wendell Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Hello, I have been following along on Greytalk for a while now but have never posted. I have had Wendell (Craigie Windick) for about 2 and half years now and he will be 7 in April. He's a big, silly, brindle boy. He is my first and only dog so far. This October I started noticing him drinking significantly more water and then shortly after he started having accidents in the house--something he had never done before. After a lot of testing (and money) and then a referal to internal medicine he was just diagnossed with Cushings Syndrome. They did an ultrasound and then an ACTH test on him. Now that they have diagnosed him it does all seem to make sense. I've even noticed a thinning of his hair on his back end. I've searched and read as much as I can on here for Cushings, but the most recent stuff I have found is from 2010. Wendell goes into our regular vet on Wednesday (Feb. 13th) for them to fulfill the prescription. Right now the internist has prescribed Vetoryl (trilostane). I realize there are some newer drugs, but they may be cost prohibitive for my budget. So, I guess I am writing to see if anyone has any tips or recommendations for me as we progress with this diagnosis. In addition to medication are there other things I can be doing to to manage this disease? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OPointyDog Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Does he have the adrenal form or the pituitary form? Our grey x GSD mix had Cushings, and had the adrenal form. The adrenal form is apparently not treatable with medication, but the pituitary form is - is that what your boy has? I can tell you more about the progression of the adrenal form, since that's what we have experience with, but it's not applicable if you're dealing with pituitary. Sorry to hear you are dealing with this. One of my colleagues had a beagle mix with the pituitary form that has been managed with drugs for years - so the prognosis isn't necessarily dire. I know it can take some time and patience to get the drug dosage correct. Hugs to you and Wendall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MP_the4pack Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 I can't help with anything Cushings related, but as far as meds, check with Costco. My Bridgegirl Pearl had heart disease and hypertension. She was on 8 meds a day. What would have cost me about $400/month ended up at around $60. Most her meds were human meds so Costco could do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Just an FYI--trilostane (Vetoryl) is an appropriate medication for treating both adrenal and pituitary disease. Your hound should do well with this medication. Here's a link that might help... http://www.dechra-us.com/files//dechraUSA/downloads/Client%20Literature/Vetoryl%20Technical%20Brochure.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendell Posted February 11, 2013 Author Share Posted February 11, 2013 Thanks for the advice and support so far! The vet did not do the more extensive test that confirms whether it is pituitary or adrenal, but from the ultrasound he believes it is pituitary since the glands are both enlarged similarly. At least that is my understanding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted February 12, 2013 Share Posted February 12, 2013 No advice for Cushing's, but I second trying Costco or Sam's Club for prescriptions. My regular pharmacy wanted around $300 for Henry's seizure meds, but we managed to get them at Sam's for less than $20 a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OPointyDog Posted February 12, 2013 Share Posted February 12, 2013 The vet did not do the more extensive test that confirms whether it is pituitary or adrenal, but from the ultrasound he believes it is pituitary since the glands are both enlarged similarly. At least that is my understanding. That makes sense. If it's the adrenal form, then usually one adrenal gland is huge and the other is shrunken, so if that's not the case, then it points towards pituitary. That's probably good news - it can be successfully controlled with meds. We were told the only way to control the adrenal form was via surgery, and our dog was not a good candidate since it appeared the cancer that caused it had already spread to her liver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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