Soloxine

[NewGrey2017]

Looking for anyone who has given their pooch soloxine. Ours was diagnosed with hypothyroidism after getting the five panel thyroid test evaluated by MSU.

 

Originally the dog was on 1.2mg per day, 1/2 in AM, 1/2 in PM.

 

After 3 weeks, retest of blood still had T4 low, so he is up to 1.6 mg per day in 2 doses.

 

He is shedding like a fiend. It is late spring and all dogs shed when it gets warm, but his hair is coming out in clumps.

 

My question: Has anyone given their greyhound soloxine and did it cause them to shed profusely? The vet said it's the season and since we got him in late October I have not been through a spring shed with him.

[KF_in_Georgia]

Dogs on soloxine tend to have much softer fur than dogs not on soloxine, and it's the soft-haired dogs that shed the worst, I think. (Or maybe they don't shed more actual hairs, but they shed fluffier hair, so it looks like more.) In that sense, soloxine might influence shedding. My worst-ever shedder, Silver, wasn't on soloxine; but clouds of her very soft fur rose from her body every time she sneezed.

But my second-worst shedder, Sam, was on soloxine--a red-fawn boy with a remarkably soft coat. I could take him outside with a Zoom Groom and pull out an enormous amount of soft fur. Sam was never not shedding.

But if you check greyhound groups on Facebook, at this time of year you see lots of photos of fur that people have brushed out of their hounds. So I think you're just seeing "the perfect shed"--summer shed meeting soloxine soft coat.

[greysmom]

Yes, it's probably the perfect conflagration of circumstances as far as shedding goes. Once his thyroid stabilizes, and his body can get on an even keel, next year should be a bit better. Keep after that fur right now though to get as much undercoat off as you can before summer. It should grow back - though slowly - throughout the rest of the year.

[Tracey]

Yes, this happened to our boy Chase. He would shed in crazy clumps. I had never seen anything like it. When he was done shedding his coat came in really nice and soft. It happened once or twice a year for the two years he was on it until he passed last month.

[seeh2o]

I had 2 littermates on Soloxine, never had any unusual shedding, just normal seasonal shedding. It cleared up my boy's eyes within months.

 

My current girl is shedding like a crazy dog, but she's not hypothyroid. Tis the season.

Edited June 11, 2018 by seeh2o

[GeorgeofNE]

So, no one pointed out the obvious: most greyhounds with low thyroid numbers are NOT hypothyroid.

 

My dog was borderline, so I did give it a try for a year. Made no difference whatsoever, so I stopped.

 

Soloxine is a safe and effective drug that dogs of all breeds use (and humans!), so if your dog has a legit need for it, no worries!

[NewGrey2017]

So, no one pointed out the obvious: most greyhounds with low thyroid numbers are NOT hypothyroid.

 

My dog was borderline, so I did give it a try for a year. Made no difference whatsoever, so I stopped.

 

Soloxine is a safe and effective drug that dogs of all breeds use (and humans!), so if your dog has a legit need for it, no worries!

 

Yes. That is why we paid the extra $$$ to have the MSU study done. It is a five panel work up as opposed to the T4 result that most vets run.

 

If you are curious, here is the endocrinology interpretation that MSU provided:

 

"The positive autoantibody results are a marker for lymphocytic thyroiditis. This dog also has a positive T3 autoantibody result. The T3 autoantibody interferes with assay of T3 (false decrease) and free T3 (false increase), so those measured concentrations are not accurate. The combination of low thyroid concentrations, elevation of thyroid stimulating hormone, and positive autoantibody results confirms a diagnosis of hypothyroidism due to lymphocytic thyroiditis. Oral administration of thyroxine is indicated with a follow-up evaluation of the clinical response.

Results as these occur in greyhounds but are uncommon. Has there also been weight gain? I was interested to see the description of aggression in the history. Changes in mentation can be a manifestation of hypothyroidism in some dogs. I would appreciate hearing whether or not there is a resolution of the signs of aggression with thyroid supplementation."

There is universal agreement between my vet, my behaviorist and the MSU group that supplementation is the proper course.

Additionally, the dog's skin has been turning a dark purplish color since we got him. He had a white belly but it's now fully dark. The behaviorist (DVM) states that this is a symptom of the hypothroidism.

So, I am reasonably confident that the dog has hypothroidism.

Previously I had a golden retriever who shed morning, noon and night for all 13 years. He took thyroid meds for the last 4 years but there was no way to tell if it increased his shedding because it was constant.

The greyhound "resources" state they are a very low shed breed and that was the case with mine (since I adopted him). I think @greysmom hit the nail on the head that this is the perfect storm of meds and season.

[DonnaBehr]

My boy is on 0.6 mg twice a day. He is WHITE and he sheds something awful twice a year. His coat is very thick and very soft. All of my light colored greyhounds shed. My black one and the brindles did not.

[NewGrey2017]

My boy is on 0.6 mg twice a day. He is WHITE and he sheds something awful twice a year. His coat is very thick and very soft. All of my light colored greyhounds shed. My black one and the brindles did not.

 

Thanks. Mine is on 0.6 mg 2x per day heading to 0.8 mg 2x per day. He is a red fawn with a soft coat. If it's just the spring shed, no big deal. But since we had just started this medication I wanted to be sure I'm not doing him harm.

 

The hope is the meds will mitigate his occasionally nasty temper. Was thinking we were making progress, but he turned on me yesterday during a walk. He found a rancid bone in the grass and I very cautiously tried to trade him by dropping treats on the ground in front of him. Because we were on a 6' lead, I think he deemed that too close to his resource and began to snarl and lunge at me. Usually at home I just walk away from him, but out in the open on a leash, I had nowhere to go. I began to forcefully walk in the other direction and he had no choice but to follow. He eventually fell in step and seemed to forget why he was angry.

 

Such is life these days.

[tbhounds]

Just curious how much your hound weighs????

[NewGrey2017]

Just curious how much your hound weighs????

 

He raced between 71-72 lbs. When we adopted him, he had a terrible hookworm infection and was 66 lbs. He dropped to 62 lbs while eating like a machine until the hookworms were gone. Now he is about 72-73 lbs.

 

The soloxine hasn't seemed to affect his weight yet, but he's only been on it for 4 weeks. It does seem to have curbed his appetite as he occasionally walks away from breakfast these days.

[tbhounds]

I ask because typical dose is 0.1mgs/10lbs twice daily-youre getting into a pretty high dose range.

[NewGrey2017]

I ask because typical dose is 0.1mgs/10lbs twice daily-youre getting into a pretty high dose range.

 

Thanks for the info. I'll push back if they want to go any higher that the .8mg 2x per day.