5 year old Lab mix, worried

[owen32]

Hey guys,

Our 5-year old Lab/Daschund mix, sport has been having cushings-like symptoms for a year or so now. We had him in to the vet last year because his water intake was very high and he had frequent, long pees. They tested him for diabetes but never went forward with any cushings tests because the blood tests did not show the elevated liver values.
He developed a bacterial skin infection on his abdomen a few weeks ago and we took him in for that. The vet gave him antibiotics and steroids for it but mentioned that it would be good to test him for cushings now because it could have just been developing last year.

In addition to that thirst/urinating he has has a few accidents in the house over the last year. He also has had an increase in hunger. He got into the garbage for the first time earlier this year and ever since we can't even leave recycling out or he will rip it open and lick the containers. He also sits by his food bowl a lot even after he has been fed. He has no pot belly or hard spots, but his head does feel more boney that it did before which I read was a symptom. He was never a very active dog so its hard to gauge that, but he does run around and jump and play when he feels like it still.

My question is what should I expect with a younger dog if he is diagnosed. He is 35lbs so a pretty small guy. I read a lot of doom and gloom online about most cushings dogs only lasting another year or so with treatment, but are those statistics based on senior dogs? If he has his treatment started by the time he is 6 (in a few months) can he expect to have a relatively normal lifespan?

[Henrietta]

Hi and welcome. My dog has only been diagnosed with Cushings for a week, so I don't know much about it, but I do know that dogs can live a long and happy life with Cushings. Many live out their normal life span and die of something else. I too was terrified of what I found on the Internet, but the links and people on this board helped calm me down. More knowledgable people will be along to give you more specifics. I just wanted to reassure you. Cushings isn't curable but it is very, very treatable.

[maria]

I am still waiting on labs for my 7 year-old beagle but she has had symptoms since she was 3. I was told dogs that young don't get it but I don't think that is true.

[Budsters Mom]

Hello and Welcome to you and your precious fur baby,:)
I know that you are overwhelmed and scared. We have all been there. I am sorry for the reason that brought you here, but so glad you found us.You have come to the right place! There are many K9Cushing's angels standing by to help and stay with you every step of the way. They love details, test results, any information you can get your hands on. The more the better. We will do all we can to help. Others will be popping in to welcome you also. So again welcome to our family:)

Hugs,
Kathy

[owen32]

Thanks for the warm welcome. I did do some searching on this forum before posting and a lot of people seem to say with treatment and attentive observation by the owner that dogs can live their normal life expectancy. If that is the case then why the discrepancy with a lot of what other sites say about cushings, referring to 1-2 year prognosis?

Also poor sport has some kind of upper respiratory virus right now and is sneezing a lot. I'm not too concerned about that one because our other dog has it too so it must be a virus. He's already on antibiotics for his skin infection and they don't seem to have an effect on this "cold".

[labblab]

Hello and welcome from me, too!

Poor Sport! To now have a cold on top of everything else. But if it is a virus as you suspect, than an antibiotic won't help any since it only works on bacterial infections. Hopefully both your dogs will be feeling better soon.

A couple other things...what form is the steroid that Sport has been given for his infection? And is he still taking it (or if it's a cream, are you still putting it on?). You definitely want to hold off on any Cushing's testing until Sport is "off" any steroid use. Steroids, even topical ones, will register the same way that cortisol does on diagnostic tests so they will skew the results toward giving "false positives." Also, you do not want to test any dog in the midst of an obvious sickness or illness for the very same reason. Illnesses other than Cushing's can cause elevations in the cortisol levels, and thereby muddy the waters if the dog is tested while sick for another reason.

As far as that two-year prognosis, I think you've already gotten a head start as to figuring that out as well. Many dogs are not diagnosed until later in their lives, so it is difficult to separate out the effects and limitations of natural aging. We have witnessed success stories with many dogs through the years here who have enjoyed a good quality of life for the duration of their natural lifespans. So don't let that two-year prognosis get you down!

Marianne

[lulusmom]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

We've seen more case studies on this site than most vets will see in their life time and I'm here to tell you that the two year prognosis you read on many sites is nothing more than a number chosen based on the law of averages. Most dogs diagnosed are already fairly senior and have already lived close to their life expectancy; however, those of us with dogs diagnosed at young to middle age know that nothing about cushing's is a one size fits all. I lost both of my cushdogs in the last 12 months. My little girl was only three years old at diagnosis and was symptomatic at two years old. Her cortisol was well controlled for almost 8 years. I helped her cross the bridge at 11 years old. Her joints were disintegrating, she was in a great deal of pain and her quality of life had deteriorated greatly. My other cushdog was a shelter rescue who we thought to be anywhere from 8 to 13 years old. It was apparent from his overt symptoms and many infections that his disease had been progressing for quite some time. He was with us for the last five years of his life.

I see that Marianne has posted while I was typing and she's covered everything I wanted to say but feel it's worth repeating that until your pup's skin issues have been resolved, don't even think about testing for cushing's. There is plenty of time for you to keep reading and asking any questions you may have. We'll be with you every step of the way.

Glynda

[Budsters Mom]

Just a thought......Could Sport have allergies? Quite often respiratory distress ends up being caused by allergies? Spring is a killer for a lot of our babies. :(
Our angels will take great care of you and Sport. They are a loving bunch of mother and father hens. Get used to it! ;) Do not believe the horror stories out there. Yes, Cushings is a bad sucker! There is nothing good about it, but it is treatable and many of our pups have lived much longer than that! So get ready for lots of questions, because we are here for you!

Hugs,
Kathy