Is Vetoryl making my Maltese worse?

[mishkabailey2]

Hi Everybody
Please please please somebody help me! I am the owner of an 11year old Maltese called Mishka. She is my baby and my little friend. My situation is this I have been out of the country for two months and my Sister has been taking care of her. Mishka has never been diagnosed with cushions but had always had a skin allergy! My old vet always gave her a short boost of prednisolone and it would clear up. While I was away her skin became red and she started to get sore eyes. My sis took her to the Vet, the Vet thought it looked like Cushions and started tests. I don’t have any of the results to post on here just yet. My husband mother passed away and he had to go back to the states to look after his father, “sorry just trying to paint this picture” hence me being gone for two months! I would love to take my baby’s over to America but they are both getting old I’m so afraid the flight would be too much for them. Mishka was put on Vetoryl 10mg 10 days ago and I am so worried about her because she isn’t the same little dog I left two months ago. I got back from the States on Thursday and I had her into the Vets on Friday her skin has broke out she has hard lumps that are weeping her eyes are all red and sore she is not eating very well and is very lethargic and lost weight. The Vet wants to take a biopsy of the lumps as she doesn’t think it’s related to cushions. She is having her blood work done again on Tue to test her levels and find out how the Vetoryl is helping and take the biopsy? I am just not sure what to think about all of this hence me finding this site. I have read about a high protein diet with some type of herbs can anyone help me with this? I am not sure what to do about the Vetoryl do I take her off them or wait until her blood test have been done? She just looks so sad in her little bed her eyes are all sticky and red she just looks lost and I just feel helpless. Sorry for the lengthy post! Please someone help me!

[AlisonandMia]

It looks like she may well have been misdiagnosed with Cushing's to me!

If she was on prednisone (or recently had been) then the results on the Cushing's tests could be a false positive. (Prednisone will cause typical Cushing's symptoms too like increased urination and drinking and increased appetite which can be misleading too.) Any other illness (like the nasty skin/eye problems) could also cause false positives on these tests too.

Was it the same vet who put her on prednisone who diagnosed the Cushing's or is this two different vets (and two different practices?)

If she were my dog I would stop the trilostane now. Giving trilostane to a dog that doesn't have Cushing's can be dangerous. It sounds like a consult with a specialist veterinary dermatologist would be a very good idea - whatever the problem turns out to be.

Good luck an keep us posted.

Alison

[mishkabailey2]

Here are a list of the test she has had done
6th Jan
Biochemistry Profile Full + Electrolytes
ACTH Stimulation test
24th Jan
Urine Cortisol:Creat Ration
Z_Unclassified
31st Jan
Thyroid Profile Mini –Std
Dex (low dose) Suppresion Test
She was started on Vetoryl on the 8th Feb
Thank Alison
The answer to your question is yes it was to different vets. My old vet would treat her skin condition with the prednislone but her skin was nowhere near the state it is in now! She would rub her tummy on the grass and cause it to get sore. We always thought it was a grass allergy.
I feel so helpless because I wasn’t here, I didn’t give her the Vetoryl today and she ate her food this evening but ended up with a messy backside! Her skin looks so sore her eyes are all red and sticky! When you feel the lumps on her tummy and back they are hard and callous like, and a few have open sores. I got Ceporex Tabs 50mg from the vet on Friday she said to start them if I thought her skin got any worse, I gave her them today! I intend to phone the vets tomorrow and see what they have to say and will ask for the results of these tests! I just can’t stop feeling guilty for leaving her and to see her like this breaks my heart.
Thanks Valerie and Mishka

ps Sorry for the spelling mistake I know It's Cushings! lol

[AlisonandMia]

If the skin problems are indeed allergies - and the response to prednisone in the past suggests this quite strongly - then lowering her cortisol (with the Vetoryl) would be expected to make it worse. Cortisol works as an anti-inflammatory in the body so if it is lowered then any inflammation can flare up. (Prednisone/prednisolone are synthetic equivalents of cortisol and this is why these drugs work with allergies so well - and why they can produce Cushing's symptoms.)

It is quite common for a dog with allergies to have the allergies improve dramatically and even resolve completely if the dog develops Cushing's. Treating the Cushing's typically causes the allergies to re-emerge when the very high cortisol levels are brought down to a more normal, healthy level with treatment.

It sounds very much like her allergies have flared up badly and that she probably has a secondary infection on top of the eczema.

If she was sick and stressed out with allergies (and possibly a secondary infection) then this could very likely have resulted in a false-positive on the Cushing's testing.

When did she last have prednisone?

Can you take her back to the old vet? Are the two vets at the same practice?

Alison

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Valerie,

How is Mishka?

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang