Emma - New Member Post

[emmagirl]

I forgot to mention that Emma has been waking at 6am for her first meal ever since this hunger started. She wakes at the same time every single day. (Then she eats at 12, then 6) How would I be able to get a resting cortisol test before her first dose of the day which is at 6am? The article:
New, “Pre-pill” Trilostane monitoring protocol (2018) Was very interesting, and I’m definitely interested. I still need to read the info at the links that were included in this report. Thanks very much. Sharon

[Joan2517]

Just change the time that she gets the pill the day before the test. Give her a little something at 6am the day before, give her the pill at 10ish with a full meal and have the test done at 10 the next day.

[Harley PoMMom]

I’ll request Emma’s ACTH be moved up to soon as possible. Does anyone think it matters if the test is a SNAP cortisol or should it be ACTH stim sent to IDEXX for testing?

Although one would expect that the results from either test would be similar, you just never know, so to able to compare "apples to apples" I'd stick to one or the other.

[emmagirl]

Thanks Joan, change the time she gets the pill..... that’s easy enough. Lori, since she’s been having tests run at IDEXX, I’ll request that if we can’t do the resting cortisol, which would be hard to compare also, correct?

I was incorrect in thinking Emma had congestive heart failure because she had a murmur. My vet explained that a murmur doesn’t mean congestive heart failure. She rated it lower also than the last vet: a 2 or 3, and said if I occasionally count her resting breathes per minute, we would know if the murmur was getting worse. That sounds logical and easy enough to do.

Thanks ladies. I would be lost without your input!

[emmagirl]

Diatomaceous Earth for Fleas

August 2018 - I first learned about Diatomaceous Earth while searching the internet for a natural way to keep fleas off my pup and decided to try it. The results were so good I wanted to get the word out to anyone that hasn’t heard of it yet.

DE is made from the fossilized remains of tiny, aquatic organisms called diatoms, which are made of a natural substance called silica. Over a long period of time, diatoms accumulated in the sediment of rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans. Today, silica deposits are mined from these areas.

There is no shortage of information on Diatomaceous Earth. A quick search will provide pages of results. I found a web site named diatomaceousearth.com and started there. DE powder looks and feels like silk, but microscopically has the ability to lacerate the exoskeletons of fleas, (ticks, ear mites & other tiny pests), and kills them through dehydration. (Cue sinister laugh)

You must use the Food Grade DE. That grade is safe for humans and animals. A five pound bag costs around $14 and will last for quite a while. It is widely available locally and online at home improvement, discount and pet stores, and online at those same stores and others.

After sprinkling it on my dachshund, it only takes one or two days before she is no longer biting and scratching from flea bites. I continue treating the hotspots she already had from previous flea bites until they are gone, and then amazingly, there aren’t any more to treat.

One full dusting lasts a week or two. If she scratches during that time, it’s usually because the powder itself causes dry skin and she is scratching an itchy dry spot. She doesn’t scratch much, and it has never caused a hot spot.

A flea comb will no longer go through her fur because of the powder, so I use a wide spaced comb for grooming. When the powder starts wearing off and fleas want to hop aboard again, I give her a bath and after a short break from the powder it’s time to reapply again.

If fleas are present in the house or yard, you can use the powder to rid the fleas in those areas also. Vacuuming and cleaning after applying in the house is a small challenge, and there are articles on the web that address that subject.

One of the suggestions on the site I implemented right away: after your dog makes its daily deposit in the yard, throw some of the powder on top of it. It keeps the flies away and in-between clean up times with the scooper, those white spots make a good visual warning not to step there!

I hope this helps some of our fur babies.

Sharon

[labblab]

Wow, Sharon, thank you so much for this super helpful info! I think it could help a lot of people — so much so that I’m going to make a copy of your reply and post it as a new thread-starter on our “Everything Else” forum. This way, in the future it will be easier for people to see the topic and talk about “flea issues” further.

I had to smile when I noticed elsewhere that you had written that you’re “just a member without special expertise,” because this just shows how valuable each and every one of our members is to our family. We each have our very own areas of expertise, and it is a gift to us all when that knowledge and experience can be shared :-)))). So thanks again, on behalf of all our itchy babies!!!

And here’s a link to your new thread, where we can all continue the conversation:

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/show...omaceous-earth

Marianne

[Joan2517]

Thanks, Sharon! Sounds great! I'm taking Gabe to the vet anyway just to check him out, but I will definitely try your recipe!

[emmagirl]

That's great, Marianne, Hope it all makes sense. I tried to condense weeks of trial and error into one post and hope it makes sense. I hope it works for someone else...Ive had such positive results. I guess I forgot to mention, too, that Emma is not on any flea control; pills, spot-on, because it's poison.... bottom line. So that is why I am so thrilled that I found something that works, for me at least, to keep those things off Emma.
Also, I don't have cats anymore, both of my babies died this year, and cat fleas are worse than dog fleas, so I don't know how successful this might be with cat fleas in the mix. Maybe someone will let us know.

Anyway, thanks Marianne, for putting it on a thread to make it easier to find, and the pat on the back!

And Joan, I hope things work out well for Gabe at the vet today.

Sharon

[emmagirl]

Update: 11/22/18
Another product I tried and found success with is Wondercide Flea spray. The spray needs to actually come into contact with the fleas to kill them, but it also makes a very good way to deter fleas and ticks from jumping on your pet.

Since it needs to hit the flea directly to kill it, (and itÂ’s instant kill) itÂ’s best to do a number of sprays and ruffle the liquid into their fur, than to spray heavily all at once. I don’t like putting too much of anything on Emma all at once; it’s just MY feeling.


The first time I used it I expected quick results and I didnÂ’t like the smell. I tried it again and was more patient, and found the more I used it the the flea problem was getting less of a problem and after a week, there was hardly a flea on my pup.

If I saw her quickly and urgently bite or scratch in one place, I would look, find the flea and spray. The flea was immediately killed. The spray is a little expensive, around $25 for a 16 oz spray bottle, but one bottle would last me for months. I have a 19 LB dachshund, so itÂ’s a rather small area to cover than say, a German Shepherd, but the results and safety of the spray are worth it to me.

Wondercide products are chemical free and and Wondercide is adamant that their products are safe for your fur baby. My pup has been sprayed many times during the summer and shows no effects from it.

Now they offer a new fragrant, peppermint, that doesnÂ’t bother my pup or me in the least. It isn’t a strong Medical-type smell. Very light and pleasing scent.

They also have a concentrate to spray on your lawn which I found extremely effective......wondercide.com
I apologize for any strange characters in this post...either the site or my iPad is having a glitch.

[emmagirl]

I forgot to write my post elsewhere and copy it to the forum, so its my fault I lost the whole post. Since the message said I wasnt logged in correctly when I submitted, IÂ’m not foing to find an autov save, so here is a much shorter version.

Emma has had cushings since 12/2017. She is a miniature long haired dachshund, 18 lbs. Only been increased once from 10mg vetoryl to 15mg. She is terribly afraid of the ACTH test. The last one she had was awful for both of us. When they brought her to me to wait the hour in between, she was clinging to me, front paws curled under to hold onto me better. So when they came to get her for second round, it broke my heart and I paced.

For 6 months she shook violently each time we got in the car to ride somewhere. Now I’m seeing the signs of cushings again and she needs a test. The last time I was on this site I was reading about “resting” ACTH tests, and I would like to know if there is further information on that or any other tests not so hard on the dog. The vet told me she hated giving the tests, and that didn’t help my concern.

Can anyone give me some info on newer. Kinder tests?

Thanks so much,
emmagirl
Sharon Keepiing