Cooper (9.5yrold boxer) (Macroadenoma) - sweet Cooper has passed

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome from me too.

See how he does tonight with no Rimadyl. You can cut the tramadol down too if you need to and see if that helps, it makes them sort of loopy sometimes and they do better on a lower dosage I've noticed.

The other thing that really caught my eye, is that on the 10mg trilostane, even though he was still getting up at night, he wasn't whining and having the problems he had as soon as you went to 40mg.
That is a warning sign in my mind that there is a problem with this and it could be that the cortisol acts as an anti inflammatory and that lower the cortisol, might not be working so well for him.

I'd definitely see a specialist as this is a lot going on and things need to be taken both individually and together to figure out what is the main culprit problem.

Welcome to the forum
Sharlene and molly muffin

[BoxerMominBeantown]

Hi everyone-

Just wanted to give a quick update on Cooper.

Tuesday night was actually not too bad. He still got up during the night to pee/drink, but there was no shaking and very minimal whining. Last night though was a rough night. Right around 9:30, he started with the shaking again. I paid more attention this time and it's definitely localized trembling. It's in his shoulders. So, about 10:30, I gave him his tramadol and 2 gabapentin. We went up to bed and he was up at 11:30, 12:30, 1:30. At 1:30, I gave him one more gabapentin b/c the vet said we're not even close to the max dose. That seemed to help for a little while, b/c he slept until 3:45! But then he was up again at 4:30 and 5:30. He peed each time, but didn't drink every time. The shaking was pretty consistent up until the 1:30 wake-up. It seemed to subside a bit after the additional gabapentin. The whining was just out of control though. But, as soon as I brought him downstairs and he was able to sit in his crate, he calmed down and fell asleep. I'm really thinking he has anxiety about something. For tonight, the vet told me to increase the gabapentin to 3x a day: 2 in the am, 2 in the afternoon, 3 at night.
I've also made an appointment for him on Saturday to see an IMS. I'm so glad they could see him so quickly. I really want to figure this out b/c I just hate watching him go through this.
I appreciate all the suggestions and kind words. I will keep you all posted!

[Harley PoMMom]

Wishing you the best of luck with the IMS visit. Keeping you and Cooper in my thoughts and prayers. Please do keep us updated.

Hugs, Lori

[molly muffin]

Oh poor baby and poor you. Sounds exhausting. I hope the IMS can shed some light on this. Would it work better if the crate was with you where he slept at night? Would that feel more secure for him?

Sharlene and molly muffin

[pansywags]

I'm so glad you found an IMS who can see Cooper quickly. Please let us know how it goes.

This morning I uploaded a video of Pansy shivering when she inhales, is this similar to what you see with Cooper? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV7mc78B1UM

[BoxerMominBeantown]

Hi all-
Just wanted to give an update on Cooper. We saw the IMS on Saturday. Cooper's ultrasound was clear and normal, so it appears that the original Cushing's diagnosis may have been incorrect. His adrenal glands looked fine. He also saw a neurologist briefly on Saturday and she recommended an MRI of the brain.
He had the MRI yesterday and we found out that Cooper has a pituitary tumor. My heart just broke. The neurologist said that the best option would be radiation or we could try to treat with prednisone. I started him on prednisone last night; she said that prednisone could give him another 3-6 months. As much as I would love to do the radiation, it is very expensive (~$4k) and I don't know that I can afford that after having paid for the MRI. I feel awful saying that. I also don't know that I would want to put him through the radiation though. It would be everyday for 3 weeks. . .which means he'd be anesthetized everyday for 3 weeks. That seems excessive to me. He doesn't do great coming off anesthesia as it is. The radiation would maybe give him another year or two.
I'm so torn. I want him with me as long as possible, of course. But I don't know if he's happy. When he looks at me, it's like it doesn't register with him who he's looking at anymore. He doesn't wiggle his bum anymore. We are trying the prednisone to see if that improves his disposition at all. . .I'm really hoping I get a little bit of his happy, playful self back. If I don't, I don't know what I'll do. The neurologist doesn't think he's in pain at the moment, but said that symptoms will worsen.
He was also up ALL night last night whining. I called the hospital in the middle of the night and they said it could be a result of coming off the anesthesia. Him getting up at night or not sleeping at all has been happening for a while now. I haven't had a full night's sleep in almost two months. Has anyone else had this happen? Could it be some sort of anxiety that he gets at night?
I'm hoping the peeing/drinking doesn't get too much worse with the prednisone. It's already been off the charts.
Thank you all for all your support and suggestions along the way.

[BoxerMominBeantown]

Pansywags, I can't see your video.

[pansywags]

I've fixed the link, not sure how I managed to mangle it.

I'm so very sorry to hear about the MRI results for Cooper. I don't know very much about the various types of radiation treatment but I know some people have had it done over the course of several days, not weeks. I'm sure they'll be sharing their info here. That doesn't change the fact that it's very expensive. Know that everyone will be here to support and advise you, whatever path you choose.

[BoxerMominBeantown]

Just wanted to add something to my earlier post. Cooper was diagnosed with a macroadenoma. I'm not sure if that was clear from what I wrote before. I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experience with this.
Pansywags, that is exactly what Cooper's shaking/tremors are like.

[lulusmom]

We do have other members who have dealt with and/or are currently dealing with macroadenomas. I have added macroadenoma to your thread title to make it easier for those members to zero in on your thread.