Dakota not yet diagnosed

[sopdak]

Dakota is my 6 lb., 7 year old black Pomeranian and his fur has started thinning a little. He had three red rash-like spots about the size of a quarter just below the back of his neck. I've been putting coconut oil on those spots twice a day and the redness is gone. But the fur is missing on those three spots. I took him to my vet and he looked at him for less than a minute and said he wanted me to bring him back in for the LDDS test, right off the bat, without checking his blood, urine or anything else. Other than missing some fur, Dakota has no other symptoms of Cushings - no excessive thirst, no frequent urination, no panting, nothing! It freaked me out when the vet mentioned Cushings. Dakota is the liveliest, silliest little boy ever, runs around like a jackrabbit, plays constantly, just a happy little boy. He's a picky eater and has always eaten like a bird. I'm taking him in to get his teeth cleaned tomorrow and I've asked the vet to do a blood test. I would appreciate your thoughts on this.

[frijole]

You are on the money... doing a cushings test without symptoms is a waste of money, time and frankly there are enough false positives that you could end up with a misdiagnosis to boot.

It is perfect that you are doing a blood test. Cush dogs have elevated liver enzymes. This should always be the first test towards diagnosing issues as it gives you a broad picture of what is normal and what is not.

Be sure to get a copy of the results. If anything stands out you can post the abnormal ranges and we'll offer thoughts... Good luck! Kim

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi and welcome to you and Dakota,

Cushing's is one of the most difficult diseases to get a confirmed diagnosis for because not one test is 100% accurate at diagnosing Cushing's and other non-adrenal illnesses can create false positive results on all Cushing tests.

Strong symptoms are a huge part of making the diagnosis, and a Cushing's savvy vet will not initiate any treatment without strong symptoms and a confirmed diagnosis.

Thinning of the fur can be a clinical sign of Hypothyroidism, has this been ruled out?

If it were me, I would not have a LDDS test performed and instead have a Chemistry/CBC blood panel done with an urinalysis.

Please know we are here for you and your sweet boy and will help in any way we can.

Love and hugs,
Lori

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Sop and welcome to you and Dakota! :)

You deserve a HUGE pat on the back for being so aware as to know your vet is off the mark with wanting to start testing in spite of no signs. :cool: That puts you so far ahead of me when we started this journey, I can't even see your dust! :D Way to go!!!! :cool::cool:

Starting with blood work is the best start; that will help rule out/diagnose hypothyroidism, diabetes, and some other concerns that can might cause the hair loss. The next test I would look into would be the UC:CR - IF warrented by the labs. This is simple urine test that can rule Cushing's OUT but cannot diagnose it. If it comes back normal, you are not looking at Cushing's; if it comes back abnormal, that still does not mean Cushing's necessarily just that something is off and further testing is needed.

Does Dakota get vaccinations yearly? Are these balding spots in the area where the injections would have gone in? Just navel gazing here.....but there have been some adverse reactions to vaccinations, especially if given yearly so something to consider. ;)

You are off to a GREAT start so keep up the good work! Know this no matter what - you and Dakota are family now and we will want to know all about what you learn at the vets and how things are going regardless, 'k? I'm really glad ya'll are here and want you to know we are here anytime for any reason.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[StarDeb55]

Welcome to you & Dakota! The others have given you a great start, so I will try not to duplicate what has already been mentioned. The one thing that stuck out for me in your post is the teeth cleaning. Did Dakota not have pre procedure labwork done since he is undergoing general anesthesia? I don't think any vet would do a procedure under a general without bloodwork as a general can be hard on the kidneys & liver. The bloodwork abnormalities that lead a vet to suspect Cushing's are frequently found on general labwork that is done either for a senior wellness check or a pre-op check. If your vet has not done labwork, I would insist on it being done, & postpone the dental.

Now, when it comes to appetite the great majority of our babies do have a huge appetite & will normally eat anything that is not nailed down. There are exceptions to the rule as our babies also do not read the book on Cushing's. My Harley was one of the exceptions. He was a fussy, picky eater all of his life which made the Cushing's diagnosis that much more difficult & treatment harder as monitoring a change in symptoms is how you know if the medication is working correctly.

We are here to help in anyway we can.

Debbie

[sopdak]

Hypothyroidism has not been ruled out or even mentioned to me by my vet.

[sopdak]

Dakota has not had pre procedure lab work done yet and I was a little concerned about him undergoing general anesthesia for the teeth cleaning without having that done. I want to trust my vet but he did not even mention the pre procedure labwork. I will postpone the cleaning and just have the blood work done tomorrow. I cannot tell you how thankful I am to have found this site. A big thank you to all of you!

[Squirt's Mom]

Good for you, Mom! :D

[sopdak]

Squirt's Mom, you asked if Dakota is vaccinated yearly. The answer is no, not if I can help it. I have a problem with that. He was last vaccinated in 2010 and that's because I felt pressured into it. The three balding spots are about where vaccinations would be given and I did kinda wonder about that. He has a larger spot on once side with just peach fuzz and I didn't think much about that because his hair was shaved there after he was attacked by a large dog in 2010. I had heard that sometimes Pomeranian's fur doesn't grow back after it's been shaved but I'm not sure that's true. FYI, I had both my dogs on leashes in my own yard when Dakota was attacked. Anyway, it's interesting that there are only three of these quarter sized spots, about where the vet would pinch the skin to administer the shots. So who knows!

[sopdak]

Everything showed up normal on Dakota's blood work. The vet tested his thyroid and it was so low it didn't even register. Dakota also had an ear infection. So we came home with antibiotics and soloxine. I hate to give him those drugs.

[StarDeb55]

Low thyroid has many overlapping symptoms with cushing's. I believe it is also linked to repeated ear infections, but not totally sure on that one. I think once you get Dakota's thyroid values back to normal you will may see some fur regrowth, & other improvements.
Debbie

[lulusmom]

Believe me, there are a lot worse drugs to be on. Soloxine is for life and luckily it's one of the most inexpensive meds you'll have to purchase for Dakota. I have a Pom and Pom/Chin mix with cushing's, one bald and one with a full coat. My little one, Lulu, was diagnosed with hypothyroidism at two years old, cushing's at three and she's now 10.

Dogs with hypothyrodism are usually very hungry all the time and skin and coats issues are usually the norm. With Dakota's thyroid value being so low, I'm wondering why Dakota's only symptom is three patch of hair loss. Did your vet do a full thyroid panel and can you get a copy and post the results here? It's possible that he only ran a blood chemistry, which usually only includes the T4. If so, can you please post the T4 value? Any number of underlying conditions can transiently affect the T4 but with no other abnormalities, I'm not sure that's the case.

Glynda

[sopdak]

Glynda, I'm not sure if my vet did a full thyroid panel. I will see him again next Saturday and ask. If he did, I'll get a copy and post the results.

Dakota doesn't eat much at all. He would rather play with his food than eat it. It's really, really hard to get him to take a pill. I've tried hiding it in peanut butter and cheese. Any other suggestions?