Mira, 7yr old Husky - Cushings ruled out; liver cancer (Mira has passed)

[labblab]

Janis -

Sending good thoughts to you and Kira today too!

Gretchen and Rusty

Me too!!!!!!!!!!

Marianne

[frijole]

Me too!!!!!!!!!!

Marianne

Me THREE!

[lulusmom]

me three!

me four!!!!

[Altira]

Oh god kiras veritic is moments away. Looking a her blood test I see Cushings. I see liver and pancrious. Reg vet said urine infection. I did not see cancer. I'm so tired. Up all night with Mira.

[Altira]

Kira Cushings most likely. TELL ME I can still have her for three years. Does catching it earily help?

[Altira]

Somebody!!!!

[lulusmom]

Hi Janis,

Can you tell us why you think Kira may have cushing's? Cushing's is not a death sentence and with effective treatment, dogs can live out their natural life expectancy with a really good quality of life. My first cushdog is a rarity and was diagnosed at 3 years old. She is now 9 years old and still going strong. We think she had cushing's for at least before being diagnosed. My 2nd cushdog was a foster dog who we adopted because we knew he had cushing's. He had had the disease for a very, very long time and was a walking infection from head to tail, had very little fur and could hardly stand up due to severe muscle wasting. I've gotten estimates on his age of anywhere from 8 to 15 years old. He's been on treatment for three years and you'd never know he was the same pathetic dog that walked through our door in August, 2007. Whether a dog is diagnosed early or later in the disease, treatment can work miracles. I saw it happen twice. FYI, the object of treatment is to improve/resolve the symptoms so it is not recommended to treat a dog until the dog has overt symptoms.

Now that Kira may be cushingoid, please remember to get her records as well and post test results here.

Glynda

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Janis,

No, Cushing's is not a death sentence. If it turns out that Kira does have Cushing's it will mean a change in your lives in some areas but as Glynda said, with the right treatment, cush pups live out their normal life spans, some longer. Vets will tell clients that a diagnosis of Cushing's means 2 years with or without treatment and this is simply bull-hockey! They are just repeating what they were told in school...and much of that is way out of date!

You need to know that Cushing's is a slowly progressing disease, taking years and years to do real damage in most cases. So don't let the possibility make you feel pressured into starting Kira on treatment now. Rushing into treatment is much more dangerous than waiting to make sure it IS Cushing's and then deciding the best treatment approach for her. So take your time, have her thoroughly tested, rule out all other possibilities like diabetes, thyroid issues and other non-adrenal problems, then proceed with treatment.

I so hope this is not the case for Kira but just the extra stress of the situation with Mira and that she gets a clean bill of health once the tests are done.

Hugs,
Leslie and the girls - always

[Altira]

Thank you. The doctor didn't seem overly worried about it. I can not belive my vet misdiagnost both tests. He said it was just a urine infection. Oh well. Advanced Cridical Care (ACC) will take care of Kira from now on.

Of course I will pass along all the test results. But I can tell you right now Kira fits all the symptoms to the letter. She has for years. The desperation for food, drinking enormous amounts of water and peeing huge puddles. Lakes! The distended belly. She also said it explained the failure oh her knee legaments. And why the fur on her back never grew back after the last surgery. It's been seven months and still it looks like they shaved her yesterday. The other side done two years ago was slow to come in was back to normal in six months. I have so many questions for you all.

My memory is so poor. I recorded all the conversations between me and the doctors. All that complicated stuff. I probably have three hours worth. I need to focus on Mira right now. At the moment I feel like I've created a frankinstien. All these pills and forcing her to do stuff. The way she looks at me looks like she is saying why didn't you just let me go? Her eyes stare and her head wobbles.

Worse yet the very first thing I did was the wrong thing! Wecwanted her to sleep. When we left the office I just wanted to make her feel better as fast as I could. I remembered the doctor saying the peredizone will make feel the best so I gave it right away. FORCED it down her throat along with a pill that would make her want to eat. As I looked over the other three bottles I remembered she said not to give one of them until tomorrow. I asked bud about and he said it was the last one we got. Good God that was the predizone!! Now I'm looking at mira who panting hard and her eyes looking back wildly. Frankinstein! What have I done? Poor Mira who hasn't slept in days is a zommie. Shell never sleep now and she's not. She does not look much better, she is not limping though and she did sniff at bushes a bit looking for mice and lizards. I asked if she wanted to go for a walk but she did not want to. Have any of you felt like you created a frankinstin? We are not doing chemo. We just wanted to give her the most good days possible. Thirty days is all. I still have to let her go. Will the Mira I used to know ever come to visit?

[Altira]

Overt symptoms? What is it I'm looking for? She has all the symptoms I mentioned above. Is there something else?

(by the way... This site not only has wonderful people but the site itself runs very smoothly and quickly. Very user freindly. I'm impressed.)