Cushing's Disease

[TFK]

Does anyone know a good natural treatment for Cushing's?

My Dachshund was diagnosed with Cushing's a couple of years ago, and he shows all the symptoms. Lost a ton of weight and muscle mass. Lost fur. Occasional panting, although that hasn't been a problem lately. Very thirsty. And the worst, he pees constantly. And I mean constantly, to the point where he's ruining our floors.

My dog is old. We got him as an older rescue, I'm guessing he was was around 7 when we saved him, which would make him about 15 now. We were giving him Vetoryl, which helped with the constant peeing for a while, but a few months ago he started having bad reactions to the medicine. He was getting lethargic, and it seemed to effect him mentally, like he had alzheimers. Once we took him off the meds, he went back to normal, but the peeing came back.

We then tried Pet Alive Cushex drops, and while they seemed to work ok for a few weeks, they quickly became ineffective.

Is there anything else we can do? He doesn't seem to be suffering at all and is a happy dog, he just pees all the time. We have him on a diet of boiled shredded chicken, brown rice and green beans, so we are not poisoning him with store bought food.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Penny]

Hi there. I don't have any experience with Cushings but I wanted to say that I'm sorry that you are going through this. Your little fella is very fortunate to have such loving care givers.

The only suggestion I can offer is a belly band. You can put a feminine pad inside and change it. I found this on line, it might work better that he can't wiggle out of it.
PeeKeeper Catchy name.

 

[Miggymeister]

Does anyone know a good natural treatment for Cushing's?

My Dachshund was diagnosed with Cushing's a couple of years ago, and he shows all the symptoms. Lost a ton of weight and muscle mass. Lost fur. Occasional panting, although that hasn't been a problem lately. Very thirsty. And the worst, he pees constantly. And I mean constantly, to the point where he's ruining our floors.

My dog is old. We got him as an older rescue, I'm guessing he was was around 7 when we saved him, which would make him about 15 now. We were giving him Vetoryl, which helped with the constant peeing for a while, but a few months ago he started having bad reactions to the medicine. He was getting lethargic, and it seemed to effect him mentally, like he had alzheimers. Once we took him off the meds, he went back to normal, but the peeing came back.

We then tried Pet Alive Cushex drops, and while they seemed to work ok for a few weeks, they quickly became ineffective.

Is there anything else we can do? He doesn't seem to be suffering at all and is a happy dog, he just pees all the time. We have him on a diet of boiled shredded chicken, brown rice and green beans, so we are not poisoning him with store bought food.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

TFK, I am so sorry you're going through this. I have rescued many Dachshunds over the years (since Hurricane Andrew in 1992) and now all but one are in Heaven and other than the year I spent coming home twice a day to do back exercises, canine cart walks, and diabetes shots I think the worst I dealt with was Cushings.

I had my Mango on basically the same diet as you have yours on. The only thing Mango was only 8 years old when she contracted it. Of course I don't have to tell you about the costs of diagnosis (is it THIS kind or THAT kind), etc. I also had beautiful wood floors ruined.

I am going to tell you what I did but you won't want to hear it. As the disease progressed over a couple of years, Mango started getting cataracts. Then she couldn't see at all.

I would come home from work and in my heels stomp around the block with her so she could follow the sound of my footsteps since her hearing gradually faded.

We had a doggy door which she continued to use for awhile but one day I watched her for about 15 minutes (un-noticed by her) and watched her just sit and stare at the back wall. It was obvious she was disoriented and possibly had finally lost her sense of smell that would have taken her back to the house.

That's when I knew it was much more kind for me to send her on to Heaven. Trust me, the disease will never get any better- only worse.

I cut up some steak and cheese, got her favorite blanket and toy and took her to put her to sleep. She felt like a queen the final moments of her life.

I have sometimes wondered if I had some of my others put down a bit too early but I've never had a doubt I did the right thing with Mango.

I'm sorry if my words are hurting you. I never, EVER, want to have to deal with that disease again. And you are in my prayers. My name is Lynne and this is my first post. Now I have to post elsewhere about a problem I'm having.

God bless you.

Does anyone know a good natural treatment for Cushing's?

My Dachshund was diagnosed with Cushing's a couple of years ago, and he shows all the symptoms. Lost a ton of weight and muscle mass. Lost fur. Occasional panting, although that hasn't been a problem lately. Very thirsty. And the worst, he pees constantly. And I mean constantly, to the point where he's ruining our floors.

My dog is old. We got him as an older rescue, I'm guessing he was was around 7 when we saved him, which would make him about 15 now. We were giving him Vetoryl, which helped with the constant peeing for a while, but a few months ago he started having bad reactions to the medicine. He was getting lethargic, and it seemed to effect him mentally, like he had alzheimers. Once we took him off the meds, he went back to normal, but the peeing came back.

We then tried Pet Alive Cushex drops, and while they seemed to work ok for a few weeks, they quickly became ineffective.

Is there anything else we can do? He doesn't seem to be suffering at all and is a happy dog, he just pees all the time. We have him on a diet of boiled shredded chicken, brown rice and green beans, so we are not poisoning him with store bought food.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[TFK]

I know all about living with a blind dog. We had a rescued Min Pin that lived the last few years of his life with cataracts that took his eyesight. He led a good life, even though blind, up until the end. That dog, much like this one, lived to be an old dog, and though he didn't have the energy or playfulness at the end, he was a happy and very much loved dog.

My wife always wondered if we should put him down because he was old and blind, but I told her, when the time was right, we'd know. And we did. One day his heart started racing, he became lethargic, and the most telling sign, he wouldn't eat. It was a painful decision, but it was the right one. And we made it at the right time.

With my Doxie, it's the same thing. He's nearing the end of the road, but he's not done yet. He still has some time left, and quality time at that. He's old, he's slowed down a lot, and he doesn't even chew on his beloved squeakers anymore, but he's happy, affectionate and eats like a king. When his time comes, hopefully he goes on his own, but if not, we'll make the painful decision, but only when the time is right.

TFK