Precia has gone to Heaven

[Leena]

Hello:
Was wondering if any other dog had this reaction to Vetoryl...
My dog is a black lab, and was put on Vetoryl 60 mg a day. After about three weeks at that dose, her skin became very flaky and she started losing her hair! I did research and read that this was a rare side effect in some dogs. My vet, however, had never heard of it. I cut her dose way back, and the symptoms went away! Back to her full beautiful black coat! (thank goodness!)
Her current dose is so low (at one 60 mg tab twice a week!!) in order to keep the reaction from coming back, but amazingly her Cortisol levels and ALP have been normal. Her symptoms, however, are just as bad as always with the panting and water drinking.
Has anyone else had this problem?????
Thanks!

[frijole]

Hello:
Was wondering if any other dog had this reaction to Vetoryl...
My dog is a black lab, and was put on Vetoryl 60 mg a day. After about three weeks at that dose, her skin became very flaky and she started losing her hair! I did research and read that this was a rare side effect in some dogs. My vet, however, had never heard of it. I cut her dose way back, and the symptoms went away! Back to her full beautiful black coat! (thank goodness!)
Her current dose is so low (at one 60 mg tab twice a week!!) in order to keep the reaction from coming back, but amazingly her Cortisol levels and ALP have been normal. Her symptoms, however, are just as bad as always with the panting and water drinking.
Has anyone else had this problem?????
Thanks!

Hi and welcome! I never used trilo so I won't answer your question but could you please tell us how much your dog weighs? Just want to check the original dose out.

Regarding the comment I bolded above - you said the cortisol levels are normal. What do you mean by that - do you have the actual test results? I am wondering because what is 'normal' for a regular dog is not the same as the desired range for a cush dog. Sometimes labs that do these tests make mistakes and so it looks like your dog is 'normal' when in fact the cortisol is still too high for a cushings dog. The goal is to get the 2nd number on the acth test to around 5. Whereas a 'normal' dog would have a cortisol reading of closer to 15. If the dog is still drinking and panting and cortisol is normal then either something else is causing those symptoms OR the test results are for a normal dog as I described. Hope that makes sense. Kim

[BestBuddy]

Hi and welcome.

I just wanted to comment on the hair loss/flaky skin.
After Buddy started trilo his hair and skin looked worse. His skin was so flaky it was like constant dandruff and he seemed to loose more hair then after a few months the skin cleared and the hair grew back thicker and more colorful than before. Our specialist said often it gets worse before it gets better.

Jenny

[apollo6]

Welcome Lena
I am Sonja and my little Apollo is on Trilostane. It take a while for the symptoms to go away. Apollo did have the flaky skin for awhile, but his coat is coming back. The excess thirst and urinating should have gotten better. Apollo pants also. I feel is that our little cushing fur balls overheat very easily. They have a hard time tolerating any heat at all. I have a squirt bottle with cool water and squirt Apollo to cool him down, or take a wash cloth dipped in cool water and wrap it around your baby.

How much does your dog weigh that is very important as to the right dosage. I would start very low to start. Also does he/she have the pituitary Cushing's?
Hope this helps.
More will post shortly.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[Maya]

Hello and welcome Lena
I have to agree with Kim. If you dog really has Cushings, as far as I know his/her lab results shouldn't be like that of a 'normal dog' Are you sure you've had an acurate diagnosis?
Regarding the flaky skin and hair loss my dog Maya had this problem for about a month as her body ajusted to the Vetoryl. Now her fur has grown back and there is a lot less flaky skin. Maya weighs 20kgs and is on 60mgs of Trilo a day. 30mg in the morn and 30mg in the eve.Her lab tests have confermed her Cushings to under control. I have never heard of twice a week dosing with Trilo. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong. I think you need to have a good talk to your vet. Hope you get things sorted soon!
Best wishes from Leah and Maya

[BestBuddy]

Good pick up Leah about the twice weekly dosing.

I didn't notice this when I read the post. It is unusual that the trilo is not given as a daily dose.

The specialist who treated my dog actually was experimenting with different doses and had a couple of dogs on every second day so I suppose it can work but it is not the norm.

Jenny

[addy]

Hi and Welcome from me as well,

According to Dr. Peterson, a respected endocrinologist, it is not unusual for a Cushing dog to have flaking skin and thinning coat durring the first six weeks of treatment with either drug, Trilostane or Lysodren. This usually will resolve after a few months.

It would be helpful for you to post all test results as mentioned.

Glad you found your way here.

Hugs,
Addy

[labblab]

Welcome from me, too.

As the others have said, several of us have experienced massive fur loss after Cushing's treatment has been started. Our speculation is that once the cortisol level is lowered into a therapeutic range, the hair growth cycle for the dog is normalized once again -- resulting in the shedding of the old "stagnant" coat and the regrowth of a fresh new coat. Here is a link to the thread of another member who asked this same question. As you will see, her dog was treated with Lysodren rather than trilostane. But the dynamic seems to be the same, regardless. And the longterm solution to the hair growth issue is not to back off from a therapeutic dose of Cushing's medication, but instead to maintain it so that the cortisol remains consistently controlled from that point onward.

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2527

Marianne

[Leena]

Wow...thanks for everyones comments! Okay, Precia weighs about 74 lbs. What started this whole thing was back in December she had a really bad nose bleed. So, I took her to the ER vet who did lab work and found her ALP to be over 9000! She thought she was in liver failure. Long story short, she suggested a Stim test for Cushings so I took her to my vet who confirmed with testing that she did indeed have Cushings. I do not know which kind. I do not know the number value or reading. He also thought her ALP may have been elevated for another reason as well, not necessairly all Cushing related. Her ultrasound he was was okay. So, we started the Vetoryl at 60 mg, 1 a day. She started with the hair loss and I decreased her dose, as I knew this was a side effect. I backed her all the way to the one twice a week schedule. My vet did not suggest keeping her on the daily dose and riding out the hair loss issues. He in fact had never heard of that reaction before. A Cortisol test in April was less than one...He told me 1 to 5 was normal. Her ALP was in the one hundreds. Cortisol in June was 2.2 and ALP at 245. So, that is where I am at! Confused for sure! She pants a lot, and does not tolerate heat well at all. She is a big drinker. Those are her major symptoms. Well, she also does not have much energy. But, she is also 12! I appreciate any advice! I have been doing research, but am so glad to have found this board! It helps talking with others who know what this is all about!!!

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi Leena,

Wow...thanks for everyones comments! Okay, Precia weighs about 74 lbs. What started this whole thing was back in December she had a really bad nose bleed.

Elevated blood pressure can sometimes cause nose bleeds, has Precia's BP been checked recently?

A Cortisol test in April was less than one...He told me 1 to 5 was normal. Her ALP was in the one hundreds.

According to Dechra, (the manufacturers of brand-name Vetoryl), dogs that are being treated with Trilostane should have a post-stim cortisol reading of 1.45 ug/dl - 5.4 ug/dl. If a dog's cortisol results are less than 1.45 ug/dl then treatment should be discontinued until clinical signs are seen and test results return to normal (1.45-9.1 μg/dL). Only after both of these are achieved then may treatment of Trilostane (Vetoryl) be re-introduced at a lower dose. Has your vet explained this to you? Here's a handy link to this information and more: Dechra's U.S. Product Insert.

Please know we will help you and Precia in any way we can so do not hesitate to ask us any and all questions.

Love and hugs,
Lori