Ugga-7yr old french bulldog (calcinosis cutis)(Ugga crossed the bridge)

[jackiev]

Hi Sharlene. Thank you so much for your your kind words! It has been a rough couple months but things are leveling out again, thank goodness Everyone is recovering very well. I didn't mean to complain so much in my last post, I think I just needed to vent a little, sorry about that. I will definitely keep a close eye on Ugga after the dosage increase. Hugs to you and Molly Muffin

~Jackie and Ugga

[molly muffin]

Oh good lord! That was venting. Hon, if I had 3 animals all having crisis at the same time, you'd all be hearing from me till you yelled shut up!!!! You are certainly due for a good vent and let off some of that pent up anxiety. These furballs sure do love to get us humans all worked up. Love them, the brats!

hugs,
Sharlene and the molly muffin (my biggest brat ever, thank goodness she is sleeping now)

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Jackie,

Your month sounds a bit like mine. It seems every time I turn around, I am loading someone in the truck to go see the vet somewhere. And have they be considerate enough to need to go only during the hours OUR vet was available? nnoooooo BUT, you and I have gotten all that behind us now and we have clear sailing for a bit, right? right!

Let us know how the increase works and how Ugga is doing.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[jackiev]

Hey guys. So, I have an update on Ugga and all I have to say is, I'm glad I can type this and I don't have to try to get it out verbally. Ugga is still with us but has developed Horner's Syndrome We can rule out pretty much every possible cause with the exception of macrotumor Despite the paralysis of the left side of his face, he's eating/drinking/swallowing fine right now--thank goodness we still have time with our little man! His demeanor is fine-he's still Ugga On another negative note, the calcinosis cutis is back. We had increased his Vetoryl dose from 30mg once a day to 40mg/day (30mg am and 10mg pm). This was around a month ago. We did not do an ACTH stim before the increase for financial reasons and we did not do one 2 weeks later because time just got away from us and before we knew it, it had been a month. He has some infected spots on his skin so we're treating him with Cephalexin (500mg BID) and he's going for his ACTH stim next monday to see where his cortisol levels are. I'm guessing we didn't increase the Vetoryl enough but my vet won't do another increase without an ACTH stim test and I completely agree with her. The good thing is, he's still on a pretty low dose for his weight so there is a lot of room to go up safely if we have to. So, that's where we stand. I'm hoping the tumor grows slowly and Ugga is still able to enjoy life for awhile longer. Big hugs to everyone and their cushpups.

~Jackie and Ugga

[lulusmom]

Hi Jackie.

With Ugga being on the smaller side, you should be able to save a lot of money on your stim tests if you will talk to your vet about using only 5mcg per kg of cortrosyn, the stimulating agent, instead of the the entire vial. There are 250mcg in one vial so I think you would get multiple stim tests if your vet will agree to reconstitute and store it appropriately. You can either give her the URL to Dr. Mark Peterson's blog below or print out the page and give it to her. Cortrosyn is the reason why we pay so much for stim tests so it's worth your while to talk to your vet about it.

http://endocrinevet.blogspot.com/201...cortrosyn.html

Please keep us posted and let us know the results of Ugga's stim test on Monday.

Glynda

[molly muffin]

Oh geezz.. if it's not one thing. What is the prognosis with the Horner's Syndrome diagnosis? Do they think it is one that will go away in 6 - 8 weeks?
I do hope his ACTH comes back good. Definitely talk to your vet about saving the vile for you as mentioned by Glynda. Everyone says it helps, they keep it in the fridge at their office for you usually.
It does sound like Ugga is actually feeling alright though from what you've said, so that is good news

hugs,
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Jackie,

Good to hear from you again even tho it wasn't as positive an update as you would have liked to post. It is really good to know Ugga is still fighting "the good fight" and doing ok in spite of new issues. Let us know what you learn from the ACTH and what the plan is from there.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

[molly muffin]

Hi Jackie, How is Ugg doing? I hope better and I hope that you can all have a Happy Thanksgiving.

hugs,
Sharlene

[jackiev]

Ok, so 2 weeks later I FINALLY got Ugga back to the vet for his stim test...UGH!! I'm a groomer and holiday time is insanely busy. Between my working tons of overtime and the vets office closing early/closing in general, it was difficult to get this scheduled BUT we got it done His results: 2 and 4.3. Honestly, I don't really know what that means but my vet is increasing his Vetoryl to 30mg BID and I trust her so I'm going along. He has gained weight since we started him on these meds so hopefully this increase will do the trick. I remember it took a little while for his skin to get better initially, we're hoping it will resolve a little faster this time. We just want him to be comfortable-that's our main concern at this point. The Horner's Syndrome is still there and the head tilt is more pronounced than it was even 2 weeks ago. However, as I type this, he's in the closet, clawing like crazy at a bone wedged under the clothes hamper Despite all his health issues, this boy has barely slowed down. He has no idea he's sick. Occasionally he struggles when he tries to jump on the bed (no biggie, we pick him up) and the Horner's Syndrome is affecting his middle ear, but he's not letting it get him down. Sometimes he shakes his head, tips over, gets up, and scampers off. I know it's not funny, but sometimes I just can't help but giggle. He honestly couldn't care less, doesn't even skip a beat (well maybe 1...). I know our time with him is limited but we plan on enjoying every second. I just love this little guy to pieces <3 *hugs*

~Jackie and Ugga

[Harley PoMMom]

Ok, so 2 weeks later I FINALLY got Ugga back to the vet for his stim test...UGH!! I'm a groomer and holiday time is insanely busy. Between my working tons of overtime and the vets office closing early/closing in general, it was difficult to get this scheduled BUT we got it done His results: 2 and 4.3. Honestly, I don't really know what that means but my vet is increasing his Vetoryl to 30mg BID and I trust her so I'm going along. He has gained weight since we started him on these meds so hopefully this increase will do the trick. I remember it took a little while for his skin to get better initially, we're hoping it will resolve a little faster this time. We just want him to be comfortable-that's our main concern at this point. The Horner's Syndrome is still there and the head tilt is more pronounced than it was even 2 weeks ago. However, as I type this, he's in the closet, clawing like crazy at a bone wedged under the clothes hamper Despite all his health issues, this boy has barely slowed down. He has no idea he's sick. Occasionally he struggles when he tries to jump on the bed (no biggie, we pick him up) and the Horner's Syndrome is affecting his middle ear, but he's not letting it get him down. Sometimes he shakes his head, tips over, gets up, and scampers off. I know it's not funny, but sometimes I just can't help but giggle. He honestly couldn't care less, doesn't even skip a beat (well maybe 1...). I know our time with him is limited but we plan on enjoying every second. I just love this little guy to pieces <3 *hugs*

~Jackie and Ugga

I am assuming that the ACTH numbers you posted are the pre (2) and post (4.3), respectively. With these numbers there is no reason for a dosage increase and I am very worried if Ugga's dosage is increased then an Addison's crisis will happen.