rmackenzie
12-23-2017, 10:12 AM
My boy is a coming 8yr old Australian Cattle dog named Ichabod. He's been having varied issues the last couple months and after some blood work they suspect Cushings. I've been researching and his symptoms seem abnormal for cushings. He is not drinking excessively and the worst, most ongoing issue is a lack of appetite. I'll list his symptoms and attach his blood results, hoping someone has had some experiences similar to mine.
Note; he's always been a farm dog, he's worked cattle in his younger days and spent most of his time free range with livestock. He's been kicked by cattle, run over by a quad and eaten more than his share of carcasses and trash. He's arthritic, has cataracts and has had minor health issues most of his life as well as becoming more neurotic as those issues have slowed him down.
A few weeks ago I noticed he seemed to be sneezing a lot, occasionally I would find blood splatters on the floor. Spoke to a vet and they didn't think it was a concern.
He then went off his kibble and would vomit bile in the morning. I tried a bland diet, boiled chicken or beef and rice. Vomiting improved but appetite decreased. Took him to the vet who thought that since the vomiting was improving it was possibly pancreatitis or he had gotten in to something he shouldn't have (unlikely as he now does not go out of the yard) said to keep up with the bland diet and keep an eye on him.
Shortly after he stopped eating his bland diet. Would pick out a few bigger chunks of meat but that's it. Acting somewhat lethargic but still showing some interest in sqeaky toys and truck rides. Tried canned food and he ate quite a bit better for a few days. Went to the vet for more blood work
During all this there were a couple strange episodes. One evening my son and I observed him crossing his front legs and looking like he was swaying side to side and seeming to stretch his neck downwards. That lasted about 30 seconds. Then he seemed fine. Last week he got up from sleeping and his eyes were rolled back in his head so he looked like he was looking straight up. Also lasted a few seconds and then he was fine.
The vet has recommended the low dose dex testing next. That alone worries me as my boy does not do well at the vets and staying there for 8 hours will completely stress him out. I have no idea how to interpret his bloodwork.
Glucose 2.3 ¤ 3.5 - 6.3 mmol/L CAL
Urea (BUN) 13.0 £ 3.2 - 11.0 mmol/L CAL
Creatinine 121 44 - 133 umol/L CAL
SDMA 11 0 - 14 ug/dL CAL
Urea (BUN)/Creatinine Ratio 27 - CAL
Phosphorus 1.9 0.8 - 2.0 mmol/L CAL
Calcium 1.92 ¤ 2.20 - 2.80 mmol/L CAL
Sodium 146 142 - 152 mmol/L CAL
Potassium 5.4 4.0 - 5.4 mmol/L CAL
Na/K Ratio 27 ¤ 28 - 37 CAL
Chloride 105 ¤ 108 - 119 mmol/L CAL
Bicarbonate 22 13 - 27 mmol/L CAL
Anion Gap 24 11 - 26 CAL
Total Protein 76 £ 55 - 75 g/L CAL
Albumin 28 27 - 39 g/L CAL
Globulin 48 £ 24 - 40 g/L CAL
A/G Ratio 0.6 ¤ 0.7 - 1.5 CAL
ALT 107 18 - 121 IU/L CAL
AST 52 16 - 55 IU/L CAL
ALP 387 £ 5 - 160 IU/L CAL
GGT 9 0 - 13 IU/L CAL
T. Bili (Total) 1.8 0 - 5.13 umol/L CAL
Cholesterol 6.3 3.4 - 8.9 mmol/L CAL
Amylase 1539 £ 337 - 1469 IU/L CAL
Lipase 312 138 - 755 IU/L CAL
CK 124 10 - 200 IU/L CAL
Calc Osmolality 297 278 - 306 mmol/kg CAL
Hemolysis ++ - CAL
Icterus Normal - CAL
Lipemia Normal - CAL
Note; he's always been a farm dog, he's worked cattle in his younger days and spent most of his time free range with livestock. He's been kicked by cattle, run over by a quad and eaten more than his share of carcasses and trash. He's arthritic, has cataracts and has had minor health issues most of his life as well as becoming more neurotic as those issues have slowed him down.
A few weeks ago I noticed he seemed to be sneezing a lot, occasionally I would find blood splatters on the floor. Spoke to a vet and they didn't think it was a concern.
He then went off his kibble and would vomit bile in the morning. I tried a bland diet, boiled chicken or beef and rice. Vomiting improved but appetite decreased. Took him to the vet who thought that since the vomiting was improving it was possibly pancreatitis or he had gotten in to something he shouldn't have (unlikely as he now does not go out of the yard) said to keep up with the bland diet and keep an eye on him.
Shortly after he stopped eating his bland diet. Would pick out a few bigger chunks of meat but that's it. Acting somewhat lethargic but still showing some interest in sqeaky toys and truck rides. Tried canned food and he ate quite a bit better for a few days. Went to the vet for more blood work
During all this there were a couple strange episodes. One evening my son and I observed him crossing his front legs and looking like he was swaying side to side and seeming to stretch his neck downwards. That lasted about 30 seconds. Then he seemed fine. Last week he got up from sleeping and his eyes were rolled back in his head so he looked like he was looking straight up. Also lasted a few seconds and then he was fine.
The vet has recommended the low dose dex testing next. That alone worries me as my boy does not do well at the vets and staying there for 8 hours will completely stress him out. I have no idea how to interpret his bloodwork.
Glucose 2.3 ¤ 3.5 - 6.3 mmol/L CAL
Urea (BUN) 13.0 £ 3.2 - 11.0 mmol/L CAL
Creatinine 121 44 - 133 umol/L CAL
SDMA 11 0 - 14 ug/dL CAL
Urea (BUN)/Creatinine Ratio 27 - CAL
Phosphorus 1.9 0.8 - 2.0 mmol/L CAL
Calcium 1.92 ¤ 2.20 - 2.80 mmol/L CAL
Sodium 146 142 - 152 mmol/L CAL
Potassium 5.4 4.0 - 5.4 mmol/L CAL
Na/K Ratio 27 ¤ 28 - 37 CAL
Chloride 105 ¤ 108 - 119 mmol/L CAL
Bicarbonate 22 13 - 27 mmol/L CAL
Anion Gap 24 11 - 26 CAL
Total Protein 76 £ 55 - 75 g/L CAL
Albumin 28 27 - 39 g/L CAL
Globulin 48 £ 24 - 40 g/L CAL
A/G Ratio 0.6 ¤ 0.7 - 1.5 CAL
ALT 107 18 - 121 IU/L CAL
AST 52 16 - 55 IU/L CAL
ALP 387 £ 5 - 160 IU/L CAL
GGT 9 0 - 13 IU/L CAL
T. Bili (Total) 1.8 0 - 5.13 umol/L CAL
Cholesterol 6.3 3.4 - 8.9 mmol/L CAL
Amylase 1539 £ 337 - 1469 IU/L CAL
Lipase 312 138 - 755 IU/L CAL
CK 124 10 - 200 IU/L CAL
Calc Osmolality 297 278 - 306 mmol/kg CAL
Hemolysis ++ - CAL
Icterus Normal - CAL
Lipemia Normal - CAL