Sally Mae newly diagnosed but very sick

[Obtech78]

Hello everyone,
My 10 year old goldendoodle was recently diagnosed with cushings. About 3 weeks ago she started getting really lethargic and her vet suggested arthritis. We disagreed and took her back three days later and the normal vet suggested cushings right away and redid her bloodwork which had tripled in three days. The following Monday they kept her for 8 hours for blood testing that was sent to michigan state university for analysis. It took 5 days for them to confirm cushings. In those 5 days she will not get up without assistance using a towel for support and falling. We started her on her first dose of Trilostane yesterday and now refuses to eat or drink. The vet yesterday said it could be a month to see improvement, but I'm not sure she will last the night. Has anyone's dogs been this far gone and still recover? She just went down so fast...I'm hoping for good vibes here or she will be going to the emergency vet to end her suffering.
Thanks,
Traci and Sally Mae

[Joan2517]

Hi and welcome to the forum. If she is not eating, you can not give her the Trilostane. It must be given with a full meal. Were there any other symptoms than the ones that you listed above? Cushing's dogs are usually ravenously hungry, drink loads of water and have to go out and pee a lot.

Could you post any blood work done on your precious girl, highs and lows with reference ranges, please. And also the results of the LDDS test.

[labblab]

Hello to you and Sallie Mae. I’m so glad Joan has had the chance to greet you, and I “second” everything she’s already asked you about. I’m very worried about your girl, and I have to wonder whether there’s something else going on with her in addition to — or even instead of — Cushing’s. Both diagnostic Cushing’s blood tests can give “false positives” if a dog is suffering from some other illness or serious bodily stress. So even though Michigan State’s diagnostic lab is very highly regarded, Sallie Mae’s test result may have been affected by some other condition; they can only report on the numbers they’re seeing since they haven’t personally examined her.

One key concern I have is that she has dramatically worsened in such a short time. I especially question the tripling of her bloodwork in only three days. I’m suspecting you may be referring to her liver enzymes, especially her ALP, since those are characteristically elevated in dogs with Cushing’s. However, those elevations typically gradually elevate over time — not overnight. So combined with her abrupt physical degeneration, I have to wonder whether she has some other unrelated acute problem going on with her liver or another internal organ.

Given these circumstances, I can’t argue at all with your decision to take her in to the ER to be re-evaluated by a specialist there. Not necessarily to be put down, though, but instead to have an experienced internal medicine vet examine her. Something may be going on that’s making her acutely ill now, but that can be reversed with treatment.

And lastly, no, I would definitely not be giving her any more trilostane at all when she is this ill. Trilostane should never be given to a dog who is not eating or drinking normally. It may only make things worse rather than better right now. I’m really glad you found us, and please let us know what you find out, OK?

Marianne