Could it be Cushings?

[marmitenot]

Hello all. I just found this forum and I hope it can help my sweet fellow. I have a 3 year old Cocker Spaniel, Marmite, who had a mild bout of pancreatitis about a year ago. Before he got sick, he went from a trim young dog to a little chunky monkey. I'm told he should weigh 10-13 pounds less than he does. He is active and healthy seeming (now that he is over his bout of pancreatitis) but he has NEVER been the same. He is constantly looking around the house for something...ANYTHING...to eat. Food, paper (which he thinks is a major food group), little bits of only God-knows-what off the floor. He does pant alot, has had a few very uncharacteristic "accidents" on the floor in the past few months and he drinks more water than my other Cocker (Bailey). He's always drank quite a bit, and he is VERY picky about his water being clean. It gets changed every single day, but if he's dropped a piece of food in it or if there is dog hair in it he doesn't like to drink it. Of course, when the bowl gets filled with fresh water he drinks and drinks and sometimes "burps" up water. He seems to have quite a few signs of Cushings, but his skin and hair are fine. When he had pancreatitis we took him to the best (most expensive) and sophisticated animal hospital in town. Heck...this place is more high-tech than most people hospitals in town! But they didn't even mention Cushings (perhaps because of his age?) I was told that his weight and the type of food he was eating were probably the cause. I feed my dogs grain free because my older Cocker has food allergies. After the visit to this vet I found out that grain free food is MUCH higher in protein and fat than regular dog foods and I was told to lower his protein intake, so I did. He is still a very "fluffy" (ahem) boy and nothing has really changed. He is eating less calories but hasn't lost any weight. Does it sound to any of you guys like my little guy might have Cushings? And I've read about a certain kind of Dr. (not a regular vet I gather?) who is best at diagnosing and treating this disease. Can anyone shed some light on that?

Any help you can give would be appreciated. Marmite's quality of life is suffering and it's just not fair. I want to help him but I want to learn a little so I can choose the right clinic to take him. I don't have a million dollars in the bank so I want to make informed decisions rather than taking him here-and-there for a first, second, and third opinion from vets who just aren't qualified. I'd spend my last dime on him and sell everything I have to help him...but he won't be helped if a bunch of quacks poke around on him and give him unneccessary medicine. So I offer all of you my thanks in advance...and so does Marmite! :)

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[StarDeb55]

Welcome to you & Marmite! I will say that 3 is pretty young for Cushing's, this disease is normally found in pups who are middle to old age. Some of the symptoms you describe are, indeed, consistent with Cushing's, but could also cover other things. Has any vet tested your boy for either diabetes or thyroid problems? A lot of the symptoms for these 2 overlap with Cushing's. Our babies are more prone to pancreatitis, so that may be another red flag for Cushing's. Has Marmite had any recent general labwork done such as a Chemistry panel, CBC, or Urinalysis? If so, could you get copies of those test results from his vet & post the numbers for us. We are looking for only the abnormal results, along with the normal ranges & reporting units. Some of the specific tests we would be interested in seeing are an alkaline phosphatase, ALT, cholesterol, & other liver function test. On the UA, we would be very interested in seeing the specific gravity result. There are a lot of common abnormalities in general labwork for our babies that may be a tipoff for a vet to start looking at Cushing's, the really big one is an elevated alk phos level.

When it comes to a specialist, the vet you are talking about is an internal medicine specialist. These vets have received extra training above a general practice vet, & should be more than qualified to handle any endocrine disorder which is where Cushing's falls.

Again, welcome, we are to help in any way we can.

Debbie

[addy]

Hi and Welcome,

Deb has you off to a good start so I won't repeat her. Three years old does seem young for Cushings but not completely unheard of. I would wonder about the thyroid. Cushings is a hard disese to diagnosis but if you wanted to take a look at the possibility you could have the UC:CR Cretinine test done. That would not diagnosis it but would rule it out.

I am wondering what food you are feeding and how much? Did you change food after the pancreatitis bout? How are Marmite's stools?

We are here for you so post away with questions and information.

Hugs,
Addy