Buddy, The Mighty Lizard Hunter - Suspected Pituitary Macro Tumor

Trish, My head knows that I am losing him, but my heart can't accept it. He is absolutely fine, until I get a reminder that he isn't.:(
Kathy

Well I know the heart gives us our most intense emotions so stick with that sweet and tell the head to shut the heck up!!! One day at a time and pack as much love into those days as we can :)

Oh Kathy, loved the ramp story, your Buddy is so smart and so precious! I'm so sorry that his legs are weak, praying for his strength to return so he can go up and down the ramp, sending prayers for you too and a huge hug, this is so hard for you....

Hi Kathy,

Checking in on you and Buddy. Let us know how things are going when you can, sweetie.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

Thinking of you Kathy. It's so hard to see any struggling...and I hope Buddy is not struggling today..I hope he is having a good day doing whatever he wants...guarding or hunting or just having a restful nap.
What you're going through is so difficult..we're all here for you.
Barbara

Oh Kathy, somehow I missed seeing your post until now. Want you to know that I'm sitting right beside you, too. This is such a rollercoaster ride. I am hoping that things are going better for you two today. But we are nere, no matter what.

Marianne

Oh Kathy :(

Well, we know it is a matter of tweaking to get the right dose at the right times. So, maybe this is part of it. You give him the pred in the morning this week, so are you noticing this in the evening/afternoon time frame? or all day? I'm wondering if it is due to going from the twice a day dosing or if it the Amount of dosage. If that makes any sense. I hope it does. It's so hard to get these things right, but I'm thinking the progress you saw with the other dosing is reason to be hopeful that the pred can keep the tumor controlled for awhile at least.
This is so hard on your and Buddy when the reminders give you a kick. :(


Big Hugs
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

I'm new today to the forum but have been reading all about what you are going through. I can only say I'm thinking about you and Buddy.

Thank you all!:)

I reached the vet. The receptionists all know my voice now!:eek:
Buddy's Prednisone dose is being tweaked.......

Back to 1/2 a 5mg. Tab. Twice a day until symptoms resolve (for the next 3 or 4 days) Then continue with the maintenance dose below.
Maintenance dose -
1/2 tab. Once per day, 1/2 tab. twice per day - alternating daily.

Kathy

I hope you see an improvement with the tweaking. We are all here. :)

Dont allow your head to go there. I know that is hard. Enjoy each moment, see the good, forget the bad.

We'll hear about bird chasing tomorrow, I know it.;)

Hi Kathy, good the vet got back to you so quick! Good on them :) Hope the wee tweak improves the mobility again, it can be a fine line we wak with dosages eh. A little bit this way, a little bit that way can make all the difference in symptom control. Has is less wobbly today or much the same? xxx

Buddy's mobility has been fine today. I haven't made any changes as of yet. I'm going to wait and see how he does this evening. I called the doctor anyway because I knew today would be his last day that he's going to be there. He will be gone most of July. I needed a backup plan just in case. Now that I know how, I can go ahead and tweak Buddy's prednisone dosage when I need to. It is all somewhat complicated because all changes have to come through the neurosurgeon who is overseeing Buddy's treatment plan. I contact my doctor who calls her and reports. She then tells him how to proceed. Buddy is his first Trilo/Pred patient. He hadn't even heard of this treatment before I sent him Dr. B's email recommending that we do it. That's when he contacted the neurosurgeon that did Buddy's neural evaluation and she agreed to supervise his treatment. This is cutting edge stuff and not something a GP vet usually attempts.
To recap.... Buddy has been walking normally today. I will have to tweak his prednisone dosage if he has any more mobility issues. I have the instructions from the neurosurgeon to do that. You don't just add prednisone to Triostane willy-nilly and expect it to help. There is a very delicate balance involved and each pup has unique needs of their own. It's quite a process.
Kathy

Yes it is quite a process, so it is lucky Buddy has a super Mom to monitor it for him and get on top of any changes that crop up!! You rock Kathy :D

Kathy...Good for you to talk to the vet asap and get this tweaking worked out! That in itself is a jumped hurdle and will give you some piece of mind going forward. :)
So glad ole Budster is having a good day today! :p
Barbara

Smart girl Kathy, getting this sorted out while your vet is still here and getting the recommendation from the specialist too.
You are doing wonderfully in keeping all of this straight. Buddy is a lucky boy. :)

hugs,
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

Addy, How can I forget the bad when it repeats?:( Buddy lost his mobility again abruptly this evening. His legs gave out on him and he's unable to walk without falling over. Not only did his legs give out on him, he is having a hard time settling to sleep. I could hear him crying and moaning, so I know he's in pain. I have the new prednisone instructions for tweaking Buddy's medication that I got today. It has him going back to twice a day dosage until his symptoms are resolved. The doctor thinks it will be about three or four days. There will be a maintenance dosage after that, which is somewhat different. I posted the change earlier on my thread. I probably should've waited and started tomorrow, but since he's having difficulty walking tonight and seems to be in pain, I went ahead and gave him the second dose of Prednisone. I also gave him one quarter of a tramadol tablet. Buddy is also panting a lot tonight. To be fair it is hot. It was over 100° here today. I have to get him controlled because watching him suffer tears my heart out. I chose this treatment plan to give him a better quality of life for the time he has left. If I can't do that, I have to let him go. I am not strong enough to do that. Right now I'm sitting on the floor petting him hoping that the meds will kick in and he will be able to go to sleep. He is still making crying noises. I can give him another quarter of tramadol if I need to, but I'm hoping that the prednisone will kick it and reduce whatever swelling is causing the pain. It is really going to be hard to get in all of his SEB dosages around so much medication and he needs that to. I am totally overwhelmed right now. I think I need a few of those tramadol myself.:o

It has been about an hour since I gave him the prednisone and tramadol. He is walking much better and isn't crying for the moment, but he won't lay down and settle either. The prednisone seems to be helping. The meds have upset his stomach and I can't give him any SEB for at least another hour or so. It is going to be another long night. I think I need divine intervention from the angel brigade.
Kathy

I am here, holding your hand.

Hoping those pills have kicked in and he has settled so you can get some sleep.

The effect of the pred was quite fast first time around so praying that's the case this time

Big hug to you and a gentle rub to the little man

Mel
Xxxxx

Oh Mel, I am so glad that you are there. :)I have been thinking of you.
Big hugs,
Kathy

That blinking heat wave is not going to help things I wouldn't think

Tia had such a tough time with our heat, I can't imagine what it must be like in 100. I would fry, I can't cope with heat either..

Has he settled down a bit now?

Mel
Xxxxx

Remember that the bad days remind us why we are so grateful for good days.

It shouldn't be like this, its so bloody unfair it's untrue but think of what improvement you have seen and try not to dwell on right now, you reduced his medicine as per instructions so we now know that dose isn't the right one.

Bigger tighter hug.
Mel
Xxxx

We have dry heat here. It cools down at night so it's not too bad. During the day it's AC all the way. The best time for the pool is in the evening when the sun sets. Yes, Buddy is lying quietly now.
Kathy

He was doing great until his prednisone was cut back to once per day. He lasted several days and did okay on once per day, but then everything fell apart. They were trying to get to his lowest possible dose. We went too low. The swelling around the tumor came back. It comes back suddenly if it isn't controlled.
Kathy

And your brain is in overdrive... Are you doing ok?

I know it's hard but you should try and get a couple of hours cause your little hunter will probably still wake up at 6 and we don't want you going days without sleep again.

At least you don't have the burden of work to worry about next week so you can get this sorted for him.

Buddy is not asleep, or he's moaning in his sleep. No I am not doing okay. There is no way I can sleep when I hear him making those noises. Yes summer vacation is a godsend. Otherwise I would have to get up in four hours and go to work. I've done it before.
Kathy

I know you need to get on with your day. You do not have to stay with me Mel. Thank you for visiting and keeping me company. Love you lots. Belly rubs to Boycie.;)

I thought he had settled down, would never say sleep if he's moaning no way I would be able to either.

I don't have to go anywhere yet, I don't want to either, I think I can relate to how you are feeling and I know those long nights, they can be very lonely.

I am here too Kathy, back early from the dinner party. So I will be here for hours yet, so I will be checking your thread like crazy. It does sound like the Prednisone is kicking in pretty quick, if he was still sore I would give the extra Tramadol if he is allowed it, hopefully he will go to sleep and wake up with the full effects of the Pred on board. Have you given him something sweet, just in case it was his blood sugar dropping?

Hey Trish, nice to see you real time.

Don't go quiet on us Kathy, how you both doing now?

I didn't think about his blood sugar and his hypoglycemia. He usually gets head tremors when that happens, But it does affect his ability to walk. I gave him's a little food with his meds. If his blood sugar was low it's probably better now. If it is blood sugar, It usually doesn't happen two nights in a row, so I'm thinking it's probably the tumor and the prednisone problem. He is also been getting many more meals than usual because I've added SEB three times per day. I mix canned food with that.
Kathy

A little smear of that syrup you give him wouldn't hurt though, then we can tick off that we have covered that. Smear a little on his gums. Probably not, as you say no tremours, but its an easy thing to do and won't hurt him if its not that. :)

His stomach is upset due to the meds. I can hear him make burping noises. I don't know if I should give him a dose of SEB with a little food to settle his stomach or give him the other quarter of the tramadol. If I give the tramadol I can't give him the SEB as I would have wait another two hours before he can have it.
Kathy

I don't know if I should give him the corn syrup when his stomach is already upset. I don't know much tonight. It is 2:07 in the morning here.
Kathy

How fast does the SEB usually work for him? If you think he is in more discomfort from his tummy than pain from any other place I would give the SEB first and try and settle down that if its the immediate problem. x

The SEB usually works very fast. However he's lying down quietly, so I don't want to disturb him. If his stomach was really bad, he would not be able to lie down. We've had a lot of those nights before we found the SEB.
Kathy

If he gets up and can't settle, I will give him the SEB with some corn syrup mixed in. That would take care of the sugar issue and the tummy issue. The prednisone is probably taking care of the pain issue, reducing the swelling, but that's just a guess.
Kathy

Yes, let sleeping dogs lie :D:D Hope he stays settled now Kathy. Isn't it always so much worse in the middle of the night... sucks.

Makes you feel alone at this time, at least we have this place

I hope you have dozed off with Buddy and are getting some sleep Kathy, will be here a while if you wake up though :)

Oh Mel and Trish, thank you so much from the morning brigade who are now signing in from this half of the world. You two have been our overnight angels, that's for sure!

Kathy, how's our little man doing now? I know it's still dark out there on the west coast so I hope you two are finally getting some rest...

Marianne

Kathy:
I hope you got some rest. Poor Buddy he can't seem to shake those tummy aches. You know Tipper would get GI symptoms around 2-4 every morning, even before the Cushings meds etc. I read somewhere that acid can accumulate in their stomachs, and they should have food right before bedtime. I portion Tippers meals into 3 mini meals a day. I saved some of her dog food until bedtime and gave it to her. It has completely alleviated the problem. Very rarely does she get this now, and it would really gurgle and make very loud noise. I know it was hurting her, and she would have to go out and have a bm and when she came back in I would give her some food. That would help her immediately and she would go to sleep. That is how I discovered the food at night does the trick. Do you give Buddy any food before bedtime? I started giving Tipper some natural treats I bought her and she started to gain weight, so I saved some of her dog food portion for the day and used it. Does Buddy ever try to eat grass or any vegetation in your yard? Hope the poor little fellow is ok today. God Bless you and Buddy. Tipper said to tell Buddy to keep his chin up, and get better.
Patti