Vet suspects cushings

[Pug_mom]

My eight year old laphsa mix has been experiencing systems of cushings for the last four months. Bloodwork is off but not conclusive. Vet suspects early stage of cushings. He is drinking an obsessive amount of water (hardly drank at all in the past) and tummy is extremely rounded. I am wondering if I should take him to a specialists for a second opinion. If I could confirm a diagnosis he could get treatment. There is definitely something wrong! Your guidance is appreciated.

[Trish]

Hi, welcome to you and your pup!!

You have come to a great place for advice, there are some real experts on cushings here and everyone is happy to share information.

I think what will help is if you let us know what blood tests have been done so far and copy out only the abnormals with the reference ranges supplied by the lab which will be written next to each test on your results sheet. If you do not have them, ring and get a copy sent to you from your vet.

How is your pups health otherwise? Any other problems? Did they check for other illness like diabetes or thyroid problems that can cause excessive drinking etc? Any medications or supplements you are giving? Weight and is it steady?

Also a detailed list of symptoms is real helpful, you mention the drinking and pot belly, but have you noticed any others like excessive peeing, hunger, rear end weakness, skin issues or other infections like UTI? Any of these can also be flags for cushings and sometimes when you add them all together we can get a clearer picture.

Sorry to set you homework on your first visit here but this info will help the others when they log in later today. Just know that cushings is treatable, some use an IMS, some just local vet and some a combination of the two. But if we can get a better handle on where you are now with your pup they may have some ideas on that too.

Welcome to the forum! :)

[goldengirl88]

Welcome to the forum. I am glad you found us. Could you give a brief history of any illnesses? Does he have any other issues going on now? If so and you are going to have him tested for Cushings this could skew the numbers, giving a false positive. With drinking a lot of water as stated it could also involve diabetes or thyroid. Has he lost weight recently? With Cushings he would be drinking buckets of water and peeing like crazy. Is he panting a lot? How is he as far as exercise has he become intolerant of it? Is he having a ravenous appetite? Cushings dogs have these symptoms and more, but these really are pronounced. There are many different factors that go into diagnosing Cushings. There are the clinical signs, exam by your vet, ultra sound, LDDS, Urine tests, Blood work, & ACTH testing. Cushings is one of the hardest diseases to diagnose. There are other diseases that share some of the symptoms. You want to get a diagnosis, as you would not want to treat a dog with the drugs used to manage this disease if the dog does not have Cushings. Have you had a thyroid panel done, and glucose? We will help you get tot he bottom of this with our very knowledgeable group of experienced people. Blessings
Patti

[Pug_mom]

Max was tested for diabetes and thyroid. Both were normal. He started drinking excessive amounts of water and in response is urinating a lot. I don't have his blood test results but know the numbers for his liver are high. When he lived with my mom (she had a stroke 2 years ago and he moved in with me) he was not that interested in food. Now he eats everything. He is having increasing difficulty with his back legs. Getting up and down the three stairs between my kitchen and family room causes problems for him. The vet believes this is cushings but in the early stage so he wants to watch and see how it progresses. Max is not taking any meds. I will call and see if I can get the lab results. Any specific item I should be looking at?

Thank you. I appreciate your advice.

[jxeno13]

Hi and welcome! I'm sorry your Max is ill......but glad you the forum. The senior members are great with information and what you need to show us and post. ....The only thing in your post that catches my eye is the Vet "wanting to wait to see how it progresses". :confused:

I may be wrong, but I usually like to know now what happening with my baby. I am one now...who uses both my GP Vet and an IMS.

Welcome...the other senior members will be on soon and give their take. Patti and Trish know their stuff as well. :D

[molly muffin]

It sounds like you have ruled out diabetes and thyroid, so that is good to know. Has he been tested specifically for cushings? ACTH or LDDS?

One thing that is backwards, is that they don't drink a lot of water and urinate, the way cushings works is it causes them to urinate and then they have to drink a lot of water to replenish, or become severely dehydrated.

I'd get the cushings test done, at least one of them and go from there. I do like having a specialist on board, as this is a long term disease slowing progressing and it's good to get that vet team in place.

As far as results, we are looking for Any abnormal blood work, out of range. What most owners do is start getting copies of all the lab work and keeping their own file. Makes it very handy when you need to look up or reference something.

Sharlene and molly muffin

[Junior's Mom]

Welcome to the forum. Did your vet rule out a UTI? Even if your dog does have cushings, they can be prone to urinary infections. If the urine is really dilute, they would need to do a culture on it to check for bacteria.