My aggressive dog has Cushing's symptoms. Can I treat her at home?

Hi there! You are correct that Cushing's disease would be a common cause of the symptoms you are describing in an older dog (excessive panting, weight gain, and drinking/urinating more than normal) - however, there are also other illnesses that could cause this, so diagnostic testing would be needed as a first step to find out if Cushing's disease is even the problem or not. It would be EXTREMELY unsafe to start Vetoryl or any other medication for this condition without even knowing for sure if Tily has it, since these meds would be very dangerous for a dog to take if they weren't needed, and close monitoring of cortisol levels is needed for dogs who are on medication for Cushing's disease because if the dosing isn't right they can get very sick or even die. So this would be a problem that you would need to work closely with your veterinarian to diagnose and treat safely - it's not something you can do yourself at home, just based on guessing. If taking Tily to the vet is difficult for you, I would suggest calling around to some local clinics to see if there is anyone in your area who does house call visits. A mobile veterinarian could examine Tily and take the required lab samples (usually blood and urine testing, as a starting point), and then go from there depending on what is found.

Cushing’s syndrome (if that is indeed what she has), is rarely an emergency. Many dogs have had the disorder for months (or years) prior to diagnosis. However, diabetes can have very similar signs and that is more of a concern. If she has lost weight, or if she is not eating then I would recommend an emergency veterinarian to make sure she is not diabetic and starting to Decompensate. I also notice that she is not spayed. Pyometra is a uterine infection that usually starts with increased water intake, But they usually progress to not feeling well soon. Some of these dogs also have vaginal discharge and typically occurs 6 weeks or so after last heat cycle. If she is eating well and seem fine otherwise then waiting until Monday seems appropriate to me. If possible try to take a urine sample with you to your veterinarian appointment. Best of luck and I hope she does well. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Some common symptoms of Cushings's are panting, increased thirst/urination, but these are also common symptoms of many diseases. Bloodwork and endocrine testing can help to ferret that out. Neurologic symptoms can sometimes be present with Cushing's if there is a larger tumor in the pituitary gland but seizures can also be caused by other things as well so an MRI is typically required. CT can sometimes be used if a pituitary mass is strongly suspected. Itchy feet is typically caused by allergies which may also be associated with secondary infection. Next steps are to see your vet for an exam, bloodwork, and endocrine testing. Abdominal ultrasound and blood pressure measurement are also typical next steps. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

My biggest concern is that your vet is talking about hyperadrenocorticism also known as Cushing's disease. This is what I think of when you discuss those symptoms, liver enzyme elevations and adrenal issues. Cushings is where they produce too much cortisol in their system. You can do a test to rule this in or out. You can have your vet do a low dose dexamethasone test OR a ACTH stimulation test. If it comes up positive then you can treat with the disease with a daily medicine called trilostane to help the symptoms. But you cannot cure cushings. I hope this helps and will help guide you in a conversation with your vet if this is actually what your vet thinks is going on.

Cushings is an extremely complicated condition to both diagnose and treat but with such a high reading on an acth stimulation test is is extremely likely in this case. There are additional confirmatory tests such as a urine cortisol:creatinine ratio and dex suppression tests which can be used to further investigate. If she has no symptoms at all then it may be an option to withold treatment and monitor very closely, keeping a symptom diary to track any changes. In some dogs, the abnormal excess cortisol can actually provide antiinflammatory effects improving quality of life and treatment can actually allow other symptoms to emerge. You should be aware that untreated cushings may indeed shorten life expectancy

Cushing's or Hyperadrenocorticism is a fairly common endocrine disease in dogs. It can be caused by a bit of overactive tissue in the brain (in the pituitary gland, which is the master ruler of hormone secretion in the body) or a mass in an adrenal gland (sits by the kidneys, secretes hormones as directed by the pituitary gland). Basically what happens is an excess of a hormone in the body, usually a steroid called cortisol, if it is traditional Cushing's. This then causes some symptoms in the pet, blood work changes, and sometimes other changes like high blood pressure. I suspect based on the value that you report that this was a liver enzyme elevation call ALP. This very commonly occurs in pets that have Cushings, but is not specific for Cushing's and elevation can be caused by other disease processes. This value does not correlate with severity of disease as many dogs have a high value. It sounds like your vet is on the right track by recommending an ultrasound to look at the adrenal glands and also the rest of the abdominal organs to rule out other disease processes. Ultimately Cushing's Disease has to be diagnosed by some sort of endocrine testing which your vet may recommend as well. Treatment if then based on what type of Cushing's disease is present. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I will strongly discourage you from giving Sophia Trilostan without knowing for sure that she has Cushing disease. She may have, for example ascites, diabetes or internal organ enlargement, which makes the belly look potted. In that case, giving Trilostan can lead to a life-threatening hypoadrenal crisis. Please, take your dog to your local vets to confirm the diagnosis and then start the treatment, if necessary.