Canine Cushing's Disease

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Old 09-26-2011, 11:17 PM
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Originally Posted by quiltsRfun
Our beagle, Lucy had Cushings. This was when she was 12 years old and after reading about the treatment we decided it was too much for her at that age. She also had liver problems which the vets discovered when she had surgery for what turned out to be a ruptured gall bladder. She was eight years old at the time and ended up in doggy intensive care. We were told she wouldn't make it through the night but she was a tough and stubborn little girl and managed to pull through. Vets said the liver didn't look good and the numbers were off the scale, literally. Biopsy came back negative which was good news. But her liver numbers were high the rest of her life. We gave her four more years before she was diagnosed with Cushings. It left her back legs so weak that she had trouble walking and standing. Lucy developed pneumonia which was what finally took her.

Sorry I can't offer any information regarding treatment but just wanted to offer my sympathy and best wishes for Buddy. I did a Google search at the time Lucy was diagnosed and found several forums where canine Cushings was discussed. I found it very helpful since these were people who were facing the same decisions I was.

2 of the 4 liver enzymes in Buddy are high. His back legs are very weak also, he has trouble standing from a laying down position. He also sometimes walks wobbly. He went from outgoing and playful to not wanting to do anything. The vet said he is not in pain, just has weakness and fatigue. I have done non-stop research for the last 3 weeks. I have read that some people have had great results with treatment and some didn't.
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Old 09-26-2011, 11:19 PM
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Originally Posted by Lynnie25
Our dog had Cushings Disease, lumps came up all over her body firstly, then she lost big clumps of her fur, she became very bloated, and lost weight. Towards the end, her rear end collapsed and she could barely walk. She was on high doses of tablets and medicine, was having injections at the Vet but in the end nothing could be done. She was 15 years old and I could no longer see her suffer so she went to sleep - 2 years ago this October. I miss her terribly.
I am so sorry about your furbaby! What meds was she on if you can recall?
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Old 09-27-2011, 05:25 AM
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My beagle Jake had Cushings, with a little pot belly and a little extra thirst. His symptoms were mild and did not require treatment.

At the time the common wisdom was that the treatment was more art than science, and treating it (which was very expensive) could even make things worse. I understand there are new treatments now but I don't know how good they are. We decided to treat his symptoms if needed and just go from there.

About a year later Jake was diagnosed with Lymphoma and the steroids he took as part of his chemo exacerbated his Cushings. The specialist thought they could handle it, but Jake just couldn't. We finally let him go.
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