Roxie my Min Schnauzer

[BarbaraD]

Hi everyone. My fur baby Roxie will turn 15 tomorrow. She was diagnosed with Cushings about 6 years ago after her thirst increased and she started having accidents in the house. She had always been a speed eater so I didn't really notice when she first became ravenous. She has been on Vetoryl 20 mg day since diagnosed. Over the last 9 months or so I've really noticed changes. Her hair is much thinner, her skin more thin & fragile, she spooks easily if you touch anywhere around her head. She barks at anyone & anything more than she used to and she will only go outside if I come with her. She stands and just stares at nothing. Her hearing seems to come & go. She acts like she wants up on my lap but she gets skittish if I try to pick her up. If I do manage to put her on my lap or the chair with me she usually only stays for a minute. I thought for awhile that she couldn't see and one eye is definitely cloudy. She doesn't let me know when she needs to go out like she used to so I just follow her or see if she will go out every time she gets up from lying down. I crate her at night so no accidents. About 8 weeks ago I took her to the vet and told them she didn't seem happy anymore and asked him to run the stim test again. It showed her Vetoryl dosage is correct. He said she seemed to have some dementia but her organs are healthy. He convinced me to put her on Prozac to lessen her anxiety. I have mixed emotions about putting her on that drug but I just want her to enjoy her life as much as possible. Over the last 6 weeks or so I have noticed her hind legs are getting weaker. They go out to the side sometimes, or don't keep up with her when she walks and sometimes she falls on the stairs. What can or should I do?

[labblab]

Hello, Barbara, and welcome to you and little Roxie. First of all, congratulations on keeping Roxie healthy and happy through six years of Cushing's treatment! You've obviously provided a very safe and loving home for your little girl. I'm surely sorry that you're now encountering some problems.

As you already know, given Roxie's age, there is somewhat of a challenge associated with separating out problems that may be resulting from the natural aging process vs. issues stemming from Cushing's or some other specific illness. In that vein, it will help us a great deal if you can obtain the exact numbers from her most recent ACTH stimulation test, as well as any other abnormal results from general lab panels. Even though your vet has told you in general terms that her cortisol is well-controlled, we'd like to know the actual numbers. That is probably the most important starting point for our discussion.

I'm afraid I can't comment on the use of Prozac in this situation -- I just don't know enough about its use with dogs. However, I can mention another possibility that you might wish to discuss with your vet: Anipryl (generic name is selegiline). It is a medication that actually has been used to treat canine Cushing's, but is also useful with canine cognitive dysfunction. I believe it is safe to use both Vetoryl and Anipryl at the same time, although obviously this is something you'd want to discuss further with your vet.

But once again, if you can get us those actual test and lab numbers, that will be a good place for us to begin our conversation.

Marianne

[molly muffin]

Welcome to the forum.

Anipryl is a good idea. I don't know if I would have thought of that but might be worth looking into.

Definitely would be good to know the ACTH numbers. As they get older it can be a balancing act with them getting older, maintaining the cortisol levels and just what makes them feel better. Quality of life is everything.

way to go for 6 successful years of treatment!!

[BarbaraD]

Thank you so much Marianne and Sharlene! I will see if I can get more specific information from my vet on Roxie's test results. I feel better just connecting with others who are going through the same thing.

[molly muffin]

It is great to have a community to touch base with that understands. I couldn't agree more.