Fritz and me: New Diabetes Diagnosis (Update: in ICU)

[caroleh]

My name is Carole and my hubby and I have 10 dogs and 5 cats all rescued. Recently we learned that our 8 or 9 year old Schnauzer has Cushings. I am scared to death. The vet said his alcp was 2000. This vet speaks through her techs so I have no idea what this means. Fritz has been on Lysodren for almost a month. I have recently changed vets and Fritz had an ultrasound which couldn't detect his adrenal glands due to his fat tummy. The new vet is going to do an ACTH test this coming Thursday. Fritz is eating normally, maybe drinking a little more than usual but he goes outside, here of late ,like a good boy. He is still panting but not voraciously as he once was. Anyone with encouraging news would make my day.

[frijole]

Carole -

It's Kim and you posted on my schnauzer Annie's thread but I thought I'd answer your questions here so you can keep track easier.

First off - this is my 2nd dog that was diagnosed with cushings. The first one, Haley was 12 1/2 at time of dx and she was treated successfully for 4 yrs with lysodren. She just passed away, not from cushings in May at 16 1/2 yrs of age. So there is your happy story!

My other dog Annie we believe was misdiagnosed. We do not think she has cushings despite the test results - I'll spare you the details so yes I know about having to fire vets.

Couple thoughts - first off - I don't care if your vet speaks thru the techs - you need to go and get copies of all the blood tests and cushings tests that have been done and put them in a file. The reason is that you will want to track progress over time and it is much easier. Also you can then answer our questions about what testing was done to diagnose the cushings. We will want to know the names and the numbers on those tests.

We aren't being snoopy - it's because cushings can be tough to diagnose and sometimes if enough tests aren't done there are misdiagnosed cases. We see it frequently here so we always just want to make sure we have the whole story before we throw out advice.

If Fritz isn't responding to lysodren it is either because Fritz doesn't have cushings OR the dose is too low. OFten inexperienced vets will start at doses that are very low and you must increase it in order to reduce the cortisol levels.

So tell us about Fritz's symptoms, the whole story from the beginning so we can better help out. But please know this disease is not a death sentence. Also check out our important info section to learn more about the disease. Meanwhile here is a handy sheet on the 'loading' process using lysodren. Please read it as it will help you thru this process a great deal... at least it did me! Kim

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=181

[caroleh]

God Bless you Kim. You brought tears to my eyes with your concern. I am a total basket case. I have been so fortunate to find this site. As I told you I had one vet for over 20 years. He failed to diagnose Fritz's problems, enlarged tummy, panting, wetting in the house, excessive water intake. I also have a 17 year old cat that I had checked every six months and this doctor failed to see he was anemic. So I changed vets and the second vet who talked through her techs was fired. Some day I would love to tell you the story there. I have never seen so many hostile people in my life. This new vet was acquired when the (hostile) vet sent me to him for Fritz to have an ultrasound which was of no value because of the fat tummy. Fritz's vet test is only comprised of ALKP which is 2000. The HV( hostile vet) never gave me his panel of tests. So right now I am waiting til this Thursday when the new vet does a ACTH test to see where we stand. Kim, doyou have any understanding of what a 2000 ALKP level means. What kind of serious situation are we in here. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer me.

[labblab]

Hi Carole,

Welcome from me, too. I just wanted to tell you to double-check your emailbox or spam folder for a "confirmation" message that you need to return to us in order to complete your membership. Until that time, your replies will not appear immediately when you type them, but instead they will be held for approval from one of us staff members. If you do not find the confirmation message awaiting you among your email, let us know and we will confirm your membership manually so that you don't get stuck waiting in limbo...

Marianne

[frijole]

God Bless you Kim. You brought tears to my eyes with your concern. I am a total basket case. I have been so fortunate to find this site. As I told you I had one vet for over 20 years. He failed to diagnose Fritz's problems, enlarged tummy, panting, wetting in the house, excessive water intake. I also have a 17 year old cat that I had checked every six months and this doctor failed to see he was anemic. So I changed vets and the second vet who talked through her techs was fired. Some day I would love to tell you the story there. I have never seen so many hostile people in my life. This new vet was acquired when the (hostile) vet sent me to him for Fritz to have an ultrasound which was of no value because of the fat tummy. Fritz's vet test is only comprised of ALKP which is 2000. The HV( hostile vet) never gave me his panel of tests. So right now I am waiting til this Thursday when the new vet does a ACTH test to see where we stand. Kim, doyou have any understanding of what a 2000 ALKP level means. What kind of serious situation are we in here. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer me.

Carole - I understand... I am on vet no. 3. Anyway - real important question... are you SURE that only the blood panel was done? 2000 is an elevated liver reading which means the liver is being stressed. It could be due to cushings but it could be to alot of other things... it is inconclusive for cushings and I would never start a dog on lysodren without additional testing.

You did the ultrasound but couldn't see the adrenals so that couldn't confirm the cushings either.

So unless you did a urine creatine ratio test, the acth test, or the low dose dex suppression test (LDDS) you really don't even have a confirmed diagnosis yet.

Granted you have alot of symptoms that point to cushings but you need the acth test in order to see where the cortisol level is. The reason you give the lysodren is to lower it to a certain level.

Please tell us your dog's weight and the amount of lysodren you are given and the frequency. Thanks! Kim

[frijole]

This group of people helped save me from disaster 5 yrs ago so I'm just helping repay my dues.

I forgot regarding your question on the alk phos, my dog had a reading of 2000 on the alk phos and she did just fine so don't worry about that reading - lets get a confirmed diagnosis and tell us about the dosage you are on. Thanks!!!

[caroleh]

I feel so much better having you alls encouragement. As I said my vet #1 after 20 years was a disappointment. Vet #2 was not the right one due to the rudeness of the staff and the fact that only the tech talked to me. I am now on vet #3 and we will see what happens. My hubby just cleaned up the car and found a paper with some stats which I will list. I do see a urine collection done.

July 27 cort 2.0 ug/dl @8:46 a.m.
July 27 cort 25.7 ug/dl @ 12:39 p.m.

June 21 cort 3.3 " " no time listed
June 21 cort 26.4

Na 155
K 4.6
Ci 115
TP 7.8
Tbil 0.2
Phos 4.5
Glu 123
GLOB 4.5
CREA 0.7
CHOL 268
CA 11.8
BUN 12
AMYL 755
ALT 58
ALKP 2000
ALB 3.3
T4 2.3

I thank you again for all of your information on this site. I feel so much better about my little Fritz. With 10 dogs, we have three seniors and with five cats we have three seniors.

[frijole]

Carole, You probably missed my question in that long post of mine... what is the dosage of lydoren that Fritz is on? (1/2 pill, whole pill etc) and how often does he take them? Thanks.

also what is his weight?

This way we can calculate whether or not the dose is too low.

Looks like you had acth tests done twice once in June and once in July. Were those the first two you had done? Was the first one before giving lysodren?

Thanks! Kim

[caroleh]

Thank you Kim. As you can see I have no knowledge about meds. O.K. the Lysodren says 300 Mg (mitolane) and Fritz has one every 12 hours. Weight is 30 pounds. Yes I do believe the first ATCH was before because the vet had to order the Lysodren.

I keep pinching myself because I am so grateful to have found you. Thank you so very much.

[caroleh]

I have been reading about holistic meds like milk thistle and so forth. I know a lot of people laugh about this but I know God brought these things to us and they are for a purpose.