Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Wow Kim that's quite the record for loading!!! That must have taken so much out of you. Thanks for sharing all you know with us new ones.

Thanks for everyones input. I feel much better. I was out to eat for a couple hours and was afraid of how Kallie might be when I got home but she was barking and tail up - she's almost acting normal (licking my husband - she'll do that for half an hour). Don't know if she has OCD or might that be another symptom of Cushings? Does anyone elses dog do that? She licks the floor if she can't like him. Drive's us up the wall!!!

Everyone have a good night!! And I'll be praying for all the doggies out there that need help tonight so they can have a good day tomorrow.

Tammy

[frijole]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Tammy

I forgot about the licking thing. I cannot speak to any scientific reason - or tie it to cushings - perhaps others can? I can only tell you that my gal was always a licker, however, after being treated I remember posting about how she was like a canine vacuum cleaner licking the carpet while walking thru the house. I remember others had the same experience but I can't for the life of me remember if we concluded why this happened.

Kim

[forscooter]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Tammy....

Kim is right....we have had quite a few lickers...especially carpet lickers...I don't think we ever did narrow it down. I think some dogs had allergy issues which sometimes can present with a lot of licking....and others we just never could figure it out.

Tammy, I had two dogs with Cushing's....Bailey is still with me. During loading, they were quieter than usual. And even after we started maintenance in the beginning, they would get what we scientifically termed "yuckies" anywhere from 24-36 hours after being given the dose. Lysodren loading causes, usually, a rapid decrease in cortisol. Cortisol can make a dog feel better in some respects, and in others, not so good. But a rapid decrease can just throw things off balance a bit for them....don't worry though bc they adjust much better than we do watching them!!

As for the lethargy...you will know it. It is more than just being tired...more than just sleepy. It is a weakness like you haven't seen before. Scooter went low on me a few times and I'll never forget the first. It was like it happened yesterday. That morning he wasn't eating well, seemed very tired, really not too interested in much of anything. I thought well, I guess he is just having an "off" day and I went to work. When I came home, 8 hours later, he met me at the door as always. BUT, then he sat right down. And then laid down. Not the usual barking greeting I always got. I stopped and looked at him. It was like someone sucked the life out of his eyes. There was nothing there. I was suspicious and I offered him cheese.....no dice. I offered him peanut butter....nothing. He stayed on the floor and just had this dull look.

So, I took some pred, smeared cream cheese on my finger and wiped it all on the back of his tongue. It took about 30-45 minutes, but he was up running around the house and ate all his dinner.

So, a low, should there be one, will come on over hours...you will see an increase in symptoms....and you will KNOW it bc you know Kallie better than anyone else.

The only other thing I can tell you is if in doubt, if something just seems wrong for Kallie, you can't hurt to test. You won't lose much ground and it is always safer to be safe than sorry. I know you don't want to stim all the time, but if your gut tells you to check, you probably should. No one can really tell without testing the numbers. As I said, you know Kallie better than anyone so listen to your gut. And we'll help your gut as much as possible!

Hang in there....it DOES get better!!! Beth, Bailey and always Scooter

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Beth - Wow you had two with cushings, that must have been stressful. Did that just happen by chance? Sorry to hear you lost Scooter. How long did they have cushings?

Kallie sure has been having the "yuckies" the past 3 days. Hopefully that means she's done soon. She did eat a little slower today, but she has been coughing a little and kind of choking on her food so maybe that slowed her down. I'll see again at lunch. I will be talking to the vet this afternoon. I hope there isnt something else wrong with her. Her breath has been extra nasty lately. And with her kind of gagging/choking. Her teeth have been really bad the last few years. We were going to get them cleaned, but then my husband lost his job and out of work for 5 months! We looked back into it when he got a new job and did the blood tests and thats when we started checking into cushings. Hopefully if all goes well we will get her teeth cleaned after she is on maintenance. I am very worried about her mouth. I am scared to even look in there.

Thanks for the example of Scooter when he was lethargic. That really helped me realize/picture what it should be like.

Thanks for the encouragement.

Tammy and Kallie

[Roxee'sDad]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Tammy,
My Roxee was a floor licker too. She would just lay down and start licking the floor I thought she was liking the flavor. Seemed to have stopped when her stim results came back in the desired range.

Hope all continues to improve with Kallie.

John (Roxee's Dad)

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

It would be so great if she quit after she is done loading and has normal levels. Seems like it got worse since last year. She always did lick my husband - more like the submissive lick the alpha male thing. The other dogs do it too but she is obnoxious!!

Tammy and Kallie

[forscooter]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Tammy,

I just got lucky I guess having two! Scooter was diagnosed first and then Bailey 6 weeks later. Scooter was so sick at the time that it was so obvious something was really wrong with him. Bailey not so much. So by the time I got done loading and stabilizing Scooter, I noticed Bailey drinking and peeing more and thought hhmmmm....they aren't related except through our hearts so it wasn't a genetic thing.

Scooter would have made his two-year mark this past February with Cushing's. I had to make the final decision the day after Christmas when he collapsed after a morning bath. Rushed him to the vet and found out his heart was very enlarged. He had multiple issues, severe allergies, severe arthritis, and this huge heart....and was really not having the best quality to his life. And I didn't want him to collapse like that when he would be all alone if I was at work and so I made the decision to let him go.

Bailey just celebrated his two-year anniversary. He is having some issues now but mostly related to his arthritis and hip dysplasia. So we just make every day special and I count my blessings!

If you see the slow down eating, that may be your sign. Both boys just hesitated for a millisecond which for them was unusual. My gut thought uh-oh. They loaded very very quickly and the vet thought I was nuts. But they were loaded! I was right. You don't want to go until Kallie is sick so if she hesitates again or seems to have a problem eating, I would take her to be checked. The teeth thing can sure complicate matters and I feel for you!!! I understand about balancing the expenses of all of this. We do the best we can. I am limited on what and how much I can do, so truly I understand.

Hang in there....loading is the pits but I know you can both do it!!!
Hugs, Beth, Bailey and always Scooter

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Kallie ate slower yesterday, and last night at 2:30 am she woke up trying to vomit. Nothing came out. She tried 3 times in about an hour. I gave her some tagament (previously prescribed for her when she had a back injury when on steriods, so I thought it would be okay). I thought maybe she'd feel better this morning but it's the same or worse. I did call the vet little after 7 and he said give her the prednisone. That was around 7:40am. I'm waiting for it to kick in. Hopefully that's what the problem is. He said he will test her tomorrow morning. She didn't even want it smeared in moist cat food (her favorite). We had to put it down the back of her throat. My husband was freaking out a little bit but I knew just what to do because of all of you. He seems scared to see her like this but I am being really calm. Thank you all so much - i would have been freaking out right now.

Tammy and Kallie

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Does anyone know the dosage amount of prednisone for a 9 lb dog? He told me to give her one pill - it is 2.5mg.

Thanks,

Tammy

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

She had no reaction to the 2.5 mg of prednisone so the vet had me bring her in right away. They did an x-ray because she seemed to be having a hard time breathing and one of her lungs is filled up. They don't know if she has pneumonia or a mass in there. They kept her for a couple hours to give her a water pill to clear it up to see if they can see anything in there and also to give her a stim test - they want to know how far along she is loading. She might be done. We are hoping for little high right now (instead of too low) since she needs antibiotics and i guess if she is low it would be harder to treat?? They don't think the two are related but its hard to know. Wow what a crazy night and morning. My poor husband is so upset so I have to be the strong one.

They think if all goes well she will be feeling fine this afternoon, if they can get some water out of her lung. Hopefully it's not more. I can pick her up at 2pm.

Tammy and Kallie

[Roxee'sDad]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Tammy,
Just wanted to drop in and let you know I (we) are keeping Kallie in our thought's and prayers. Hope she recovers soon and it's nothing too serious.

Please keep us updated.

John (Roxee's Dad)

[LuvMyMunchie]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Hi Tammy,

Just read your post about Kallie's difficulties. Hoping that your vet will have some definite answers for your soon and that Kallie will be back home and on the road to recovery.

Thinking positive thoughts for Kallie. Give her some extra pets from me!

Louise

[frijole]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Tammy,

I missed the excitement as I was out of town yesterday. Hope all is back to normal. Please note that if the vet does an acth test within 48 hrs of having been given prednisone the results might be a little off... the prednisone is mimicking the cortisol so the results would be LOWER. I hope this is making sense. I'm at work and can't chat. I just wanted to send a hug. Hope she is loaded and feeling better soon. Keep us posted.

Kim

[Kallie'smom]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed - she passed

I'm so sorry to tell everyone that Kallie passed away. I just got home from the vet. They found that her lung was filled up with fluid and were going to give her something to get rid of that and antibiotics and send her home. The medicine didn't work and they don't know why. When I went to pick her up they were going to send her home with me. She wasnt much different from this morning, but not worse. As I was sitting there waiting for the vet to come in she got way worse. They were counting on her getting better in the next couple hours. She didn't even hold her head up anymore. She had a very hard time breathing, and the vet said there was no chance for her at that point, so we figured it would be best to put her to sleep so she could stop suffering. They said she would have died on her own really soon.

This past year because of her age and heath related problems I made sure I did not take her for granted, not one day. Cuz I knew that when this happened I could look back at all those memories.

Thank you everyone for all your help the past month. Everyone is so nice and helpful. I will still be around keeping up on everyones stories.

Tammy

[LuvMyMunchie]

Re: Hello, I am new here, Kallie just diagnosed

Oh, Tammy....I am so, so sorry to read that your Kallie has passed away. My heart aches for you. I am at an absolute loss for words.

Peace, sweet Kallie.

With deepest sympathy,

Louise