Rapid/Shallow Breathing

[DuncanRipley]

We have two beagles that both have cushings. Recently one of our beagles Ripley has been having rapid, shallow breathing. He had this issue last year and we took him to a holistic vet who put him on Four Marvels and that did help. But in the past few days it has come back. It has been getting hotter here but we even turned on the AC last night and it only made a very slight difference. I hate seeing him in any discomfort and was wondering if any of you had any advice?

Ripley is in the 11/12 years old range. He was diagnosed with cushings in early 2013. His last cushings test was early this year. We don't have his cushings test results with us right now but we have a call into the vet to receive them later.

He's currently on:
Trilostane 35mg once a day - cushings
Carprofen 37 1/2mg once a day - pain
Curcumin tablet twice a day - anti-inflamitory
Myco Forte 600mg twice a day - prevent cancer
Standard Process Canine Flex Support twice a day - joint support
Milk Thistle 400mg twice a day - liver cleanse
Four Marvels 550 mg twice a day - heavy breathing
Thyrox(Thyrozine) .3mg twice a day - thyroid
Crananidin 93mg once a day - preventive urine infections
Standard Process Canine Whole Body Support 1/4 tsp. once a day -vitamin

We've just stopped Carprofen(Rimadyl) today after reading the boards.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi and welcome to you and Ripley,

Glad you found us and we will help in any way we can. I do believe we do have members that have dogs with respiratory issues while on Trilostane. Dechra, the makers of Vetoryl, state in their product insert that respiratory signs (coughing, congestion) can be an adverse effect from Vetoryl. Product insert found here: Dechra's U.S. Product Insert (http://www.dechra-us.com/files/dechraUSA/downloads/Product%20inserts/Vetoryl.pdf) Was an X-ray done to get a look at Ripley's heart and lungs?

When you do get copies of Ripley's tests we would appreciate if you could post any abnormal values here, and all results from any tests for Cushing's...thanks!

Please do ask all the questions you want and remember we are here for you both.

Hugs, Lori

[lunalf]

My 14-year old Scottish Terrier was on Carprofen for just about a year. At first, on an "as-needed" basis for arthritis in her right leg. Then last Fall I started to give her 1/2 pill a day as her limp was acting up. Then in December I took her in for an exam and my vet said to increase the Carprofen to one pill per day, which I did.

Now, I can't prove this, but on May 9th she had a seizure, and the weeks leading up to May 9th she had very rapid/shallow breathing like she was hyperventilating. This was at night (she sleeps with me) and I thought she was going to have a heart attack.

So, after the seizure, I rushed her to the vet's and it was ONLY THEN that I discovered that Carprofen was Rimadyl. So I stopped giving that to her on May 12th. No more seizures, no more rapid/shallow breathing.

She's been a Cushing's dog for four years now. I am convinced that the Rimadyl almost killed her.

That is my anecdotal story. She is not the same after that seizure but now she has an ulcer from that drug and it lowered her red blood cell count. I am taking her in on Saturday for a recheck on the labwork.

So sorry to read this about your poor baby!!!!

[doxiesrock912]

Sometimes rapid breathing indicates pain too. Ripley may have an infection. Our dog, Daisy Mae is currently in the hospital for a bacterial kidney infection. She had rapid breathing without panting.

[goldengirl88]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I just wanted to say my Tipper has suffered breathing problems almost from the onset of this disease. At times when she is sleeping I see her do this rapid shallow breathing and I know it scares the daylights out of me. I am so sorry your baby is having all these problems. I know Cushings can cause a narrowing of the nasal passages, and can cause Trachea problems, which makes it harder for them to get air in. I hope you are able to figure out what is causing your baby to do this. We have another member on here with two beagles that have issues. I cannot imagine two dogs with Cushings as it is hard enough with one. My heart goes out to you. Have you had chest Xrays and had the one that is doing the rapid breathing checked for heart issues?? Blessings
Patti

[molly muffin]

How is he doing today since you've stopped the Carprofen?

It is hard to have one but rough to have two with cushings. Vicki, also has 2 beagles. In case you are interested in reading their journey, here is the thread.

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5904

Sharlene and molly muffin

[DuncanRipley]

Thank you all for your replies. When Ripley was having these issues last year we took him to a cardiologist and got an x-ray of his lungs. Both of those results came back healthy.

We only had him off of Rimadyl for one day when we started noticing trembling and twitching happening only when he would rest his head(while still awake). We took him to the emergency vet and got no real answers there. We left there thinking it might be a bladder infection since he's been prone to those. We gave him a Carprofen when we got home and the twitching/trembling stopped. Today we went to our vet. They tested the urine and everything's fine there. They also drew blood and his levels were fine, except for sodium. Which lead her to believe that he might be on the wrong dose of Cushings meds. He's going to be tested next week Thursday but we are trying to get him in sooner. I'll post the old results and the new ones when I get them.

[molly muffin]

Oh gosh :( I do hope they can figure out a good balance for him.

Sharlene and molly muffin

[jxeno13]

Hello and welcome! My Eli also has some shallow breathing..and bouts with heavy panting during the night (when he was sleeping with me)...now that he sleeps on the floor he's no longer panting, unless we're out of our apartment. As for the trembling.....Eli does that as well. Another Cushing effect. When he was on Vetoryl he stopped that. But, he's always jerked around when he was sleeping (mostly his paws)...He doesn't really do that anymore.

Right now my Eli is not on any drugs at all....due to a recent overdose of the Vetoryl. He'll start back whenever the "drinking and drippin" starts again.

Good luck with your babies. My heart goes out to you with 2 Cushpups! Yikes! That's a handful. I can hardly keep up with one! :eek:

[goldengirl88]

How is your baby doing today? I hope the breathing improves as that is really hard to witness on a daily basis. Blessings
Patti