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Thread: fearful of another dog with cushings

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    Default fearful of another dog with cushings

    Hi I am new here. 10 years ago my wire fox terrier fought adrenal gland cancer after a valiant fight with surgery, chemo and then to find out it had metastisized to the other adrenal gland. Now I have another wire fox terrier from the same breeder who is hypo thyroid and has started similar sxs.....excessive urination and peeing. 2 weeks ago ihad the vet check his glucoxe which was normal. Then I returned him to the vet to test for what I feared....cushings. his ot was normal. Pt was 264 and alk. Phos was 2011. What test should we do next?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    7

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Just me again. My vet is ordering meds for acth test tomorrow, but I am thinking she should be running a deximethasone test first. Is that correct?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    York, PA.
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    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Hi and welcome!

    I have manually approved your membership so now all your posts will be seen right away.

    I am sorry for the reasons that brought you to us but glad you found your way here.

    Cushing's is one of the most difficult diseases to get a confirmed diagnosis for because not one test is 100% accurate at diagnosing it and other non-adrenal illnesses share the same symptoms as Cushing's.

    I see from your post that your furbaby was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, is thyroid medication being given? If so when were the thyroid levels checked? Increased drinking and urination symptoms can be caused if the thyroid medication dose is too high which is known as Hyperthyroidism.

    Besides the excessive drinking/urination does your furbaby have any other symptoms? I did see that you posted some lab results but I don't recognize some of the abbreviations, particularly the ot and Pt. Hopefully another member may help me out but if not could you find out from the vet what those abbreviations stand for? Also was an urinalysis done, and if so, could you post those results?

    We will help in any way we can so do not hesitate to ask all the questions you want, ok?

    Hugs, Lori

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    7

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Hi the tests are as follows: SGOT is the old name for AST and SGPT is the old name for ALT.

    So Buster's ALT is 264 and his AST is normal. however, his alkaline phosphotase is 2011.

    Yes, Buster has been on thyroid meds for about 5 years now. His thyroid levels are checked yearly. he is due in April.

    Other sxs are strange behavior - going off by himself and hiding in my closet for the night. The vet noticed a heart murmur just 2 weeks ago. He has a very roly poly tummy. He gets very winded when walking.

    What tests should we do next? Thanks for all your help!

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Canada
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    16,150

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Hello and welcome to the forum. Everyone had their preference as to whether to run the ACTH first or the LDDS. I prefer the LDDS and then if that is positive check the ACTH. If the LDDS is negative then it is quite likely that cushings is not the culprit. However, there could be high cortisol for some other reason in the body.

    Sharlene and Molly Muffin
    Sharlene and the late great diva - Molly muffin (always missed and never forgotten)

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    7

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Thank you for that advice. My vet wants to do the acth test. Oh yes I took buster's urine in and the vet did a routine urinalysis. She said he had a few white cells. Isn't that an indication of cushings?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
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    Canada
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    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    It could also be a sign of an infection somewhere too.
    I'll let one of the others answer about white blood cells. I don't usually think of that with cushings though. Normally you'll see high ALKP, maybe high ALT, cholesterol can go up, not always though.

    What was a the specific gravity on the urine? Normally with cushings they have a very dilute urine.

    Sharlene and Molly Muffin
    Sharlene and the late great diva - Molly muffin (always missed and never forgotten)

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    7

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Hi, i will ask about the urine S.G. tomorrow. Buster is going to have his ACTH stim test tomorrow. Hope he does well.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    7

    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    Another question - once the dogs get on meds, do they stop peeing all the time?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Canada
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    Default Re: fearful of another dog with cushings

    It does usually get under control as their cortisol levels come down.

    Sharlene and Molly Muffin
    Sharlene and the late great diva - Molly muffin (always missed and never forgotten)

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