... hopefully I made you laugh. :D Kim (sorry if I embarrassed you Haley!)

[addy]

You did make me laugh Kim, but I can see how it would work so will keep that in my mind.

We made it through the night with no bleeding but this morning she shook her head and the non stick pad went flying out from the wrap:o

She is in good spirits and I have a migraine:D:D:(

her growth looks like a baby cauliflower and it is not attached from one end to another it kind of dangles on the edges. hard to explain and I dont remember what IMS called it. But she did say two years ago that they start bleeding and get infected and then they take them off.

[labblab]

Addy, did they maybe say this is a papilloma? Apparently they are common in older dogs, and especially those who are immunocompromised as a result of high steroid levels (yet another issue for our beloved Cushpups!). Here's a link:

http://www.petwave.com/Dogs/Dog-Health-Center/Skin-Disorders/Warts/Types.aspx

I'll surely be thinking of you guys on Thursday, and keeping all fingers crossed that things will so smoothly.

Marianne

[addy]

thank you Marianne,

I think it might be that. It is on the back of her neck near her shoulder and looks like this photo only not round and is larger and more elongated and now gets covered in this oil from her skin and it smells yucky from the oil. It started out 4 years ago as a small raise smooth bump. She has another smooth bump on her head. I will always balme the Frontline for making this grow becuase the other one never was touched by Frontline and remained a small smooth bump. This one turned into a Frankenstein growth:(:(

http://www.organic-pet-digest.com/wartlike-growth-in-dogs-gum-line.html


Hopefully it will be a simple procedure. The surgeon looked at it last April and said no problem taking it off with a local but you never know what they will run in to.

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

will be thinking of you and Zoe tomorrow. Hopefully for once things will go smoothly!

[addy]

Thank you Judi. I know the Cush angels will be with Zoe tomorrow.

Right now she is running around the house with her Kong hanging out of her mouth, a twinke in her eye and a huge bandage wrapped aroung her neck. Wish I could get a picture. That's my girl. Always larger than life.

Love you all.

[infoviewer]

Hey Addy: Sounds like Zoe is handling it quite well. Dogs are so resilent. Mamas freak out, I know I do. I am pretty sure it will be a simple procedure, like clipping a skin tag from a human and she will be back home tomorrow night and doing fine. Like Leslie says, "just another bump in the road". Hugs for you and doggie kisses for Zoe, JoAnne

[Bailey's Mom]

Addy-I'm going on a mini road trip for a mini three days. I want you to minimally hold it together and have only minimal issues until I return. You should increase prancing around with Kong in mouth activities and ignoring (as much as you can) medical issues. I don't like bumps. Peaches ahd bumps. Palmer had bumps. On Peaches they looked like ticks....as there are many here.

I'm going to see three really good friends and get an absolutely wonderful massage. Mayb you should try a massage? I am WAY overdue for one. Plus that puts me back into civilization and food choices I never get to see around here. Yahoo and Whoopie!!

Pleae give Zoe a big Hug from all the Spengler's. We'll be thinking of her tomorrow.

Love and doggie kisses.
Sus

[Altira]

Thinking of you! Wishing you luck! Hugs.

[addy]

I have been brave and cheerful all day.

I just made a container for all her eye meds with her name on it and tucked her eye drop chart inside.

She lay on a bed on the floor, watching me, the white bandage still round her neck, like a funny muffler.

The hardest is part is not being able to tell her what will happen tomorrow. If only I could explain to her it will be all right, it would not be so hard.

Darling, you can have half your breakfast only and musn't share momma's oatmeal. We have to skip your chicken walk but will take an extra one tomorrow. Your Kong needs to be put away tonight but I promise a good Kong when you come back to me tomorrow.

It will be all right, sweatheart. Just another bump in the road.

I love you.

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

You and Zoe have been on my mind a lot today. I know tomorrow is a big day for you. I'm glad you were positive and cheerful all day. Good for you. I had a very rough day today. I have been almost consumed with worry about Hannah and I can't let that overtake me. You have a great attitude about tomorrow. It is a small bump in the road, and she will be so much better when it's done. (And you will, too, of course! ;))

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could talk to them?! I wish that all the time. If only she could tell me how she feels, what's wrong. If only I could tell her why I'm putting her through the things she goes through, that I'm doing everything I can to help her. Somehow I think they know though.

I'll keep you and Zoe in my thoughts and prayers. I can't wait to hear how well things went and hear that Zoe enjoyed her walk, her kong, and maybe some jumping on Koko's butt, or even chasing a plumber.

You're such a good mom to Zoe! She is so lucky to have you!

Julie & Hannah

[frijole]

Addy, Just wishing you and dear Zoe the best tomorrow. If she's chasing after people and playing with toys she is doing great in my book. Give her hugs from me, Kim

[molly muffin]

Hi Addy,
Everything will be fine. It's just a minor little dohicky that needs to come off and Zoe is going to go in there, everyone will love her, a local so no anesthesia worries. Just tell yourself that over and over. :)

You know we'll all be thinking strong positive thoughts for you and Zoe tomorrow and for Jule and Hannah too. Hoping for good news for all my K9C friends.

Hugs,
Sharlene and the molly muffin

[Squirt's Mom]

Hanging with you, Addy! This will be done and over with in no time and sweet Zoe, the plumber's bane, will be back home where she belongs. Let us hear from you when you can and know we are all with you.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[infoviewer]

Addy: Holding on to your hand and having good thoughts for Zoe. Hugs, JoAnne

[addy]

Thank you dearest friends,

Zoe was so happy this morning. She road shot gun on my lap all the way to the vets (30 minute ride) and did not even try to bite the vet tech. I got to stay with her for the hour while we did her ACTH so not to skew the results. They took her from me for the second draw and I left.

They will give her a mild sedative to make her sleepy and a local. I told them please do not over shave the spot too wide as the hair will never grow back and she is already so bald around her neck and shoulders.

I remain nervous about the cut as her skin is like crepe paper. They promised IMS will check her over before surgery.

Surgery takes about 30 minutes and then they need to put cold compresses around area to control bleeding and then allow her to wake up.

Sounds like I wont be able to pick her up until dinner time. I hope.

I have ironed a basket of clothes, washed clothes. If it was not raining I would be out cutting branches off these dang trees. So much nervous energy.

I will let you know when my darling is safely back home in my arms.

Thank you all so much for hanging with me. Please say a prayer that my beloved will come home to me.

[labblab]

Prayers are being said and repeated. Stay safe, precious Zoe!

Marianne

[molly muffin]

Awwww Addy. So much energy, just think of all you are going to accomplish today. LOL I'm sure that Zoe will be home with you very soon. All this positive energy floating around. We are going to have a good day!

Hugs,
Sharlene

[Harley PoMMom]

Keeping you both in my thoughts and prayers, sending huge and loving hugs.

[Maya]

Thinking about you Addy. Hope all goes well...
Hugs from Leah and Maya

[Nikki]

Thinking of you and Zoe!!! Sending positive thoughts your way :)

[addy]

It is 2:10 and they have not even started the surgery:eek::eek::eek:

:eek::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

They will call when it is over:confused::confused::(

[Roxee's Dad]

Hanging in there with you and Zoe. Keeping you both in my thoughts and prayers.

[Squirt's Mom]

Wha'???? Don't they realize they have left folks hanging by the skin of their teeth all over the world??? geez.....Should I call? :D

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

Wha'???? Don't they realize they have left folks hanging by the skin of their teeth all over the world??? geez.....Should I call? :D

yes, I think you should call! (that would freak them out) :D

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

I'm just checking in. I can't believe she was there that long and they hadn't done the procedure! I hope you've heard something by now and that your baby will be home and in your arms soon!

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

She is not awake but the procedure went well. There is bruising because of some bleeding. Her skin was thin on top but thick and strong underneath so they were able to suture just fine. They want her to wake up naturally, on her own. They said she did very well.

I dont know if I will be able to bring her home tonight. If I have to wait and drive there at midnight, I am going to try to bring her home.

I dont know any more than that.

Thank you all for hanging with me.:):):):):)

Yes, Leslie, I think they would flip out if you called, you can give them heck!!!!!;);););););)

So much for "oh she'll be here for a few hours":mad::mad::mad:

I will feel much better when I know she is awake and barking for food or trying to bite them:p:p:p:p.

[molly muffin]

That is good that her skin was thick enough on the next layer that they could suture her.
I bet she'll give them "what for" when she wakes up alright.

We're still hanging with you through the evening and night!

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Glad you finally heard from them. Yeah, so much for a few hours. That makes it hard for both of you! I hope you'll get your baby home tonight. I'm glad things went well and they were able to suture her just fine. Hopefully she'll show them some of her Kujo tendencies soon and then you'll be certain all is well! ;)

We are right here by your side!

Julie & Hannah

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

will someone be there later so you can get her? I'm glad they aren't giving her the wake up drug. She's been through enough today.

Glad her skin was able to handle the sutures, what a relief!

[addy]

Zoe is home. Her back legs are shivering terribly. I have an ice pack on her incision and it has stopped while she is laying down. She looks kind of out of it and it is a bit scary.

She ate a tiny bit of food.

Why are her back hind quarters trembling so? From trying to walk?


I did not expect her to be this bad. Gulp:(:(:(

[jmac]

Addy,

Did they end up having to put her out? My guess is that she is still REALLY groggy from that. The only time mine have been put under is for dentals and usually it's between 8 and 10 in the morning. I don't get them until 4 or 5 and they are still sometimes a little off. If Zoe didn't have the procedure until later in the afternoon and wasn't awake at 5:30, maybe it's just the drug that hasn't worn off??? My only other idea is maybe they're trembling because she hurts?

I sure hope she improves soon. I'm thinking of you and our sweet Zoe.

Julie & Hannah

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

I just wanted to check in on you and your babe before I go to bed. I hope Zoe is feeling a little better, and that a good night of sleep, or at least a good nap will leave her feeling good. I hope you can get some rest too.

Thinking of you both...

Julie & Hannah

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I hope Zoe is feeling better. We used to have to knock my shar pei out to get his nails trimmed and I picked him up once before the anesthesia had worn off. He couldn't even stand. So I hope that is it.

hugs, Judi

[molly muffin]

Hi Addy,
Thinking of you and Zoe tonight. See how she is tomorrow. I bet she is still out of it. It might even take a few days for her to be back to her old self. She does have stitches. ugh, when they start itching that is going to be fun. NOT!
At least she is home, so she is not going to be scared when her mommy is nearby. She might be sore, she might have a whopper of a headache, but she's home, and for our babies, that makes up for alot of other stuff.

HUGS,
Sharlene

[infoviewer]

Hey Addy: I hope Zoe and all had a restful night. I am so glad she came through the procedure ok. She is probably weak from the anesthesia and will be herself in a day or two. Take care. Love, JoAnne

[addy]

Thank you guys,:):):) I managed to bring her bits of food and she was so hungry, once I go a decent amount of food into her and the ice pack on her incision and just being home, the shivering stopped. I got scared because for a few minutes I almost thought she was going into some addisions crisis or something was terribly worng. They said she gets extremely stressed when I am not there with her.

I gave her a tramadol and she slept through the night. She is up barking for breakfast, albeit, rather in a whispering, raspy voice, and is happily chewing her Kong at the moment. I have not seen the shivering again.

I believe the shivering was weakness and pain. I can tell now by the way she hangs her head and the look on her face when she is in pain.

Hubby is home today with her and then we have the weekend.

It is a beautiful day. Any day with my girl is a beautiful day.

The stiches have to stay in for 3-4 weeks becuase of her thin skin and her Cushings ( slow to heal). She is to be kept quiet, no playing, with Koko, no walks, no running.

I am fine now that I know what I a dealing with. Last night I did not know at first what was wrong.

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

I peeked in late last nite and was so happy to read that the procedure went well and your sweet girl was home where she belongs. :cool::):cool:

Any time I have had to have anesthesia, I don't just tremble, I vibrate. After my daughter was born, they had to strap me to the bed in restraints to keep me from jittering off. :D After Squirt's spleen surgery, when they let me go back to see her, she was shaking like crazy and they told me it was just the after effects of the anesthesia. I am sure that is what you were seeing last nite along with weakness from hunger. She will bounce back in no time and ya'll will have your hands full keeping her calm. :p

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[infoviewer]

Addy, so happy Zoe is doing great. We have to have CoCo's first ACTH since starting the Trilostane today at 1:00. i am sure he will be okay, never complains, just whimpers all the way to the vet. Take care. Hugs to all, JoAnne

[molly muffin]

Whew. Really glad to hear that Zoe is doing much better this morning! yay!

Thank goodness for weekends eh. :)

Hugs,
Sharlene

[apollo6]

Glad Zoe got through the surgery. will praying for a speedy and healthy recovery.
Hug Sonja and Apollo

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

So glad little miss Zoe is feeling better today! What a relief! Hopefully you'll all be able to relax a little this weekend. Thanks for checking in on us.

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

Glynda-Marianne, need help

yesterday's stim pre 5.3 post 9.2

3 months ago with start of eye issues:

pre 5.1 post 5.8

two week before that:
2.3 and 3.9

I asked eye vet if Zoe's eye ulcer and or medications could affect her stim he did not think so at this point. He said 3-4 weeks ago possibly yes, but did not "THINK" so now. He wondered if perhaps she was not controlled and it was slowing down her eye healing. I will review all of this tomorrow am when we have her eye recheck (i might as well move in the dang clinic)

IMS thinks with the eye issues and skin issues maybe we should increase her dose to 50mgs. I said I am not comfortable doing 50mgs SID and I want to switch to BID as per Dr. Allen. She agreed but she will agree with just about anything I say right now, not sure why:o:o

We are going to put Zoe on a course of skin antibiotic because I asked why she was not on one and did we have to be concerned about that? She said she was on the fence with it, did not want to cause bowel trouble. Wanted to know what I thought. I told after the experience with her eye ulcer I think she should have a short course of antibiotic right now. we agreed. I did not want to switch dose right now, she thinks I should switch in a few days.

I said next Thursday as she will be done with the antibiotic then. She said ok but would of rather I started sooner.

The thing is, the eye doctor still thinks her conjunctivitis is allergic. I think it is from her whacked out immune system. If he is right and I bring her cortisol down again will that be bad for her eyes?

Her eyes look so good right now.

This has been a challenging week for me and it looks like I am again in the role of IMS consultant.

Please, please can we discuss all this?

I will be forever in your debt, which I already am but PLEASE?

[labblab]

Hi Addy, just want you to know that I'll post another note tomorrow once I've had a chance to think over your questions. And I know Glynda will post as well, but I think she's without computer access for a couple of days. So it will probably be later in the weekend before she can respond.

Hang in there, girl, and give Zoe some big hugs from her Auntie, OK???

Marianne

[molly muffin]

Ugh. It's such a tricky situation, as usual with cushings babies. I swear if not one thing it's another.
You do have your own parking space now right? :) Might as well give you a bed too. LOL

From what I just read (I looked it up after you posted) conjunctivitis is both linked to allergies and viral infections and also is associated with a low immune system. Making you and the doctor both correct and unknown as to which is causing Zoe the most problems. Or if it is a spiral affect.
Is there any kind of immune booster supplement that could help with one while dealing medically with the other?
wow, did that even make sense? !

Either way, seriously huge hugs, My good news friday is becoming problematic and we still have a few hours left! LOL

Sharlene and Molly muffin

[MBK]

Hi, Addy.

I have been having internet issues AGAIN. My internet service keeps going off and on and after having them to my house 4 times, not to mention the multiple calls, sometimes it's easier to just not deal with it. But, then I'm not able to check on everyone...

Anyway, I was just cathing up on Zoe. Poor baby! I would have flipped out to see all that blood when the growth broke open! I was glad to read she did well with the surgery - hope she continues to improve!

I may not be here as much, but I do think of you all often!

[mypuppy]

hi there Addy,
sorry I missed Zoe having surgery ( summer at home with kids gets quite hectic:eek:). I am glad Zoe is doing well after her procedure and one less thing to worry about considering you have plenty already.

Love you all and warmest regards and tight hugs.

X0 Jeanette

[labblab]

Addy, can you remind us what Zoe's trilo dosing history has been over the last six months or so?

Thanks!
Marianne

[addy]

Thanks Sharlene and Jeanette.

Good news and weird news-

ULCER IS HEALED:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

discontinue 1 more drop, change frequency of 2 other drops:D:D:D
From eye point of view, opthalmalogist thinks control of her Cushings is best for her eyes ( not to tight of control) and sees no problem in lowering cortisol again.

Surgery update:

surgery site looks good, changed bandage keep on 1 more day if it stays on, start antibiotics , incision is about 4" long:eek::eek::eek: is swollen, bruised and red but that is to be expected, when I talked to IMS on the phone she said they had a bit of trouble with a blood vessel near the top of the growth removal and I should keep an eye on that part of the incision:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

News to me, I thought everything went well:(:(:(:(:(:(

Just need to decide on changing from 40 to 50 mgs bid, 30 mgs am 20 mgs pm. It would be a hard sell to make me give her 50mgs all at once. but I could be convinced. I am seeing leg weakness and trembling more often now, hunger never changed, though Zoe seems very happy right now. Occasional accidents in the house.

Am starting to wonder if Trilsotane cant control her cortisol.

Whew, what a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!;);):rolleyes::rolleyes :

I dont want to change the dose and put her on antibiotics at the same time, I wont know cause and effect.

Thanks for listening.

I think I will tell granddaughter to become a vet so we can get free vet care:D:D:D:D:D:D We are slowly going broke here.:rolleyes::rolleyes:

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Glad to hear the ulcer is healed. That is good news! Her eyes seem to be steadily getting better.

Hope things go well with the incision site. At least Zoe is happy and feeling good.

Your granddaughter becoming a vet sounds like a great idea!

Julie & Hannah

[labblab]

Addy, I think you and I were typing at the same time earlier so you missed seeing my question. Can you remind us about Zoe's dosing history over the last six months or so?

Marianne

[addy]

March: 20 mgs 6.5 pre 12.7 post - increase dose IMS -SID no BID

April: 30 mgs 3.7 pre 7.3 post - increase dose (IMS - SID no BID started eye issues)

May: 40 mgs 2.3 pre 3.9 post - no change in dose

two weeks later
pre 5.1 post 5.8 - no change in dose, eye issues not controlled IMS said come back in 3months

August: 40 mgs 5.3 pre 9.2 post eye issues starting to resolve

IMS said we can keep these numbers or bump to 50 mgs SID. I said no SID, she will just keep pogoing up again want to switch to BID

Zoe currently weighs in at 17.5 pounds, the only time since June 2011 she was under 5 was at the start of 40 mgs.

[labblab]

Addy, I'm going to throw out one other possibility for us all to consider, and that is to hold off on an overall dosing increase but to shift to 20 mg. twice daily. With regards to twice daily dosing, I have never been able to resolve the difference between Dechra's recommendation and some comments made by Dr. Bruyette back when he was answering questions on our forum. When a shift is made to twice daily dosing, Dechra recommends making a small overall dosing increase which is then divided in half. However, this is what Dr. Bruyette wrote:


...With regards to once vs twice a day dosing if we look at all the studies throughout the world you will see that about 80% of dogs do well with once daily dosing. One huge advantage of once daily dosing is owner compliance which goes up substantially when owners only have to dose once a day. While twice a day dosing may result in a lower amount of trilostane being used per day it will require closer monitoring as the ACTH stimulation tests tend to be lower so we have to look for both hypocortisolemia and electrolyte abnormalities.

What he seems to be implying is that twice daily dosing actually ends up DECREASING the overall dosage need. That does make some sense to me, because if the cortisol level is being controlled more consistently throughout a 24-hour time period, at no point in time are you having to bring it down from as high a peak. And the cumulative effect in the system may lessen the overall dosing requirement.

I do agree with you that at this point, I'd be really interested in seeing whether Zoe's pogo-ing would lessen with twice daily dosing. But maybe to start out, at least for a week or so, you might want to begin at 20/20? And then, depending upon how she's looking and behaving, you could either leave the dose alone for a while longer or go ahead and increase it to 30/20.

As I say, just a thought. But I understand why you're feeling as though you're walking a tight-rope here in terms of balancing Zoe's competing needs. And so this occurs to me as a possible dosing shift that might keep her more consistently controlled but without destabilizing her current cortisol level all that much. Whether or not it would really help or not, though, I dunno. Dang, if only we could all chip in for that crystal ball and just pass it around...!!

Marianne

[Bailey's Mom]

:D:D:D:D I can give $1.52!!!!!! :D:D:D:D

[addy]

Okay, I understand this point completely because Dr. Feldman's studies of BID indicated that a lower dose per day was needed to control cortisol which resulted in less side effects and good control.

If I go to Dr. Peterson's study ( not sure how old it is) he states he found most dogs controlled (starting dose) at 3mgs per kilogram which would have put Zoe at a starting dose of 38.5 or 40mgs which is where she is right now.

So then 50 mgs is not that bad of an SID dose? Maybe all these earlier doses were just to dang small for her ? Maybe 50 or 60 mgs SID would bring her in control?

I know the Vetoryl update by Dr. Behrend says starting dose for BID is 1mg and 2mg for SID.

I have a box of 30mgs, and two boxes of 10 mgs.

Gosh, Marianne, I am so confused. 50 and 60 mgs for a 17.5 pound dog sounds so massive of a dose for once a day but according to Dr. Peterson, I guess it would not be if we started at 40 mgs. We thought 40 mgs was finally her number but it did not hold.

Am I rushing into the BID? Dr. Behrend really believes the twice day dosing is better and if I was still on smaller doses and having control I would not question the once a day dosing.

When I give her her Veotryl now, she gets it at 5:30 am and is sound asleep by 7:00-7:30am. She gets up again around 10:30 and then wants to nap during the middle of the day. Hubby puts her in the kitchen around 3-3:30pm so not sure what she does then, I need a nanny cam, and she is awake when I get home at 5pm and then is raring to go again until about 7:30pm when she takes another nap for an hour.

I am so confused again. I hate this.

[addy]

Susan, YOU ARE BACK!!!!!!:D:D:D:D:D:D

Hip HURRAH:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Zoe's incision just started bleeding. I did not give her a pain pill today because of the car ride, thought she may get car sick. She has been way too active today and now it is bleeding:(:(:(:(

Honestly, I am going to have to keep her knocked out for awhile. I dont see how I am doing any dose change soon with all this going on. I wont know which end is up:eek::eek::o:o

What a frigging mess:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::eek::confused:: (:):rolleyes:

Julie- time for Skype Doga

Seriously, Marianne, I understand your suggestion. And if Zoe is going through this 4" incision healing how will that affect her stim? Let s see, it took six weeks to heal an eye ulcer that normally should take about a week. At that rate we will be dealing with this for 3 months!!!

Can I swear now?

[molly muffin]

Oh major wow Addy. What a mess and all the decisions to be made and not knowing which end is up and which is down. You must feel like a yo-yo yourself by now. arggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
I think we should go ahead and schedule a monday scream session.
I don't have a clue as to to what dosage is best and would work, but I'll send you tons of HUGS and hope for the best. I'm like you and just really want Zoe to be okay and have a chance to feel normal again. Control is the key word and it's a doozy to try and figure out.

Hugs,
Sharlene

[apollo6]

I join in swearing myself.
This cushings makes healing take twice along.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo
Will be praying for Zoe to get better.

[MBK]

Hi, Addy,

Reading your posts about Zoe's medications and dosages makes my head spin! I'd need a spreadsheet to keep up! Years ago when Alivia had IMHA, she was on multiple medications, including injections twice a day and it wasn't easy. You have that beat by far!! Zoe is so lucky to have you.

Don't you love it when medical providers tell you everything went fine and then you find out details later?! Wouldn't it be awesome to have a vet in the family?! My grandaughter adores animals of ALL types - I could definitely see her becoming a vet....too bad she's only 5 so that is a long way off!

I hope Zoe's incision is doing better today and there's been no more bleeding. Hopefully, it will heal quicker and surprise you. I'm glad to hear her eye is better! Baby steps...

PS - Swear away. You've earned it. Have you tried the Chocovine, yet?

[infoviewer]

Hi Addy: So many problems with Zoe and she just keeps being a sweet doggie and not complaining. I hope her incision heals quickly. So frustrating for you and scary. I am so surprised they want to start Zoe on 50 mg of Trilostane, but who knows, could be the perfect dose. All dogs are different. Happy Sunday, as least no work for you today. Love JoAnne

[addy]

I am so surprised they want to start Zoe on 50 mg of Trilostane

Hi Jo, she is currently on 40 mgs and not controlled, she started at 10mgs about a 1 year ago. She bounces back up every dose change so I was considering twice day dosing.

Mary Beth- sure have missed you girlfriend. It sounds like you have had your hands full besides being ill. When it rains it pours for sure. I am glad Ali and Maxwell stayed healthy for you. You need a break.:)

Dearest Sonja I hope you are having Vienna coffee today:):)

Sharlene, I totaly forgot you are in Toronto!!!!!!!!!

[apollo6]

Hope Zoe is doig better.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[addy]

I finally found the correct bandage at Walgreens last night after hubby ran all over town.

Stayed up all night watching her with a flash light to make sure the bleeding had not gotten worse. Knocked her out today with Tramadol. She has slept most of the day, which you have all probably figured out since I have been on the forum all day:):o:rolleyes::rolleyes:

No more bleeding so far. The bleeding would start every time she walked last night. I have to knock her out to keep her quiet.

I am not going to think too much about changing her dose right now. I need to get her through this first. Once I know where I am with this, I'll have to decide. I need to be able to decipher cause and affect with Zoe.

I'll wait to see what the next few days bring. Hopefully they will not bring more blood.

Oh an FYI- I would not be a good nurse at the ER.

Side note- I received update from eye vet- he said we did a really good job with Zoe's meds. He is so pleased her ulcer is healed. Made me feel good. I liked the pat on the back:):):):)

[Bailey's Mom]

Pat, pat, patty, pat, pat and then some more!!!! :D :D:D I have felt so awful ever since I cast my vote to stop all meds.:(:( You are such a trouper and really a cause and effect scientist. And, no, you would not be best working in an ER!:rolleyes:;););)

That little gal Zoe is her own little (BIG) trouper. I think it's funny how you knock her out to control her. I think I'll go give myself some Tramadol!

You're quite a gal, Addy. So long as you keep truckin', many of us will keep truckin'!

Love,
Gimpy

[infoviewer]

Addy: I think you are doing a wonderful job. I hope Zoe will sleep tonight and will be lots better tomorrow. Maybe just a little healing will keep it from bleeding. Lots of hugs for Zoe and you, but not on Zoe's neck. Take care. JoAnne

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

Stayed up all night watching her with a flash light to make sure the bleeding had not gotten worse. Knocked her out today with Tramadol.

can you tell I'm tired and have been reading murder mysteries? I first read this to say you knocked her out with a flashlight. That did not sound like you! :)

I hope she heals faster this time. I think you are smart to hold off on dose changes as long as she doesn't have worse symptoms. Their little bodies can only deal with so much change. hugs

[molly muffin]

Addy, addy, addy. You have done such an excellent job with Zoe. I think you are an awesome example of good mommy and I think the vets all think you are pretty awesome too.

Hopefully staying quiet will have enabled the wound to do some healing. It's so hard to get them to do what we know they need to do. Stay quiet, not play, not jump around, no licking wounded areas. Argghh. It's a monumental feat to accomplish any of that.

Hugs, and cheers to a good tomorrow too,

sharlene

[MBK]

Of course the opthalmologist thought you did a great job! You probably did better than he could have at keeping all those drops straight and administered on time! If there were some kind of olympic event for most medications administered on the exact time schedule, you would definitely receive the GOLD! So, while you are giving yourself that well deserved pat on the back, add a few from me! ;)

[addy]

Thank you for all the pats- I didnt mean for you all to give me them:o:o:o

Correcton on Zoe's stim last week

pre 5.5
post 9.9

a bit higher than I had written down Friday. I doubled checked the numbers with the clinic this am.

no more bleeding and the swelling around the incision is reduced by about half.

gave a bit less Tramaddol today.

guess I have to face the numbers music pretty soon as much as I would prefer to put my head in the sand for another few week:rolleyes:


Sharlene- can I scream early? Lunch is over:rolleyes::):D:p;):eek:

here goes:

EEECCCCKKKK

[molly muffin]

Screaming Monday! Go for it!!!! Here I'll join you.

ARGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Good work on keeping her still and helping that incision! I am not surprised the vet called to compliment your work. You are diligent and dedicated. You're a wonderful momma!

I'm so glad to hear things are looking a little better. Now you just have to go one step at a time figuring out the next issue. Do they ever end???? I may have to join in the screaming today. I think I am done crying, at least temporarily. That was mostly Friday and Saturday. Maybe a good scream will help???

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

[lulusmom]

Am I rushing into the BID?

Rushing? Uh no. I think you've been going back and forth on BID for quite some time. Zoe is not the only one pogoing. :p


Dr. Behrend really believes the twice day dosing is better and if I was still on smaller doses and having control I would not question the once a day dosing.

In addition to Dr. Behrend's opinion and UC Davis' (Feldman) revelation, I believe Dr. Peterson and Dr. Tim Allen (Dechra) suggested to you that Zoe may do better on twice daily dosing. Since four very prestigious endocrine specialists and Marianne, our very own expert on Vetoryl, haven't convinced you, I'm going to add my vote in the hopes that you can shake the "I'm damned if I don't but my dog could be damned if I do" syndrome. Take my word for it, that syndrome has a paralyzing effect that will keep you on the fence for all of eternity and I don't think your precious girl can't wait that long.

I must admit that I am stymied by the pogoing Zoe has done from one stim to the next and I'll do a bit a research on it but I don't think whatever I may find will change my mind about switching to BID. The question then becomes what twice daily dose to go with? I think the best plan of action is the one Marianne suggested. The one thing I'm not sure about is whether the 20/20 is gonna do the trick, considering Zoe's cortisol has continued to rise on the last two stims. If she were my dog, I'd probably go with 30/20 and see how well she responds. It's not out of the question that you may have to go to 30/30 but who know (besides the shadow). A crystal ball would be great but if we had one of those, we would have missed out on meeting some wonderful folks here. Who needs help when you know it all and if you know it all, how are you ever going to experience what it's like to become a masterful tweaker? :D I'm not looking into a crystal ball but I predict that the worst thing that could happen is that Zoe will continue to talk to you in sign language and will let you know if she needs a hit of prednisone. You do have prednisone on hand, yes?


I am so confused again. I hate this.

Yep, I know how that goes and if that's all you feel, you're doing good. You could be dazed and confused....or you could be those things, plus frustrated, scared poopless, addled, nervous, nauseous, headachy, tearful, hormonal and suicidal. If you are not feeling all those things, then look just how far you've come. :p If you are feeling all those things, you need to think about upping your own meds. :p That's supposed to be a joke but I'm going to share a little secret with you. I was already on anxiety meds when Lulu was diagnosed and two weeks post diagnosis, my doc determined that I would do much better on BID dosing. True story and he was right, I did better on BID dosing and I believe Zoe will too.

Just remember that you aren't doing this alone. We love Zoe too and we're committed to getting you and Zoe through this. By through this, I mean tweaking however much you need to get six months of good stims under your belt with resolution of symptoms. We're in it for the long haul, Addy.

Hugs,
Glynda

[labblab]

I loved Glynda's reply :) and want to chime in that given the additional info you've supplied, I'd vote for starting off at 30/20, too. Since you've got the combo of 30 mg. and 10 mg. capsules already on hand, it doesn't seem worth it to me for you to let the 30 mg. caps go to waste and to have to buy a bunch more 10 's. I know you'd do that in an instant if you thought that was better for Zoe (buy more 10's, that is). But with a stim result pushing 10 and your specialists' recommendations to increase Zoe's dose, I don't think it's a big stretch to shift to the 30/20 combo. We know you watch Zoe like a hawk, so if she doesn't seem to be tolerating the increase well, you'll be checking things out in an instant.

So just a few more cents worth from me. ;)

Marianne

[Bailey's Mom]

Yeah. What she said. Marianne. That's what I was trying to say way back when. And is it pogoing or ping ponging? To even out the medication throughout the day always made more sense to me.
There's my 1 cents worth.
Love,
Sus

[addy]

I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH


THANK YOU FOR HELPING MY ZOE


I AM CRYING NOW BUT THEY ARE HAPPY TEARS

:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

I love Glynda's answer too, that's our girl:D:D:D:D:D:D

[molly muffin]

Wow, Glynda! That answer Rocked!!

I'm just going to sit back and bask the glory of "smart experience"

Addy, love all those smiles from you!

HUGS,
sharlene

[Casey's Mom]

Happy posts - love to see them. You are an amazing mom Addy :))

[infoviewer]

Wow Addy I am still basking in the glow of your happiness. That is so wonderful that Zoe is doing better. You are such a good nurse. Hugs, JoAnne

[Squirt's Mom]

We really do need a Dancin' Mama icon....and a group hug one, too. So since we don't have those - just imagine a weird old broad doing strange motions she calls dancing jigglin' toward you with her long arms wide open. (don't run...she's not as crazy as she looks ;))

You will get through all of this...you are a superb Mom and Zoe couldn't be in better hands. We are all right by your side, cheering you on, having faith when it's hard for you to see. Always by your side, honey, always.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[jmac]

So glad to hear you're crying happy tears, Addy! And I agree that Glynda is right on with her thinking. What would we do without each other? I don't even want to think about it. Hope our little Zoe continues to improve and continues to be blood-free. :p

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

Thanks from the bottom of my heart.:):):):)

Growth is benign. :) I never imagined any other result, I was so sure in my heart but it appears hubby was distraught about the possibility of it being cancerous.

Zoe tried to get Koko to show her his butt this morning so she could jump on it. :rolleyes: He started to and then looked at me, ran from her, lay down a few feet away and looked at me then at Zoe's bandage. I told him "what a good boy, how did you get so smart?"

Thursday is her last antibioitc. We will start twice day dosing Friday.
IMS said stim in 14 days and a look at the stitches to see of they are ready to come out.

IMs did not do any blood work last week.:mad: I dont know why. :confused: I will make sure to check her electrolytes with the next stim.

I have prednisone; 20 mg pills. I have the rescue dose at 2.5mgs for Zoe. It wont be exact if I need it but should be okay.

I'm okay because I know I have all of you.:D:D:D:D

[apollo6]

so glad to hear about Zoe.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[Maya]

Addy, that is excellent news! Here's to a speedy recovery for little Zoe!:)
Hugs from Leah and Maya

[molly muffin]

Hot diggity dog! Awesome news about Zoe.

Hugs,
Sharlene

[MBK]

Addy, so glad to hear some good news about Zoe! I just had a feeling that her incision would heal quickly, so hopefully, that continues! Now, lets cross our fingers that the twice a day dosing keeps things under control and Zoe will be good as new! ;)

Keep the positive posts coming!!!!

[addy]

The positive vibes are working, Mary Beth. Thank you for them and Zoe thanks you, woof, woof;);)

One thing I dont understand, IMS said stitches can come out anywhere from 2-4 weeks depending on how fast she heals, most dogs, they come out in 2 weeks.

So how do I know when to make the appointment? What should I see to know they are ready to come out? She also said sometimes they look ready and then they start taking them out and they are not ready.

[Bailey's Mom]

If Zoe isn't bothering them and if they aren't bothering her, I'd wait three weeks. Then I'd either wait one more week, or I'd run her by the vet to see if she thinks they're ready to come out. If there is no pink around them, no swelling and no oozing and they are leaving Zoe alone and vice versa, I figure the longer they are in there, the more time there is for good, solid healing to take place and less chance of infection.
Love,
Bailey

[addy]

Thanks Sus,

I have new problem:

Zoe’s incision started bleeding this morning from the same spot I had trouble with Saturday. Last night I was looking at it and the stitches in that spot look weak and there are not very many. It seems to bleed intermittently, starts when she moves. It makes about a quarter to half dollar size spot on the bandage, depending on how much she moves. Since it is so close to her shoulder, that leg movement seems to stretch the skin there.
IMS is not in until tomorrow. My choices are wait until tomorrow and see IMS or go out to the clinic and see emergency doctor.
I would rather wait until tomorrow but I don’t know how critical it is she be seen today.
I have no experience with incisions like this.

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Addy,

If it looks like the stitches are pulling through the skin, tearing, then she needs to be seen. If the incision rips, it will be much more difficult to resew. If the incision is just weeping, then she may be fine to wait til the IMS is back.

Let us know!
Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[infoviewer]

Hey Addy: If it looks like the skin is separating at the bleeding site, probably needs seeing by the vet, since every time she moves it will pull it apart. If it looks it is healing there, maybe not. Love JoAnne

[addy]

I will need to clean off the blood to see the stitches which will make it start bleeding again. What should I use?
I was surprised when it started bleeding again as I had the bandage off last night and it looked like it would not bleed any more so am confused except I cut back on her Tramadol and she was tearing at her Kong this am and wanting to walk around the house a lot.
Maybe I should just take her in. I hate to do it, I don’t know who I will get for emergency.

[lulusmom]

Addy, I would recommend that you go to the drug store and buy some Hibiclense and use that to wash Zoe's incision. It's an antimicrobial wash just like the stuff surgeons scrub with before doing surgery. I've had a lot of amputees and while most heal without incident, some have required extra attention. I believe the vet who performed surgery for my little chi rescue, Abby, recommended that I use it on her foot when it developed a bad infection. Some amoral piece of filth tied her to a railroad track and her right front leg and the toes on her remaining front foot were severed. They amputated the severed leg at the shoulder, cleaned up the foot and wrapped it in gauze to keep the dirt out. Within two days, that foot smelled like rotting flesh. I used the Hibiclens to clean it initially and then I continued to spray it with Vetericyn several times a day. That combination worked like a charm! I always have both in my medicine cabinet.

[molly muffin]

How is Zoe? did you take her in or waiting? What did it look like after you cleaned it? Maybe she has moved around too much and it has pulled.

I'll stop now. :) Just wanted to check in on you and Zoe and see how it's going. I haven't had a chance to check any of the threads today till now.

Hugs,
Sharlene and molly muffin

[jmac]

Hi Addy,

Just checking in on you and Zoe. Hope things are ok.

Julie & Hannah

[addy]

Hubby kept her locked up in the bedroom all afternoon. By the time I got home there had been no more bleeding. We spent the night locked up in the bedroom too. The wireless signal does not work well in there and I was afraid to leave the room as she was sleeping next to me, I could not move much.

We see IMS this morning. The front leg nearest the incision is giving out intermitently, I need her to check that.

Zoe is going through Kong withdrawals, it is not a pretty sight:rolleyes:but Zoe is trying very hard to accept it and not chew off her paw instead of chewing the Kong:eek::eek:Just means more work for me 5:30 am because I have to distract her and get her to refocus but that's okay, whatever it takes.

I will feel better after her recheck this morning. I just need to know what to expect and then I can handle it, what's normal, what's not.

We soldier on,:):)

Thanks for checking on us.

[infoviewer]

Hope you have a good report from the vet this morn Addy. Maybe they will fix her stitches so they do not come out and she bleeds, that is so scary for all of you and stressful. Good luck. JoAnne

[addy]

IMS said the leg weakness if not from the surgery, Zoe’s leg do not give out while walking for IMS and IMS did not want to move Zoe’s head and neck to check for pain because of the incision.
Incision is fine, no infection no stitch problems.
The incision is in a bad spot so not only will her Cushings prolong healing but the location will also be problematic. They have now wrapped her in an elastic bra type bandage to put pressure on the incision. There is a blot clot under the skin and that is what is bleeding through. Her body did not yet make a seal in that spot.
Limit all activity even further, continue to use Tramadol to keep her quiet, do not let bandage get wet. Well, it will get wet just from the dew on the grass so not sure what to do about that and Zoe is very hot from it. Keep bandage on for a few days to a week. It is not going to happen, trust me on that one.
She is already knocked out from Tramadol, how will I know if new Vetoryl dose is a problem? She does not think it will be a problem for Zoe but watch for not wanting to eat or diarrhea. If I want to wait two more days to start, go ahead.
Most dogs form a seal in a few days but for Zoe that process could be twice as long. Every time the spot oozes, her body has to start to form a seal all of again.
Kong withdrawal will have to continue. I am afraid her muscle wasting will continue to worsen with lack of exercise.

gotta run

[lulusmom]

Addy, did you see my prior post? I still think Zoe's incision will heal more rapidly if you spray with Veterycin several times a day. My vet now carries the physician strength and prescribes to promote healing of incisions, wounds, abrasions, etc. I'm not just whistling Dixie when I say that this product works. I've used it on many rescues with excellent results. Spay and neuter sutures, amputations, testicular tumor excision, cyst removal, mammary tumors excisions, bite wounds, cuts and abrasions from car strikes, severe wounds from imbedded collars, bacterial skin infections and the list goes on. Check out the reviews on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Vetericyn-Animal-HydroGel-16-Ounce-Trigger/product-reviews/B00337KW8M/ref=cm_cr_pr_top_link_1?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending

[Boriss McCall]

I hope Zoe is feeling better today. I think Boriss has one of those same bumps on the back of his leg. Now I could kick myself for not getting it removed when he was younger. The test just always came back as a fatty spot & nothing to worry about. Poor little Zoe sounds like even (what I thought would be) "little things" can be a big thing with Cushing's. Happy healing thoughts for Zoe...

((hugs))
Amy & Boriss

[frijole]

Addy, I used this for Annie also... had 2 jars of it when she passed - gave one to my bro for his kids scrapes and kept one for myself... it really really works. Hugs, Kim

[addy]

I will have to order it on line and wait for it to come. IMS wants this bandage to stay on. I cant remove it, I wont know the right tension, the surgeon created this special bandage wrap for Zoe. Maybe by the time the spray gets here the bandage will be off. I dont know where to buy the spray locally. Walgreens does not have it.

Would a pet store have it?

I tried putting a plastic bag around the bandage but that did not work.
I will try to take a picture and post it.

IMS said "this too will pass":(:(:(:(:(

[molly muffin]

Argghh, well of course it will pass. It's the "getting through" it that's problematic.

I'll tell you what though, if anyone at all can manage to keep a dog quiet that wants to play with a kong and bite another dogs butt, who manages to get bleeding in a wound that should be closing, it's you. You can work miracles when it comes to Zoe. I can't imagine anyone better ready to throw on the armor and get down to it than you Addy. :)

We'll all just cheer you on while you do it too!!
Hip Hip Hurah!

Hugs,
Sharlene

[frijole]

I got mine from my vet. Its' a vet product so you'd have to check either pet stores or vets offices. It isn't a prescription. Kim

[labblab]

I think there are two strengths of it. The stronger strength may only be available through a vet. But I was able to buy a nonprescription strength at Petco. Local feed-n-seed stores also carry it here, labeled for horses as well as dogs.

Marianne

[addy]

I did see 2 strengths on line. I will try my local Petco, thanks Marianne.

We started twice day dosing today. I cant take off first 2 weeks of Sept. so have to time it for stim.

On twice day dosing, stim is still 4 hours after pill? I had read alternately 8-12 hours.

Also on twice day dosing, I thought I had read the control range is different? Or perhaps I misread and that was in regard to the 8-12 hour testing?

I am hoping I can schedule for 4 hours after pill as we have always done and the control range does not change.

Is that right?

Sorry, I could probably just look this up but have a bad migraine:(

Zoe is fine, she is one strong willed, stubborn little girl, though. I have my hands full. She was insistant on trying to walk down the drive way this am, I had a hard time stopping her.

[labblab]

Addy, on twice-daily dosing, I believe the conventional wisdom is to stick with the same testing schedule/protocol as with once-daily dosing. At one time, another member brought to our attention a researcher who has suggested an alternative testing framework for twice-daily dosing. But per Dr. Behrend's "Update," she recommends remaining with Dechra's norm even when dosing twice-daily:


In accordance with the package insert, I recommend starting the ACTH stimulation test 4 to 6 hours after administration. It is helpful to time postpill ACTH testing consistently.

Other timing strategies have been reported but are not currently recommended. Baseline cortisol concentration has been evaluated as a monitoring tool; however, because the clinical status of the study dogs was not reported, the results are diffi- cult to interpret. In addition, baseline cortisol concentration was deemed adequate only for dogs doing well clinically and whose basal con- centration fell within a narrow range. For twice- daily therapy, although one study suggested starting the test 8 to 12 hours after dosing, such timing has not been critically evaluated.

Hope your migraine lets up as the day progresses and we get closer to the weekend! :o

Marianne

[addy]

Thank you so much Marianne, I need to call for the appointment.:)

Lol, I think I need a head transplant. My allergies trigger migraines and I can’t stop sneezing. Maybe I need a nose transplant as well!!!

I gave Zoe smaller doses of Tramdaol yesterday and last night. She was walking better this morning. I felt badly that I had to give her a bigger dose this morning since no one will be home with her except Koko! He is pretty good at watching his big sister but sometimes Lil Miss cops an attitude.:rolleyes: Dont tell Zoe she is not in charge:D

Ill try to post a picture of her bandage- you should see her. She looks like she has a fitted red bolero jacket on:D:D
No way I'll ever figure out how to get it back on. :rolleyes:

Have a great weekend!!!!

[molly muffin]

Now that is a picture I Want to see. LOL Red Bolero jacket! Stylish little Miss Zoe. :)

hope the headaches get better and those nasty allergies take a walk somewhere else.

Have a good weekend. We're off to Montreal so I won't be around much till later Sunday.

Ta,
Sharlene

[Boriss McCall]

Zoe sounds like she is looking fancy!! :cool:

Can't wait to see the pic. Feel better & have a great weekend.

Amy & Boriss

[apollo6]

Have a great weekend.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[molly muffin]

Hope that you're having a good weekend. :)

hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

Yup, all in all a good weekend. Zoe is a bit off today. I'm a tad nervous. We started BID 50 mgs on Friday, 30 am 20 pm. She also is sad about no Kongs or chicken walks but I dont think that is it. Maybe her cortisol is dropping and she feels yucky from her incision.

I am watching her like a hawk. She is not the same dog she was Friday or Thursday. She seems very sad though she sure keeps asking for chicken:o:o:o I left her for 2 hours this morning. I wont leave her again today.

I'll see how she is at supper time. Back legs seem very stiff. I sure wish someone would invent a device to just stick in their mouth to measure their cortisol.

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I sure wish someone would invent a device to just stick in their mouth to measure their cortisol.

Amen! this cortisol cushings stuff makes the diabetes seem like a cakewalk. Because you can stick a lancet in their lip and measure their blood sugar.

Hope Zoe picks up soon!

[molly muffin]

It sure does sound like how everyone describes the actions when cortisol drops and they start feeling more of the aches and pains.
I am positive you have her on full time hawk watch. :)

hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

Okay, she is bouncing around the kitchen barking for food so I gave her pm dose. IMS did not think 10mg increase and switch to BID would bother her but you never know.

We are good!!!!

[Bailey's Mom]

You're more than good......you are both Great!!!!:D. :D
Love,
Sus

[Squirt's Mom]

Ditto to Susan's comment!

Hope you woke up to a bouncy, calmly bouncy, Zoe this morning! :D

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[addy]

Yup, she did the "bull" thing, kicking her feet in the grass at 5:30 this morning, argued with me about wanting to take a chicken walk down the driveway and the proceeded to get so worked up that she nipped me when I tried to take the covering to keep her bandage dry off her :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Now I am worried her cortisol is going in the other direction:D:rolleyes:;)

I swear this dog is like a yoyo.:confused: I told hubby to giver her a pain pill at 11:00am. I think I have 25 new gray hairs:rolleyes:;):eek:

[mypuppy]

sweet Addy,

I wanted to wish you all the best with this new dose change. I know how frustrating this phase of treatment is--it really stinks:mad:

As for an at home cortisol test, I couldnt agree with you more, and long for the day some genius out there will come up with one in the near future and we"ll be doing the "no more stims dance", and our babies will be doing their chicken dance--lollllll.

love ya and the babes.

XO Jeanette

[molly muffin]

What! Too low! oh my gosh. Yo-Yo and Ping Pong.

She must have been feeling pretty chipper this morning!

Grey hair, hon that's what all those hair color boxes in the grocery store are for. Cushing dog momma's. ROFL!

Hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

Hi Jeanette, thank you for the well wishes, I know you totally relate;)

Sharlene- Zoe is a handful of contradictions:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Today is the BIG REVEAL:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

The bandage comes off tonight!!!!!!! Daughter is coming to help me take it off by lending moral support.

Part of me is saying -shoot, I sure wish I could leave it on, it is so nice and protected but it cant be good for her skin.

Wish us luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hopefully we will find good news.

P.S. hey- what the heck does good news look like anyway??????

[molly muffin]

okay, waiting to see how it goes.

You can take it off and then "ta da!" you'll know what good news looks like~! A few stiches holding together real well and closed skin.

Crossing fingers for a huge "TA DA" LOL

hugs,
Sharlene

[Bailey's Mom]

Oh come on now....no results posted yet?? We are here on pins & needles waiting to hear the good news....do you know how sharp pins and needles are??? :) :o OUCH!!! :o:D:o
I hope all went fabulously well.
Love,
Sus

[infoviewer]

Hey Addy: Waiting for the big reveal. Hope Zoe is ok. Love JoAnne

[addy]

Awwww, I am sorry I kept you all waiting for the "WALLA". Daughter came late and brought the kids:rolleyes::rolleyes:

She has formed a seal and scar tissue. :D:D The spot with the blood clot still has a small spot that looks less healed then the rest of the incision. :(:confused: She has dried blood on it, so it is hard to see. It no longer is swollen like a goose egg. The bandage was unreal, the surgeon had so much gauze wrapped around her, I could not believe it. I had to cut the red stretchy stuff off and unwind a ton of gauze but it did the trick so I am eternally grateful because the edges of the incision are now together. I owe the IMS on this one:D:p

She is a happy little girl and thought because the bandage was off she could go for a walk. We had to have a test of wills for 15 minutes at 5:30 this morning:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

So it looks like the next round is her stim next Thursday and to see if the stitches can come out. She will have a yucky scar from this, but as long as the growth is gone, I dont give a hoot:D:D:D:D:D


I just hope we have no more problems with the incision so we will continue to keep her quiet until next week. That is no easy task lately.

Thanks for checking on us, love you all:):):):):)
Need a big heart icon to insert here.

[infoviewer]

Addy: That sounds great. I know Zoe is glad to have the bandage off her neck. Good luck with the walk. I am so glad she likes to walk. Love JoAnne

[jmac]

Wonderful! So happy that went well and things are healing. What a relief! I think Zoe sounds like Izzy. She likes to challenge me and seems to think she is in charge much of the time. Of course she has her sweet side too, as I know Zoe also does. They're so funny.

We have acupuncture again today and I'm eager to hear what she has to say about how Hannah's back feels/how she looks. I'll post later.

I've been back at school getting my classroom set up, cleaning and organizing, etc. I'm officially back to work next week, and I've been really nervous about it because of Hannah. I sure hope she remains stable for a while so I can get settled in at work. It's always such a crazy time.

Thanks for checking in on us and for the hugs! I appreciate it.

Julie & Hannah

[molly muffin]

Yipppeee Zoe! Glad to hear the incision is looking good.
What an adventure living with Zoe is! 5:30 in the morning! Lord, she must have thought that she'd have a better shot if she caught you before the birds are even up. hahahaha

Hugs,
Sharlene

[Bailey's Mom]

GREAT NEWS!!!

You go girls!!!

Bailey & Co. :D

[addy]

Thank you, guys, for your support:D:D:D:D:D

It has been a week on the new dose, not sure what to think. Yesterday she was so happy and perky, awake most of the time, alert, it has been awhile since I have seen her like this.

If her cortisol is not controlled, boy, it will be hard to change her dose because she sure is acting happy right now. Zoe and Koko love when I cook. They lay on their blanket in the kitchen, hoping for scraps of something, and get so excited. Last night I had to bake a cake for my bosse's birthday (no pressure there:eek:). We had such a good time. Zoe was up until bed time, no napping, then conked right out.

I have a feeling her cortisol is over 5 ug/dl. IMS is expecting to have to change her dose, I think. She seems to feel best when she is around 9ug/dl but her skin and hair become the problem. I dont want the calcinosis cutis to start up again.

Wish this wasnt so hard.:(:o:confused:

Happy Thursday!!!! The weekend is almost here:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

I'm just glad she is feeling so good! no borrowing trouble. Have some cake for me!

[molly muffin]

Yep, I agree. Enjoy the now and we'll see what the future holds. :)
The weekend is almost here!

Hugs,
Sharlene

[infoviewer]

That sounds great Addy. I love it when they seem to feel good. Has anyone heard from Sonja. I have been thinking about Apollo, he was in such bad shape. Keep up the good feelings Zoe. Have a good weekend. Love, JoAnne

[molly muffin]

Happy Friday check in :) Hope all is going well.

I know JoAnne, I've been worried about Sonja and Apollo too. I asked on their thread. Hopefully everything is okay and she'll check in.

Hugs to all,
Sharlene

[addy]

Okay I'll stop anticipating:D:D;):p

We'll take it one day at a time and enjoy; sound advice and thank all of you for reminding me that:):):)

I know, JoAnne, I am worried about Sonja too. I have not heard from her.

Happy weekend!!!!!:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

[Boriss McCall]

yay.. happy weekend. Glad your baby is feeling good & the bandage is off. :)

Amy & Boriss

[addy]

definition of "inclination to anthropomorphize":

telephone: ring, ring, ring

hubby:"Hello?

daughter:"Hi, just checking that you are home. We are coming over to pick up our extra swimsuits"

hubby: "You cant come now. The dogs are taking a nap and I don't want them disturbed. Zoe needs her afternoon nap. Wait until 4:00."

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: :rolleyes::rolleyes:


Happy Sunday!!!!!

Zoe is walking much better, slowly but better and is not falling down.

Love you all.

[Squirt's Mom]

awwww, what a good daddy! :) His little girl has been through a rough time and he is making sure she gets her much needed rest. How sweet! Don't be surprised if a whole bunch of us here fall in love with your hubby now! :p

I'm so glad to hear that Zoe is doing better. I know she was so glad to get that head wrap off! I hope you continue to see improvements and she is once again doing the chicken walk and chasing plumbers!...after her nap, of course! :D

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

is your daughter as much of an animal person as you are? that is cute! glad things are going ok!

[apollo6]

DEAR Addy
I am so happy Zoe is doing better.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[MBK]

I just looked at the picture of Zoe's bandage! That was quite a stylish bandage with the little butterfly! I'm guessing that was your touch?

If I didn't allow anyone to come here when my dogs were napping people could never come! My dogs sleep more often than they are awake...should I be worrying about that now, too?! :confused:

Glad to here that Zoe continues to improve!!

[jmac]

Glad Zoe is continuing to do well! Love the story about your husband restricting visitors during Zoe's naps! :)

I hope she will continue to do well!

Julie & Hannah

[infoviewer]

So glad Zoe is doing well, Addy. What a good hubby. Sounds like mine. He takes off work when we have to take CoCo to the vet. What lucky dogs and lucky us. Hope you have a good week. Seems like Zoe will be doing well for awhile. Lets hope and pray for that. She has had a rough time and so have you and your husband. You'll deserve a stress free week. Hugs, JoAnne

[marie adams]

Love the telephone story---sooo cute!!!:):p:D;)

Miss Zoe's bandages are pretty darn cute--you would think it wasn't a bandage at all!!!:):):)

I now know what you mean about allergies. It is a constant battle with the biting, scratching, chewing. The cone of shame comes off and then goes right back because she can't help herself. I tried the Benedryl, but I think it makes her too lazy and won't run in the evening. I really don't notice a difference. :rolleyes:

Her results should be back this week from the blood test--it will be very interesting to see what she is allergic to....:o

((((HUGS))))

[molly muffin]

What a very good hubby you have! That is a man who knows the importance of good nap time. LOL

Zoe, what a love she is.

Hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

I tried to find him a home once, I advertized here on the forum but then decided I would keep hubby:):):)

I am hoping Zoe's stitches can come out Thursday when they do her stim. Man, she will have a nasty scar and I doubt her hair will grow back where she was shaved, my poor girl.

But her spirit is strong and she wants to go for a chicken walk so badly. I hope we get the okay for her to resume her normal acitivites this week. I stopped the tramadol completely. She is not falling down like she was. I have to wonder how much of that was from the surgery and how much from the Tramdaol, though she she did not fall when I gave her tramadol for her eyes:confused::confused:

love you all

[molly muffin]

I wonder if she felt cross eyed with the Tramdaol in her eye. If it does that to her body.. just one of those weird thoughts that I had. :)

Yea, totally hope the stiches can come out and she can get a chicken walk going on. I don't know how much longer she'll tolerate no walks!! A thwarted Zoe is not going to be a happy Zoe. hahahaha

Well now, aren't you glad there weren't any takers when you put the adoption notice up. Who would protect Zoe's nap time!! I bet KoKo would have had something to say about that too.

hugs,
Sharlene

[addy]

Quick question:

Do repeated ACTH stim tests in any way cause the adrenal glands to enlarge? I think I may be confused over something I read.

Love ya all:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

[labblab]

Addy, I don't know about ACTH tests, but I believe that trilostane treatment itself can cause adrenal enlargement.

Marianne

[addy]

Thank you Marianne, I will try to find the sentence I am confused about.:):):)

ZOE ALERT:

stitches are out:):):) scar is very fine and looks good, resume ALL normal activities: yea man, walking to the mail box, playing with the Kong, chicken walks, life is good:D:D:D:D:D:D


I am so happy with the IMS because she really did a great job with Zoe.
I cannot belive it. I think it was the super bra bandage that did the trick.:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

I probably wont have stim results until late tomorrow:( I've got a bad feeling the numbers will be high but Zoe sure is happy:):rolleyes::rolleyes:

Sure wish I could have one month of no Zoe emergencies. Summer is over:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

That's our girl. We love her so very much. The vet tech said it is good Zoe is so strong willed and ornery because she fights so hard with everything that gets thrown at her. She gets by with a little help from her family snd friends too:):):)

Love you all, I'll post stim results when I get them. Crossing all paws, not expecting good news.

[Boriss McCall]

Yay! Zoe you are a little tough cookie!! I am glad she is happy.:D

[apollo6]

Dear Addy
Always have hope. Zoe is a fighter. Apollo thinks she is one hot lady.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[sunshinehoman]

Awesome!!! Love to Zoe and entire family!!

Shannon & Sunshine

[Bailey's Mom]

Congrats on "back to usual routine.!" I'm so very happy for Zoe. Now stop worrying about those results. They are what they are. You will deal with them then. Start cutting up that chicken, Mom!! :D:D:D:D
Love,
Sus

[MBK]

YAY, ZOE!!!! And, double YAY, Addy!!! She's a feisty little bugger but she couldn't have done it without your good care. That, and your husband guarding her nap time! :D

Seriously, so happy to hear it healed well. Sounds like the scar won't be as bad as you anticipated? She may completely surprise you. Let's hope the stim results are a pleasant surprise, too!!! You both deserve a break!

[addy]

The scar is not bad since the blood and stitches and scabs are now off it. I was so happy to see how fine of a line it was:D:D And it is so good to not see that ugly, smelly growth on her and I think she feels better having it gone.

She goes outside and just stands in the breeze with her head up, nose pointing into the wind. She does not want to come in the house right away, she just stands there so happy to be outside.

No matter what tomorrow brings, I know she had happiness this week. Two weeks ago she was falling down, could not make it up a tiny step without falling. She was pretty active today, she did fall once while jumping around for her chicken walk. I will take it slowly with her, ease back into her routine, in case it was a pinched nerve and it is not quite healed.

It has been a long, hard nine weeks, with her eye issues and now the surgery but it has been worth the major commitment.

I sure wish I could keep my hours at work because she is only alone for 2 hours now in the afternoon.

I wont worry about her stim tonight. I want to stay happy for her.

[Tina]

Hi Addy,

I have been following along and am so glad to hear that Zoe has healed so well and is feeling so much better! You have really been through a lot. Don't you just love it when they put their little noses to the wind and just sniff away?

I am waiting for my pups stim test results as well and am hoping to get them some time tomorrow. I think he may be low again, but not sure. He is off the Lysodren again in the mean time. We are struggling to get his dose stabilized. Here's hoping we both get some good results!

Again, I am so glad to hear the good news about Zoe. She is a cutie.

Hugs,

Tina and Jasper

[molly muffin]

Yay! That Zoe is sure a trooper. She bounces back pretty fast. I bet she feels pretty good now too.
Crossing fingers on the test results. This is a good week, a good day, tomorrow is just that, another day. :)

Hugs,
Sharlene

[jmac]

Wonderful news, Addy! I'm so happy for you! It's great that she feels so good. Enjoy your weekend!!

Julie & Hannah

[marie adams]

So does this mean it is CHA CHA CHA time???!!!!

It is so good to hear Zoe is happy and feeling so much better!!! It makes Mom feel so much better too!!!:):D;):p

It is Happy Friday--enjoy the weekend!!! Parteee On!!!!

((((HUGS))))

[addy]

Numbers not as bad as I thought so yes lets cha, cha, cha:D:D

History for 2012, 2011 not included:

March: 20 mgs 6.5 pre 12.7 post - increase dose IMS -SID no BID

April: 30 mgs 3.7 pre 7.3 post - increase dose (IMS - SID no BID started eye issues)

May: 40 mgs 2.3 pre 3.9 post - no change in dose

two weeks later
pre 5.1 post 5.8 - no change in dose, eye issues not controlled IMS said come back in 3months


August 3 months later
pre 5.5 post 9.9

Change to BID 30/20
August 29th 2012

pre 2.4 post 6.1:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

I told you I get the prize for dose tweaking:p:p:p:p:p:p:p

Ims wants to leave it for a bit. Zoe is taking longer to finish her meals, is not drinking as much (could be because I took away the Kong)
is more alert, not sleeping as much, had a bit of trouble with stools, but I thought it was from the antibiotic so I did have to increase her metorindazole just a smidgen and I did have to give her an extra dose the other night, I think she had tummy pains. She was pooing 4 times a day for a few days:rolleyes::rolleyes:

She said come back in 30 days for recheck or if I think she is doing well, leave it alone:confused::confused::confused:

She said her skin is not that bad. She healed in 3 weeks instead of 2 so IMS thought that was good news. IMS is a bit concerned about her poos and wants to give her some time before we tweak again.

I told her I had already figured we were going to 30/30. She agreed we most likely will end up there but no change right now unless I see any kind of change. Continue to monitor her.

Thoughts?

At least her pre is under 5, it usually isn't, it for whatever that is worth which probably not much;););););)

[sunshinehoman]

Great Job Mommy!! Glad to hear things are going in the right direction!! Such a good feeling isnt it!
Keep up the good work, your baby is soooo lucky!
Love and hugs
Shannon & Sunshine

[Bo's Mom]

Addy,
Such good news on Zoe!!!! We are all doing the cha-cha-cha around the oak tree in the back. :D:D:D

[Squirt's Mom]

Cha Cha Cha!!!