Zoe By My Side- Our Journey with Cushings

Well of course Mom would be in the rare percentile, I would expect nothing else from a member of my family:D:D:D:D:D:D:rolleyes:

Ahh this girl of mine, she is trying to play with Koko, did not want to stop her chicken walk.

I dont like these tremors, not sure what is going on, her hair is growing like crazy and as I said her tail is growing hair - it seems like everyday her fur is thicker and longer like it is growing before our eyes but now we have these tremors.

I am trying to pay more attention to when and how, etc. I think I will start journaling.

Oh- guys- one thing I noticed- I usually cant give Zoe melatonin as it affects her dry eye disease but with the time change I have to resort to using it for a week. I have also now noticed that the melatonin makes her drink more water.

Just wanted to mention it in case anyone using melatonin and lignans still sees increased thirst- it could possibly be the melatonin as in Zoe's case.

Who knew a dog biscuit was worth more than cheese or chicken? I noticed when Koko comes with Zoe for her vet tests they have a jar of biscuits on the counter so if he sees a dog he gets worked up and excited I would pull one out of their jar and let him gnaw on it circumventing his brain wiring. So I bought a box of them and I carry some in my pocket when we walk so if we see a squirrel or a dog or any critter I use the biscuit for him to gnaw on and he forgets about the critter.

Well, now he is upset if we don't come across a critter so he stops at a house he knows is home to two dogs, refuses to move, smells the air for five minutes and then runs to me "Yup, Mom, I know their are dogs there, can I have my biscuit now?" Then he proceeds to give me his undivided attention while walking the rest of the way home.

I laughed so hard at the boy, I have never had him walk along next to me focused on only me the whole time- over a biscuit- who knew?

Zoe slept till six, I had to wake her up; either she adjusted to the time change or I screwed up and gave her melatonin twice:rolleyes:

Lol what a morning:):):) Always looking for that one good thing- today we had two already:D:D:D

Addy:
That is a cute story and show how fast these little ones catch onto something. Tipper hates dry dog bone treats, but if they give me one at the bank for her, she fights me over it. I have to throw them out the window for the critters to eat as I don't give Tipper anything that I do not know who made it and where it comes from. I have been wanting to try some melatonin for Tipper. What kind do you use, and how much do you give them? Do you put Zoe's in her food or what? Blessings
Patti

Patti- I posted about melatonin on your thread but forgot to tell you, I wrap the pill in some turkey or potato and she eats it.

I never bought Koko biscuits as I too am fussy about what he eats, maybe that is why he is so happy about them- they are like junk food:) Maybe it is the equivalent of potato chips or a candy bar after all his whole good, healthy, foods LOL

Two good things in one day. You have hit the jackpot!:D I love the biscuit story. Such a smart little guy you have there.

Rosie hasn't figured out the time change. Buddy always knew! She now goes to bed and hour earlier and still wakes up after I'm up in the morning. :p

I hope your mom is doing better. xxxxx

haha...:D love that story. Never under estimate the power of a dog biscuit!!! ;)

Barbara

Addy:
Just wondering if you have snow on the ground? We do we had a small storm for Lake Michigan come down our way last nite. We have about an inch or so. Hope Zoe is enjoying the cooler weather. Blessings
Patti

Hi Barbara, Kathy, Patti,

Nope no snow yet but possibly Monday and Tuesday, hard frost though. I still have to cut down my peonies:o:o I have so much winterzing garden stuff that I never got to and I keep trying to hand trim Zoe's hair as she is going to get snow balls stuck in it if it stays this long.

Patti- my toes were frozen after our walks this am

Addy:
I love peonies and have white and red ones. You will have to break out the electric sox!! Blessings
Patti

Snow! :( yikes, already. So not ready for that. We've had the frosts going, with the temperatures below freezing at night and some days mighty chilly too, but no snow yet. whew glad of that.

My yard is looking a bit um neglected. Funny you mentioned the longer fur, I just called and booked Molly in for next Wed to get her hair clipped and made all pretty. She is looking like a rag doll!

Guess we are all trying to adjust to shorter daylight hours, colder weather, and in general, hibernation till spring. (well that is what I'd like, just don't get to have) :)

hugs all, stay warm!
Sharlene and molly muffin

NO SNOW EVER HERE! It has often been 85° at Christmas time.:D xxxx

Nice and cool here...last night they mentioned a Nor'easter would bring some snow here next week. Today they are backing off that report. Hope you get time to winterize your garden. Peonies are amazing flowers, I got married in June and we used tons of peonies (pink, white and fuschia) at the wedding (way back when).
Glad that Zoe's fur is growing so well that you need to trim for the snow! :p

Barbara

I love peonies too and I have some breathing room- the snow is cancelled:D

Call me crazy but I am weaning Zoe off her metronidazole. I know I just got her stable and all with a good UPC but something is going on with my girl and that is the first place I am looking, rightly or wrongly. I have to pick my battles - so holding my breath, we have done one day on and one day off twice so far. If her liver is not good ( and we know there are suspicious spots on it) the metronidazole can build up in in the liver, the liver cant get rid of it as fast. So I dont want to cut the dose down daily but allow her to have days without so the toxins dont build up as much. At least this is my theory for now, from what I have read. I may be wrong but I wont know unless I try. If I'm wrong then at least I dont have to wonder and think about it anymore and I can move on.

They were wrong about her skin, her hair, her intemediate hormones, I think they are wrong about her legs too.

I'll let you know how I make out;)

TGIF and yes Sharlene, I wish Zoe could go with Molly for a spa day but I dont think she could handle it. We will have to do with my scissors job- she's a bit uneven but hey- no one will notice except Koko:D:D:D:D

Scientist/researcher Addy is at work again!:D You'll be able to publish your own book! Bailey likes the biscuits from the drive thru window at the bank...but they're too big for her, so I have to break them for her......they don't taste too bad.....:p

Hooray for more hair! I'm in favor of hair. 82 here today. It's going to be a rude awakening on Friday.

Enjoy your weekend!

Love,
Sus

You do what you think is right. Zoe is still here and it is because of your love and caring.
Hugs Sonja and Angel Apollo

Thanks dearest Sonja, I figure nothing ventured, nothing gained, if it does not work out, well then I know and I dont wonder anymore. Unless her ACTH test is going to give me a surprise I am not prepared for.:confused::confused:

Sus- break out the flannels, you will be cold come next weekend!!!

I'll go check your weather report for BB.:D:D:D:D

I just wanted to pop in and say hello to a sweet and missed friend. Well i miss everyone here altogether so hello family.

Dear Addy, hope Zoe, Koko, hubby and mom are feeling good. I think of you always.
Tightest hugs. Xo Jeanette

Hey Addy

I think that's a very sensible approach for Miss Zoe, if she can handle having it intermittently rather than daily, that's got to be better for her system. You know her so well you will be able to tell if isn't working

Love the fact she has grown so much hair she needs a mom haircut special :D

Hope your mom is doing ok and they have figured out the medication.

Hugs to you and kisses to the fur babies

Mel
Xxxx

Addy:
I know how you feel after researching these things and finding out the consequences of using them. I know you will weigh the options and do what is best for Zoe. She has such a wonderful mom to look after her. We are having 60 mile and hour wind gusts, it is really blowing hard here, and the temperature is dropping rapidly. Blessings
Patti

Hey Jeanette, how is my sweet friend? How is your family doing?

Mel - so good to hear from you, I am worrried about these tremors she is having, not just her legs, so thought I would start there.

Patti- we had those awful winds yesterday and Friday, the only good thing about them was they blew most of the leaves down:)

Happy Sunday!!!

Leaves! The bane of my world right now! I have not one tree on my lot other than an immature Banaba (Crepe Myrtle) but my lot is covered in leaves! For a while I could step between the leaves to clean the yard but not now! Even raking yesterday, I woke up with the yard looking like it didn't even get touched! :rolleyes: The fun comes in when I'm poop scooping 'cause of two trees - the Sweet Gum whose leaves are the same color as Squirt's poop and the Hackberry whose leaves darken and curl, looking just like Soph's poop! So I often find I am deliberately stepping in poop to scoop a leaf! :eek::p Since I miss as often as I find, raking is loads of fun, too....thank goodness for long rubber gloves! :p

Addy:
Are you bracing for the first snow of the season? Hope you got to those peonies. How has Zoe been doing? Hope you two had a good weekend together. Blessings
Patti

it is sticking to the grass and my car:eek::eek: I will have to clean off my car when I leave work:mad::mad:

This is way too soon just on the heels of changing off daylight saving time!!!!

Plus, I think hubby forgot how to use Zoe's walking harness aid:eek::eek:

Zoe's poos have been fine with the metro every other day but she is panting more. It used to be that she panted when her IBD bothered her but maybe she is warm because of all this new thick hair, she is not used to having it.

Also, another problem came up, she is taking longer to eat her food so her Vetoryl is in the food longer and kind of melting. I noticed this last night so now I have to put it in a small dish with a small amount of food which works fine but she is scheduled for a stim Thursday and I am concerned she has not been getting the correct dose at night because of the melting Vetoryl capsuls:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Always something!:):):o:rolleyes:

Hi Addy,
I wait for Trixie to finish her food and then I hand feed her one blob of food with the capsules...would this work for Zoe?
Then you don't have to worry that the pills are starting to melt.

So you are getting snow! :D They say snow showers here for tomorrow coming in with the very cold air. Today is fairly mild. Takes forever for anything to stick on the streets here too many hot pipes running under the pavement.
Hope you don't get too much this early in the season. ;)

Barbara

Hi Barbara,
I was hand feeding her but then I have to give her more meat=protein and with potatoes and even the turkey, she was starting to spit out the pill and a few times Koko almost ate it -so I started putting it back in her food which used to not be a problem because she inhaled it in 30 seconds. Now she is taking longer and is very messy when she eats. This morning I fed her and then saved a bit on a small plate and dropped the pill on top and she ate it right away without spitting it out.
She never used to spit pills out. She is starting to do that more and more. I just am worried as I don’t know how this all may affect her stim.

The snow stopped:D:D

Would you feel better if you postponed the stim for another week? Just to be sure she is getting the right dose or do you want to get this over and done with?

I hate it when it's 50/50 and hard to tell what is the best thing to do. I'd rather a good solid 80% one way or the other at lease. LOL

YUK sticking to the car!! :( Cry me some crocodile tears over that.

hugs,
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

Hi Sharlene,

I would have to postpone for more than that, I cant take off next week and I have to book 3 weeks ahead. I did not want to put it off that long with her tremors. I don't know what to do. I even cut her dose down at night for five days the end of October because I worried maybe she was a bit too low. Hard to gage sometimes.

Maybe I better keep this appointment but know the results could be off. I'm not sure how many times the pills started melting.

Oh drat, the tremors are continuing even though you've changed the meta to every other day?

3 weeks, yes I can see that wouldn't actually work out if the tremors are continuing. Is she doing the tramadol every other day or as needed? Noticed that Trish said that Flynns twitching decreased or stopped once the tramadol was stopped. I know that isn't an option with Zoe, but wondered if it could have an affect on her, like tremors. Something to maybe think about.

yea, if you can't get off next week, then it would be way too long for any kind of peace of mind. It is and can be very frustrating trying to know what is best to try or do at any given moment. You really have done so wonderfully though with Zoe and knowing what will work best with her. Trial phases are Not a bad thing as you have shown time and again. It is sometimes the only way to really figure things out. Even as long as these vets have treated some pups, they still don't live with them and know them in that every day way.

hugs Addy
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

Addy,
Have you tried sealing the pill in a small piece of pill pocket, then putting into a small amount of her food. Once she's downed that, giving her the rest. Sealing the pill would keep it from dissolving much longer. Just a thought......

Buddy had head tremors. They made me feel helpless until we all figured out what was causing them. Thinking of you my dear and sending hugs and Rosie slurps.:D. Xxxx

It is so hard right now, most of September and October are a blur, I was eating in the car while driving from the hospital to work, I couldn't take care of Zoe like I usually do, my heart was breaking for my mom and my little girl whom needed me but I could not be there for her.

Zoe was growing thick, long hair, even her tail started growing hair, it was amazing how she looked no one could believe my Zoe but her back legs were getting stiffer and stiffer. I was alternating the tramadol after cutting back completely on it. She would only get a small nightly dsoe 2-3 times a week. Then her bad front leg started trembling terribly. Mostly after dinner, she would lie down for a while and then when she would get up her bad front leg would tremble so hard her head would shake from it.

Then her head started trembling without her front leg shaking, mostly at night when I would get home from work. One night she fell to her side, I thought she had had a seizure. I could not watch her closely so I was not sure what exactly happened. I cut her nightly vetoryl dose in half for five nights, she seemed better. I put her back on the full dose and then things slowly started getting bad again. With the time change, she went a full week with no tramadol, gave her only melatonin, she still had the head tremors and the front leg shaking.

I cut back the metronidazole and now she is panting more, poos are good and I dont see the head tremors as much but that front legs still shakes badly on and off, usually when she first wakes up from sleeping. So I gave her tramadol for the last two nights which helped her front leg.

She is not drinking much water, she waited at the door this morning for her chicken walk, she is much slower at eating but that could be her legs, I just raised her bowl again, she is standing better when eating but still did not inhale dinner tonight. Koko finishes long before she does, they used to finish at the same time. She sleep all night, no accidents, no issues, her reverse Mohegan is filling in, you cant believe the new growth on her tail.

If her cortisol is sky high why would she be growing hair on her tail and why is she not at the water bowl first thing in the morning. I always knew her cortisol was higher because she would get a drink first thing in the morning. So I thought maybe she has drifted too low for her.

Or it could be the spot on her liver is cancer and that is causing these problems.


Maybe I can call and see if I could get in next week. I dont want to take her the week of Thanksgiving, it will be a mess there unless it was Monday.

So, I cant know what to do for Zoe until I know more about where she is which means anlother round of doctor consults, listening to opinions, researching and making a decision. It has to start somewhere and I dont know how much time I have before everything blows up again with mom.

It is just hard right now.

((((((((((HUGS)))))))))) I am so sorry Addy. Know that we're here for you, always!:p

I know that helpless feeling oh so well. It's so hard to watch them decline and not know how to help, or ever whether you can help. You have always been Zoe's best advocate, trust yourself. We do!

As for your Mom, that is all stressful in itself. She knows that you love her and are doing your best.

Sending you, love, strength and healing energy. xxxxx

So, from what you are saying, I think I agree, her cortisol is Not too high, but might be a tad low for her. She did better when you cut the nightly vetroyl in half. There was no change in the shaking when the tramadol was taken away and it is helping her front let, so probably worth while to continue that and it isn't contributing to her tremors. She might have fallen over and if her front leg is bothering her that much, then could be a pain type of moment. Sounds like the metronidazole might be the contributor to the head tremors.
If the cortisol is lower than where Zoe needs it to be, it could be causing her to feel more of the problem in her front leg too. So maybe you Can go ahead with test now especially if you are looking to see if it is too low. Would be different if you suspected it of being too high.

Does all of that sound about right?

Hi Addy-
I don't have any words of wisdom. You seem to be where we were with Palmer.....lots of questions and only expensive ways to get any answers. And we did just what you are doing...try to eliminate one thing as a problem at a time. Be sure to journal every change you make, no matter how small. I kept Excel spreadsheets on Palmer. Once they got set up, it made it much easier.
When I die, I want to come back as Addy's puppy!!!:D
Love,
Sus

Addy,
I think you should get the stim test as planned because you will feel better once you know what the numbers are. I can't imagine the situation with the medication melting would change anything that drastically on the test as long as you can get her to take the pill/s properly the day of the test.
Sounds like you will feel less stressed if you know Zoe's level.
It's so hard to be pulled in many directions, you have a lot going on and I know for me if things with the dog are even a little off I feel the stress level escalate like crazy, especially when there are other people that need you. Take a deep breath...everything will be okay! :)

Barbara

Addy,
Sending you big hugs!

Addy,
See what the numbers say. They might lead to some answers. Hugs.

Addy:
I think it will drive you crazy if you do not know Zoe's numbers. I think she will be ok if she get her pill the day of the test. Blessings
Patti

Addy, when is the last time Zoe had a full senior panel? If not so recent, that's probably where I'd want to start.

last January, we will have one done Thursday because it looks like we are going Thursday as planned since we all voted :D:D
Thank you all for your input, it helps. She definitely got her meds now, she was happy this morning with bright eyes after 3 nights on Tramadol. No pain pills for Little Miss tonight. Then I can see tomorrow if her leg shakes and then pain pill Wednesday night so she can handle car ride and test. I will talk to them about making her stand on a table for blood draw and injection. Perhaps they can help her with that somehow, she will have trouble doing it.

We will get it sorted out. I need to put emotions aside so I can think clearly. You all help me to do that so thank you.:):)

After all, I am determined Little Miss will have her Zoe tree this year. I am not ready for her to leave us.

Need to read more so I can catch up on the latest but sending a monster hug to you my friend xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx :)