Banjo's Thyroid...so Low It Doesn't Even Register On The Blood

[Guest deanna]

So, I've been giving her Soloxine .5 for years, since I adopted her about 4 years ago now. I haven't noticed any drastic change in attitude, looks, energy. She's mellow, but loves to run and play, etc. A little bit of a finicky eater, but its not problematic.

 

Anyway, I had her in for her annual check up/blood work. The vet said her T-something thyroid level was at below .4, which is the lowest that registers on the test.

 

So, I'm now giving her 1 and a half pills, twice a day, and retesting in 2 months.

 

 

Does anyone know about greyhound levels? What should it be at? When I get her all straightened out, what can I expect to change in her? Does she feel horribly ill with that low of thyroid? I really wouldn't be able to tell...she doesn't seem sick, lethargic, skinny, anything... What are the damages by having such low thyroid?

 

I feel terrible! ...but, confused?

 

 

Thanks~

 

ETA: The title was supposed to say "doesn't even register on the blood test" but it got cut off. oops.

Edited January 19, 2009 by deanna

[tbhounds]

Was the blood draw performed 4-6 hours after you gave the tablet?? If you gave the tablet sooner it would drop the T4 level in her blood. Also, did she ever have a full Thyroid panel done??

[Guest deanna]

she had her pill about 4 hours before the test. i dont know about a full thyroid panel. she hasn't had one with me.

[Guest LokisMom]

I would not raise the dose unless she has symptoms warranting it. Our senior boy was on an overdose of Soloxine for years (before we got him). It left him emaciated, shaky, constantly thirsty, panting and overall pitiful.

 

Now that he is on a lower dose, he is much happier. Our vet says to treat symptoms with thyroid meds, not tests. The tests can vary by time of day, what is normal for that particular dog, etc. Hypothyroidism is very misdiagnosed in greyhounds.

 

We are not treating Cole based on his levels and never will again. He is an entirely different dog being treated to alleviate his symptoms and no more.

 

Dr Couto has some great articles on the subject, just google his name and thyroid and they should come up.

 

Just an FYI- Our hypothyroid boy went months without his meds and his coat got weird and he was lazy but there was no lasting harm.

[VinnieAndRexsMom]

When my own thyroid meds are low, I am lethargic and confused.

When Red's thyroid was low and the other family wasn't treating him, he was lethargic and seemed confused. He had one number that didn't even hit the bottom of the range. All the symptoms were there though.

 

The numbers also depend on the lab.

 

Adding: When Red turned 9, the range changed and so did his dosage because he was considered a senior. I was not sure that I liked changing his range just because of a number, so I decided I would ait it out on the new lower dose. He seems fine

Edited January 19, 2009 by VinnieAndRexsMom

[Batmom]

Did she come to you already on the meds? Perhaps previous owner/kennel has more info, such as test results (hopefully) or other reasons she was put on meds?

 

T4 is a useless test for diagnosing low thyroid (altho it is useful for gauging levels once on meds) -- it can be high one hour, low the next, etc. And greyhounds can be normal and not even register on the labs' scales.

 

If you want to do a full panel, you'd want to discontinue meds for 6-8 weeks, then do your blood draw and send off to MSU.

[Guest deanna]

since i upped her dose for 2 days, she's gotten diarrhea and seems sad. ugh. back to the old dose, i say. she was fine before. bah.

[nancy14]

My little June Bug was tested for Thyroid last week. It came in at .8. I have an appointment scheduled with the vet for next week. They want to do a panel and send it to Michigan State.

 

She has never been on thyroid pills as she came in within the normal range last year. I had her tested again because she has gained "mega weight."

 

At least our puppies have something that can be controlled with meds.

[Cynthia]

Monty had a T4 of 0.2 on his CBC this fall. We did the full panel with Michigan state, and his T4 was the same on that test. He had some curious readings on the full panel, but the final position after my vet got on the phone with Michigan state for further advice was not to medicate. He had no other signs of hypo thyroid. Are you doing full panels for your girl? A low T4 alone is not a reason to medicate.

Edited January 20, 2009 by Cynthia

[jodyksam]

Monty had a T4 of 0.2 on his CBC this fall. We did the full panel with Michigan state, and his T4 was the same on that test. He had some curious readings on the full panel, but the final position after my vet got on the phone with Michigan state for further advice was not to medicate. He had no other signs of hypo thyroid. Are you doing full panels for your girl? A low T4 alone is not a reason to medicate.

 

This was nearly the same story I was going to write about tonight. Daisy presents no sign of thyroidism, but her T4 on her geriatric blood panel was .6 and the vet wanted her on meds. Another vet in the practice suggested a second panel that gives a more specific reading, and the second one ruled out thyroidism.

 

If I were you Deana, I'd have a blood panel done, the more specific one, to rule in or out what's going on with her. As the poster above suggested, a full panel would also reveal any other issues that may be contributing to her behavior and demeanor. Hugs and scritches for your girls.

[Guest deanna]

I hate to say this, I feel like a terrible mother: I've been too busy to take her back for a full panel. 14 hour days, coming home twice a day for puppy, blah blah blah.

 

ANYWAY - I dropped her meds completely for a day, and no food. She had the runs. Got her back on her old dose and she's fine.

 

Glad to get some other opinions. I remember there being a lot of range as far as what can be right, or not right, for your dog thyroid-wise. I'll call the vet this week to talk to her about it.

 

Thank you~~

[Guest HornGreys]

Deanna do get her in for a full panel when you get a chance. I know from experience that Batmom is correct you do need the full panel to check for low thyroid. From the paperwork that I give out to all new adopters from Dr. Stack, Greyhound T4 should be in the range of .5 - 3.6. But this is from a full panel being done.

 

I am sure that Ollie is keeping you very busy. But give Banjo a kiss from me and tell her to feel better.

[Guest BradyzMommy]

Please have Banjo checked out by a vet.

[Guest deanna]

Deanna do get her in for a full panel when you get a chance. I know from experience that Batmom is correct you do need the full panel to check for low thyroid. From the paperwork that I give out to all new adopters from Dr. Stack, Greyhound T4 should be in the range of .5 - 3.6. But this is from a full panel being done.

 

I am sure that Ollie is keeping you very busy. But give Banjo a kiss from me and tell her to feel better.

She's feeling totally better now, since I went back to her old dosage. The frustrating part is that she was fine to begin with when the vet suggested to up her meds.

 

 

I'll keep y'all posted.

[Batmom]

Just note that if you want to do a full panel, dog has to be off meds for 6-8 weeks. You could PM patricia for some info about that -- her Flashy had to go through it, even tho everybody was 99.99% sure he was genuinely hypothyroid, due to some other health concerns. But she could tell you what you might expect.

 

Here is a whole bunch of info about thyroid function and thyroid testing in dogs: http://www.animalhealth.msu.edu/FAQ/Endocr...roid_Canine.php

[Guest deanna]

Just note that if you want to do a full panel, dog has to be off meds for 6-8 weeks. You could PM patricia for some info about that -- her Flashy had to go through it, even tho everybody was 99.99% sure he was genuinely hypothyroid, due to some other health concerns. But she could tell you what you might expect.

 

Here is a whole bunch of info about thyroid function and thyroid testing in dogs: http://www.animalhealth.msu.edu/FAQ/Endocr...roid_Canine.php

thanks for the link. i really appreciate it.

i hate to think of taking banjo off her meds for 2 months. a while back, there was some mixup with the online rx i was using and it took them nearly 2 months to get the stuff out, she was off meds for just 2 weeks and she was just slower, different, confused....not to the point where anyone else would have noticed, but i noticed.

banjo's still feeling fine back on .5. sweet and snuggly as can be, and is actually playing with ollie now, yay!

 

calling the vet today, just to check in about it. see what she has to say. thanks again.

[seeh2o]

Deanna, I just pmed you with some information. Carl is hypothyroid and we have an expert in the field here locally.

 

Feel better, Banjo!