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Thread: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

  1. #1

    Red face Re: Just found out my dog has been diagnosed with Cushing's.

    Hi there,
    We just found out on Thurs. that our Llasa has Cushing's also. After several discussions with our vet about excessive drinking and frequent accidents in the house, he tested for Cushing's, which turned up positive for "pituitary" type. We started the Vetoryl, 30mg, 2x daily yesterday evening. We are concerned about the side effects also, but don't know of proven alternatives. We're watching our 12 year old "puppy" carefully, hoping that the meds work, but don't have a negative impact.
    It seemed like the dosage our vet chose, was a bit of a guess, because our dog, Tucker, is a medium size.
    We would really appreciate any knowledge and suggestions.
    Thank you,
    Dorene

  2. #2

    Default Re: Just found out my dog has been diagnosed with Cushing's.

    Loooooooove retail therapy lol. Even tho I bought more stuff for Gunther and my nephew than I did for myself.

    Dorene I would start another thread so that everyone can see your post, the people here are very knowledgeable and they have all helped me immensely, I'm treating Gunther with lysodren, but am sure the moms who are using the vetoryl will jump in and help you, be prepared for lots of questions, the more info you can give the more everyone can help you. Just breathe and take in the knowledge from the awesome folks on here!!!!

    Angela

  3. #3
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    Default Re: Just found out my dog has been diagnosed with Cushing's.

    Doreen,
    how much does Tucker weigh?
    Daisy is 11lbs and takes 5mg twice a day which seems to work for her.

    Every dog is different, but it's best to start on the low side and work up from there if necessary.

    At first, Daisy started showing improvement within 3 days but by the end of the week, she was always sleeping and refused to eat. These are signs to look for that indicate that the dose is too high. She was on 10mg twice a day which was too high.
    Valerie

    //^ ^\\ //^^\\
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    ❤ ♥
    Daisy Bella

    "My sunshine doesn't come from the skies, it comes from the love in my dog's eyes." - Author Unknown

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Just found out my dog has been diagnosed with Cushing's.

    Hello and welcome Doreen and furbaby.

    I am a bit concerned about the 30mg twice a day. Normal starting vetorly level recommendations now are 1mg/1lb. If you do twice a day dosing then that dose is split. So, say that your dog weigh 30lbs, for twice a day you would give 15mg in the morning and 15 mg in the evening. Unless your dog weight 60lbs, the dose you are starting at is on the very high side.
    Unfortunately we have found over the years an even very recently, that not all vets are as well versed in giving the medicines for cushings as they need to be. This tends to worry us because it is easy to see how too high of a dose can send a dog the wrong way into Addison's which is when they do not have enough cortisol in their bodies. The ONLY way to know if this has happened is via an ACTH test. Which needs to be done as soon as possible if you see any of the following symptoms, vomiting, diarrhea, refusal to eat, lethargic (which can get to the point where they can't even stand if it goes way way low and is at that point life threatening). So not to scare you, but to make you aware of the dynamics of the drug and what you need to watch for. I know I would question that dose with my vet, because I did question it when they wanted to start my dog at 19lbs on 30mg and an IMS that we went to see said no, not that high to start.

    Can you tell us what tests where done to diagnose cushing and what the results were? Also any abnormal high/low blood or urine testing. So many things can mimic cushings disease and it is a very hard one to get an accurate diganosis of. Diabetes (glucose test), thyroid (T4 test), kidney issues or any other problem all need to be ruled out first. (to include UTI that needs to be diagnosed in a dog with dilute urine by culture).

    Hope to hear back from you soon and I'm sure that many more will be by to welcome you too.

    Sharlene and Molly Muffin
    Sharlene and the late great diva - Molly muffin (always missed and never forgotten)

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
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    Iowa
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    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Hello and welcome, so glad to have you here with the rest of us cush moms and dads....you will get lots of questions answered and lots of encouragement too...settle in, we are here for you and your furbaby!
    Letti and Angel Simba, Meeko too!

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Hello and welcome from me too!

    You have come to the right place! There is a huge arsenal of K9Cushing's angels standing by to help and stay with you every step of the way. They love details, test results, any information you can get your hands on. The more the better.

    So again welcome to you and Tucker,

    Kathy and Buddy

  7. #7
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    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Doreen:
    I wanted to say hello and welcome you to the forum, where you will gain knowledge and get much support for Cushings problems. I am a bit concerned about a Lasha Apso being on 30 mg of Vetoryl twice daily. In my opinion with their size, unless your dog is extremely large I would not even start them on 30 mg once a day. Is your Vet experienced with Cushings? Most aren't you know.These are powerful drugs, and should be started on the lower end of the scale to minimize side effects. My dog is a little under 18 lbs. and she started on 10mg. I am convinced that is why she did so well. Her body had a chance to adapt to the drug. She is now on 30, had I started her there I feel would have been asking for trouble. Please check this out. Do you have prednisone in case she has too much Vetoryl, and do you know the signs? Lethargy, diarrehea, vomiting, not eating. I hope you have good luck with your baby. Blessings
    Patti
    Tipper and Tipper's Mom


    "The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
    Mahatma Ghandi

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
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    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Hi Welcome to the group.
    Amy & my sweet boy Boriss (Cushings Diagnosed 8/30/12 & Trilo start 20mg 9/8/12 switched to Vetoryl 30mg 10/8/12)
    Grateful for every day I have with my baby Boriss. I am lucky to have so much love in my life.

  9. #9
    Join Date
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    West Australia
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    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Hi Dorene and welcome to the group (though the reason for being here sucks )

    If you feel like your vet "guessed" the dose, then the biggest advice I have for you now, is to ask for a referral to an Internal Medicine Specialist (IMS) and seek the expert advice right from the beginning! Trust me, the level of confidence you will feel in the treatment is so vastly superior it's just amazing.

    Anyway, as Sharlene said earlier, please be very careful watching Tucker as the dose does seem particularly high. Lhasa's aren't typically big animals, so I would be concerned that the starting dose of 30mg 2x a day is going to be too much. My boy Fraser is a 20lb Maltese x Scottish terrier and was started on 60mg once a day. His cortisol dropped too low (picked up by a blood test before the signs got too bad) and was dropped to a dose of 10mg 2x daily by a specialist. His dose has just today now been dropped to 5mg 2x daily. Now remember, all dogs do react differently (Fraser is particularly sensitive to trilostane/vetoryl), but I would still be very concerned about that dose!

    The best way folks here can help you out is if you are able to provide us with a bit of extra information. Could you get copies of the blood tests that your vet performed for the diagnosis of cushing's? If you are uncomfortable asking for them, I told my vet it was so I could keep all of Fraser's records together in case he had an after hours emergency and I had to seek help elsewhere. While this is all true, it is also a great idea for you to watch over your vet's shoulder. They are human and like the rest of us, prone to mistakes; particularly if they do not have a huge amount of experience with cushing's and the associated drugs.

    Anyway, once you have the blood results, if you can post the results here (usually just the results that were flagged as unusual) with the reference ranges listed (as pathology labs differ in testing protocols and reference ranges) it will give everyone a better idea of how to help you out with any specific questions you may have. In addition, and very importantly, how much does Tucker weigh?

    Anyway, this is just the beginning of the questions that will follow so bear with us, but again, the more information you can provide, the better the advice you could get.

    In the meantime, I hope Tucker is going well, just please watch him closely.
    Last edited by SoggyDoggy; 04-20-2013 at 11:50 AM. Reason: spelling
    Naomi, Oscar and Marcie.
    RIP my beautiful Fraser - passed October 1 2013. Original diagnosis Cushing's, but taken from us with rapidly aggressive liver cancer.

  10. #10

    Default Re: Tucker 12 y/o -Llasa-Vetory

    Hi everyone,
    Thank you so much for jumping in. Tucker weights a little over 30 lbs. so by what you are saying, 30 mg. 2 a day is too high. It's Sat. afternoon and he's had 4 doses so far. His stool is starting to become, (sorry) soft and more liquify, (if that's a word?). Being that it's Sat. I'm not sure what to do. Can you tell me about the "Internal Medicine Specialist" mentioned in one of the posts??? I am aware of the side effects to look for, but not sure if they occur within the first few days or as the dog is on the medication for a longer period of time. Do you think I should call the vet's answering service and question the seemingly double dose prescribed?
    OMG

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