Cushings in dogs

[Tempi]

My mum's dog has just been diagnosed with Cushings. Hes nearly 14 and also has arthritis and slight dementia. However he loves going for his walks and still leaps around the place etc.

Vet is deciding whether it is worth treating him or not.

Just wondered if anyone else had a dog with Cushings?

 

[Hutchie]

My dog had cushings he developed it around the age of 11 but wasn't treated as vets were useless and wasn't dignosed until late in his life at which point I didn't want him going through the stress of biopsy etc, but he lived until he was 18. He lost some of his hair as a result and the hair remaining became long and fluffy (used to be short and wiry) he also had arthritus and slight dementia.

If the treatment can cause bad side effects I wouldn't bother but if it can improve the quality of his life then I would say yes. As long as he's happy in himself that's the main thing.

My dog was a little terrier by the way. xxx

 

[Colleen_Miss_Tom]

My lovely boy Shane (GSD) was diagnosed with cushings , He had two successful years with the treatment, up until the last few months, the treatment started to fail, but not only that his hearing was going and his hips were starting to fail on him too .

Shane started drink more water than usual, He started to develop a pot belly, there was hair loss, especially around his belly, chest and legs, also inflammation of the skin .

I for the life of me can't remember the name of the treatment, but will be sure to ask my mum later on, What I do know is that the treatment was quite expensive, talking around £100-£150 a month for life .

Sadly we came to an agreement that he just wasn't getting any better and was just becoming more miserable by the day, So in the end we made the decision to have him pts .

Some dogs manage very well on the treatment

Shane was 10 when he was pts . He got 2 years with help from the treatment .

If the liver can withstand the medication then perhaps its worth a try, you need to be realistic and hopefully you have an understanding and realistic vet to help support you in your decision .

The side affects from what I can remember where very minimal, His hair started to grow back and he was able to enjoy his walks .

But on the same note, only you will know how much your dog can take along with your vet . What kind of dog is it ? .

Good luck with whatever you decide to do xxx

Col x

 

[Lucy_Nottingham]

The treatment for dog cushings is a drug called trilostane which basically (in short hand terms) prevents the large amounts of cortisol (a stress hormone) being released from the adrenal glands as a result of the disease. It doesn't have many side effects (obv every drug has a risk of some, but nothing terrible/excessive)
and it should/does help!

It is not a curable disease, but this treatment means that the clinical signs etc which is the most distressing part of the disease, is managed and the dog can live a more "normal" life!

hope this helps!

 

[Tempi]

Hes a minature schnauzer.

The vet phoned back again last night and now they arent convinced its Cushings

He gets very stressed when he goes to the vets and they think his high readings are because of this and not because of the Cushings. Mum had to get a urine sample this morning which she has given to the vets to get tested. Hes also going back to the vets again tonight.