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Thread: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

  1. #21
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    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    Fresh sweet potatoes, altho you can sometimes find canned that are only sweet potatoes with nothing else added. This is also the kind of pumpkin to use - plain, not for pies - if you don't use fresh.

    Avocado can be toxic to dogs. This is what the ASPCA had to say about avocados:

    Avocado leaves, fruit, seeds and bark contain a toxic principle known as Persin. The Guatemalan variety, a common one found in stores, appears to be the most problematic. Other strains of avocado can have different degrees of toxic potential.
    (sorry, Sue.... )

    http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pag…

    Kibble is dry dog food. For the longest time I thought there was dry, canned and kibble....so I looked and looked for "kibble" then finally asked someone. That was my learning experience for THAT day!

    This is what I have been able to find on strawberry alleriges -

    http://strawberryplants.org/2011/03/strawberry-allergy/
    What Causes Strawberry Allergies

    Strawberry allergies are not fully understood. However, some research indicates that one of the primary players in strawberry allergy is linked to a protein involved with the ripening of the strawberries. This protein was named Fragaria allergen 1, or Fra a1 for short. This protein is responsible for the characteristic reddening of the strawberries as they ripen.
    I looked for other foods with this same protein but didn't find any others. I did read that this allergy could lead to others such as kiwi so I would use fruits with caution unless you know she can tolerate them.

    Hugs,
    Leslie and the gang
    Last edited by Squirt's Mom; 08-12-2011 at 06:17 PM.
    "May you know that absence is full of tender presence and that nothing is ever lost or forgotten." John O'Donahue, "Eternal Echoes"

    Death is not a changing of worlds as most imagine, as much as the walls of this world infinitely expanding.

  2. #22
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    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    Avocado not good??? I never checked on that because don't they use it in the dog food brand, Avoderm? For skin issues? I've given it to my dogs before (just the edible flesh, of course!) but not in any great quantity. Thanks for that head's up, Leslie.

  3. #23
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    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    Ah, here we go - hijacking an innocent dog's thread. Sorry Buffy I just had to know about that Avoderm formula so I went to their site and found this, Leslie:

    "Concern has been expressed by the ASPCA about the consumption of the leaves, fruit, bark, and stems from the avocado tree, with the exception of the avocado fruit which is used for the oil and meal; none of these parts are factors in any of the AvoDermŽ pet products formulations and we have no indication that avocado oil and meal as used in AvoDermŽ are toxic, poisonous, harmful or bad for your dogs or cats diet.

    Dr. Art Craigmill, UC Davis, Professor and Extension Specialist in Environmental Toxicology has said that his studies and other research in the United States and Australia have shown that the problem of toxicity is in the leaves and the pit of the Guatemalan variety; the avocado meat of the fruit and oils have not been shown to be toxic. AvoDerm pet products do not utilize any Guatemalan variety avocados, nor do we use any leaves or pits of any variety of avocados for our avocado meal and oil.

    The avocado meal and oil used in the AvoDerm pet products comes from the meat of the fruit and does not contain leaves, bark, skin or pit of the fruit. The oil is extracted from ripened fruit in which the meat pulp has been separated from the skin and the pit. Through a mechanical separation process the oil is extracted and filtered and placed into sealed containers. The pulp of the fruit is dried, ground, and screened before being placed into its final packaging and than shipped to our facility.

    Dr. Guy Whitney, Director of Industry Affairs and Research of the California Avocado Commission, has stated: “...in California there are around 7,000 family farmers who grow avocados and almost every one has dogs that actively seek out fruit that has fallen from the trees to snack on. The happy, well-filled out and shiny-coated orchard dog is a familiar sight to anyone in this industry and we have NEVER had a report of a family orchard dog getting sick from eating avocados. Also, the US Forest Service and UC Santa Barbara are about to publish a paper on the importance of avocado orchards in California to sustaining carnivore populations (bears, coyotes, mountain lions, foxes and small cats) during drought conditions. All of these animals are known to eat the protein and nutrient rich fruit that has fallen from the trees. Now birds are a different creature and it IS known that avocados are toxic to birds. Avocado leaves are known to be toxic to horses. Avocado seeds (pits) are NOT edible and are toxic to animals.”

    So stick to CA avocados is the rule, I guess. Interesting to know this. I buy CA avocados and in the winter months, I always check produce and do NOT buy anything imported from central or South America. But it's true, I have seen avocadoes from Guatemala in the stores. Sue
    Last edited by zoesmom; 08-12-2011 at 06:42 PM.

  4. #24

    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    Thank you all for your generous responses to Buffy's picky eating problem. I certainly learned a lot -- about the possible "bleed over" of her strawberry allergies into other fruits (which I suspected all along); about the avocado toxins, which I will add to my "no list" for dogs:
    1. strawberries (Buffy's allergy)
    2. onions (and many products, of course, using them clandestinely
    3.chocolate
    4. raisins (and I imagine the whole dried fruit gamut to include prunes -- and what are those common dried orange fruits that come in a bag? Can't think of it.

    It is always good to recite the list, you never know who will see it for the first time.

    Anyway -- my husband said that maybe we would feed Buffy her canned food MINUS the canned veggies and french fries. We did. Now Buffy is inhaling her canned food again.

    See, the old adage is true. Dogs are smarter than people. Buffy's Mom thought she would put a pound or two on Buffy's lean frame with the french fries. Her vet said their nutritional needs were like our own, so canned veggies were OK (he might have actually suggested them, I don't remember). But Buffy knew they were bad for her and so backed off of them.

    Smart Buffy!

    Anyway, she is eating, but because of my post, I have learned a lot about dog's eats and treats -- and let's face it -- food is something they just love!

    I will never give Buffy anything like the fries or canned veggies again.

    Thanks to you, I will probably be blessed with a few more years with "the white puppy."

    I will now endeavor to get her picture on my posts. She is beautiful, so you guys put on your sunglasses, now (-:. Mom is not tech savvy, but Dad is......maybe I can.....

    Love, Buffy's Mom!

  5. #25
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    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    (Right after Buffy went on Denosyl, I noticed her gums were "growing" over her teeth. I had brushed them every day since she was 1 year old. I had just had them cleaned. She was given a clean dental bill of health. And then this.....)

    My dog Sugar had gingival hyperplasia, she wasn't on denosyl but later developed Cushings Disease. Maybe it is an early warning sign that the body is not fighting off bacteria/diseases and perhaps should be considered by vets when it is first noticed to do a test for pre- Cushings. She also developed infections in her eyes.
    Last edited by Sugar; 06-15-2012 at 08:11 PM.

  6. #26

    Default You get real answers here.....I am still grateful

    It has been over two years since I last posted -- but I remain grateful that alert participants of this forum made the connection between Buffy's gingival hyperplasia and the amlodipine that she was taking for her blood pressure.

    Both my husband and I watched with joy as her teeth reappeared after I requested her vet substitute another medicine for the amlodipine.

    This was particularly significant because -- what I didn't know on the date the forum says I last posted -- August 14, 2011 -- my husband only had about six weeks to live. I think it was in mid-to-late July that we first noticed Buffy's mouth was returning to normal. I know that he was greatly relieved to see the
    improvement in Buffy -- she had always been such a beautiful dog -- the hyperplasia really caused her to look terrible.

    Joe died September 24, 2011. From complications of Myelodysplastic Syndrome.

    Five months later, Buffy died from complications of Cushings Syndrome. She stopped eating and had a few other problems which her vet tried to correct but couldn't. I let her go.

    Buffy's adopted sibling, Trixer, a rescue Collie, and I are very happy together -- because he is the only dog now, I find that I participate in a lot of activities with him. I walk him every day in good weather and started taking him to a dog park -- but it was kind of unfriendly. Trixer is a beta male.

    Participate in this forum with great confidence. Had I not been a truly desperate Cushings mom back in 2011 -- I was desperate because my dog's gums grew back after a $1500 surgery to reduce them -- I never would have found the real solution to the problem -- the removal of the amlodipine.

    At the end of her life, I did politely confront her vet on the real cause of the gingival hyperplasia, the expensive surgery, etc.

    At the time, I felt empowered, but retrospectively, I think my husband was right. He was against confrontation.

    Given the same set of circumstances, I don't think I would have confronted him. He was not a specialist and could have insisted I take my dog to one far away. He knew that at the time, we had a very expensive doggie on our hands and I was a nervous driver! So instead he loaded her and did a fine job. He kept her alive for -- two to three years after she had to go on Lysodren. He saw her through nosebleeds, Horner's syndrome, and a host of other maladies a Cushing's dog can encounter.

    Thank you one and all.

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
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    7,965

    Default Re: You get real answers here.....I am still grateful

    I am so sorry about your husband and your pup. That is very, very hard. I am grateful your other pup is able to take over with some quality time. That is an awesome thing.

    I would not even look back about confronting your vet. Just let it go, completely. There is no point in rethinking it.

    I hope the New Year brings you peace and joy and happiness. Thanks for coming back and letting us know what happened.
    love,
    addy, zoe and koko


    My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet. ~Edith Wharton

    Memory is the power to gather roses in the winter

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
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    Tennessee
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    Default Re: Gingival Hyperplasia and Cushing's Syndrome?

    Hi and welcome back.

    I've merged your latest thread with your original so that folks to go back and read Buffy's story. I'm so terribly sorry to hear that you lost both your husband and Buffy but so very happy that you came back to let us know how you are doing. I can only imagine how difficult it has been for you and I'm glad you and Trixer have each other.

    We would love to honor Buffy in our In Loving Memory sub-forum. I noticed you don't have any pictures in your album but if you'd like email a picture of Buffy to k9cushings@gmail.com, we will make sure it is uploaded for you. Please don't be a stranger and check in once in a while to let us know how you are doing.

    (((Huge Hugs)))
    Glynda

  9. #29
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
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    Canada
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    Default Re: You get real answers here.....I am still grateful

    I am very sorry to hear of the passing of your husband and Buffy. I am very glad though that his last time spent with Buffy was one of improvement.
    I agree with Addy, don't look back on the vet issue of confrontation.
    I hope that you and Trixier have a good 2014.
    It's wonderful of you to stop in and say hello and give us an update.
    hugs,
    Sharlene and Molly Muffin
    Sharlene and the late great diva - Molly muffin (always missed and never forgotten)

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