LaurenKimberly
03-06-2015, 01:23 AM
Our 8 year year old blue pit, Smokey, is showing symptoms of Cushings. His bloodwork will be back Saturday AM. I'm reading online about typical Cushings symptoms, but wondering if some of his other issues are stemming from the disease. Here's a list of what we are trying to address.
Skin/coat:
We previously were, and still are, treating him for allergies. Food and environmental. He has a terrible odor, crusts on the edges of his ears, bumps and lesions on his skin, black heads (calcinosis cutis?) on his belly and privates, hard lumps and sparse hair on his tail, discolored/dark nails, and black spots on his coat. And did I mention odor?!?! Despite frequent baths with medicated shampoo, benedryl, omega 369, and limited ingredient dog food.
Body/muscular:
He has a pot bellied appearance, face seems droopy (like his skull is bony and his skin sags, and stiff hips (what we were thinking was arthritis). Despite daily walks, which we have decreased since his hips bother him more, he has little energy. He is what some would term a "Velcro dog"... Following us from room to room. But other than that, he has zero energy and not much personality. And recently (what led to a prompt vet visit) he has started bobbing his head. Not so much like a seizure, but more like you would see in someone falling asleep sitting up. Only its often and seems unrelated to his sleep patterns. I also noticed an irregular breathing pattern.
Lastly, he drinks a ton of water. He will sit by his water bowl and whine the moment it's empty. However, he is still on his bathroom schedule of morning, afternoon, evening.
Please note that this is my boyfriends dog and I've only been around the dog 1 1/2 ish years. Prior to me addressing his skin and health issues, my boyfriend seems to have chalked his appearance, odor, hips, and malaise to old age. So I can't give a detailed history prior to that. Only rough guess responses to "how long has this been going on" and "when did he start this" questions.
Between Smokeys obvious discomfort, and the fact that we are expecting a baby this fall and moving into a new home, I personally and sympathetically want to improve his health, as much as possible.
So my question is this...
How many of these issues could be symptoms of Cushings? And if they are secondary to the disease, what have others had luck with? I'm open to both medication and homeopathic treatment options. If pictures help, I'm happy to post some of those, as well.
Thanks!
Skin/coat:
We previously were, and still are, treating him for allergies. Food and environmental. He has a terrible odor, crusts on the edges of his ears, bumps and lesions on his skin, black heads (calcinosis cutis?) on his belly and privates, hard lumps and sparse hair on his tail, discolored/dark nails, and black spots on his coat. And did I mention odor?!?! Despite frequent baths with medicated shampoo, benedryl, omega 369, and limited ingredient dog food.
Body/muscular:
He has a pot bellied appearance, face seems droopy (like his skull is bony and his skin sags, and stiff hips (what we were thinking was arthritis). Despite daily walks, which we have decreased since his hips bother him more, he has little energy. He is what some would term a "Velcro dog"... Following us from room to room. But other than that, he has zero energy and not much personality. And recently (what led to a prompt vet visit) he has started bobbing his head. Not so much like a seizure, but more like you would see in someone falling asleep sitting up. Only its often and seems unrelated to his sleep patterns. I also noticed an irregular breathing pattern.
Lastly, he drinks a ton of water. He will sit by his water bowl and whine the moment it's empty. However, he is still on his bathroom schedule of morning, afternoon, evening.
Please note that this is my boyfriends dog and I've only been around the dog 1 1/2 ish years. Prior to me addressing his skin and health issues, my boyfriend seems to have chalked his appearance, odor, hips, and malaise to old age. So I can't give a detailed history prior to that. Only rough guess responses to "how long has this been going on" and "when did he start this" questions.
Between Smokeys obvious discomfort, and the fact that we are expecting a baby this fall and moving into a new home, I personally and sympathetically want to improve his health, as much as possible.
So my question is this...
How many of these issues could be symptoms of Cushings? And if they are secondary to the disease, what have others had luck with? I'm open to both medication and homeopathic treatment options. If pictures help, I'm happy to post some of those, as well.
Thanks!