New Member - Ali (10 y/o boxer) Trilostane

[Heather]

I have joined because my sister Ali (10 year old boxer) was diagnosed with Cushing this week. Over the summer she looked like she gained some weight. My dad took her to the vet over Memorial Weekend for her yearly check up she had gained 20lbs. The vet said other than the weight which he thought was her thyroid she was in great health. Her thyroid test came back normal. The following weekend she peed on the floor twice. This was upsetting to my parents. Now we are looking at starting her on Trilostane. Are other using this medication?

Thanks-we are just looking for some support, from pet owners going through the same thing!!

[addy]

Hi and Welcome,

I want to welcome you to our forum. I am so glad you found your way here. Others will be along soon wondering about what tests led to the diagnosis, if you could post that information along with the results. It helps our members to have information regarding how the diagnosis was reached. Cushings is a hard disease to diagnosis and you cannot rely on just one test.

Symptoms play a big part in the diagnosis process as well as history. If you could list any other symptoms you may be seeing, like excessive hunger, panting, leg weakness, that helps as well.

Our resource section has many articles and is a good place to start. Knowledge of the disease gives us power we need to make good decisions for our beloved pups.

Again, welcome and others will soon be along.

Hugs,
Addy

[Heather]

Ali had weight gain over the winter, she paints a lot. She loves rides in her truck, what we had noticed was that she was unable toget in the truck without help. She no longer can jump on to some of the beds that are higher. We contributed all of this to aging (she will be 11 next month). The wetting on the floor was what made her go back to the vet. They ran a test called A-ACTH-which I believe looks at the hormone secreted by the adrenal gland.
The struggle for my parents has been to treat or not. Hers came back very high. The meds are $75 a month and the A-ACTH test is done at 10-14 days after the start of medication and 6 weeks after that and then at least every year. We are going to start the medication and see how she does.

[littleone1]

Hi Heather,

Corky and I also want to welcome you and Ali. As Addy mentioned, it would really help if you posted the numbers of Ali's tests, along with the reference ranges. It is also very important that your vet/IMS has experience in treating cushings. Does Ali have pituitary or adrenal cushings? If it is adrenal, surgery is the best option, if Ali is a good candidate for surgery. Does Ali have any other medical issues?

Corky has been taking Trilostane for 20+months, and this treatment has been very successful for Corky. The stim test should be done between 10-14 days after starting Trilo, 30 days after taking Trilo, and then every 3 months if the dosage doesn't have to be changed. I'm not sure why your vet said once a year.

Terri

[jasonhbaum]

Heather,
Hello. My 9-year old boxer Sophia was diagnosed with Cushings in the past year. As you probably know boxers are always full of energy. Before she was diagnosed, Sophia had gotten a pot-belly and was just full of energy. She was peeing the bed, panting alot and would rather lay on the floor than on our laps like she used to. Sophia has a heart issue which we thought was the problem. Anyways we had her diagnosed, she originally was put on Vetoryl but we had our vet change to the compounded trilostane which was half of the price of the Vetoryl. It wasnt long after the meds started that Sophia was back to her high energy boxer self. She is a 55lb lap dog again. We get our medicine at Diamondback Pharmacy out of AZ. You can find them online. The price is really good. We are having Sophia get retested at her regular vet to see how her levels are doing. She also has a heart problem (murmur). But everything seems to be working out OK. I hope all goes well with Ali.