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2186126 tn?1384957426

Endings for Untreated Cushings in Dogs

My 14.5 yr old beagle was diagnosed with Cushing's Disease a few months ago. He is nearly blind and deaf already - we decided not to put him through the treatment. My question is how do most older dogs with untreated Cushing's begin to fail? I would really like to minimize any suffering in his final days. Right now, I am red-flagging every little twitch and thinking if I knew what to expect, I could calm down a little and hopefully not send any frightened messages to Spartacus. He is currently on Proin to control his urine accidents and that has worked for a few months now. Would just really prefer to look at him with joy rather than fear these days. Thanks, in advance, for your knowledge & stories.
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Avatar universal
My heart goes out to everyone here who has had to confront cushings in their beloved pets. My 9 yr old baby girl (shih tzu) was confirmed about a week ago with the disease. I've noticed her heavy panting for about a year now and at that time the vet said (i think) her liver steroid levels were high and she might have cushings. Recently she was going crazy chewing and licking at her paws and limping a bit. Her hair is thinning along her backside and she does seem a little slower. Vet said these are most probably due to cushings. We did the test and here we are. Now I too am trying to decide if expensive treatment will be beneficial or just prolong the inevitable. We lost another shih tzu last May. He was 10 yrs, but it wasn't cushings. That was almost unbearable. We also have another shih tzu, who is about 5 yrs old.She's fine so far, knock on wood.
I will definetly have to think on this some more. I wish everyone peace in their hearts with whatever decisions you make concerning your pets quality of life. These little angels bring soooo much joy to our lives which makes it soooo hard to say goodbye. Thanks everyone for sharing your stories and experiences. Wish me luck
Helpful - 2
Avatar universal
If you use the Harmony Gold from Pet Wellbeing, go very slow with it. It can give your furbaby diarrhea & cause vomiting if the dose is too much. Give half the recommended dose to begin to see how she tolerates it.  I have a 14 yr/old Beagle also, & that was my experience.  
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
Anyone deal with peeling, cracked, dry nose? Not sure if this is a symptom or not. She is already diagnosed with Cushings and we are not treating but this is a new symptom that ha popped up.
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
My dog is 15 and has had Cushings for a couple of years. Besides all the other problems with disease, she now has is itching excessively and has sores all over her body. The vet game me some shampoo and skin drops to put on her, but it hasn't helped. I rub aloe plant leaves and calamine lotion on her at times to sooth it for a little while. Some of the sores are pretty bad and looks like they are not healing. Has anyone else had the skin issues this bad?
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
My dog, Daisy, is almost 19 (we've been together 17 years) and is 90% blind and 90% deaf.  I have had to ADAPT to her.   She hangs close outside but knows our apt well enough to get around on her own.   Don't worry what the vet says - it's NOT his dog!   He could be another "farmer" vet who spends half his time with large animals and the other half with pets.   NOT GOOD!    If that's the case, FIND ANOTHER VET.   They think and act much different than vets who deal with just pets which I refer to as "city vets" as city vets don't do farm animals!   Spartacus - great movie, too has people who love him more than anything, or you wouldn't have posted your situation here.   Many people complain, few actually do anything!   He can sense your feelings and moods so it helps to cry in the bathroom and not to come out until you're ready.    Think happy thoughts, look at happy photos of him, and so on.    He'll love that from you.    Just don't let him see you cry.   He adapts much easier than you will so give it time.  He will let you know what it's time for him to go.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
please research putting your dog on legans and 3mg of melantonin. This has effectively reduced the ammount of vetoryl medication in half in only 9 months. I have had my dog tested during this time and he has had his meds reduced. He is down from 20 mg of vetoryl, now at 10 mg.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My 18 year old dachshund Rocco has had Cushing's for about 2 years now. He has been on Trilostane and it has helped alot, but within the last month he has gotten alot worse. He had his first seizure last night, really scary. We know we are near the end, not sure what to expect. I feel for everyone out there going through this, we all love our dogs and whatever we do, we are just doing the best we can for them.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Having read all of the comments up to yours I was delighted to see that at least one person uses common sense when dealing with vets and with dogs whose lives are not only at risk but who are suffering every minute.  To be a dog and have to give up all of one's "dogness" is, in my opinion, a fate WORSE than death to a dog.  And to be treated either with Big Pharma or with natural remedies (most of which do not work) and to put out hundreds or even thousands of dollars is insane.  These are dogs, and even though they become like children to us, they are still dogs.  We love them with all of our hearts and they love us, but to make them continue to suffer because of our own selfishness is not right.  They do not dread death like humans do, and putting them to sleep in the very humane manner in which it is now done (while you are right by their side) proves to me that we are human and the only animal that actually thinks about death and can actually do something to make it a welcome relief from suffering.
Go right out and adopt another dog; there are millions of them available, and though you never forget any that you have had, you can pour out your love and have it reciprocated by a dog who is actually NOT suffering.  Send your money to animal rescue organizations and not all of it to vets!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
When I read all these comments my heart just breaks!   I can't help but think about all the big bucks the vets are raking in!  And for what?  They already KNOW what the dog has.  It's ludicrous.  Someone should put a stop to it.  My dog was scheduled for his 3rd round of tests - the last one cost me $359.00 - but they said they need to be even MORE sure.  My dog has a heart murmur on top of this "possible" Cushing's.  Fasting and being away from me for the entire day may just prove to be too much for him.  I've cancelled the appointment - much to the vet's chagrin. I do love my dog - I don't need to put him through all the hassle and the "side effects".  They don't live forever.  It's a good thing when they make it over 10.  We need to be realistic and stop the vets from walking all over our pocket books.  Try Milk Thistle for the Liver and Pro Biotics to build up his immunity.  Love him to the end.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
I'm at that point with my beagle.  They want all these $300 tests done.  Such a scam.  We already spent thousands on getting her legs done when she broke those.  I don't want to put her to sleep but I also don't want her to suffer.  I wish I could find a low-cost vet. I'm getting tired of putting pee mats everywhere.  
Avatar universal
My dog is a 14 1/2 year old mix of Havanese Bichon and I love him so much that if he was a man I would marry him.  I lived in Central America for about 10 years and that's where he came into my life.  And changed my life completely. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders and when in CA, he actually saved my life.
Since he was 11 years old, he has been on Thyroid medication and has been displaying symptoms of Cushing's Disease for a while now. We recently had some blood work done - showing all the signs of Cushings - elevated Cortisol levels, liver enzymes etc. YET now they want him to spend an entire day at the vet's for more blood work because they want to "be certain" that it is Cushing's.  This makes me sick!  They already KNOW it's Cushing''s. He has every physical sign of the disease.  He is nearly completely blind and deaf with the pot belly and losing control of his rear legs.  An entire day of fasting and not being near me will stress him to the max. We live on a song and a prayer.  
Our Creator blessed mankind with this wonderful gift - a best friend - a dog.
My Creator blessed me with the most wonderful gift - my best friend - Coffee Boy.  And because I love him so much I am going to comfort him and love him and make sure he's not in any pain.  I'll be with him to his end.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My dog is a 14 1/2 year old mix of Havanese Bichon and I love him so much that if he was a man I would marry him.  I lived in Central America for about 10 years and that's where he came into my life.  And changed my life completely. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders and when in CA, he actually saved my life.
Since he was 11 years old, he has been on Thyroid medication and has been displaying symptoms of Cushing's Disease for a while now. We recently had some blood work done - showing all the signs of Cushings - elevated Cortisol levels, liver enzymes etc. YET now they want him to spend an entire day at the vet's for more blood work because they want to "be certain" that it is Cushing's.  This makes me sick!  They already KNOW it's Cushing''s. He has every physical sign of the disease.  He is nearly completely blind and deaf with the pot belly and losing control of his rear legs.  An entire day of fasting and not being near me will stress him to the max. We live on a song and a prayer.  
Our Creator blessed mankind with this wonderful gift - a best friend - a dog.
My Creator blessed me with the most wonderful gift - my best friend - Coffee Boy.  And because I love him so much I am going to comfort him and love him and make sure he's not in any pain.  I'll be with him to his end.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
What did you decide to do?  I am in the same place with my 9yo teacup poodle.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hi to all, I have come to read this website after months of thinking about my dear little "Pup". We called her pup because she looked like a baby seal when she was tiny.  She was a cross jack russel collie, but I only found out after she died she was likely a cattle dog, which would explain why she was always nipping at everyones feet when she was wee!  The story goes, and this is a heart wrencher, my mother decided to go for a hip op, though I was dead against it as she had so many problems besides.  Six weeks later she had a massive stroke, and there was a mad struggle to drive the 50 mile round trip just to get her to eat a tiny morsel of food,   She survived the stroke, but died of a hospital infection.  For three months, I was driving too and fro, caring for her poorly cat which she adored, trying to cope with Pup who was peeing everywhere on my return from the hospital, and trying to keep my mum alive.  After she died, Pup deteriorated rapidly, seizures, had gone blind and deaf, and died 2 days before xmas while I was still sorting out funeral details for my mum.  Nobody would take the cat so I took her, and am still cleaning her bum every five minutes of the day as she has hypertheroidism and arthritis.  I too this day cannot get over the fact that I did not do the right thing by my dog, but reading all your comments, I can see there is not alot that can be done with Cushings.  I was in the middle of the most intense pain and when I took her to the vet I think he was mostly interested in getting the 90  pounds (in money) to put her to sleep as fast as possible.  However, She must have had cushings for about 2 years, and was to be honest as happy as larry right until about 3 days at the end, and having read all your comments I can see there is no easy way round it.  The problems I had was cleaning up after the dog and the cat and trying to save my mum all at the same time,  I was also left to clear her house, pay for the funeral costs and had almost no help from family members, let alone friends.  I am still trying to come to terms with it all, but my dear little girl was the hardest pill to swallow.  I hope I will see her again, but writing this has been cathartic for me, so thank you to all, yesterday was a mad dash to the vet with the elderly cat (Katie, a maine ****) as skinny as could be but with a feisty character like my mum, it seems she has pulled through!  Still gotta clean up the sh... though!  Heart goes out to all of you.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Sorry about your schnauzer.  We just lost our 17 year old to what we know was Cushings although when he was tested a year ago the one test was inconclusive although he had all the signs and the vet basically refused to treat him unless we did more expensive testing which I didn't agree on being in the medical field myself.   On hindsight I  believe he had this disease for quite a few years before things really kicked in as the liver enzymes were always elevated.  We took very good care of him from day one with organic food and diet which I think is what made the difference.  We did natural approach in trying to balance his electrolytes and were very strict with his food regimen which I believe kept us with him as long as he was.    The last week of his life was painstaking for him and ultimately we kept him at home and he was with us when he passed.  You definitely have to have a lot of patience as we did and for better or worse we took care of our fur baby who was loyal to our family for many years.  Good luck and prayers to you who are dealing with this.  We have another 11 year old schnauzer and pray she doesn't develop or go through what this baby did.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My approx 10-year old beagle just received a confirmed diagnosis for Cushing's.  I brought home Vetoryl for treatment to begin tomorrow, but after reading all the potential serious side effects, I'm having second thoughts.  In reading Adrenal Harmony Gold from Pet Wellbeing, I've decided to give that a try first.  I feel much better about a more natural approach... and praying it will help my baby girl.  Thank you!
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2 Comments
I have an 8-9 yrs old yorkie just diagnosed also.Except for the mid section of your story I just did the very same thing. Going to give it a try first. Just ordered it.  Good Luck to both ( all ) of us.
I have an 8-9 yrs old yorkie just diagnosed also.Except for the mid section of your story I just did the very same thing. Going to give it a try first. Just ordered it.  Good Luck to both ( all ) of us.
Avatar universal
I have a 10 year old toy poodle. 5 months ago she started peeing blood and peeing constantly. I took her to the vet and they treated her for very bad urinary tract infection. She improved then when the meds ran out she got it again. She was treated again and has been ok since for that. They did blood test then and said her liver levels were high and wanted her on expensive food for liver issues. I kept complaining telling the vet she pants, pees everywhere, drinks constant, starving all the time and has huge hard bloated belly and has lost over a third of her hair. They then decided after some time to do the blood test for cushings. It came back positive. My vet refuses to do any treatment for that. What a crime in my opinion. We should have that choice. I changed vets and have her on Vetoryl. The medicine is much much cheaper through Valley Vet online. My dog is 12 pounds and she takes the 30mg now and it's about 53.00 per month. She's started at 10mg then 20. We are on our second month of meds and she has improved greatly over the last week. She doesn't finish her meal. Doesn't drink all the time. No more peeing in the house at all. It's the best thing I could have done. Her belly has even gone done. If there is any way you can afford to treat then I advise it. Get the script from your vet and check prices. I found some a couple dollars cheaper but bad reviews. Valley Vet is in USA and they answer immediately and will talk to your vet and call you with any questions. Best customer service ever. I don't know how long my little girl has but I am so happy she seems normal. Good luck to you.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have a shitzu that is around 14.5 years old she has always seemed to have seizures and respiratory problems but was told it was part of the breed. Over the last several years she has displayed a majority of symptoms to cushing's but I had not heard of this disease until recently, I just assumed they were things due to her getting older I now am very sure that she has cushings. she was spayed at an older age than normal so when she developed the pot belly I assumed maybe it was a symptom of being spayed at an older age and that it just did not heel well, not to long after this is when she began going to the bathroom a lot in the house its now to the point that she will go outside to potty and come back inside and pee on the floor she also often pee's blood and I am wonder if this is something anyone else has experienced with their pets and cushings? she also has become aggressively hungry and will eat as much as I will let her. I am noticing that her fur on her back is starting to thin and her skin getting a darker appearance, I have not noticed anything involving her legs yet but she does rest for most of the day. At night time she has excessive panting and the only way to get her to stop is if I rub her ears she will lay down and stop panting but when I stop rubbing her ears she begins again, I am wondering if the panting is her being in pain, does anyone know of a way to tell if panting is due to pain? Good luck to all you pet owners also suffering a broken heart watching your beloved doggies go through this, my prayers with you xoxo
Helpful - 0
17365776 tn?1456042457
My 11 year old miniature Schnauzer, Rodney has Cushing's and a terrible heart murmur. He's been panting a lot over the past few months and heavily drinking. Lately, over the past week his breathing has gotten worse. Its horse and you can tell he's having trouble. I haven't found any way online to try and ease his painting or shallow breathing. I'm desperate. He's my best friend and I'm so terrified to lose him. My question is, is there any way I can help ease his breathing or panting? The funds aren't there to take him in for treatment, plus the vet said there wasn't much they could even do. I feel so helpless knowing he's so sad and hurting. My other question is, once this starts happening with the breathing, since its getting worse, does that mean his time may be up soon? Please, any advice or help would be appreciated.
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10821430 tn?1439580883
Hi
I'm sorry your girl is having issues...I HOPE an aswer is found
for her and for you.
I'd really appreciate if you could come back and let us ( me)
know what your vet did to find out if it is Cushings? Tests?
I've always been told it is really hard to establish the dog for
Cushings,lots of testing and not a definate answer but I may
be wrong and there are better ways to know now for sure??
I have a dog who I am wondering if he may have Cushings
his Thyroid and all CBC blood work is fine..
Jan
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
It was really good to see everyone's stories so I thought I would add mine...
Our 11 year old collie-cross, Bobby, was diagnosed last October after some very strange symptoms of hunger....literally attacking the bin, drinking so much, panting and just looking very sad....this went on to weeing on the kitchen floor, constantly and looking really sad about it :( It was confirmed with the ACTH test but, the problem has been controlling it. He started on low dose Vetoryl, I think 60mg but now we are having to try double, 120mg, as nothing is bringing the levels down......I think if this doesn't improve things we will have to say goodbye to him as going from a happy, energetic dog to a lethargic, saddened dog is really not fair. We will enjoy him and love him all the more for now !
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Hello
We are taking our 4 year old Silver Labrador in the morning to the Vet. She is being tested for Cushings. She displays so many signs. Drinks lots of water, goes out to potty many times, her coat is not right for a lab and hair is very thin. She has had a compromised immune system and had to be treated on antibiotics a few times.
I know she needs this appt to get everything checked. They are keeping her all day which we hate because our dogs are always with us except when they were spayed and neutered ( never boarded. travel with us). She hates going to the vet for shots/check ups because every since she was spayed she has never been the same. You can't touch her belly or paws. We can but no one else can or she will growl/show teeth and could bite.  We had all sorts of test done post op but nothing. Normal spay surgery.  She started showing signs the last year and a 1/2 but they kept testing for diabetes and thyroid and never Cushings.  Any thoughts? Advice? Does the injection they give for the process make them sick?  Thanks for your help. Sending her with her blanket and will be checking on her :-)  Our dogs are our kids.
Avatar universal
My 9 year old Maltese, Gus,  was diagnosed yesterday with Cushings Disease.  He doesn't have excessive thirst, but he wants to eat all the time.  He has hind leg weakness (which is why I brought him to the vet), pot belly and pants a lot.  He is going in for additional testing in 2 days to confirm diagnosis.  I just don't know what to do - Treat or don't treat.  I do not want to extend his life if he is suffering.  But if it means his life would be extended and he would be the happy "pup" I know him to be, that would change things.  I've been his mother since he was 8 weeks old and only weighed 2 pounds.  This is heartbreaking.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My 13.5 Pomeranian was diagnosed with Cushings in the late stages.  She used to love to eat and now only eats a little if I put the food in front of her. She had a couple of seizures and hurt her left leg 2 weeks ago.  She only sleeps and doesn't do much of anything.  She looks so weak and sad. It makes me so sad to see her this way. ="(  Does anyone know how much longer I will have with her before she goes?  It breaks my heart knowing she is going to leave me soon. Thanks for reading.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have a 12-year-old Beagle who today has been diagnosed with Cushings. I had taken him in because he was losing weight, drinking more and having more bowel movements. We don't know what kind yet, adrenal or brain. So not sure where we're going from here. Has anyone had the weight loss, excessive BMs??
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
We do the test as needed.  If it looks like our dog needs a higher dosage we give it to her.  She has been diagnosed for 6 years and has just started to show signs of aging .  She is a 13 year old lab.  I have spent a lot of money but I wouldn't do it differently.  I honestly think she probably has something else going on with her other than her Cushings now but I don't want to take her to the vet because I don't want them to give me bad news.  My recommendation and my experience says to use common sense.
Helpful - 0
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