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Thread: lily

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Posts
    15

    Default lily

    Not sure how this forum works, new to all of it. Lily is our beloved 6 yr old chihuahua. Found out she has Cushings and began her on Vetoryl today. I am worried about side effects. She is so small (6 lbs) and is on 10 mgs, which seems high. Diagnosis was found through blood work, abdominal xrays and ultrasound, then finally a stim (?) test. So, 700 dollars later, here we are.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Posts
    15

    Default Re: lily

    I wanted to post Lily's ACTH test results, as it was all greek to me. Does anyone make sense of it?

    Time 1: 830
    Time 2: 930

    Cortisol Sample 1: 2.1 1.0 - 5.0 ug/dL
    Cortisol Sample 2: >50.0 8.0 - 17.0 ug/dL

    Result verified


    Note, they only did a 2 hr test, and i see most dogs went through a 4 hour test. Was that because her numbers were high? Plus this 10 mg dose was given because that was the lowest the pills come in.

    side note, my vet seems annoyed because I am asking lots of questions and for the test results. Do other people get this, or should I look for another vet??????

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Gulfport, FL
    Posts
    127

    Default Re: lily

    Welcome Lily,

    There will be lots of very helpful and much more cushings educated people than myself posting to you today asking all sorts of questions. Gather all of your test results from your vet visits (labs, ultrasound, stim test, etc...) and be ready to post them. My girl and I are still trying to find the proper dosage of Vetoryl (Trilostane), it's been a couple of months since we started. As a newbie (take this for what it's worth) I would have felt more comfortable starting out at 5 mg once a day but don't freak out you have time to figure things out so don't call the vet just yet (We all panic in the beginning). The most important thing that I can leave you with before the experts get here is watch for any of the listed side effects and re stim test somewhere in the 10 to 14 day range from now. My girl at 57 lbs started on 60 mg which dropped her levels to much, stopped for 7 days, restarted on 30 mg, and have now bumped that up to 35 mg. It sounds like you're on the correct path and have found the best place to educate yourself.

    Good Luck - Darrell and Lolita

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Gulfport, FL
    Posts
    127

    Default Re: lily

    Lily,

    You were posting your second post while I was replying to your first. I didn't stim test my girl before she started Vetoryl so I never got a baseline. To answer your test question (someone correct me if I'm wrong) when your vet is ACTH stim testing with compounded gel the total elapsed time is two hours and if using cortrosyn instead it's one hour. You mentioned dollars so I assume you are in the states, Vetoryl is available in 5 mg 30 count from Allivet for $32.99.

    http://www.antechdiagnostics.com/Res...ctionTestGuide

    Darrell and Lo
    Last edited by dsbailey; 06-09-2016 at 08:49 AM.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Georgia
    Posts
    15,292

    Default Re: lily

    Hello and welcome! I am battling a virus this week and am only able to post short notes, but I do want to tell you that if you live in the U.S., Vetoryl capsules are available in 5 mg. doses, and that would have been my personal preference in terms of a starting point for a dog of Lily's size. Here's a link showing the 5 mg. dose:

    http://www.dechra-us.com/products/de...ilostane)-5-mg

    The combination of your vet's lack of patience with your questions and also lack of knowledge about the 5 mg. capsule is not encouraging, I must admit . Is this a vet with whom you have a good history?

    Marianne

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Washington
    Posts
    1,063

    Default Re: lily

    Welcome to you and Lily! Darrell and Marianne have gotten you off to a good start with the information and questions they've posted. And unfortunately, I also don't have a lot of time to respond right now but I wanted to let you know we are here and "listening".

    Do you have copies of the lab results? If so, could you post the abnormalities that lead to the diagnosis?

    Another alternative for dosing is to get a compounded dose of Trilostane which would be available at other dosage amounts. I have used 11, 8 and now 6.5mg doses of Trilostane, which allows for more fine-tuning as necessary.

    Hugs to you...
    Shana

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    York, PA.
    Posts
    11,036

    Default Re: lily

    Hi and welcome to you and Lily from me as well!

    As Shana mentioned, getting copies of those tests and posting the results here would be great. Also could you tell us more about sweet Lily as this allows us to provide you with better feedback. And the way we find this additional information is through a lot of questions so here are some from me

    Could you tell us what symptoms Lily was displaying that led you our your vet to test for Cushing's in the first place? Does Lily have any underlying illnesses? Is she taking herbs/supplements/medications? Was Lily diagnosed with pituitary or the adrenal form of Cushing's? Were any abnormalities found on the ultrasound and were the adrenal glands visualized?

    Safe and effective treatment requires an experienced vet and an educated pet owner and it is when one or both is missing that dogs get into trouble. Having a vet that is willing to work with you as a team and that takes the time to explain things to you are also very important, so the fact that Lily's vet is missing both of these critical components is quite disturbing to me.

    Vetoryl/Trilostane is a strong drug, and yes, it does have some pretty scary side effects, however, adverse effects are minimized when the proper treatment protocols are followed. We have many members that are treating their cushdog with Vetoryl/Trilostane and are experiencing success.

    Please know we are here to help in any way we can and do not hesitate to ask all the questions you want. I am providing a link to our Resource forum which has a wealth of information regarding Cushing's and also includes articles written by some of the most renown veterinarians that specialize in endocrinology http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=10 Feel free to print anything out.

    Hugs, Lori

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Florida
    Posts
    1,452

    Default Re: lily

    Hi! I wanted to join everyone else in welcoming you and Lily. I, too, am concerned about your vet's attitude. Treating Cushing's can be very confusing and really requires a team effort. With regard to obtaining copies of Lily's test results, my perspective is that you are the paying client and you are owed copies. You are not asking for a copy of her whole file, just the pages that have the test results. Some vets will scan and e-mail these pages.

    Hang in there!
    Judy H. (Always "Maggie and Abbie's Mom" & now "Sadie Sue's Mom")
    Venice, FL

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Posts
    15

    Unhappy Re: lily

    i posted Lily's test results, after my first post. Unfortunately, I don't know how to take picture and post on here. I gave her the first 10 mg pill today. So far so good. The vet said if she did have side effects, they probably wouldn't occur for a few days. I intially took her in because she had diarrehea. He took blood test that showed high liver enzymes. I should mention, Lily is a rescue, we have had her two years, and the vet estimates her age 6-7. About her abdominal xrays, the dr said they didn't show any masses (what he was looking for) and cost $200. So then, he did an ultrasound, looking at her adrenal glands and liver, etc. Her liver is enlarged, but again, not too concerned. Then he did the stim (ACTH)test, results in my 2nd post. I am annoyed by his attitude, like I shouldn't be questioning him. He said the initial dose is 6 to 18 mgs, so he went with 10. Also, I asked why he didn't do the 4 hr test, he said the results were such, he didn't need to.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Posts
    15

    Default Re: lily

    Part 2, Lily has never seemed "sick" but she started acting starved and begging for food about 6 month ago. Plus, she started having the pot bellied appearance. She also gained 1 pound.

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