My 15 and a half y.o. Basset Hound has the early signs of Cushing's disease.
He saw the vet a week ago today. An official test has not been done yet,
but the initial signs of frequent drinking (a lot), frequent urinating (gets
me up a few times during the night now), and his back legs shake when he
stands now. I have a call into the vet right now to find out what needs to
be done next. Since Happy's (his name) age is up there, and with all of the
advice I've gotten so far, I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease. Of course, my heart is breaking.

Does anyone have any knowledge on what to expect as this disease increases?
I've Googled a lot, but am not getting a clear picture of "what's next", and
the inevitable question of "how long". What I have gathered is if I did
decide to do the treatment, it can be brutal on the dog. My main and only
goal is to keep Happy as healthy as possible and to make sure he is not in
any pain.

Thanks so much!!


·.·´¨ ¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
Laurie
((¸¸.·´ ..·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸ ·.·

*~*LiveLoveLaugh*~*

All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
~Abraham Lincoln

On Thu, 28 Oct 2010 08:35:42 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:

My 15 and a half y.o. Basset Hound has the early signs of Cushing's disease.
He saw the vet a week ago today. An official test has not been done yet,
but the initial signs of frequent drinking (a lot), frequent urinating (gets
me up a few times during the night now), and his back legs shake when he
stands now. I have a call into the vet right now to find out what needs to
be done next. Since Happy's (his name) age is up there, and with all of the
advice I've gotten so far, I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease. Of course, my heart is breaking.

Does anyone have any knowledge on what to expect as this disease increases?
I've Googled a lot, but am not getting a clear picture of "what's next", and
the inevitable question of "how long". What I have gathered is if I did
decide to do the treatment, it can be brutal on the dog. My main and only
goal is to keep Happy as healthy as possible and to make sure he is not in
any pain.

I haven't had a dog with Cushing's, though I just had it ruled out in
my 10 year-old greyhound. As far as I know, Cushing's doesn't cause
pain. It does affect quality of life in that the dog feels thirsty
and often lethargic; you should talk to your vet about other effects
of the disease. Testing and treatment for Cushing's can be expensive,
but I'm not sure why you think the treatment can be hard on the dog.
Treatment doesn't cure the disease, but it does alleviate the symptoms
and the dog feels better. It doesn't necessarily extend the dog's
life, but it does improve his quality of life.

If Happy were my dog, I'd have a blood chemistry run. That would tell
you whether there might be other reasons for his excessive drinking
and urinating such as diabetes or kidney failure, neither of which
would be unusual in a dog his age. My greyhound's hind end weakness
is caused by lumbosacral stenosis, which is fairly common in
ex-racers. I'm thinking that spinal issues might not be uncommon in
Bassets, but there are other, more common explanations for his hind
legs shaking too.

Please keep us posted on Happy.

"sighthounds & siberians" wrote in message
...

On Thu, 28 Oct 2010 08:35:42 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:

My 15 and a half y.o. Basset Hound has the early signs of Cushing's
disease.
He saw the vet a week ago today. An official test has not been done yet,
but the initial signs of frequent drinking (a lot), frequent urinating
(gets
me up a few times during the night now), and his back legs shake when he
stands now. I have a call into the vet right now to find out what needs to
be done next. Since Happy's (his name) age is up there, and with all of
the
advice I've gotten so far, I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease. Of course, my heart is breaking.

Does anyone have any knowledge on what to expect as this disease increases?
I've Googled a lot, but am not getting a clear picture of "what's next",
and
the inevitable question of "how long". What I have gathered is if I did
decide to do the treatment, it can be brutal on the dog. My main and only
goal is to keep Happy as healthy as possible and to make sure he is not in
any pain.

:I haven't had a dog with Cushing's, though I just had it ruled out in
:my 10 year-old greyhound. As far as I know, Cushing's doesn't cause
ain. It does affect quality of life in that the dog feels thirsty
:and often lethargic; you should talk to your vet about other effects
f the disease. Testing and treatment for Cushing's can be expensive,
:but I'm not sure why you think the treatment can be hard on the dog.
:Treatment doesn't cure the disease, but it does alleviate the symptoms
:and the dog feels better. It doesn't necessarily extend the dog's
:life, but it does improve his quality of life.

I have a call into him about the side effects... how bad do they get, is
there pain, etc. As far as it being 'hard' on the dog, that's from what
I've read on Google. Some have said they would have never done it b/c of
the "chemo's" side effects. Another small problem is my vet (who is in his
mid 50's) has cancer. It's not anything too bad that I know of... but I do
not know what kind it is. I live north of Syracuse, NY and when I saw my
vet last week, he told me about it (just saying cancer... not what kind) and
that he was in New York (city) for treatment. Anyway, he's been out of the
office more than usual. The questions I have are being relayed to me via a
vet tech right now. This is one reason why I'm Googling and trying to get
info. in here.

:If Happy were my dog, I'd have a blood chemistry run. That would tell
:you whether there might be other reasons for his excessive drinking
:and urinating such as diabetes or kidney failure, neither of which
:would be unusual in a dog his age. My greyhound's hind end weakness
:is caused by lumbosacral stenosis, which is fairly common in
:ex-racers. I'm thinking that spinal issues might not be uncommon in
:Bassets, but there are other, more common explanations for his hind
:legs shaking too.

Happy had a CBC done in May. He was being put under for a teeth cleaning
(and extraction). Everything was fine then. When I saw the doc last week,
he didn't think the CBC was necessary right now. That's when he brought up
Cushing's. From what I was told, the test for Cushing's is different. Mind
you, I was going into a fog when he brought it up. (Screaming inside, "no,
no, no, nooooo")!! As far as the legs shaking, he said it was age and Hap's
elongated back. But that's when he brought up Cushing's, so I am not sure
if it is related to the disease or not.

:Please keep us posted on Happy.

Oh, I will, I will!! If nothing more then to vent my heart being broken
into a million pieces. I am short of being a wreck. When I was at the
vet's last week, I had one of my cat's with me for his usual asthma shot.
At the last minute, I called and asked if Hap could come along b/c I wanted
to hear from the vet what he had to say about a lot of water drinking and
the shaky legs. Half of me was paying attention to Maui (cat) and the other
half, like I said, was so foggy b/c I was SHOCKED by hearing about this
disease.

Thank you so much for your input/reply. I will definitely keep in touch.
BTW, right now, Hap is in the front room with my other 2 dogs chomping on
his rawhide. He's barking at it (like usual) and tossing it up in the
air... and just being his silly Basset self!! Of course, I'm savoring
every moment with him!!

·.·´¨ ¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
Laurie
((¸¸.·´ ..·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸ ·.·

*~*LiveLoveLaugh*~*

All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
~Abraham Lincoln

"~*LiveLoveLaugh*~" wrote in message
...
My 15 and a half y.o. Basset Hound has the early signs of Cushing's
disease.
\

I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease. Of course, my heart is breaking.

Does anyone have any knowledge on what to expect as this disease
increases?

................I think this site makes things pretty clear. Treatment is
not necessarily brutal, but nailing down the exact problem causing Cushings
involves tests.
http://www.kateconnick.com/library/cushingsdisease.html

She has a few message boards listed that you may visit for more personal
information.

Good luck with your oldster.

buglady
take out the dog before replying

On Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:39:51 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:

I have a call into him about the side effects... how bad do they get, is
there pain, etc. As far as it being 'hard' on the dog, that's from what
I've read on Google. Some have said they would have never done it b/c of
the "chemo's" side effects. Another small problem is my vet (who is in his
mid 50's) has cancer. It's not anything too bad that I know of... but I do
not know what kind it is. I live north of Syracuse, NY and when I saw my
vet last week, he told me about it (just saying cancer... not what kind) and
that he was in New York (city) for treatment. Anyway, he's been out of the
office more than usual. The questions I have are being relayed to me via a
vet tech right now. This is one reason why I'm Googling and trying to get
info. in here.

But Cushing's isn't cancer, and the drugs the dogs get aren't chemo
drugs. Though I have heard that there can be side effects.

:If Happy were my dog, I'd have a blood chemistry run. That would tell
:you whether there might be other reasons for his excessive drinking
:and urinating such as diabetes or kidney failure, neither of which
:would be unusual in a dog his age. My greyhound's hind end weakness
:is caused by lumbosacral stenosis, which is fairly common in
:ex-racers. I'm thinking that spinal issues might not be uncommon in
:Bassets, but there are other, more common explanations for his hind
:legs shaking too.

Happy had a CBC done in May. He was being put under for a teeth cleaning
(and extraction). Everything was fine then. When I saw the doc last week,
he didn't think the CBC was necessary right now. That's when he brought up
Cushing's. From what I was told, the test for Cushing's is different. Mind
you, I was going into a fog when he brought it up. (Screaming inside, "no,
no, no, nooooo")!! As far as the legs shaking, he said it was age and Hap's
elongated back. But that's when he brought up Cushing's, so I am not sure
if it is related to the disease or not.

A CBC isn't a chemistry; it's a complete blood count - red cells,
white cells, etc. A blood chemistry is not a diagnostic test for
Cushing's, but as I understand it, the majority of dogs with Cushing's
have abnormalities in the liver enzymes. If your dog's liver enzymes
are normal, chances are he doesn't have Cushing's. The tests for
Cushing's are pretty expensive, which is why starting with a chemistry
might be a good idea. Also, as I said, it would show any
abnormalities in his blood glucose (diabetes can cause excessive
drinking and urinating) or kidney function (ditto). There are usually
(not always) other signs/symptoms of Cushing's; does Happy have any of
them?

"~*LiveLoveLaugh*~" wrote in message
...
I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease.

..................And I'd also like to add that not doing traditional
treatments is not the same as doing nothing. If diagnosed with Cushings,
I'd be tempted to use a product like this (with a bit more research) to see
what happens:
http://www.petwellbeing.com/products/dog-adrenal-glands

buglady
take out the dog before replying

"~*LiveLoveLaugh*~" wrote in message
...
Happy had a CBC done in May. He was being put under for a teeth cleaning
(and extraction). Everything was fine then.

............It's now almost November, things can change. I said the same
thing decades ago when I had a dog later diagnosed with Addison's - just had
bloodwork run a couple of months ago. Biggest mistake I ever made.

..........Sorry to hear about your vet's troubles.

buglady
take out the dog before replying

"sighthounds & siberians" wrote in message
...

On Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:39:51 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:

I have a call into him about the side effects... how bad do they get, is
there pain, etc. As far as it being 'hard' on the dog, that's from what
I've read on Google. Some have said they would have never done it b/c of
the "chemo's" side effects. Another small problem is my vet (who is in his
mid 50's) has cancer. It's not anything too bad that I know of... but I do
not know what kind it is. I live north of Syracuse, NY and when I saw my
vet last week, he told me about it (just saying cancer... not what kind)
and
that he was in New York (city) for treatment. Anyway, he's been out of the
office more than usual. The questions I have are being relayed to me via a
vet tech right now. This is one reason why I'm Googling and trying to get
info. in here.

But Cushing's isn't cancer, and the drugs the dogs get aren't chemo
drugs. Though I have heard that there can be side effects.

:If Happy were my dog, I'd have a blood chemistry run. That would tell
:you whether there might be other reasons for his excessive drinking
:and urinating such as diabetes or kidney failure, neither of which
:would be unusual in a dog his age. My greyhound's hind end weakness
:is caused by lumbosacral stenosis, which is fairly common in
:ex-racers. I'm thinking that spinal issues might not be uncommon in
:Bassets, but there are other, more common explanations for his hind
:legs shaking too.

Happy had a CBC done in May. He was being put under for a teeth cleaning
(and extraction). Everything was fine then. When I saw the doc last week,
he didn't think the CBC was necessary right now. That's when he brought up
Cushing's. From what I was told, the test for Cushing's is different.
Mind
you, I was going into a fog when he brought it up. (Screaming inside, "no,
no, no, nooooo")!! As far as the legs shaking, he said it was age and
Hap's
elongated back. But that's when he brought up Cushing's, so I am not sure
if it is related to the disease or not.

A CBC isn't a chemistry; it's a complete blood count - red cells,
white cells, etc. A blood chemistry is not a diagnostic test for
Cushing's, but as I understand it, the majority of dogs with Cushing's
have abnormalities in the liver enzymes. If your dog's liver enzymes
are normal, chances are he doesn't have Cushing's. The tests for
Cushing's are pretty expensive, which is why starting with a chemistry
might be a good idea. Also, as I said, it would show any
abnormalities in his blood glucose (diabetes can cause excessive
drinking and urinating) or kidney function (ditto). There are usually
(not always) other signs/symptoms of Cushing's; does Happy have any of
them?

__________

Will know more tonight. Hap is going in today for blood work on his
kidneys, check for diabetes and glucose check. My vet said this is the
least expensive way to check for Cushing's by ruling out other things. Hap
has to stay for half a day b/c they do the blood work, wait, feed him, and
do the blood work again. We shall see. Fingers crossed




·.·´¨ ¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
Laurie
((¸¸.·´ ..·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸ ·.·

*~*LiveLoveLaugh*~*

All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
~Abraham Lincoln

"buglady" wrote in message
m...


"~*LiveLoveLaugh*~" wrote in message
...
My 15 and a half y.o. Basset Hound has the early signs of Cushing's
disease.
\

I am pretty sure I am NOT going to treat him for
this disease. Of course, my heart is breaking.

Does anyone have any knowledge on what to expect as this disease
increases?

................I think this site makes things pretty clear. Treatment is
not necessarily brutal, but nailing down the exact problem causing Cushings
involves tests.
http://www.kateconnick.com/library/cushingsdisease.html

She has a few message boards listed that you may visit for more personal
information.

Good luck with your oldster.

buglady
take out the dog before replying

_______

Thank you kindly, Buglady. I've already visited this site, but just went
back to it and found some other stuff to read. I really do appreciate the
input!!


·.·´¨ ¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
Laurie
((¸¸.·´ ..·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸ ·.·

*~*LiveLoveLaugh*~*

All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
~Abraham Lincoln

On Fri, 29 Oct 2010 07:42:10 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:


"sighthounds & siberians" wrote in message
.. .

On Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:39:51 -0400, "~*LiveLoveLaugh*~"
wrote:

I have a call into him about the side effects... how bad do they get, is
there pain, etc. As far as it being 'hard' on the dog, that's from what
I've read on Google. Some have said they would have never done it b/c of
the "chemo's" side effects. Another small problem is my vet (who is in his
mid 50's) has cancer. It's not anything too bad that I know of... but I do
not know what kind it is. I live north of Syracuse, NY and when I saw my
vet last week, he told me about it (just saying cancer... not what kind)
and
that he was in New York (city) for treatment. Anyway, he's been out of the
office more than usual. The questions I have are being relayed to me via a
vet tech right now. This is one reason why I'm Googling and trying to get
info. in here.

But Cushing's isn't cancer, and the drugs the dogs get aren't chemo
drugs. Though I have heard that there can be side effects.

:If Happy were my dog, I'd have a blood chemistry run. That would tell
:you whether there might be other reasons for his excessive drinking
:and urinating such as diabetes or kidney failure, neither of which
:would be unusual in a dog his age. My greyhound's hind end weakness
:is caused by lumbosacral stenosis, which is fairly common in
:ex-racers. I'm thinking that spinal issues might not be uncommon in
:Bassets, but there are other, more common explanations for his hind
:legs shaking too.

Happy had a CBC done in May. He was being put under for a teeth cleaning
(and extraction). Everything was fine then. When I saw the doc last week,
he didn't think the CBC was necessary right now. That's when he brought up
Cushing's. From what I was told, the test for Cushing's is different.
Mind
you, I was going into a fog when he brought it up. (Screaming inside, "no,
no, no, nooooo")!! As far as the legs shaking, he said it was age and
Hap's
elongated back. But that's when he brought up Cushing's, so I am not sure
if it is related to the disease or not.

A CBC isn't a chemistry; it's a complete blood count - red cells,
white cells, etc. A blood chemistry is not a diagnostic test for
Cushing's, but as I understand it, the majority of dogs with Cushing's
have abnormalities in the liver enzymes. If your dog's liver enzymes
are normal, chances are he doesn't have Cushing's. The tests for
Cushing's are pretty expensive, which is why starting with a chemistry
might be a good idea. Also, as I said, it would show any
abnormalities in his blood glucose (diabetes can cause excessive
drinking and urinating) or kidney function (ditto). There are usually
(not always) other signs/symptoms of Cushing's; does Happy have any of
them?

__________

Will know more tonight. Hap is going in today for blood work on his
kidneys, check for diabetes and glucose check. My vet said this is the
least expensive way to check for Cushing's by ruling out other things.

Right. That's what I was referring to.

Hap
has to stay for half a day b/c they do the blood work, wait, feed him, and
do the blood work again. We shall see. Fingers crossed

Let us know.