my vet doesnt want to prescribe medication

[saied]

hello dog owners.
my dog rufus whos a austrilian dingo has been feeling very lethargic recently. i have had him for 10 years after we adopted him from the shelter and although we do not know his true age we think its around 11-12 years old. to us he is considered our family and to me he is my little brother.
a couple weeks ago i realized that we have to take him to the vet so we took him to get blood work done. the doctor quickly saw the symptoms of cushings disease and he assured us that we did not have to worry about his behavior. but he said to be sure he would have to do blood work. he did some blood work and after 3 days got back to us saying he needed more blood work. i took him a second time to the vet and he got more blood work done with no definite results. the doctor asked to leave my dog for 8 hours at the vet so they could take multiple blood tests. i agreed and when i came back i realized that rufus was never given food or water the entire 8 hours he was there. i was very angry at the doctor and just wanted the medication for my dog. the doc said he would get back to me in a couple of days.
recently he just called me saying he is still not sure and needs more blood test. i have spent almost 400 dollars and i do not have any more money because both of parents lost their jobs. i also do not want to put leave my dog for 8 hours again.
what can i do? i see alot of medication needs prescription but how do i get one when the vet runs me around.

thanks

[Roxee's Dad]

Hi and welcome to you and Rufus,

I only have a minute to post, but can you tell us what cushings symptoms Rufus has. Ravenous appetite? Insatiable thirst? Loss of hair or fur?

Do you have copies of the blood test? Please post the ones with abnormal results and their reference ranges. Is the ALK or ALP high? Has diabetes been ruled out?

One inexpensive test is a UC/CR which is a urine test and can be used to rule out cushings although it cannot confirm it. Many others will stop by to welcome you and help you through this.

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[saied]

Hi and welcome to you and Rufus,

I only have a minute to post, but can you tell us what cushings symptoms Rufus has. Ravenous appetite? Insatiable thirst? Loss of hair or fur?

Do you have copies of the blood test? Please post the ones with abnormal results and their reference ranges. Is the ALK or ALP high? Has diabetes been ruled out?

One inexpensive test is a UC/CR which is a urine test and can be used to rule out cushings although it cannot confirm it. Many others will stop by to welcome you and help you through this.

Moderator’s note: In order to complete your registration, you need to check your emailbox (or spam folder) for a communication from us. Once you respond to that email, your membership will be finalized, and anything that you post will become visible on the forum immediately. Until that time, your replies must be manually "approved" by a staff member before they are visible to the public -- so there may be a bit of delay between the time that you write your replies and the time that you actually see them.

If you have already received and responded to the confirmatory email, please be patient. Your registration will be finalized shortly…Thanks!

thanks. here are his symptoms.
his belly is really bulging out. his behind legs have become very weak and i have to help him going up and down the stairs when he goes outside. hes really tired all the time and doesnt really want to go for walks or anything and i havent seen him happy. hes drinking alot of water and hes hungry all the time although i limit how much he can eat. he does become more active at night and doesnt really want to sleep. hes also shows symptoms of forgetfulness. sometimes i see him staring into his bowl of water and seams like he gets lost around the house.

i also have done the urine test the very first time he went to the vet and they said they wanted to do more blood tests.i do not have any of his blood test results because i was so angry at the vet.ill try to get them on monday

[goldengirl88]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I am sorry your dog is having problems. If it were my dog this is what I would do. Can you please get the copies of the tests that the vet has done? Then post the abnormal numbers and the normal range the lab uses for that test?. Once you get everyone the number someone on here can make sense of what is going on. There are many tests needed to confirm this disease. That is why you vet did several. He is trying to make sure this is what your dog has. These drugs used a really strong medications and you do not want to be giving them to a dog without a Cushings diagnosis. Once you get the numbers we can go from there to guide you as to what to do. From what you are saying your dog is exhibiting signs of Cushings, but the problem is other diseases can cause these symptoms also. That is where I would start, get the numbers for us first. keep a diary on your dog daily. If the back legs are weak it could be from Cushings as it wastes muscle and redistributes fat throughout their body. You came to the right place for help, so we will help and support you to get this figured out. Blessings
Patti

[frijole]

I understand the frustration after many tests but please understand that cushing's can be very difficult to diagnose and you do not want to start the drugs if your dog does not have cushings - they can be very harmful. So your vet is doing the right thing if not sure.

That is why we need to see the test results so that we can better understand why your vet may be holding off.

From the symptoms you have described it certainly sounds like cushings but there are other things that could cause those symptoms. Hang in there and get us the results of the tests and we will help you sort through this. Kim

[Renee]

I think its good to take things slow and be absolutely sure before going on the meds. I know some have gotten to a diagnosis faster, and some have taken longer, but in my case, it took about 2 months of active vet visits to pin down the diagnosis. And this was after about 2 years of symptoms that we didn't put together enough to think it could be cushings.

You should not start any medication without the support and guidance of a vet, whether that is your current vet, or a new one. The meds aren't the type that you just give daily and never give another thought to them. They take monitoring, continued vet visits, and may need adjustments throughout the rest of your dogs life while he takes them.

Good luck!