Wayne has crossed The Bridge / Wayne-Newly diagnosed 10-year-old pit mix

[pibblesandbits]

Thank you, Lori! We had read about the 4 hour wait between dosing and testing, so we have arranged to have the test start a bit later than it was originally scheduled. I am hoping that it won't cause problems that it will be more than 14 days since he started. It wasn't clear what to do because we started for 2 days, then stopped for 2 days, then restarted, so we will be within the 10-14 day range from the second start but not the first. The vet seems okay with it, and while she's new to us, I am working hard to trust her because she's been great so far.

Thanks also for the feedback about his appetite. I have been splitting his food into multiple smaller meals to see if it would keep him slightly happier, but nothing really seems to help. He just paces around looking for food all day and only seems satiated for a very short while after eating -- it's just really sad to see. I will try upping his intake of veggies between meals - we've always got frozen veggies in the house. Thanks for the tip!

I am so thankful for this community!

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome from me too. As his cortisol comes down into a more normal range, the appetite often returns to normal then too. It does take time, as you are looking for a slow downward trend, not a fast bump down. So I do think you'll see improvements with that and in the mean time, those frozen veggies are great and things he can knaw on for long periods of time help.

[pibblesandbits]

Thanks Molly Muffin! The veggies seem to be helping. You're right, we don't want his appetite to drop off a cliff -- a gradual decrease would be better.

Hoping for good news from his first ACTH stim test since starting the medication. He seems so much more like his old self than we've seen in a while, but we've still got a way to go. Fingers crossed.

Hello and welcome from me too. As his cortisol comes down into a more normal range, the appetite often returns to normal then too. It does take time, as you are looking for a slow downward trend, not a fast bump down. So I do think you'll see improvements with that and in the mean time, those frozen veggies are great and things he can knaw on for long periods of time help.

[molly muffin]

We'll be anxious to see what the ACTH shows too. Does sound like you are on the right track with the appetite.

Doing good!

[pibblesandbits]

Because of the crazy weather we've had here, the pipes burst in the veterinarian's office and flooded her out the night before we were scheduled to do the ACTH follow-up test (I feel terrible for them, they lost so much, and it looked like a swimming pool in there!), so we had to reschedule for today, a full 5 days later. I'm wondering if this is going to cause problems, since we're well outside the 10-14 day range since starting treatment. I am hoping that the results will still be valid. I will definitely be sharing them here, as well as the original diagnostic lab results, which were from low dose dexamethasone testing, not ACTH. I will not be able to compare the two but it will still be interesting to see.

[Squirt's Mom]

As long as Wayne is doing well with no signs of the cortisol being too low the delay shouldn't cause any real problems. I can't imagine how awful that must be for his vet! So much could be damaged and lost in a heartbeat with water like that!

[molly muffin]

As leslie said as long as there is no signs of low cortisol, then you should be okay with the later testing. The results will be valid as long as they are done by proper protocol around 4 hours after medication given with meal.

I am very sorry to hear of the flooding at your vets and the loss they have experienced.

[pibblesandbits]

Okay, so I didn't go pick up the results yet, but you guys were right - the vet did call and said that we should drop his dose down a bit because his response has been phenomenal but she's worried he'll be in Addison's territory within a few months if we stay on this dose. So, we'll be doing 90mg/day rather than 120mg/day, and it'll be split between AM (60) and PM (30). As I noted earlier, he's almost 70 lbs. Does this seem like a more appropriate dose to you guys?

I am a little concerned that his symptoms will return, so I'll be keeping an eye out -- did anyone else notice anything that I should be on the lookout for as we drop his dose? If symptoms returned, was it gradual? When did you make the call to alert the vet that it wasn't an adequate dose?

Thank you so much for your input!

[molly muffin]

Everything depends on what the test results are for where his cortisol is at now and how fast it has dropped. Obviously it dropped enough that the vet doesn't think it is good to stay at 120mg. It will depend on where the next test shows the cortisol to be as to whether or not you stay at 90mg. Some large dogs, don't end up requiring large doses. I am not as much concerned about 90 not being enough as I am about making sure that even that dose is not too much.
Obviously his cortisol dropped quite a bit for her to lower the dosage before 30 days.

Can you call the vet and ask what the numbers on the ACTH are? It is really hard to give any kind of adequate feedback without knowing how he is reacting to the medication.

yes symptoms either good or bad, usually all show up gradually.

[pibblesandbits]

That is great advice and I really appreciate it - let me get those results. Poor vet is already under so much stress with the office disaster and yet she continues to give good care -- I think I feel guilty asking for extra, but we really do need those records. I hope they'll be able to tell me tomorrow.