PuddleDuck Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Hey Kelly, I haven't been following Chloe's story from the start but am certainly keeping my fingers crossed for no more "buts" in future. She sounds like a special girl, with a special owner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly_Louise Posted December 10, 2009 Author Share Posted December 10, 2009 To me it's always somehow a relief to have a course of action, like the one set out by your specialist. Ain't that the truth! It's such a relief when he gives me all the options, and gives us a plan of attack to follow. Kind of like taking the worrying out of your hands... giving us some kind of direction when we feel overwhelmed by this nasty disease. You have a Cushinoid chiquito? You sound like you've been on this journey too Aww thank you PuddleDuck... I have to admit, she's an extremely special dog. Not quite sure what I'll ever to without my best buddy one day... although I'll have the other (lovely) git to keep me on my toes The owners aren't special, just very dedicated to our beautiful old girl to see she gets all her chances... and she deserves them cause she's proven alot of people wrong on her almost 12 year journey and continues to do so. Thanks for all of your support guys - it really does mean alot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiquito Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 We don't know how Cushinoid is our little boy. He had a ACTH stim in September after having a blood test showing high liver enzymes and urinanalysis showing diluted urine. The ACTH stim came back positive. We did an ultrasound and there it was, a tumour in the left adrenal gland. By now it was October so we scheduled an adrenalectomy for the 11th of November - we couldn't do it earlier, even though we knew it was somehow urgent-. A couple of weeks before the surgery I requested the vet to go to a specialist and re do all the tests plus x-rays. I just didn't want to do the surgery unless he's life was at stake and no other options were available. So we did blood, urinanalysis, x rays, ultrasound and ACTH supression (which is done with three samples of blood every four hours - first sample before the hormone is injected and the other two four and eight hours after the hormome has been injected). This test seems to be a bit more specific that the stimulation test and I think it can also give an idea of where is the source of the disease. To our surprise all results came back negative. No signs of Cushings. The vet said it is possible that the tumour in the adrenal gland is not a "working" tumour and that the source could be in the pituitary - and that it is in remission. So we cancelled the operation, got to speak with the specialist on the phone - but never went for a consultation. We are due back for follow up tests in February. If tests show then positive we'll be going to the specialist. I'm hoping the first batch of tests were false positives or were misread. Or that it was a reaction developed from dietary issues or vaccination issues. In the meantime we are trying to enjoy the time together - however, I can't help checking how much he's drinking, how much pee, is he eating too much? is he still hungry? is that hair falling off? But overall he looks very good. He's not a puppy and in March will be 14 yo (the oldest dog I've ever had). But again he's a maltese so for his breed is not that old. And that's why I sort of know something about Mr Cushings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly_Louise Posted December 11, 2009 Author Share Posted December 11, 2009 Wow 14 years old... I can certainly understand your hesitation to rush into surgery. Of course if it's necessary, but I think you were right to push for second opinions and more reliable results. The suppression test is more accurate, and usually this is the first one done to best diagnose Cushings. So I'm surprised the first vet just did the stim test first. Chloe has had a couple of suppression tests, first for her diagnosis and then again when she went into remission and was on her way back out. I really do recommend staying with the specialist though (even if it is not Cushings). Reason being is that there are many diseases of this kind that are closely related (and most can't 'accurately' be diagnosed - more a process of elimination), and personally I think only a specialist has seen it all and is best to know which symptoms might point to a specific disease and what any test results (whether postive or negative) might indicate. I feel a normal vet just doesn't have the specialised knowledge to deal with these diseases as well as a specialist does. That would be my best advice to you, even if it means asking your vet for a referral to a specialist you trust and sticking with them. I do hope your little boy stays healthy and can avoid this nasty disease and those related. But he sounds like he is in good hands with his family Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiquito Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 Thank you for the advise. That's our plan if we get a positive result next round of tests we'll definitely go to the specialist as we will need to decide how we're going to treat it - and also look after all the other related issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly_Louise Posted December 12, 2009 Author Share Posted December 12, 2009 Will keep fingers and paws crossed for a good result for your old boy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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