Heartbroken over SARDS and need help

[rittsqgirl]

Our beautiful, amazing, spunky little Penney, a 12 y. o. miniture poodle was diagnosed last week with Cushings, after becoming noticeably not herself several weeks ago (excessive drinking and peeing, swollen abdomen, labored breathing, pain when her belly was touched, lethargic), and last Friday went totally blind all of a sudden and was diagnosed with SARDS. Just feeling totally heartbroken for her. She is now pacing and anxious -I'm sure she is in shock over her sudden loss of vision. She is being medically treated for Cushings, but their reportedly is nothing we can do about the SARDS. We would love to find out if there are any clinical trials going on anyhere in the Country to try to get even some of her vision back. Reportedly there may be some studies going on somewhere, and I'm desperately trying to get info. Will do anything for her!

[Budsters Mom]

Hello and welcome:)
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, but be ready for lots of questions! Others will be dropping in shortly to welcome you also. So again, welcome to you and Penney,

[frijole]

We've had a few SARDs cases here and if I recall typically it is not cushing's disease. Hopefully someone can give you more info but I'll give you a link to SARDS in our resource section. Kim

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=213

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi and welcome to you and Penney,

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

Here's an excerpt from an article:
Iowa State University veterinary researchers may have found a cure for a previously incurable disease that causes dogs to go blind suddenly. They have successfully treated two dogs for sudden acquired retinal degeneration syndrome (SARDS). The dogs were treated with intravenous immunoglobulin
(IVIg).

The full article can be found in our Resource Forum and here is the link: Information About SARDS (Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome) (http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=213)

Could you get copies of all tests that were done on Penney and post any abnormalities that are listed...Thanks! Also, all results from any Cushing's test would be great to see.

We do have members with dogs that have SARDS, here is a link to one member's Thread: http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4711&highlight=SARDs

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

Love and hugs, Lori

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi and welcome to you and Penney! :)

I am mom to two blind babies. Trinket lost her eyes to glaucoma and Brick has Hydrocephalus. Trink is like a bat with sonar and seldom bumps into things. Brick on the other hand charges around full speed and has NO sonar so my house is bubble wrapped! :p

There are some tricks to helping these babies live in comfort and feel secure. With their sight gone, they rely on touch, scent, and smell. One is to not move things around. If you must move something that she is used to having around, put it back in the same spot as soon as you can. If she can come in contact with the item, find a place for it to live and leave it there. ;) You can use different scents in different areas to help her learn where she is at any given time. Another thing that will help is to use rugs that have different naps in certain areas. For example, you may have one type rug in the bedroom doorway and a different one in the kitchen doorway. You can add scents to the rugs, too. Brick is very tactile oriented so he operates by what his feet feel. I talk almost constantly to my babies so they always know where I am. When we walk, I either wear bells on my ankles or drag my feet so they can hear me as well. I keep 2 TVs on at opposite ends of the house so they can always orient themselves. Furniture legs are wrapped with bubble wrap and the wall/cabinet corners/edges have foam pipe insulation on them. Penney may need some extra TLC for a while as she adjusts to the change but most pups do adjust and live happy lives. If I can help, please let me know.

I'm not sure treatment for Cushing's is recommended for SARDS dogs because the signs are the same and if memory serves, they go away as time passes because it is not true Cushing's but more likely a stress response to the condition. Do some reading and see what you can find. ;)

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang