Epi4Dogs

Hello all
tis been a long while since updated Maezi Journey
We recently celebrated her omg 10th birthday
she's been doing great active healthy happy & holding a very good weight-
we go for walks everyday and she loves goin fishing w me & her lil sister Tikka

We had both girls in for spring checkup & geriatric work up on maezi
our vet noreen been work w us right from start -9years now
her tests came back w high liver enzyme levels & with her drinking more & huge appetite & pee more -it was recomended test for Cushings
It came back positive & shw was put on trillostane for 2 weeks --restested levels still too high
so put on higher does for 3 weeks -she was retested on friday & her levels are still high -
vet is consulting resources to see how to proceed

any experience with this ?????

heres pic of us on her birthday-went to secluded lake fish & picnic in this crazy new covid world

Hi Wanda,

Wishing lovely 10 year young Maezi a VERY Happy Birthday!

Ahh.... Cushings. Been there done that... hopefully my experience may help.

One of my dogs, Rico, had Cushings too. He passed away last year at 16 years old and had Cushings for 11 years! He did very well with the treatment AFTER they figured out the right dose for him.

He was on LYSODREN for years and years.... and then the last 2 years of his life I switched to generic Lysodren ( Mitodane).
The other good drugfor Cushings is Vetoryl.
My understanding is that these are the two best drugs for Cushings and that not all Cushing dogs respond as expected to Trillostane... so you might ask your vet their thoughts on trying LYSODREN or VETORYL.

You can also control the Cushings somewhat with diet, but IMHO, you really need the medication.

My dog started losing hair and my vet had me put him on Melatonin 3 mg twice a day (Rico was a 60lb dog) .... AND... I also gave him stinging nettles... between the Melatonin and the Stinging Nettles, they stopped the hair loss... which was pitiful cuz he was a Spanish Water Dog which has curly hair... so I couldn't even do a "comb over" when he lost his hair..................

One thing I avoided was high protein foods (like organ meats) and i stayed away from commerical kibble that had a high protein content... i kind of stayed with the "middle of the road" protein content foods..

Personally I would ask the vet to try Lysodren or Vetoryl and see if that works better.
HOWEVER... (warning) it is EXPENSIVE!!!! To save money, I went to a family owned pharmacy and ordered the WHOLE bottle of Lysodren, 3 years ago it was costing me $500 for a bottle, but he only took 1/2 pill 3 days a week, so it lasted quite a while.
If you order it for just 30 or 60 days dose it will cost you a lot more since the pharmacist has to break open the bottle. IN the end though, my thoughts on Lysodren is that it is well worth it.

Hope this helps!

Hi and Happy Birthday to your girl! Thank you for the update although I'm sorry to hear she's now been diagnosed with Cushings. Olesia is the best to give advice on managing EPI and Cushings. I hope you're able to get her stabilized quickly. Please keep us posted.

Hi Wanda and HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAEZI!
Kiya's vet uses Anipryl to treat Cushings and Canine Cognitive Dysfunction.
Good luck and stay well.

Jill

Hi Wanda! It is so good to hear from you! I can't believe that Maezi is 10. You are a very good mum.

I am sorry to hear she has Cushings, but as I read Olesia's post, I realized once again how lucky we are to have all of her knowledge. It sounds like you have quite a few good questions when you take Maezi to the vet to figure out her protocol. It is quite a journey we embark on when these pups steal our hearts, isn't it?

Please let us know how she does.

Barb