Trying to help a friend (possible calcinosis cutis)

[4Vicki]

Ok, here we go.......Janice (Vicki's humommie) just left & gave me a bunch of info. I also gave her that wonderful thread about the skin problem for which she was very grateful.

We're in So CA so she's going to call that VCA Hosp in West LA to see if they can recommend a vet down here that has worked a lot w/K9 Cushings.

Vicki has been on Vetoryl for approx a month, a higher dose was just prescribed about a week & a half ago (she wasn't sure what the dose is). The ACDH was 17.1, it was the liver enzymes that were high, not kidney (sorry), she had a skin biopsy to confirm the cal cutis, ultrasound of the liver & adrenal & that particular vet said everything looked ok.

She's on her third or fourth vet but would feel better if she found a vet who knows a lot more about Cushings than this present vet.

She said to thank all of you for your help.

So that's where we stand up to today........

[Skye]

i think the betadine....you can mix that with baby shampoo and make it a dark tea color do not put near face though. i will confirm.

[Skye]

baby shampoo and tea tree oil....medicated tea tree oil....
1 ml for every 8 ounces of shampoo
then shake really good.

this might work better............

[4Vicki]

Skye: Thanks for info on Betadine. Will pass it on.

[Sabre's Mum]

Thanks for all the info and the update. Things will become easier when the dog's ACTH stim post number is in the range required. It would be good for her to have one good vet or IMS treating her.

Angela

[Squirt's Mom]

Word of caution - be extremely careful with tea tree oil. It can have some awful effects.

[4Vicki]

First of all, I guess it's ACTH........duh........goes to show what I know. I don't have a clue what that is but not sure it matters as I'm just the go-between.......

Also have no clue what IMS is.......sorry, you have to understand I'm flying blind here, so to speak........

This is why I turned to you........Janice only knows what the vet has told her & what I was able to find & print out from the internet. A while ago, I knew somebody who had a dog w/Cushings & this is why I recognized some of the symptoms when this all started w/Vicki. It's also why I kept telling her I thought it might be Cushings but her vet at that time said it was not. We both assumed that the vet knew better than me.........scary, huh?

She isn't sure that this new vet really knows all that much about this disease & I think she would be more comfortable if that place in LA knows of a good vet down here that's had experience w/K9 Cushings.

I think just knowing that Janice can call me & I can post her questions here has made her feel a lot better.

I bought tea tree oil a while ago & I must have read some kind of warning about it because I was afraid to use it (it's still unopened). I think I bought it for a recipe for an all-natural flea spray & I think it says you can add a couple of drops of tea tree oil. I do use that flea spray but I never did add the tea tree oil. Guess I need to do some reading about it.

My thanks again to all of you.

[Sabre's Mum]

Sorry ... IMS= internal medicine specialist.

Yes ... tea tree oil is extremely toxic. I used it a few times as a VERY diluted solution for an ear cleaner for Sabre as we did not want to use steriodal based ear drops - I think it was only like a drop or two in a large bowl of water. Personally I would not use it on calcinosis cutis.

Love your avatar pic!

Angela

[4Vicki]

I looked up ACTH but couldn't pronounce that one.........

I bought the tea tree oil simply because this flea spray recipe said to add a drop or two for a shiny coat. Then I read some warnings about it so I never added it.

Janice said she had heard some bad things about it also & wanted to stay away from it so that's out for treating Vicki.

The avatar is my baby girl (well, she's almost 7 yo so she's no longer a baby). Really wonderful dog & sweet as could be. I've been very lucky in that the worst of her medical problems have been her allergies. She is allergic to everything but air.......& even that I wonder about! I have learned so much about canine allergies, trust me.......

Vicki goes in for a recheck sometime soon so will let you know how that goes. Perhaps she may wind up going to a specialist if she can get a name from the place up north.

Just 'cause I'm nosy: what is a normal ACTH? Wondering how high Vicki's numbers are.

[Harley PoMMom]

Just 'cause I'm nosy: what is a normal ACTH? Wondering how high Vicki's numbers are.

What a beautiful girl you have there!

Some labs may be different but the "norms" for an ACTH for a "healthy dog" are pre draw: 1.0-5.0 ug/dl and post draw: 8.0-20.0 ug/dl.

Love and hugs,
Lori