Cushings with no appetite?

[MyRedLucyGirl]

Wow. Not sure I know how to participate. Hoping starting a thread is correct. Humbled by so many caring people trying to help out and sad that so many of us are affected. Wondering if anyone has heard of similar case as mine. My 3 yr old Shetland Sheepdog, Lucy, has recently been diagnosed with Cushings. Three abdominal ultrasounds and many blood works reveal no abnormalities or tumors or diabetes. They mentioned a gastro scope next but I said to start her on meds for Cushings now and see what happens. Still very early(meds started this week). Doctors do not understand why she has no appetite. Any of you have ideas? Thanks for being here.

[doxiesrock912]

No appetite? That might signal pancreatitits if I'm correct. My doxie is fairly newly diagnosed but other members here will have more experience than I do.

Cushings often goes along with other issues and many dogs here have issues with pancreatitis as well.

The most common big symptoms of 80% - 90% of Cushingoid dogs are extreme appetite and thirst.

[Roxee's Dad]

Welcome to you and Lucy,

Please tell us more about what led us to a diagnosis of cushings. Was there an ACTH and a LDDS test? The LDDS is an 8 hour test. If these test were performed, please post the results. If you don't have them, your vets office should be happy to provide you a copy.

Does Lucy have any symptoms of cushings? obviously we can rule out ravenous appetite:p How about excess thirst, excessive urination, loss of fur, pot belly?

3 years old is kind of unusual for a cushings diagnosis, but it does happen.

[MyRedLucyGirl]

Exactly. Should have huge appetite but does not. I do plan on contacting vet ASAP and finding out more "exact" numbers and tests results of what they have ruled out. Thank you for your help Valerie.

[Budsters Mom]

Hello and welcome to from me too :)
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. So again welcome to you and Lucy.

Hugs,
Kathy

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi! Welcome to you and Lucy,

So sorry for the reasons that brought you to us but glad you found your way here.

Cushing's experts, such as Dr Feldman and Dr Peterson, say that a dog should not be treated for Cushing's unless the symptoms are obviously strong and/or are bothersome to the pet or pet parent. If this were me I would not start any medication for Cushing's until the diagnosis of Cushing's is confirmed.

As John mentioned, if you could post results from all tests that were done on Lucy that would help us to provide you with more meaningful feedback.

Please know we will help in any way we can so do not hesitate to ask any and all questions.

Love and hugs, Lori

[MyRedLucyGirl]

She has not had an 8 hour test. She has had "inside" and "outside" lab/blood work but I was not wise enough to ask for detailed results. (I am quickly wiseing up after reading many member posts). Lucy started "leaking" when asleep and having accidents in the house in November of 2012. Was told she had mild bladder infection, was treated, continued to leak, was put on meds for incontinence, continued to leak, we upped the dose. No change. End of May vet did blood work at our request that showed signs of "kidney disease". We took Lucy then to "specialists clinic 1-1/2 hour away. Bloodwork, urine evaluation, urine culture, abdominal ultrasound, ruled out many potential causes for her increased urination and thirst. Calcium was normal, no UTI, no kidney infection. They were thinking diabetes insipidus or Addison's. Results looked like Cushings instead but perplexed about the "no appetite". Ultrasound at regular vet to check gall bladder and pancreas for possible answer. That checked out ok. She has not lost fur and does not appear to have pot belly. But they assure me the hormone "levels" do indicate Cushings. Again....I only THOUGHT I was asking enough questions. I plan to become better informed. Thank you for any advice or ideas you may have.

[SoggyDoggy]

Hi and a huge welcome from me as well.

I would think if she has no pot belly, no thinning fur, appetite etc, are you seeing any other signs in her other than the incontinence? What are her energy levels like?

My fear is that if you are seeing none of these changes, it will make it that much harder for you to monitor the symptoms when treating with cushings meds. I would caution you to please be very vigilant while watching her to look for any signs of lethargy, nausea, or even anything that just seems a bit "off". If it turns out that Lucy does not indeed have cushings, it can be very dangerous to treat with these drugs as they lower cortisol in the body. Insufficient cortisol levels can then be fatal. I'm not trying to scare you here, just to ask you to please be very cautious. If it were me, I would probably stop the treatment until you investigate further and get a truly definite diagnosis. Even the ultra sound shows nothing abnormal with the adrenals, this is a red flag for me and I would definitely want further investigations.

Could you also tell us which drug you are treating with? There is brand name Vetoryl (Trilostane) or Lysodren (mitotane). I'm not familiar with the lysodren personally, but I do know that it is safe to stop trilostane suddenly. In addition, did your vet give you some prednisolone to use in an emergency situation? If Lucy's cortisol does get too low quickly and she becomes ill, you may need to use a prednisolone dose and seek emergency treatment.

So basically again, I'm not trying to scare you, just warn you to be very vigilant and watch her so closely, especially for the first few months at least. Any questions that come up, please post as there is always someone here to help out and offer advice and support.

Take care and hugs to both you and Lucy.

[frijole]

Please find out what tests were done to diagnose cushings. You said the low dose dex suppression test (8 hr) was not done. Ultrasounds came back clean - well then how did the come up with cushings? It would be very unusual for a vet to have you start treating for cushings with a test and with no real signs of the disease. I would hesitate to use the trilostane.

Go to the vets office and get copies of the bloodwork that has been done and look to see if the did a test called ACTH. There are two numbers on it that we need to see. Also write ups from the ultrasounds would be helpful to verify they were clean.

Thanks, Kim

[MyRedLucyGirl]

Kim, they did do ACHT and said numbers were high and that is where the diagnosis came from. I WILL get exact numbers from them ASAP. Thank you.

[frijole]

Thanks I missed that. Kim

[MyRedLucyGirl]

Vetoryl (trilostane) caps 10 mg. No prednisone given! No mention of possible complications. Just "here's your meds". (I did read med info and wondered why we were not told to come back for more bloodwork after a few days/ weeks). Energy level is down somewhat but hubby is off with recent surgery and keeping her up all day (we thought) so she not getting daily naps. I have seen her pant occasionally which is unusual. But mostly just leaking, longer urination, little or no color or odor to urine, excessive drinking (but even some days that seems ok) lose of interest in food (enjoys real meat treats and 4-5 Cheerios at a time as reward for pottying.) Have started adding 2 tsps tuna and water to her food twice a day but still will "eat around" and maybe only eat total 1/4 cup twice a day. Has gone from 25 lb to 22 lb (will get exact dates and weights on this too). Thank you for help, concerns, opinions. Will get my facts together and be back! -Marilyn Lucy's mom

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome from me too.
You mentioned that they put her on medication for the leaking. This wasn't by any chance Proin was it?
This drug has been shown to cause some problems and one of our moderators recently removed her dog from taking it as it caused multiple issues.

I'm gong to copy this from her thread. You may not be using this, but I do want you to be aware, just in case.


http://www.fda.gov/downloads/AnimalV.../UCM296349.pdf

Quote:
Table 6: Adverse reactions in the 28-day placebo-controlled clinical study
Adverse Reactions
PROIN
-
treated (N=123) (first number)
Placebo (N=61) (second number)

Emesis 20.3% 8.2%
Hypertension (≥ 160 mm Hg) 19.5% 14.7%
Anorexia 16.3% 3.3%
Body weight loss (≥5%) 16.1% 6.8%
Proteinuria 13.0% 8.2%
Anxiety/aggression/behavior change 9.7% 3.2%
Diarrhea 7.3% 9.8%
Polydipsia 6.5% 9.8%
Lethargy 5.7% 1.6%
Musculoskeletal disorder .2% 1.6%
Insomnia/sleep disorder 2.5% 0.0%
http://www.livestrong.com/article/25...ects-of-proin/

Quote:
Allergic Reaction

Dogs that are allergic to phenylpropanolamine or any of the components of Prion should not be treated with this medication. Improper use of Proin by hypersensitive dogs may induce a severe and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. Symptoms of a hypersensitive reaction in dogs include weakness, seizures, pale gums, facial swelling and difficulty breathing. Dogs who exhibit any of these side effects after taking a dose of Prion should be transported to an emergency veterinarian clinic immediately.
100's of pet owners believe Proin either directly or indirectly lead to their dog's host of health issues including death.

Again, welcome to the forum.

Sharlene and Molly Muffin

[MyRedLucyGirl]

Thank you Charlene. She was on 50 mg Phenylpropanoline for incontinence. She is no longer on it. Wow. Thank you for the info. Can't wait to get info from my vets.