New Joiner To The Group (11 y/o Doxie)

[Trudys Dad]

My name is Bill and I live in Michigan with my wife Kitty (Katherine) and
our 11 yr old Doxie, Trudy who has Cushings When we told this it kind
of took us by surprise. My wife is a retired RN and we didn't know dogs
could get Cushings. She is on Vetoryl 10 and 30 mg still in the early treatment stages. It is nice to know there is a support group like this
out there. She goes to the Vet Monday to see how the treatment is going. This is her second lab check.

[lulusmom]

Hi Bill and welcome to you, Kitty and Trudy

I'm sorry for the reasons that brought you hear but I'm glad you found us. I must warn you that we ask lots of questions because the more information you can give us, the better we can provide appropriate feedback. So let's start the grilling now. :D

What lead you and your vet to suspect cushing's? Most often it's symptoms such as excessive drinking and peeing, voracious appetite, panting, thinning coat, hind end weakness. Does Trudy have any of these symptoms. There are also specific blood and urine abnormalities we see here and we'd like to know what those are in Trudy's case. Can you please round up copies of all testing that was done to confirm the diagnosis? With respect to the bloodwork, you need only post the highs and lows and please include the normal reference ranges. Can you tell us how much Trudy weighs? Just want to check to see if 40mg once a day is appropriate for her weight. You mention that you will be taking Trudy in for a second acth stimulation test. Can you make sure you post the results of the last one and the new one when you have it. It's an excellent idea to keep copies of everything in a folder. It comes in very handy should you ever need to take Trudy to the ER. Vets on call love to have a dog's history at their fingertips and sometimes we're a little too addled to remember everything. That folder also comes in handy for when we hound you to post results. :D

We'll be looking forward to hearing lots more about Trudy. You, Kitty and Trudy are no longer walking this road alone. You now have a crowd around you to prop you up, hold your hand and help you learn about cushing's and Vetoryl.

Glynda

P.S. I manually validated your account so no need to validate via the usual email we send to new members. Now everyone can see your posts and welcome you to the family.

P.S.S. Cushing's is actually more common in dogs than humans. It's estimated that 400,000 new cases of canine cushing's are diagnosed every year and that doesn't count the dogs out there that most certainly have it but owners are chalking up the symptoms to old age.

[SoggyDoggy]

Hi Bill, welcome to you Kitty and Trudy!

Sorry to hear that you all have to go through this, but at least you know that here, you are in good company! We have other members from Michigan too, some very regular so you will be able to compare notes very easily with others in a similar area too.

Did Trudy present with specific symptoms that lead your vet to test for the cushings? Folks here would be very interested to learn of symptoms and what tests were done to establish the diagnosis, as well as the test results. If you don't already have a copy of these results, it can be a great idea to get them from your vet and keep a file together so you can track the progress. Also that way, if you ever have any issues, or your vet is away and you need to see someone else, you have an entire picture and case history to present.

I am curious that you say she is on Vetoryl 10 and 30mg. Does this mean she is getting the meds twice a day? (Sorry, I'm in a different country and don't use the pre-packaged vetoryl if this ends up being a stupid question) And how much does she weigh? Were the first blood tests you had done to monitor her progress in a good range? Again, it would be great if you could post those numbers here too.

The reason these results are frequently asked for is so that we can help you monitor and track Trudy's progress. It is unfortunate that there are vets out there that while hugely competent in many areas, may not always have the most current and up to date knowledge in the treatment of cushings. It all depends on how many cases they see and treat on a regular basis. Here, we hear about new cases every day (unfortunately for the fur kids and their families), and combined with the years of experience and different tracks everyone here takes, there is a wealth of knowledge just at the other end of the keyboard. I too am still relatively new here, but in the last few months I have learnt so much from these wonderful folks it is amazing!

I would encourage you to get hold of those results for yourselves at least, but if you ever have a question (none too big or small) please feel free to ask away! I do warn you however, this is a very crazy bunch of people (in a good way of course), and we do get very attached to our fur friends, so regular updates are a must :D. We would also love to hear more about Trudy in general too.

Hope things are progressing well so far. Take care and give Trudy and Kitty a great big welcome hug from us all too. :D

P.S. It seems Glynda posted while I was still typing, so apologies for the double up on all the questions.

[milosmom]

welcome to the family bill,kitty and trudy.....patty (milo)meka xoxox

[Boriss McCall]

Hi Bill, Kitty & Trudy,
Welcome to the cushings family. I was surprised like you & your wife. But, for other reasons.. I had never even heard of cushings until my dog was diagnosed with the big C. I was really scared when I found out. But, Boriss has been in treatment since last summer & things seem to be going good.
Hope you get a good report next week. :)

Amy!!

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome from me too. :)

I see the others have already asked all the questions that I would ask. I'm really glad you found us, it is very reassuring at times to have some place where everyone is going through the same things as you are with your little Trudy. Any and all questions are welcome and we'll try our best to answer or at least point you in the right direction.

Sharlene and Molly Muffin

[mytil]

Hi and welcome from me too!

When you get the chance, you can post the ACTH stim test results from Monday's visit here.

Terry

[Simba's Mom]

Welcome to the family here, this site is awesome, lots of info and encouragement. I have a doxie too, his name is Simba, he is 10 yrs old.
Cushings was a word I didn't know anything about, but these amazing cush parents have taught me alot! Take care and make yourself at home!