Magpie - Greyhound with cushings

[Magpie's Mum]

Hello all,

I'm so glad I found you all and your welcoming forum with so many experienced, kind people.

I am foster mum to Magpie who is a 10 year old greyhound, he came to live with us in January. He was showing symptoms of Cushings while he was in the rescue kennels, going back to around May 2015 when he started drinking/urinating excessively.

It has taken what seems like forever but we do now have a diagnosis of PDH type cushings. He had an LDDS test and the results my vet gave me don't look like the ones I have read on your threads so I don't know if they are right, but what I was told is that the first result was 100, the second 96.8 and the third 122.

Magpie is 29kg and we started him on 60mg Vetoryl daily which he has with breakfast.

He had his first ACTH stim test yesterday and we are awaiting results but as its a bank holiday here in the UK we won't have those back before Tuesday. We also did electrolyte tests (?) and the vet said everything was ok, potassium a little high but still within norms.

I am now really starting to worry though.

As said above it has taken since May last year to get this diagnosis - vets were putting his general condition and symptoms down to a combination of old age and arthritis (due to being an ex-racer - no xrays done). He started with excessive drinking/urination, exercise intolerance, back in May 2015 a slight elevation in ALT levels led to an ultrasound scan (no notes as to whether they looked at the adrenals - no issues noted apparently). His hair never grew back from where he was shaved for the scan and for blood draws. He has hind leg weakness. His coat is odd for a greyhound, a different texture - kind of course and thick in places, with a fuzz that doesn't moult and the colour is like when they have a kennel coat, brownish rather than black. He got an injury to his skin recently and the skin around the wound turned black. There are other things that are also not right with Magpie that I don't know if they are cushings related or not - he seems spaced out, like his brain is not fully functioning. Physically around the house he is mostly very slow and stumbling. He only has one eye also, I don't know if his sight is getting worse but he seems to work on the basis of memory of where things should be rather than looking. Ever since my vet confirmed PDH cushings I am worrying that these, what look like, neurological issues are also symptomatic.

Anyway, my major concern now is that after being like a different dog the first day he started on Vetoryl - much more mentally alert and active, every day since he seems to have been worse. It definitely is having some positive effect as he is drinking and urinating much less but he is really struggling with his back legs to the point that yesterday and today he seems reluctant, even unable at times, to stand up. In the mornings he is better but by evening seems to be really struggling. He is also panting much more than usual - my observation with his panting generally is when he needs to go out to toilet but doesn't want to get up. And it is warmer than usual at the moment and he does definitely struggle with the heat.

I just read through Remmington the GSP's thread and well I really feel we are going through the same thing and am wondering whether we should stop the Vetoryl right now....my vet is on holiday now until after the weekend when the ACTH results are due. Yesterday he thought it was okay to continue but Magpie definitely seems to be getting weaker by the day and I'm really worrying that we are doing more harm than good by continuing.

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi and welcome to you and Magpie!

Since Magpie had arthritis before the Cushing's diagnosis, I am concerned for a number of reasons. One, cortisol is a natural anti-inflammatory that usually "treats" conditions like arthritis, allergies, etc and when the pup is put on treatment, lowering the cortisol THEN those signs of inflammation start to show up...or worsen, sometime considerably. For another, Greyhounds are rather prone to osteosarcoma and the limping would prompt me to want that checked out asap. Since you are seeing negative results from such a short time on the Trilo, I would stop it for now if I were you and see if that helped....and do some more medical investigating things like the osteosarcoma before restarting treatment for Cushing's.

Were any labs run that show things like BUN, CHOL, ALP and so on? We are looking for blood work that checks organ function. A CBC would be helpful as well if that has not been done.

Could you tell us what the little letters are that were after the numbers in the LDDS you posted - like nmnol/L, or ug/dl, etc?

You mention increased drinking.....has there been any increase in his appetite? The panting, while a sign of Cushing's, could also indicate pain or discomfort. Was an abdominal ultrasound done or any other testing for Cushing's like an ACTH performed? The LDDS is notorious for false-positives if there is something else going on with the pup so it is always a good idea to have a few tests run and not rely solely on the LDDS in my book. My own dog testing positive on every Cushing's test available but it turned out she had a tumor on her spleen that was causing her cortisol to rise naturally in response - causing false-positives on all her tests. So I always get nervous when I see a pup started on treatment based on minimal testing. ;) Many dogs are correctly diagnosed on just one or two tests but because of my experiences, I worry. :o

I'm glad you found us and look forward to hearing more soon. I know others will be along to add their thoughts, too. I love the greyhounds and think they are simply gorgeous creatures. Just keep loving that sweet boy and letting him know you are on his side.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[Allison]

Hi!

I just wanted to welcome you to the forum. My experience with Cushings is limited. Our silky terrier came to us as a senior with Cushings, but stayed relatively stable with it. Instead he lost his fight with pancreatisis.

Bless you for fostering a dog! Also, for showing concern enough to get his health checked. There are many experienced folks here and I know they'll help you with all your concerns and questions.