Parathyroid, Elevated Calcium, & Urinating In Bedding

[Guest needlenosemom]

My 8 year old hound has had peeing issues and has been evaluated by 2 different vet practices over the last few mos. NOT a UTI. but initially did a round of antibiotics to play it safe in July. Urinating on the floor in front of us and also on her bedding when crated. Improved abit, yet vet thought it was more behavioral since we were living at our shore house over the summer. Normally, she is very used to the house and we always bring her with us when we go to the shore for vacation or even a weekend. Got back to permanent home at the end of August. No real problems except starting, for the first time ever, digging up our gardens outside. She now is urinating a large volume over the last several weeks, intermittently. Took her to our home vet and did testing. No clear evidence of UTI so ran more tests. Her calcium levels were normal a year ago, but now creeping out of normal range the last 2 mos. Today, took her for more bloodwork to check her for parathyroid issues. Awaiting results. Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated for my dear little girl.

[galgrey]

Did the vet check her kidney function and check for diabetes? I hope you get your answer and it's something that's easily treated. Keep us posted.

[tbhounds]

What the Drs are trying to rule out is hyperparathyroidism--usually benign parathyroid tumor. One of the signs of hyperparathyroidism is drinking and urinating excessively. The next step may be ultrasound. Assuming there is a benign tumor there is curative treatment :-)

Keep us posted on the blood test result!

[Guest needlenosemom]

Kidney function is fine and bloodwork ruled out diabetes. My vet's own dog, had a tumor on its parathyroid which had to be removed. Vet said this urinating issue could stem from a lot of different medical reasons. She used all her resources at no cost to rule everything out. Wish I had gotten Pet Insurance awhile ago when I was analyzing it when Kia was younger. Oh well! Hindsight is always 20/20. College bills had to come first. Glad that expense is ov er!

 

BTW, she is not drinking excessively.

[tbhounds]

Excessive urination sure could be the result of many conditions but, elevated blood calcium may narrow it down. Sounds like you have a good relationship with your veterinarian! After you gather all of your diagnostic results you should get a consult from Ohio State :-). Can't hurt to receive another opinion-and from what I understand right now the consults are still free :-)

[Guest needlenosemom]

Labwork results came back. Now suspects HyperParathyroidism. Vet recommends ultrasound of neck and belly. Any advice???

[tbhounds]

Glad you seem to be leading towards a diagnosis. Ultrasound of the thyroid seems to be the next logical step. How close are you to Ohio? Might be worth the trip there if surgery is in your hounds future. I had my girl @ OSU back in Feb for a thryroidectomy--could not be happier with the care she received-excellent surgeon, super aftercare and extremely reasonable. Her surgeon was the resident Dr Jason Callard-greyt guy. Just thought I'd throw that out there ;-)

Edited November 10, 2012 by tbhounds

[kudzu]

My advice is to do the ultrasound. One of my dogs had a neurological problem which could have been caused by parathyroid issues. Can't remember the testing but initial work up ruled parathyroid out. My sister's dog though actually did turn out to have parathyroid problems. Took a lot of testing & playing with medication dosages but they got him set. Her dog was not drinking excessively but his behavior was going far out of his norm. He did have a heart condition presumably related to having had heartworm disease earlier in life. Initial work ups revolved in large part on ruling heart issues out as cause of new problems. In the course of that his calcium issue was found. Then he started with what appeared to be seizures. The "seizures" (not sure they were ever certain these were true seizures) dramatically heightened the concern & his calcium levels continued to drop. In the end his problems were the opposite of your girl's suspected trouble. Her dog had hypoparathyroid.

 

Either hyper or hypoparathyroidism can cause tremendous problems. Good on your vet for recognizing the possibility & helping you work towards a diagnosis. Hope you can get things sorted out soon.

[Guest needlenosemom]

Yes, ionized calcium levels and parathyroid levels are climbing. Definitely going to get an ultrasound. Shopping around for quality and price as my AAHA vet office does not do them. I live in Upper Bucks County, PA. Will be calling Penn in Phila, maybe VSEC or "C.A.R.E.S., and specialty clinic in Newtown/Langhorne area.WIll probably need surgery if U/S is positive and needs a 24/7 hospital since she will be overnight and in the ICU. My vet said surgery bil will be around $2,000-$3,000. Ultrasound about $500.

 

Medication will not help at this stage. May get some diapers. Have plastic table cloths from Dollar Store over all her bedding. There are numerous beds since we have another dog and 2 cats so they are usually switching around where they sleep thruout the day.

 

Any advice is more than welcome!! BTW, I live very far from Ohio.