Cairo, 8 year old staffordshire bull terrier just diagnosed

To find a vet that is knowledgeable about and experienced in treating Cushing's is important BUT that will not always happen. To me the one important thing in a vet is if they are willing to work with you, I mean as a team player.

This forum has an amazing amount of collective knowledge, experience, and a wealth of reference material, so if the vet you have isn't Cushing's savvy but is willing to work with you, I think that would be adequate, because hey, we can help with the Cushing's!

Hugs, Lori

We do have a bit of heat!! It was 59F here today!! That's tropical for us!! LOL

Hopefully the guy from the Vet School will be in touch with her on Monday and we can make a start on getting him sorted.

Failing that, we're off interviewing new vets.

How is Cairo today? Hope all is going well and that he is improving. You will find a vet you can work with, so don't worry. I hope you and your family and Cairo have a blessed Easter.
Patti

That is true what Lori said, even if a vet isn't knowledgable if they are willing to learn and be a part of a team, that can work too. Renee and Leslie are both great examples of team work with their vets.

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

Well, there's nothing wrong with his reflexes, that's for sure. He's got an ear infection again (other ear this time) and nearly got me when I went to put the drops in. I can do anything I like to him - but he HATES anyone going near his ears with drops.

He seems to be OK. He hurried up the road tonight and really wanted to go further but we'll just take it easy with him just now.

Oh there quick when the want to be. Glad he is doing well, and hopefully the vet school will get back to you soon Ian Ramsey is very well versed in cushings and has published some papers on it. Hope you and Cairo have a happy Easter :)

Happy Easter to you and Cairo and I hope he is doing well today. Blessings
Patti

Thankyou all and I hope you all had a happy Easter too.

The ear drops are like Mission Impossible. How to find different ways to administer them - though the whole time, he's watching out of the corner of his eye and it's really disconcerting, wondering if he's going to whip round and air snap and scare the living daylights out of us! LOL

He seems to be OK. Still doing a lot of panting on a walk but it's getting hard to decide if it's the heat, him being a bit heavy or his illness. I really should try and video him for an opinion.

Alison:
That Cairo is one tough cookie when it comes to the ears. I had to laugh at the air bites, Tipper has been known to do a few of those. That would be great to see a video of him, he is just beautiful. There is another dog on here Butters that he reminds me of. Hope he is well and getting stronger. Blessings
Patti

Hi Alison

How is Cairo today, hope you've managed to get the ear drops in without getting into trouble :)

Man, the ear drops are a trial. He's not intentionally biting at me - air snapping to voice his displeasure but if I'm not quick enough to get my hand out of the way, he gets me - and that's with a muzzle on!!

So far, we did sausage roll on the floor so as he bent down to get it, I squirted the drops in (the vet said 10 drops - yeah, right, we do squirt, massage and run). Yesterday, we thought we were going to have to heave him into the bath (he hates being in the bath and won't move) but put the sausage roll on the closed toilet lid (not hygenic I know) and whilst he was sniffing at it, drops went in. Today, I was in a hurry and just told him no nonsense but we did sausage roll to the floor again and got them in.

He was bad this morning - really listless and puffing and panting when he was out but on this evening's walk, he seemed fine - bright eyed and skipping up the road and we had a little game of chase with his toy. We have to do that whilst my mum checks a side road - there's a big dog around here that is bad with other dogs but his owners never have him on a lead, so if it's about time for him being out, we have to hang back and check down the road to make sure he's not there. Last thing Cairo needs is the stress of this other dog.

It was a holiday today so the vet school didn't get in touch with our vet as they were only open for emergencies.

I had done a bit of reading for alternative treatments in case they say no more vetoryl and I printed off a bit on ketoconazole and anipryl but the vet said no to both. She said ketoconazole was really toxic to dog's livers and both were not reliable treatments and neither was licensed here for use in Cushing's. Ahh well, it was a thought.

Hopefully the vet school will get in touch with her tomorrow.

I'll definitely try and video him but you'll have to excuse any of my puffing and panting!! We have a really steep hill to get up onto the road he's been getting walked on. Between us, I dont' know who pants the most!!

That made me laugh squirt and run lol. At least your getting them in. When woody had an eye infection I had to put drops in his eye it was not mean feat trying to get them in whilst he thrashed about and head butted me a few times :D

Oh I know the feeling of peeking round corners and side streets for not so friendly dogs my only trouble was Woody was the non friendly dog hated them, so I was always on guard whilst out.

Hopefully the vet school should get back to you tomorrow Ian Ramsey is pretty good at that. Let us know if he contacts you, just make sure you write it all down or like me you may forget some of it

You don't have to worry right now about Cushing's until symptoms come back and is cortisol is naturally high again. Doesn't sound like he is there yet.

Shake the bottle of ear meds and my Molly is off like lightening! Lol

Hugs
Sharlene and Molly muffin

God, I hope Cairo never gets an eye infection - that would be even worse!

Cairo doesn't like other dogs either but we deal with it. We do a lot of standing behind parked cars - if ever cars are broken into around here, we're going to be prime suspects. It's the off lead dog aggressive dogs I can't cope with. I mean if your dog hates other dogs, why would you let it run loose?

Ian Ramsey will be phoning the vet, not me :(

Cairo sat and watched me cut the sausage roll up, sitting licking his lips, then I picked up the bottle of ear drops and he ran like hell!!

Alison:
This is sounding more and more like a comedy. Cairo is too funny. Tipper does not like other dogs either. She is an alpha female, and she let's them know immediately! I had a very large dog run up to me once in my old neighborhood. Tipper will fight anything no matter how big. I picked her up on my shoulder and he is trying to climb up me and get her. I was not going to let that happen, I began kicking at him and hitting him with my free hand. I looked up as I heard someone talking, and there stood his owner looking out the door. I was so mad, he never attempted to help me. The dog got me on the leg, and the arm, but he did not get Tipper who I was having a problem holding as she wanted to kill him.The man told me to stop kicking at his dog! Tipper was wanting down to go after him, she let me know she was mad at me for not letting her get him!! I was up most of the nite so we are resting now. Hope that big dog never runs into Cairo, as Cairo is a pretty formadible opponent. Hope he enjoys his nitely walk.
Blessings
Patti

Oh God, poor Tipper and poor you. Cairo doesn't like other dogs because he's scared of them! He was attacked by a lhasa apso and it just ruined him with other dogs. He's such a scardey cat.

We were walking up the road one day when this dog appeared from nowhere. It attacked Cairo and I jumped in to help him, tripped over him and fell flat on my back with two dogs fighting over the top of my head!!! And I wonder why the poor boy gets stressed when he sees another dog - probably scared I'll squash him flat!!! LOL

Wow that sounds like a dilemma, on your back in the middle of a dog fight! Hoping Cairo is doing well this today. It is rainy here today and we are having a rest day as I am not feeling all that great today. Hope the vet school will be getting in touch soon. Blessings
Patti

It was hard to know how he was this morning because it was chucking it down with rain and Cairo just doesn't do rain. He got to the front, took one look and had to be pushed out!!

Alison:
He is too funny. Tipper doesn't mind the rain unless it gets into a hard down pour and then she is scared to death and I have to let her in the closet. Was he always not liking the rain? He just does not like it, but has no fear of it? I am going to talk to my vet on what we are going to do with Tipper and the thunder problem. Absolutely nothing will calm her down, and she made her blood pressure go up one day last year during a storm, and it broke blood vessels in her eyes. I do not want that again, and she has a heart murmur now, and does not need this. Those collars do not work for her as I was told you have to leave them on all the time and she is allergic to them and scratches herself raw. The vet does not want to give her tranquilizers, so I don't know what to do, but we need a plan asap, not after it starts. Blessings
Patti

Cairo's not frightened of the rain - he just doesn't like getting wet. Even when he was a tiny puppy and we were toilet training him, we'd be standing in the garden with him, getting soaked whilst we held an umbrella over him so he didn't get wet!!!

He is scared of thunder storms though.

Have you tried a thunder shirt for Tipper? It's supposed to be reassuring to dogs that are frightened - thunder, fireworks, etc

http://www.thundershirt.com/

You'll possibly get them cheaper if you hunt around.

Another thing could be Bach's Rescue Remedy - do you get that over there?

Neo, our old lad (now at the Bridge) was terrified of fireworks - absolutely terrified - to the point that he knew that when the clocks changed in autumn and it was dark on his evening walk, that meant scary noises and he would be frantic up until spring when it was light again. We tried everything for him - even valium but all that did was made him so dozy that he was going to hurt himself. We just had to let him hide, turn the volume up on the TV and let him deal with it himself - so Tipper hiding is maybe the only way she can cope with it and maybe you just have to let her hide somewhere dark and cosy and safe. We tried DAP diffusers and a drug called Zylkene (it was expensive) but they didn't work for him either - the Zylkene was supposed to help but it's one of these drugs that needs to build up over time so no use for one off storms or fireworks. We used to use amythist essence - a lady I know makes up gem essences for a variet of conditions and as a rule, there is huge success with it but poor Neo was a dog that was too clever for his own good - he knew it was going to happen and just worked himself up into a frenzy even when there was no noise.

Daisy doesn't mind polite dogs but if one sneaks up or runs up to us, God help them. She doesn't realize that she's tiny :)

Wow, as far as ear drops or anything like that, she just gives me that sad look and tolerates what I do. I guess I'm very lucky.

Alison:
Tipper's problem is she was afraid of thunder before all this, and her cortisol being at a lower level now makes her less able to handle stress. We have the thunder shirt, it does not work on her. Plus Cush dogs are hot and the closet is stuffy and makes her pant. I try to put a fan in there. She gets beyond frantic and feels more secure in the dark corner of the closet. I do turn the TV up loud. It's funny she is not afraid of fireworks, she knows the difference. Some way short of a sound proof closet, I need to fix this problem. How has Cairo been today? Blessings
Patti

Hi Alison

Hope the ear drops are going a bit better. Drop, treat, drop, treat, fighting it, no treat!! Aww poor Cairo! Gawd, I would hate if I had an aggressive dog, that must suck for owners like that. Why on earth do they not keep them fenced in, that is so dangerous with them on the loose like that. So thankful that Flynn can go play without the fear of him attacking another dog, he is definitely a lover not a fighter!

Have you heard from Glasgow Ian?? I remember we all thought he was great when he treated Woody. If your vet is not getting back to you, I would perhaps try speaking to him myself. :)

What about a crate for Tipper that you could cover with a blanket? It would be dark and cosy but not as hot as the closet? Do you actually have a thunder storm season so to speak that you could then use the Zylkene? I take it the collar you used was a DAP collar (dog appeasement pheromone)? You can get plug in diffusers and a spray for on bedding if that's any help? Or maybe something like my alternative lady does - the amethyst essence? I'll have a good think of things to try.

Trish, we have the drops sussed. First day was a pain but it's less traumatic now - bit of sausage roll in his bowl and while he's trying to get it out, in the drops go. No problem!! He's not stupid though - parks his rear in a corner till the sausage roll is in place!

I am honest in that Cairo isn't keen on other dogs but people round here are a nightmare - won't admit to the fact their dogs are bad with other dogs - we had the giant poodle running off lead plus a little dog (not a poodle but looked like a poodle but bigger - bichon frise maybe?) and that is a really nasty dog. It got out the garden one day and came for Cairo big time and my mum was frantic shouting at the owners to come and get it but none of them would pick it up because it was biting them as well. We had both of them tonight - nasty little dog and nutty big dog but Cairo was ace - didn't bother with either of them - he was such a good boy. He doesn't normally start trouble - but if a dog starts on him, he will retaliate and that's what worries me - even though he's on the lead and under control, if anything happened, he'd get the blame because of his breed.

We didn't hear from the vet today so will give her till tomorrow to see if Ian got back to her. She's on call this week so it's going to be after 5 when she phones but the vet is open till 7 so we can phone to find out if she's heard from him and if not, I'll phone him myself.

Quote:

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even though he's on the lead and under control, if anything happened, he'd get the blame because of his breed.

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This is just SOOOOO unfair! My Pit mix, Crys, was treated the same way and she was as sweet and goofy as they come. :( Cairo's avatar reminds me of her - their coloring is similar as is the head shape...I love seeing his pic as a result. :)

Crys loved other dogs but they didn't always love her exuberance so I always had to watch her, and them, closely. She might want to play but if they took it wrong she would get the blame. When we walked, Crys on a lead, and another dog came up to us, I would just sit on the ground with my arms around Crys just in case. That way it was obvious I was doing all I could - they just didn't know I was protecting HER.

To make matters worse, Crys had horrible Pica and would eat the muzzles off of her face! So had one made for her out of thick leather and metal. She looked like Hannibal Lector in it which didn't do anything good for her general image. :( But it was the only way we had to protect her from herself - she would eat anything except glass.

I hope you hear from the vet today. If not, I would probably in the clinic in someone's face today. :D

Alison:
Tipper will not stay in a crate when scared she would bite it and dig to get out until bloody!! Also I do use the diffuser for her, but it has not really worked. It is a shame because of Cairo's breed he would be the one blamed if one of these dogs running of lead got into it with him. I never understood people that let their dogs run! I am a nervous wreck if Tipper leaves the room and I don't see her. It is raining here today and dreary. Tipper will not be walking unless this stops. We had her blood pressure and weight done at the vets mtis morning. How is Cairo today? I hope he is getting stronger every day. Blessings
Patti

Alison

How is Cairo today? I have Ian,s email address if you want it, he may not deal direct as you aren't a client yet but you never know.

Trish it's a different Ian from the one woody dealt with, this Ian is head of small animals specialising in endocrine system but he gets a good write up I only met him once with Emma at our first consult.

Cairo seems to be fine today. Operation ear drop is continuing nicely - we have it sussed! :) We've still been limiting his walks but we can start to take him a bit further now and see how he goes.

The vet phoned this evening. She had spoken to Ian at Glasgow Vet School and also to somebody at Dechra and she says both said the same.

Cairo is not to go back on Vetoryl until his post stim results are above 400 (14.49) and even then, he's to only get 30mg daily. I asked about twice daily dosing and she said that most dogs do fine on once daily dosing and both the vet school and Dechra said once daily dosing.

In the meantime, we've to keep an eye on him for signs of hunger, thirst, excessive urination - the usual and once he's showing signs again, take him back for another ACTH stim test. She says maybe in 2 -3 weeks, so now it seems it's just a waiting game for him to start showing cushy symptoms again.

Poor Crys - it sucks that they get judged because of their breed. What's pica? We don't muzzle Cairo unless he's getting something horrible done. He's not really a problem outside but even if he was, we can't get a muzzle to fit - they're either too big or too small - he's very wide across the cheeks. We tried fitting him for a basket type muzzle as they are kinder but again, it was either too tight or too big and riding up into his eyes.

I just don't get why people let their dogs walk off lead near roads. I don't care how well trained a dog is, if it gets a fright, fear will take over and it will bolt - we saw that at bonfire night last year. We were walking down the road and a girl and her dog were walking up the road - all dogs were on leads. Just as we passed a garden, the family started letting fireworks off. Honesty nearly deafened us as we were right next to them. Cairo got a fright and jumped forward but I reassured him, but the poor girl's dog got such a fright, it ran. The lead was wrenched out of her hand and the dog took off. We were all furious, she was upset and I hope her dog ran for home and got there safely - we've never seen her again to find out.

People think staffies and pits are tough - they should be in our vet when they're in - the other day, there were three staffies there, all sitting shaking and crying! Real tough guys!! LOL

Pica is a condition that drives the body to crave non-food items. Humans and dogs can get it I know but not sure about other species. Crys would walk away from a bowl of good fresh human food to eat an Azalea bush or CD or video game or the couch - anything but food! The only thing she did NOT consume was glass. Thankfully we never had any blockages or injury that required surgery.

Ahh, got you. When I was in the ambulance service, we had a patient like that that we used to pick up to take to day care. He'd eat cigarette ends, leaves, socks, you name it, he ate it. He throw a sandwich away and go and eat paper or empty out a cup of tea and fill his cup from the toilet bowl :eek:

OMG how awful for that poor man! Aww that's a shame it is not the lovely Ian we knew, but good to hear he has a good reputation.

So the plan is to wait and see if symptoms come back and then retest? I hope Cairo does good for a long time to come!! :)

So do we. It's horrible being on the waiting game again though.

I am with you on that one, I can tolerate many things, but waiting is not one of them. I hope Cairo gets straightened out from all this. At least now you have some help from Dechra and the vet school. Hope you have a good walk with no rogue dogs running around to ruin it. Blessings
Patti

Checking in to see how Cairo is doing. Hope all is well with him and you.

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

Allison:
I missed hearing how Cairo was doing, I hope all is well and he is continuing to improve. Blessings
Patti

Thank you so much for asking after him.

He seems to be fine - though I'm paranoid but hopeful.

He's back to being hungry - you can rustle a wrapper without him looking to see if you have something to eat but we gave him a bit extra for his dinner and he didn't eat it all so he's obviously not as hungry as we thought he was.

Peeing and drinking are OK.

He had a very slight panting session tonight on his walk - but then he was fine again.

To be honest, I'm not sure what to do. I don't know if we should leave well alone at the moment, or take him back for another stim test just to check how things are going.

How long as it been since the last one?

I honestly do not think that he has gone back to cushings yet, as he wouldn't leave food if that was the case. My molly will leave food in bowl that she grazes on all day long, she Might finish it at night, but no guarantee. However, she will bark at you till you give her, one dental treat and one veg treat every night. After which she is fine and that food is still in her bowl that she didn't Really want.

As long as everything is fine, then I don't think he is back to cushings. You are still giving the prednisone?

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

His last Stim Test was 18th April and his post stim numbers were 175nmol/l.

He's been off the prednisolone since 22nd April.

Sometimes it's hard to know if he's feel yuck or just being lazy - he's the least energetic staffy I know - doesn't jump, really doesn't run much.

If you feel like he is going low again, then take him in. You know, if he doesn't want to walk or eat, if he is scared to go outside of down the hill, etc. All the prior symptoms of when he went low.

hugs
Sharlene and molly muffin

I don't think (or hope) he'll go low again - I'm waiting on him going Cushy again - but maybe we'll be lucky and he won't. That would be just fantastic if he didn't. I can live in hope.