nancylea
07-14-2011, 11:36 PM
Hi!
I'm new to this group.
I have 2 10 yr old dachshunds. One was disgnosed with Cushings in 2/10 and diabetes in 4/10 (Pretzel). The other was diagnosed with "just" diabetes in 5/08.
Pretzel was diagnosed with Cushings in 2/10. He had developed several symptoms of Cushings that eventually caused me to bring him the vet he was seeing at the time. He had developed a significantly large pot belly. I thought he had just put on weight. He also developed a ravenous appetite. Pretzel's tail was almost hairless, and he had a bald patch on his back hip. I was very concerned because he had suffered an IVDD, with surgery in 5/07. I had worked very hard to keep his weight down. When the pot belly appeared, along with the ravenous appetite, I got very scared.
After extensive testing, the vet concluded he had Cushings. We started him on Trilostane. He started on 60 mg once daily. He was on that for about 6 weeks or so. He tolerated the medication well. No adverse side effects (which I wasn't really informed about at the time, now I know just how dangerous that was).
I started to notice excessive drinking and peeing with Pretzel. I suspected diabetes. The vet minimized my concerns. Eventually after much insistance, the vet did some fasting blood work and determined Pretzel was infact diabetic. His fasting BG was over 600.
At that time, the vet decided to stop the Trilostane as she wasn't sure if it had "caused" the diabetes. She wanted to bring the diabetes under control before continuing on with the Cushings.
It took some trial and error, but eventually we did find an insulin dose that seemed to control the diabetes. The clinical signs of the cushings seemed to subside and Pretzel was doing very well. His pot belly had gone down, his weight had gone down, the appetite was back to normal, and his drinking and peeing was more "normal" as well.
Around that time, I had some personal crisis situations that caused me to have to unexpectedly move in a short period of time. It also affected my financial situation. I didn't have the financial resources necessary to appropriately treat Pretzel's health issues.
However, after the move, we were living in a more peaceful place. It was quiet. Much less stress. They could go in and out without me having to carry them up/down stairs (because of back issues). Overall, they seemed to really thrive in the new environment.
Around 11/10, Pretzel's Cushings symptoms seemed to come back and come back very quickly. His health declined quickly.
I found a new vet (over 1 1/2 hrs away from home 1 way) that someone referred me to. This vet showed compassion and was very generous to offer significant discounts on his fees and services. Because of his generosity and compassion, I was able to get Pretzel tested again and begin him on treatment for the cushings.
It has taken what has seemed like a lifetime since we re-started this journey, but overall Pretzel has done well. He had a period of time that he took a serious turn for the worse. He had a couple episodes that were "seizure like". I was so scared. There were 2 points when I really had to consider whether it was time to put Pretzel to sleep.
I got some very good advice from someone I met during my search for help for my boy. She told me to take a step back and wait for a day or so, unless I thought Pretzel was in pain and/or suffering. I didn't think he was in pain. I know he didn't feel well, but I didn't think he was suffereing. So I waited. The strange thing was after those 2 episodes that I'm not sure if they were or weren't seizures, his health took a turn for the "good". He has continued to improve since then.
I'm not saying that he hasn't had some bumps in the road since then. However, most days have been good days since then. We have continued to adjust his Trilostane to find the right dose.
The biggest challenge we have had since those episodes has been getting his blood sugar under control. His blood sugars were consistently testing high 400's up to over 600, consistently.
About a month ago, I made another minor adjustment to his Trilostane dose. He was taking 45 mg in the morning and 30 mg in the evening. I added 15 mg to the evening dose so that he as taking 45 mg BID. The very next day his blood sugar dropped to 407. Within 2 more days, and since then he has tested in the low to mid 200's (for about a month). I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't experience it myself!
As of today, he's doing well. He's eating well. I did change what he was eating, mostly because of the 2 pancreatitis attacks. He now eats Hills W/D kibble with boiled & shredded chicken breast and pureed veggies mixed in. His energy level is great. He's actually "running" when we go out for walks. He has stamina during our walks and can take much longer walks, and wants to. His back legs are getting stronger each day. His pot belly is much smaller. It is almost gone. He even has hair growing in where there wasn't any. He currently has pretty thin hair all over his body, with an almost completely hairless tail. However tonight I notices little bits of hair grown on his tail, and his bald patches seem to be filling in with peach fuzz. It's progress.
When I have the money saved up, I'll have another Stim test done with a CBC, and chemistry panel to check how he is doing. As far as clinical signs, I'm very thrilled with his progress.
My sweet little Strudel has been such a trooper during all this with Pretzel. She hasn't demanded attention by acting out. Pretzel has had to get so much more of my time and attention than he used so since his condition deterioriated so quickly. Strudel has been so good and just "gone with the flow". She's been so good with Pretzel and stayed closer to him. I think she was giving him some of her energy. I really do!
That's my boy's story ... as of right now. It's a day to day, moment to moment thing with him.
I welcome any insights, advice, guidance from the members of this group. I'm feeling much more confident than I did 6 months ago. However, I know I still have so much more to learn as we travel this journey together. I will never believe I "know it all", or even "a lot". I'm open to any and all there is to help me help my boy!
Thank you, in advance, for everything.
Nancy, Massachusetts USA; Pretzel & Strudel
I'm new to this group.
I have 2 10 yr old dachshunds. One was disgnosed with Cushings in 2/10 and diabetes in 4/10 (Pretzel). The other was diagnosed with "just" diabetes in 5/08.
Pretzel was diagnosed with Cushings in 2/10. He had developed several symptoms of Cushings that eventually caused me to bring him the vet he was seeing at the time. He had developed a significantly large pot belly. I thought he had just put on weight. He also developed a ravenous appetite. Pretzel's tail was almost hairless, and he had a bald patch on his back hip. I was very concerned because he had suffered an IVDD, with surgery in 5/07. I had worked very hard to keep his weight down. When the pot belly appeared, along with the ravenous appetite, I got very scared.
After extensive testing, the vet concluded he had Cushings. We started him on Trilostane. He started on 60 mg once daily. He was on that for about 6 weeks or so. He tolerated the medication well. No adverse side effects (which I wasn't really informed about at the time, now I know just how dangerous that was).
I started to notice excessive drinking and peeing with Pretzel. I suspected diabetes. The vet minimized my concerns. Eventually after much insistance, the vet did some fasting blood work and determined Pretzel was infact diabetic. His fasting BG was over 600.
At that time, the vet decided to stop the Trilostane as she wasn't sure if it had "caused" the diabetes. She wanted to bring the diabetes under control before continuing on with the Cushings.
It took some trial and error, but eventually we did find an insulin dose that seemed to control the diabetes. The clinical signs of the cushings seemed to subside and Pretzel was doing very well. His pot belly had gone down, his weight had gone down, the appetite was back to normal, and his drinking and peeing was more "normal" as well.
Around that time, I had some personal crisis situations that caused me to have to unexpectedly move in a short period of time. It also affected my financial situation. I didn't have the financial resources necessary to appropriately treat Pretzel's health issues.
However, after the move, we were living in a more peaceful place. It was quiet. Much less stress. They could go in and out without me having to carry them up/down stairs (because of back issues). Overall, they seemed to really thrive in the new environment.
Around 11/10, Pretzel's Cushings symptoms seemed to come back and come back very quickly. His health declined quickly.
I found a new vet (over 1 1/2 hrs away from home 1 way) that someone referred me to. This vet showed compassion and was very generous to offer significant discounts on his fees and services. Because of his generosity and compassion, I was able to get Pretzel tested again and begin him on treatment for the cushings.
It has taken what has seemed like a lifetime since we re-started this journey, but overall Pretzel has done well. He had a period of time that he took a serious turn for the worse. He had a couple episodes that were "seizure like". I was so scared. There were 2 points when I really had to consider whether it was time to put Pretzel to sleep.
I got some very good advice from someone I met during my search for help for my boy. She told me to take a step back and wait for a day or so, unless I thought Pretzel was in pain and/or suffering. I didn't think he was in pain. I know he didn't feel well, but I didn't think he was suffereing. So I waited. The strange thing was after those 2 episodes that I'm not sure if they were or weren't seizures, his health took a turn for the "good". He has continued to improve since then.
I'm not saying that he hasn't had some bumps in the road since then. However, most days have been good days since then. We have continued to adjust his Trilostane to find the right dose.
The biggest challenge we have had since those episodes has been getting his blood sugar under control. His blood sugars were consistently testing high 400's up to over 600, consistently.
About a month ago, I made another minor adjustment to his Trilostane dose. He was taking 45 mg in the morning and 30 mg in the evening. I added 15 mg to the evening dose so that he as taking 45 mg BID. The very next day his blood sugar dropped to 407. Within 2 more days, and since then he has tested in the low to mid 200's (for about a month). I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't experience it myself!
As of today, he's doing well. He's eating well. I did change what he was eating, mostly because of the 2 pancreatitis attacks. He now eats Hills W/D kibble with boiled & shredded chicken breast and pureed veggies mixed in. His energy level is great. He's actually "running" when we go out for walks. He has stamina during our walks and can take much longer walks, and wants to. His back legs are getting stronger each day. His pot belly is much smaller. It is almost gone. He even has hair growing in where there wasn't any. He currently has pretty thin hair all over his body, with an almost completely hairless tail. However tonight I notices little bits of hair grown on his tail, and his bald patches seem to be filling in with peach fuzz. It's progress.
When I have the money saved up, I'll have another Stim test done with a CBC, and chemistry panel to check how he is doing. As far as clinical signs, I'm very thrilled with his progress.
My sweet little Strudel has been such a trooper during all this with Pretzel. She hasn't demanded attention by acting out. Pretzel has had to get so much more of my time and attention than he used so since his condition deterioriated so quickly. Strudel has been so good and just "gone with the flow". She's been so good with Pretzel and stayed closer to him. I think she was giving him some of her energy. I really do!
That's my boy's story ... as of right now. It's a day to day, moment to moment thing with him.
I welcome any insights, advice, guidance from the members of this group. I'm feeling much more confident than I did 6 months ago. However, I know I still have so much more to learn as we travel this journey together. I will never believe I "know it all", or even "a lot". I'm open to any and all there is to help me help my boy!
Thank you, in advance, for everything.
Nancy, Massachusetts USA; Pretzel & Strudel