Prednisone induced Cushing's

[Lindsay]

Hello! Thank you for reading this. I'm relieved to find this site and already comforted in knowing that people here can relate to the challenges I find myself facing. Thank you in advance for your help!

I have an 8.5 yr old Westie, named Tucker. Without rambling too much, I ADORE this little guy. He is so very loved by me and my family, so when he was diagnosed with severe skin allergies at 6 months old, it broke my heart. We've tried everything on the market to relieve/cure/sooth him. He's been to 5 different vets, a specialist in another state, and the University of Pennsylvania. We've tried lotions, shampoos, food tests, injections, atopica, Benadryl, temural-p... I could go on all day. We spared no expense and went into more debt over it than I care to admit.

He was eventually put on prednisone. There used to be periods of the year when it wasn't needed, but that ended about 2 years ago. For the past 2 years, he's gotten 2.5mgs every day. This by no means takes away the pink skin or the itch completely, but it keeps him much more comfortable than without and I knew the dangers associated. My vet has said repeatedly that if/when he develops Cushings or diabetes, he would stop administering the drug. That's a death sentence for my dog, because I can't keep him alive in such a miserable state. The thought crushes me. Well, I'm fairly sure that he does now have Cushing's. He is suddenly unable to jump on the couch. He pants much of the day. His belly is even more pot-bellied than it was. He is restless all night, roaming the house. I've taken him off the prednisone and he's been without for now 8 days. He's obviously itching up a storm, but I expected some "reversal" of the Cushing's based on my research. My question is, how long does this take, to reverse it? I can't ask his vet for advice or my poor pup will never have this medicine again. Truth be told, I have no idea what my next step will be once it DOES reverse, whether i'd even give him the prednisone again anyway, but I'm trying to take one step at a time and the thought of having the pred opinion taken away from me is scary.

Thank you for your help... And time. :)

[StarDeb55]

Lindsay, welcome to both you & Tucker! I'm sure sorry to hear that Tucker is one very allergic dog. I must comment about stopping the prednisone. Did you stop "cold turkey" or have you been gradually tapering down the dose? It's extremely dangerous to stop pred "cold turkey" in both humans & dogs.

My first Cushpup also suffered from severe allergies. He was successfully treated by a derm vet with cyclosporin ( Atopica) & a couple of other meds. His allergies would normally manifest with severe ear infections, along with the itching/licking/chewing of paws & anywhere else he could reach. He could develop ear infections 4-5x per year, with treatment, this became only once or twice per year. It sounds like Tucker has seen just about any kind of specialist who might help, but I still need to ask whether or not he's has seen a derm vet? Have you tried any other OTC antihistamine besides Benadryl? If not, see if one the vets can give you a list of OTC allergy meds with appropriate dosing for canines. This is what my derm vet did with instructions to try the each one for 3-4 weeks prior to deciding the meds weren't helping, them move to the next one on the list. As it turns out, Zyrtec was the one that did the trick for Barkley. My derm vet is one of the founding partners of Dermatology Clinic for Animals. They have a number of clinics all over the country, but mostly in the western US. I absolutely swear by them, so if you are within driving distance of one of their clinics, I would give them a shot.

I truly understand about the expense of caring for what I call a "medically needy" dog, & I do not use the term in a derogatory manner. Barkley had cushing's, severe allergies, developed lymphoma for which he had chemo, & 2 knee surgeries. I was lucky (or unlucky) enough to have a 2nd boy develop Cushings at the age of 13. I understand what you are faced with, & there will be a lot of friendly people in our group who are here to help, even if it's just someone that will listen.

Please keep us posted.

Debbie

[Lindsay]

Debbie, thank you for such a quick response.

He has tried Zyrtec and other OTC meds. And yes, The Uni of Penn has a veterinary dermatology specialty, which is who made the vaccine injection concoction and the specialist I saw with his own practice was a derm expert. I hate to sound as though I've given up, but I suppose I have. I've come to accept that there just isn't a cure for this and instead have focused on how I can keep him as comfortable as possible for as long as possible. I hope that doesn't sound cold. I'd do anything to help him, but I just don't believe there's anything out there we haven't tried yet. It's daunting.


I should have mentioned, that yes, I did decrease the prednisone gradually. I read plenty of online articles that stated the importance of that. Granted, I did not do so under the care of his vet, but I followed instructions on how to do so from a veterinary site. He's been off the pred completely now for a full 8 days and I'm just not seeing a change yet, in the Cushing's. I just can't find any info on how long it could take to see the symptoms of Cushing's retreat. I'm wondering if this should've happened in days? Weeks? Months? Is it possible that it won't go away at all?

I'm so sorry you've had to deal with this awful condition, let alone twice! Someone above must know that you are exceptionally equipped to handle it, with knowledge and compassion.

[lulusmom]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

The troublesome symptoms you mentioned happen to be the ones that take more time to resolve. Tucker has been experiencing two years of muscle wasting and it's going to take some time to regain the muscle mass. The pot belly is caused from an enlarged liver, muscle wasting and redistribution of fat to the thoracic area because of the effects of prednisone on the fat metabolism. This is also a symptom that will take a bit of time to resolve. Usually the first symptoms you see improve are the excessive drinking and peeing and the return to normal appetite. Did Tucker have either of these symptoms?

Relative to allergies, Westies seem to be a breed that is over represented. It is known that white coated breeds are at higher risk of adverse effects of vaccinations, particularly the rabies vaccine. If a dog already has allergies, the condition can be made much worse. If you are still vaccinating Tucker, you may want to talk to your vet about doing titers and looking into the possibility getting a waiver letter from your vet for purposes of licensing. Not all animal control agencies accept them but in your shoes, I'd doing everything I could to avoid vaccines unless they are absolutely necesssary. Regardless, core vaccines for dogs over one year of age are given every three years.

[HaloGizmoTrinket]

Hi to Everyone This is the first time I have posted but have been reading for well over two years. Everyone here is an angel wo without knowing it helped me to guide my westie Halo through Cushings and she is doing well. I felt compelled to answer this immediately because she too suffered miserably from allergies from thre time she was 2. After much expense and painful allergy shots which really didn't do that much. A sweet angel fellow westie owner refferred me to the westie diet as appears aat the westie rescue web site. There are several ingredients most of which have to be ordered The cost is about $120 every six months. Within 4-6 weeks I had a different dog.No shots no constant visits to the derm. She still has mild flair ups during the summer and flea season but NOTHING like she used to. Anyone who has a dog wigh allergies (not just westies) give it a try. I have continued the diet to this day even with her on vetroyl with no adverse effects. Thank you to everyone who unkowingly helped me through my many tears over the past two year. I too live in San Diego and a special hello and I'm sorry to Sonja and her special angel Apollo. My three girls Halo Gizmo and Trinket are at Coronado Dog Beach at least couple times a week. Our paths have probably crossed many times. I hope the WESTIE diet can help and want to pay it forward. Thank You

[molly muffin]

It is extremely frustrating to have a dog with severe allergies. I had a golden who was like that and she was on prednisone from the time she was 2 years old, till she passed at around age 10. Horrible thing to go through, she had so many hematoma's from the scratching, but we all just persevered through it.
Oatmeal baths, what about tea tree oils, would that help? I'm just throwing ideas out here.
There is a melaleuca dog shampoo, that might be beneficial. They use melaleuca for humans with eczema, that works.
I think it does take awhile for some symptoms to go away if at all.

Sharlene and Molly Muffin