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Thread: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

  1. #31
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    I surely understand how worrisome this is for you — I’d be watching Louis like a hawk, too! That’s just what we moms do...

    I know that antibiotics can cause upset stomachs, but since the Vetoryl has oversuppressed his appetite in the past, I’d also be worried that it’s the culprit once again. I do think it’s reasonable to put a hold on the Vetoryl for the time being, and I hope your vet will agree. Please let us know how sweet Louis continues to do.

    Marianne

  2. #32
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    I agree...especially since you think the appetite was falling off before the antibiotic was started. If it were me I would leave the Vetoryl off completely until the AB course is finished and he's had time to recover from any ill effects it may have presented.

    How is Louie now?
    "May you know that absence is full of tender presence and that nothing is ever lost or forgotten." John O'Donahue, "Eternal Echoes"

    Death is not a changing of worlds as most imagine, as much as the walls of this world infinitely expanding.

  3. #33
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    Thanks for the replies everyone!
    We’ve been back to the vets this afternoon but the vet we’ve been seeing from the beginning was off today. The vet I saw was lovely but she was understandably reluctant to make a big decision like stopping the Vetoryl altogether when she’s not seen Louis before and isn’t as familiar with him as our usual vet. So she’s suggested dropping back down to 20mg over the weekend but splitting the dose into 10mg morning and evening. My usual vet is back in on Monday and I’m down for a quick telephone consultation with him so we can chat a bit more about this. I’m very keen to go down even further to 10mg or even none at all for a while as we’ve talked about on here.
    Another interesting thought occurred to me last night. In fact it stopped me sleeping properly as I kept waking thinking about it! Louis is fed on dry food and since he was a puppy I’ve just filled the bowl and let him graze. This wasn’t a problem until he started overeating (probably the Cushings). Since he’s been diagnosed I’ve been weighing his food out, except last night I realised I’ve been under weighing it for months! The feeding guide says around 330g for a 25kg dog, Lou weighs around 22 so it should be high 200’s, maybe 300g. For some reason I had 220g in my head so that’s what I’ve been measuring out for him. Even on the 20mg Vetoryl dose he was leaving a small amount of this, so he was probably eating around 180g per day. I’d been telling the vet that he was eating ok, leaving a little bit, when actually he’s been under eating by quite a bit. I think that this shows that even the 20mg dose wasn’t suiting him either. On 10mg he was emptying his bowl, and sometimes I’d put another handful in. That seems to be the only dose he’ll tolerate reasonably well.
    I mentioned on here a little while ago that the vet was concerned about weight loss, no wonder he’s been losing weight! I don’t think we can look too closely at the weight loss until I’ve got him eating a proper amount, or close to it. I can’t believe I’ve been doing that all this time, talk about tying myself up in knots!
    Once again thanks for all your help! :-) xx
    Last edited by clairebear; 12-06-2019 at 02:27 PM.

  4. #34
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    Hi everyone! I spoke to our usual vet on Monday and he’s agreed to drop Lou down to 10mg a day, he was reluctant to stop treatment altogether. I would have possibly preferred a complete stop but I guess that’s a good compromise but his appetite and water intake hasn’t increased as quickly as I thought it would. He’s been back on 10mg since Monday morning, it’s now Wednesday afternoon here, am I just being impatient? When we stopped meds altogether a while ago the change was almost instant. He’s possibly eating slightly more but still leaving quite a sizeable amount.
    If I should have seen a change sooner does that point to the antibiotics affecting his appetite as well? I really don’t want to stop them, though, as that will mean starting a whole new course from scratch and he’s nearly halfway through them. My idea, after talking to a few people, is to make him some home made food to try and encourage him to eat a bit more, just until the antibiotics are finished.
    Last edited by clairebear; 12-11-2019 at 04:14 PM.

  5. #35
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    Under these circumstances, I believe I’d report back to your vet that Lou’s appetite has not returned to normal. As a result, I’d once again request permission to stop the Vetoryl altogether, even if only just for the remainder of time that he’s taking the antibiotic. Of the two medications, I agree with you that I think it’s more important to continue with the antibiotic until it’s course is finished. Right now, it’s impossible to know whether either of the meds are affecting his appetite. But Lou needs to eat, and by stopping one of the meds, you’ll have a better idea as to whether or not that particular medication is the source of the problem. Once again, I hope your vet will agree with stopping the Vetoryl, even if only for a short time.

    Marianne

  6. #36
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    Marianne is nicer than I am. I would remind the vet that Louis is MY dog and that the vet works for me, not the other way around. As such I would tell him I was stopping the Vetoryl, not lowering the dose, while Lou was on the antibiotics....and perhaps for a while after to see if he improved off the drug again. The vet is not the one who will have to deal with any adverse effects of his advice nor is he the one that will have to pay any extra vet bills that may occur as a result of his advice. But again, I'm not as nice as Marianne. LOL In reality I do understand that it generally seems in the UK vets seem to have much more control over pets that don't belong to them than vets in the US do and therefore are less willing to work with their clients.

    Do let us know how your sweet boy is doing!
    Hugs,
    Leslie
    "May you know that absence is full of tender presence and that nothing is ever lost or forgotten." John O'Donahue, "Eternal Echoes"

    Death is not a changing of worlds as most imagine, as much as the walls of this world infinitely expanding.

  7. #37
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    I'm so glad that Leslie said that because that is exactly what I was thinking. Lou is your dog, you are in charge of his healthcare, and you pay the vet, who should know that stopping the medication won't hurt him, but continuing it might. I have stopped Gable's meds a few times during the past almost two years when he was not feeling well, and he is still with us. I would rather let his cortisol run high than deal with it being too low, which it has done.

    The vets don't always know as much as we think they do. I found that out my first time around with my sweet Lena.
    Joan, mom to my Angel Lena, Angel Gable, Angel Phoenix, Angel Doree, Cooper, Sibble, and now Raina.

  8. #38
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    Default Re: Advice for a newly diagnosed pooch in the UK

    I hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas and thank you for the replies once again everyone!
    I know you’re all right about my relationship with the vet. I think there is a culture here of putting complete trust in the vet to make all decisions. We generally don’t get the detailed lab reports and test results that it seems you guys do so all of our faith is in the vet. I think I’ve learnt more about cushings from you guys than the vet himself!
    Louis is still on 10mg dose but the antibiotics have now stopped. His appetite is about the same, some days he empties his bowl, others there’s still a bit left so I don’t think he’s quite where he should be. I’m bulking it up with homemade food, especially for breakfast with his Vetoryl. I don’t think that this is affecting how much of his regular dry food he is eating, it’s just that the homemade is a bit more tempting for him. I’m going to make him another appointment for in a week or so and maybe I’ll really push to stop the Vetoryl altogether. I’ve been tempted to stop it anyway but have been unsure of wether I’d be doing the right thing - this all stems from the afore mentioned relationship we have with vets here! I am sorely tempted to just stop it.
    On that subject I’ve also been giving some thought to taking him to another surgery for a second opinion, or at least another set of eyes to look at the problem. I understand that the Cushings tests are not definitive and given his lack of positive reaction to the Vetoryl I’m beginning to wonder if it is Cushings at all, or even if it is if it’s not a major problem for him x

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