Izindaba yethu

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Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni 3 Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni. Ekhuluma ebuyela esimeni, we have had half a dozen visits to a nursing home, but this year promises to be awesome and we can’t wait! We are anticipating on being used for some special visits, special events and appearances to places like Ronald McDonald house, The Cancer Council lodge, universities around exam times, the Youth Courts, and wherever else we can put smiles on faces. It’s a huge win for everyone involved from Ghost himself, the people who we come across, the Addison’s community, and the Bull Terrier breed (which is quite often and unnecessarily very misunderstood).

Ghost is very much a part of our family and participates in most things we get up to. We go up the river, which he absolutely loves, and he even gets invited to Christmas lunch with the rest of our extended family. He is such a sweet gentleman.

So on finishing up, I suppose my message is this, if you have a dog that’s been diagnosed with Addison’s, you will shit yourself at first, I know I did, but take a deep breath and with the right frame of mind, taking note of all the information available, trusting this wonderful group, asking loads and loads of questions, you WILL get through this and you and your dog can do anything and be anything that you want to be. Look at Ghost, a goggle wearing, community visiting Bull Terrier who rides on the back of a motorbike and puts smiles on the faces of everyone he meets. I reckon that’s a pretty good thing. A-dogs rock!!!

Anyways I hope this has put a bit of a smile on YOUR face and don’t worry, there is definitely a light at the end of the tunnel.

Lots of love and big Bully hugs to you all.
Jarrod and Ghost

Chofoza ku- - Chofoza ku-
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

 

! Scroll down and you will also find her story auf Deutsch and en Español!

In February 2016, I lived in Cholula, México, with my three Shepherds (German and Belgian, all rescued) when a friend called me that she had found a small puppy in a closed garbage bag, close to suffocation. Ngakho, I went, picked the tiny bundle up, and presented her to my vet.
Four weeks old, something about one kilo. We immediately found a family willing to adopt her, so she just would stay some days until this family would go for her.

Yes…just that it never happened.

She adapted quickly to the life in between the large Shepherds and grew rapidly. My students named her ‘Piña’ and she won the hearts of everyone, but nobody adopted her. She was a really brave, fearless, and intelligent puppy, so I started her training. She was brilliant in obedience, and as small as she was compared to the Shepherds, she was brave and ‘strong’ in protection work as well. After 6 months with me, I declared her mine officially and we started her search and rescue training, as we had noticed her very capable of nose work.

She was the only cross-breed in the training but after some negative experiences, we finally found a trainer from the Red Cross who saw her potential. She grew stronger and demanded her a lot of skills. She learned quickly and we saw impressive results. After a heavy training session, at night I noticed that she was leaking urine and she appeared more tired than usual, so the next day I went to my vet to check her for an infection. Negative. We gave her some days of rest and she was back to normal. A week later, she got back to training and the same happened: tired, leaking urine. There, my vet noticed her heart rate was very low, so she asked me to go to a large clinic for a heart check. They did an echo of her heart, abdomen, blood work, the complete program.

When I went back to pick her up, the cardiologist said that her heart was heavily ‘overworked’, as well as her kidneys, so this would be the reason of her leaking urine and fatigue. She told me she was suspecting Addison’s, as her electrolytes were a little bit off, but not as strong as it could be. Piña had a shot of Dexamethasone two weeks ago because she got stung by some bees, so the definitive test for Addison’s we couldn’t do until four weeks later. But she was very sick and we decided we would try to stabilize her with IV fluids as long as possible to do the test.

After some days with the fluids, her situation got worse and all the vets at the clinic, together with my vet, decided to start treatment for Addison’s as Piña was weaker each day. When we started with the Prednisone and the Fludrocortisone (Astonin), she was herself few days later, with all the side-effects of the Prednisone, but active, strong heart rate, and her happy self.
Over the weeks, we reduced the Prednisone and she went back to the search and rescue training, happy happy happy. She was one and a half year old at that time. She got stable, I got used to managing her medicine, and finally, we had our first search and rescue events, where she gained attention because of her incredible happy nature and strong will to work.

We specialized in high mountain rescue and collapsed houses, where her weight (18 kilos) is a huge advantage compared to Shepherds or Labradors and their usual weight. Ngakho, Piña and I learned rope work as well.

Last summer we moved from Mexico to Ecuador, where we kept training, but suddenly (and unexpectedly), I got the permission to work with my dogs at my college, with the students. Piña is a search and rescue dog, but not a therapy dog as two of my older ones, so she was just like a backup. But, due to a heat wave, one of the therapy dogs could not go to classes with me sometimes and we took Piña…and she adapted quickly. Manje, some months later, she is adored by the students and a huge part of the college and a favourite on school excursions and events.

In the 2 years since her diagnosis we had to adjust her medication just twice, I always carry around Prednisone everywhere I go but besides of that she is a normal search and rescue and soon-to-be-therapy dog. In our free time we go hiking in the mountains, go swimming in the river, or just go around by bike. She does absolutely everything a non-Addison’s dog would do, just with an excess of energy.

My Ecuadorian vets use her as an example for their vet students as they have never seen an Addison’s dog before.

Deutsche Übersetzung

Im Februar 2016 lebte ich in Cholula, Mexiko, mit meinen 3 adoptierten Schäferhunden (deutsch und belgisch), als eine Freundin mich anrief, dass sie einen winzigen Welpen in einer geschlossenen Mülltüte am Straßenrand gefunden hatte, kurz vor dem Ersticken. Ich fuhr hin, holte das kleine Bündel ab und stellte sie meiner Tierärztin vor. 4 Wochen alt, ungefähr ein Kilo. Wir fanden ziemlich sofort eine Familie, die sie adoptieren wollte, sich aber noch ein paar Tage organisieren musste bevor sie sie abholen. Nunja, das ist leider nie passiert.
Sie gewöhnte sich rasend schnell an das Leben mit den großen Schäferhunden und wuchs fröhlich vor sich hin. Meine Schüler gaben ihr den Namen PIÑA (also Ananas), weil wir da gerade die Früchte durchnahmen. Sie gewann alle Leute für sich, aber niemand adoptierte sie.

Sie war ein sehr mutiger, starker und extrem intelligenter Welpe/Junghund, also begann ich, sie zu trainieren. Sie war großartig in Gehorsam/Unterordnung und —obwohl so klein im Vergleich zu den Schäferhunden— war sie auch sehr mutig und forsch im Schutzdienst.

Nach 6 Monaten bei mir wurde sie ganz hochoffiziell ‘meine‘ und schließlich begannen wir auch ihr Rettungshundetraining, da wir ihren hervorragenden Naseneinsatz bemerkt hatten. NATÜRLICH war sie der einzige Mix beim Training, und wir gerieten leider auch an einen Trainer, der sie für nicht fähig hielt, das können nur bestimmte Rassehunde. Schließlich fanden wir ‘unseren‘ Trainer, der ihr Potential sah und so ging es sehr schnell aufwärts und sie überraschte uns oft mit ihren Fähigkeiten.

Im August 2017, nach einem sehr intensiven Training, bemerkte ich, dass sie deutlich erschöpft war, ein bisschen undicht und einfach nicht die fröhliche Wildsau wie sonst. Ich ging am nächsten Tag zu meiner Tierärztin mit dem Verdacht auf eine Blasenentzündung, negativ. Sie bekam ein paar Tage Pause und war weitestgehend wieder normal. Beim nächsten Training passierte dasselbe: totale Erschöpfung, Urininkontinenz. Diesmal bemerkte meine TÄin eine extrem niedrige Herzfrequenz und überwies uns an eine Klink zum kardiologischen Check. Dort machten sie einen Herzultraschall, Bauchultraschall, Blutbild, EKG usw., das volle Programm. Als ich sie dort nach der Arbeit abholen wollte, sagte mir die Ärztin, dass Herz und Nieren total überlastet seien, das sei der Grund für die Erschöpfung und die Inkontinenz. Die Ärztin vermutete Addison wegen einer leichten Elektrolytverschiebung, aber auf Grund einer Bienenattacke knapp 2 Wochen vorher konnten wir den ACTH-Test nicht machen, wir müssten 4 Wochen warten…also beschlossen wir, sie soweit mit Infusionen zu stabilisieren um den Test machen zu können. Leider ging es ihr trotz der Infusionen zunehmend schlechter, so dass alle beteiligten Tierärzte beschlossen, dass sie auf Addison behandelt würde. Wir begannen mit Prednisolon und Fludrocortison (Astonin) und nach wenigen Tagen war sie wieder fast die Alte. In den Wochen darauf reduzierten wir das Prednisolon, dadurch verschwanden auch die Nebenwirkungen, aber das Herz war stabil und sie wieder aktiv. Ich gewöhnte mich ans das Medikamentenmanagement und lernte, selber ihr Herz abzuhören und schließlich kehrten wir zum Rettungstraining zurück und hatten bald unsere ersten Einsätze, wo sie immer im positiven Sinne Aufmerksamkeit bekam, weil sie so fröhlich ist aber zeitgleich auch extrem professionell und zuverlässig bei der Arbeit. Wir spezialisierten uns auf Hochgebirgsrettung und Trümmerarbeit, wo ihre kompakte, aber sportliche Statur (18kg) ein großer Vorteil gegenüber größeren und schwereren Hunden wie DSH oder Labradoren darstellt. Also lernten wir gemeinsames Abseilen, Aufstieg in Seilen, Seilbahn fahren und vieles mehr.

Sommer 2019 zogen wir von Mexiko nach Ecuador, wo wir weiterhin trainieren, aber sehr plötzlich bekam ich von meiner Schule die Erlaubnis, mit meinen Hunden an der Schule mit den Kindern und Jugendlichen zu arbeiten. Nun ist die kleine Wildsau ein Rettungshund, aber kein Therapiehund, und so war sie erst nur als Reserve gedacht, falls einer meiner richtigen
Therapiehundesenioren ausfällt. Bei einer extremen Hitzewelle, wo die beiden Senioren nicht arbeiten konnten, kam also ihr großer Tag, und wie vorher bei allem anderen auch, sie lernt rasend schnell. Jetzt, ein paar Monate später, wird sie von den Schülern (und Kollegen und Chefetage und Service- und Sicherheitsleuten der Schule) angebetet und wir werden zu jeglichen Events und Exkursionen eingeladen, führen alle ihre coolen Tricks vor und lassen sie mal einen Schüler suchen…

In den knapp 2 Jahren seit ihrer Diagnose mussten wir ihre Medikation nur 2mal anpassen, einmal fiel sie aus uns unbekannten Gründen in eine Krise und musste einige Tage in der Klinik am Tropf bleiben, aber davon abgesehen ist sie ein normaler Rettungshund und ein baldiger Therapiehund. Das einzige, was ich beachten muss, ist, immer Prednisolon dabei zu haben, weil sowohl Sucheinsätze als auch Arbeitstage an der Schule stressig sind. Im positiven Sinne, aber eben dennoch stressig.

In unserer Freizeit wandern wir im Hochgebirge, gehen schwimmen oder fahren auch mal Fahrrad. Sie macht absolut alles (oder noch mehr), was ein nicht-Addison-Hund machen würde, nur mit einem Überschuss an positiver Energie.
Nebenbei: meine ecuatorianischen Tierärzte benutzen sie als Beispielfall für ihre Vetmedizinstudenten, da die allermeisten nie zuvor einen Addisonpatienten zu Gesicht bekommen haben.

ngeSpanishi

La historia de Piña
En febrero de 2016, vivía en Cholula, México con mis tres pastores (alemánes y belgas, todos rescatados) cuando una amiga me llamó que había encontrado una cachorra en una bolsa de basura cerrada en la banqueta de la calle., a punto de asfixiarse. Entonces fui, recogí la cachorra y le presenté a mi veterinaria. 4 semanas, alrededor de 1000gramos. Inmediatamente encontramos a una familia que le quiso adoptar, solo que necesitaban organizarse antes de llevarla. Pero…nunca pasó y se quedó conmigo más tiempo que esperábamos.

Se adaptó rápido a la vida entre los pastores grandes y creció sanamente. Mis alumnos le llamaron PIÑA porque en ese tiempo estuvimos viendo las frutas. Ella enamoró a todos pero nadie la adoptó. Estaba una cachorra muy valiente, segura e inteligente, así que empezamos a entrenarle. Brillaba en obediencia, trucos y –a pesar de ser chiquita comparada con los pastores– aún se lanzó a guardia y protección. Cuando llevaba 6 meses conmigo le declaramos ‘mía’ oficialmente y también empezamos su entrenamiento de búsqueda y rescate, como le notamos muy apta para trabajo de olfato.

Claro que estaba la única cruza callejera y a principio nos encontramos con un pseudo-entrenador que dijo que no sirviera y blabla, pero por fin encontramos a un entrenador que vio su potencial y pronto vimos resultados impresionantes.

En agosto 2017, después de una sesión fuerte de entrenamiento, ella pareció exhausta, triste y le salió orina cuando durmió. El día siguiente le checamos por infección de las vías urinarias, era negativo. Le dimos algunos días de reposo y pronto estaba como normal. Cuando volvió al entrenamiento pasó lo mismo: cansancio extremo, incontinencia. Esa vez mi veterinaria notó su frecuencia cardíaca muy baja y nos mandó a una clínica para un chequeo cardiológico. Hicieron un eco cardíaco, sonografía de corazón y abdomen, tomaron la presión, análisi de sangre…todo. Cuando fui por ella, la cardióloga me dijo que tanto el corazón como los riñones tienen una sobrecarga y por eso estaba tan cansada. La doctora sospechó Addison por una leve desbalance de los electrolitos y el problema cardíaco. Por un ataque de abejas dos semanas antes Piña había recibido una inyección de cortisona, así que no pudimos hacer el test de estimulación del ACTH. Los doctores dijeron que se tendría que esperar 4 semanas para poder hacer el test, a lo mejor se podría estabilizarle con sueros de cloruro de sodio por algún tiempo y finalmente hacer el test.
Desafortunadamente, aún con los sueros su situación empeoró y después de algunos días todos los veterinarios involucrados decidieron juntos empezar el tratamiento por Addison. Empezamos con Predisona y pastillas de Fludrocortisona (Astonin) y en pocos días estaba fuerte y alegre como antes. Su frecuencia cardíaca se normalizó u poco a poco pudimos bajar la dosis de la Prednisona, con eso desaparecieron los efectos secundarios.

Piña tenía un año y medio cuando le diagnosticaron.

Ella estaba estable, yo me acostumbré a manejar sus medicinas y por fin pudimos volver al entrenamiento. Pronto tuvimos los primeros operativos de búsqueda y rescate y ella ganó los corazones con su carácter amigable y alegre y su profesonalismo en cuanto al trabajo de búsqueda. Nos especializamos en rescate de alta montaña y escombros/estructuras colapsadas donde ella por su estatura compacta y atleta (18kilos) tiene ventajas con los pastores o labradores más pesados. Así, aprendemos hacer rappel, subida en cuerdas, andar en teleféricos y cualquier tipo de vehículo.

En verano de 2019 nos mudamos a Ecuador, donde seguimos entrenando, pero de repente recibimos el permiso de mi colegio, a trabajar con los perros en el colegio. Piña como perra de búsqueda y rescate solo era planeada como reemplazo para mis dos perros de terapia. En una fuerte ola de calor, cuando los dos perros de terapia por su edad no podían trabajar, llegó la hora de Piña y…aprendió rapidísimo. Ahora, meses después, es adorada por todo el colegio (alumnos, colegas, jefes, padres de familia, empleados) por su alegría permanente, por saber hacer tantos trucos y por brindar seguridad a excursiones.

En los dos años de su diagnosis solo dos veces tuvimos que ajustar sus medicamentos, siempre llevo algo de Prednisona conmigo (tanto la búsqueda como el trabajo en el colegio le exigen mucho y tengo que darle más Prednisona en los días de trabajo) pero al lado de eso es una perra de búsqueda y rescate normal y perra de terapia futura.
En nuestro tiempo libre hacemos senderismo, escalamos montañas, andamos en bici o vamos a nadar. Piña hace absolutamente todo (o más) que hace un perro sin Addison, solo con exceso de energía.
Mis veterinarios ecuatorianos le usan para enseñanza de Addison a sus estudiantes de medicina veterinaria como la mayoría nunca ha visto un caso de Addison antes.
Por ganar tantos corazones, mis amigos me regalaron un tatuaje en forma de Piña y la mitad de mi casa tiene decoración en forma de Piña. Su apodo es “la cola inquieta” por ser tan alegre, y cuando la ven, nadie sospecha su enfermedad.

Piña - Chofoza ku-
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

 

This is Ozzie! We adopted him as a 6-month-old rescue. Border Collie/Australian Terrier mix according to the DNA test. His weight is 48 amakhilogremu. We started noticing changes in him when he was about 3.5 ubudala (early 2016). The first indication (missed by me as a medical issue at that time) was a drastic change in his coat. His hair grew longer and turned from black to brown. He looked like a little bear!

Then in June, we went camping and I noticed he was peeing a lot. Copious amounts and very dilute. Then also occasional diarrhea.

Still energetic, we continued agility all this time. Then one morning, he didn’t want to eat. That was my indication that something was wrong. He always loved food. I also noticed that he would pant a long time after playing ball. Too long.

To the vet that day in June 2016, just before his 4^th birthday. They asked me what his symptoms were because he looked like such a happy camper. I told him about the not eating and the panting. I could pick him later that day and was told to give him chicken and rice. They had taken blood and results would be back the day after.

I just went to agility training that next morning, and when I came back the vet had called to bring Ozzie in ASAP. They suspected Addison’s disease. They did the ACTH test and he didn’t stim at all. Diagnosis was in!

He was on fluids for a day, was given Percorten (1.75 ml at regular dose), and Prednisone. I soon learned about low dose; I did learn so much in just a few days. It was worth my time, because I have been able to lower his Pred to only 0.25 mg per day and we went with low dose of Percorten (0.6 iphrothokholi yethamo eliphansi) for his second shot. Kuthathe 3 months for his K level to go up to 4.9! Then after several months of electrolyte tests, we have him now on 0.25 ml of Percorten every 28 izinsuku. That is lower than many other dogs, but he does really well on this.

Then the best part: after three months of healing, I went back to Agility, Treibball, started Nosework, and started Trick training. I had my sweet boy back. Like nothing happened. He still runs Agility at the highest levels, received his Excellent Treibball title plus his Trick Dog Champion and Stunt Dog Professional title in 2018. He is close to getting his Masters Jumpers and Standard titles in AKC agility and I hope to attend the Nadac Championships in September this year. He earned his Nosework 2 title a few months ago. Going for level 3 this year!

I am so proud of this boy; he really loves life and he keeps me busy! Here is a link to one of his Treibball runs he so loves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTC1jBJR_jM

Ozzie - Thyra P.
Chofoza ku-
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

 

Stirling is my sweet, amazing Border Collie. His fancy AKC registered name is Premiere’s Stirling Status, UD, P-UTD, FDC. From the start, I believed he was supposed to be my dog. I have been training and showing dogs in competition obedience for nearly 20 years and I was ready for my first Border Collie. I drove out to California to pick up my black and white ball of fluff. The puppies were running about like little chickens, this way and that. Since they were interested in running about the room, the puppies were not paying much attention to the new stranger (me). Then the puppy pack ran past me and one scooted to a stop and attempted to jump right on me; he was enthralled with me. He was adorable and I loved him at very first sight, but this puppy was already promised to another home. I was a bit disheartened but trusted our breeder and her matching of the dogs. She picked up this other adorable puppy and placed him in my lap; this was the puppy picked for me. He was cute and wiggled directly out of my arms to go play. The breeder put the puppies in the crate and we chatted a bit. She took the puppies out at least four more times. All the puppies would run directly past me to play and this one little puppy would run past me and put on the brakes to try to jump in my lap, as I said earlier, he was enthralled and I was starting to have heartbreak as this was not my puppy. Ekugcineni, the last time the breeder took the puppies out and they all ran past me but the one, she picked him up and shared she’d not seen anything like this, and well; he was my pup. That puppy, as you likely guessed, is my amazing Stirling.

Stirling and I went off to enjoy our busy, active life together, training and running. I loved having my first border collie.

Around the time he was a year old, I noticed he seemed to have periods when he did not feel well. He would have loose stool and seem tired; not as active. I would take him to the vet and he would get some medicine to calm his stomach. His labs were fine. I would notice he would have loose stool after a training session. The next symptom Stirling demonstrated was a full body rash. Stirling had pus like lesions all throughout his body. It was so scary! Off to the vet we went. At this point, as I am a nurse, I started to put together this seemed like an autoimmune or autoinflammatory condition. As quickly as the rash developed, it went away. From there, Stirling would go on to have periods of loose stool, lethargy, and high fever. I would rush him to the vet for treatment and part of the treatment was steroids. After treatment, Stirling would be back to his amazing self and off we would go running and training until the next episode. There were a number of these episodes. Ekugcineni, after one of the episodes, we saw a different vet as we were on holiday. I shared our story and I was so upset. She blurted out, “I think he has Addison’s disease!” She ran the tests, gave him steroids, and fluids to stabilize him. For this final episode, Stirling’s blood glucose was low; he had an atypical presentation of Addison’s. At least now we knew! Stirling’s presentation of Addison’s was an atypical presentation making an already challenging diagnosis even more challenging. We returned to Arizona, ran more tests to discover Stirling has primary Addison’s disease, but remains with glucocorticoid deficiency —or with Atypical Addison’s disease. Stirling has remained in Atypical Addison’s since 2012. Since he tested for primary Addison’s we follow his labs every 4 izinyanga.

After the initial stabilization period, which was hard, Stirling has been feeling wonderful, running and competing. Our team for Stirling is amazing. Our Vet is very supportive of our treatment and we work together for the best treatment plan for Stirling. She is supportive of low dose prednisone and our feeding plan.

For brags, Stirling and I run together and recently we ran a 6-minute mile! We show in competitive obedience and are almost always in the ribbons. The UD (Utility Dog title) is one of the top obedience titles. Stirling is my first obedience dog to achieve the UD title. I adore every minute we have together. Strangely enough, I believe we enjoy a stronger bond because of the Addison’s.

Outside of the difficulty of diagnosis, and the initial stabilization period which was scary; we have an amazing life together. I am forever grateful for our medical care and our Canine Addison’s Resources & Education group (C.A.R.E). I do not believe I would have gotten through this without the expertise and guidance of our C.A.R.E group. The support and knowledge C.A.R.E provides is critical. I cannot count how many times I have reached out for guidance and support. The group also brings friendship and encouragement. I remember second guessing if I should be running and showing Stirling. Then I saw dogs in our C.A.R.E group doing agility. I was touched by a wonderful Border Collie named Idgie in our group. Watching Idgie’s brags gave me the encouragement I needed. At that moment, I decided Stirling was always supposed to be my dog and we would live the life we were intended. You will see me singing Team Stirling’s praises occasionally, in case someone needs just a little encouragement.

Stirling is well loved by both me and my wonderful, supportive husband who is also critical in supporting Stirling in his care. Our Addison’s dogs rock and can do it all!

Stirling - Candice V.G.
Atypical Addison's
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

 

Time to tell our story, and to share some good news. When we joined the CARE Facebook group, it was following a suggestion by a friend in another Facebook group about the Belgian Shepherd breeds. I had no idea that we needed help and that I could improve Ali’s care. Ali had her Addison’s crisis over 5 years prior, and she had been stable with 2.5 ml of Prednisolone daily and a monthly shot, at the vets, of 2.5 ml of Percorten – carefully calculated according to her weight (which I later discovered is not the way to adjust the medication).

My husband and I more than once had ‘that talk.’ Were we really doing the kindest thing treating her illness, keeping her alive? Bless, she was so ‘wired,’ jumpy, and nervous of everything. My brave fearless girl no more. She was ravenous! Starving hungry the whole time. It was painful to see. I was so sorry for her I used to buy her big shells of lettuce leaves to try and fill her up. Anything to put something in her stomach without fattening her up. She wolfed them down.

Despite giving her cranberry capsules everyday, she had countless bladder infections. Seemed like she was never clear of them and was constantly getting antibiotics to control them. Her fur had gone very sparse and coarse. Belgian Shepherds have a double coat, but she no longer had any soft warming undercoat of fur. Just the outer fur, with bald spots even in that. Neither of us ever got a full night’s sleep. Every night she needed to go out twice, some nights as many as three times.

But then I read the documents here and the advice which was helping others to reduce their dogs from the therapeutic dosage level which Ali was on to the biological replacement level of both Prednisolone and Percorten V. I’m a life scientist by training and it all made such good sense that I decided to give it a try. I just quietly got on and reduced Ali’s prednisolone, gradually and gently. And what do you know, she did great. It took a while, but she is now stable on 0.5 ml daily – one-fifth of her original dose!

As soon as I could see that she was doing better on a reducing dose of Prednisolone, I started telling our lovely veterinarian I wanted to reduce her Percorten and to base her dosage on her electrolytes, not her weight. We had quite a tussle to start with, but once he realized I wanted her treatment to be based on the results of her ‘lytes, he was fully supportive. We’ve been gradually reducing her dosage, and her last shot was 0.5 ml Zycortal (we switched from Percorten). Maybe down to 0.4 ml this time, but we’ll soon know. A few months ago, I started doing her shots myself. Partly to mitigate the additional costs of the monthly ‘lytes tests, but more to avoid Ali having to go to the vets so often. She’s very brave, but she’s been to the vets far too often in her little life.

Why am I telling you this now? Well, we’ve just come back from Ali’s 28 day ‘lytes blood draw and our vet proudly told me that he has convinced the owner of another Addison’s dog in his care to start the same reducing treatment regime. And, bless him, he has suggested that they could start doing the monthly shot themselves to help offset the initial costs, citing me as an example.

Ngakho, apart from being chuffed to bits that another dog will soon be feeling a lot less wired, I’ve learned another lesson. In convincing our veterinarians to treat our dogs the way we have learned is what they need, with just a replacement dosage, they will then take that knowledge and use it with other Addison’ dogs in their care. Having said it, that seems blindingly obvious that they would do so, but it honestly had not occurred to me.

Update: Another two years have passed since I wrote this. Thank you to everyone here at CARE for all they do to help our precious A-dogs and us, their anxious helicopter pet parents. I’m honored to have been asked to update it for the Canine Addison’s Awareness Week 2020.

My darling Ali continues to flourish. For over 2 years now, she has been stable on 0.5 ml of Prednisolone daily. I continued reducing her monthly Zycortal, guided by monthly ‘lytes tests, until we reached the level that kept her stable for 28 izinsuku. My poor girl, who had been given 2.5 mls of Percoten V every month for 5 years only needs the tiny monthly dose of 0.3 iphrothokholi yethamo eliphansi.

Last year we got a male Belgian Shepherd puppy. I thought Ali might appreciate not having the responsibility of being top dog in our little pack of two. What did we know! Having just celebrated his first birthday, Shadow is now a strapping big boy, taller, and heavier built than Ali. But my darling brave fearless girl is still determinedly top dog. Her coat is full, soft, and shining with health. I have to admit that she still bolts her meals, but that desperate hunger resides only in my memory. We both sleep through most nights. Nowadays, it’s me who needs to get up, not her. And she’s happy. Bright eyed and bushy tailed. She’s beside me now, cuddling up on the sofa, making typing very difficult.

Even I forget she’s ill. It’s just part of my routine to give her meds with her breakfast, quick, easy, and not a big deal at all. Her monthly shot is now routine. Collar off the night before. Draw up her meds into the syringe while she’s elsewhere, and then quickly give it to her while she’s enjoying her breakfast. But let her get sick, with anything, and I’m immediately that anxious A-dog mom again. Some things never change!

Ali - Shirley C.
Chofoza ku-
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

 

Simba wazalwa ngo-Feb 23, 2007. He was trained as a Service Dog for an autistic boy and was loved very much by his “brother.” Just before his 2nd birthday, wawa phansi abanye ngezitebhisi. Wagcina at the vet, echazwe njengo lethargic ngokwedlulele futhi engakwazi ukuhamba. Bloodwork kwaholela ukuxilongwa "presumptive Addison sika" (no test ACTH). Ube esenikezwa shot of Dexamethasone futhi ezinye noketshezi IV, ke wathumela ekhaya ukuthatha Florinef, "For 2 izinyanga, bese uyathula futhi ugcine Prednisone esandleni uma uqala ngozi ekhaya. "ifayela Yakhe medical ifundeka like a indaba horror. In November of 2010, wayenedumela "kungenzeka" Addisonian crisis, kanye potassium yakhe at 5.6 (isukela up to 5.8). Ngokusobala Simba kwadingeka ingqikithi 3 zinhlekelele ngesikhathi nomndeni wakhe wokuqala, bese wahlupheka 4 ngesikhathi ukufela ukuba Standard poodle Rescue.

At the age of 6, Simba wafika in the wokutakula & ukunakekelwa. The khulula kanye namalungu omphakathi the Addison sasiza ukuze uthole Simba sisendleleni eqondile, sizibulale kuye kusukela Florinef ukuba Percorten futhi waqala on the esigabeni esilandelayo ukuphila kwakhe, okuyinto kakhudlwana!

Mina Keith sasifuna yakini for River yethu, ngubani ngokuphelele ayithandi kokuba "inja kuphela". I babemlandela a lot of the dogs atholakalayo at the wokutakula, bese Simba uvele. Wayengumuntu like a Clone of River ngokubukeka, kuphela nakakhulu. I nje akwazi amehlo ami off lo mfana lovely. Sasisanda elahlekile 2 izinja in a kweminyaka, omunye umdlavuza, omunye ngenxa yezinkinga inoperable shunts kwesibindi multiple. Contact My at the khulula wazama ukukhuluma nami kude Simba, ethi thina sifaneleka omunye kungabikho nezindaba, kodwa ngandlela-thile saba nomuzwa wokuthi bangabantu esifanele Simba futhi wayeqinisile for us. Simba wafika emndenini wethu ngoMashi 23, 2013, hhayi isikhathi eside emva lokuzalwa kwakhe 6, nge okunezinhlobonhlobo-spreadsheet, amaphilisi, kanye nemiyalelo. Ikhanda lami ukuphotha. I lutho Addison sika, ngaphandle ukuthi izwi kakhulu scary. Umama bakhe bokutholwa, Katey, wangiqinisekisa ukuthi sasiyoba ukwesekwa wakhe ngokugcwele kanye naleso umphakathi Addison sika. Ngajoyina iqembu support ngokungenzeleli ngokushesha kodwa walinda esithile ngaphambi ukuthumela. Ukuba umuntu shy, kwakunzima ukukhuluma kuze kweqembu lezihambi, fana they were kuphela online. Well, kwakuyinto umhlabeleli Ngenza. For Simba, kwakukuhle ngoba ngathola usizo osheshayo usebenzelana naye, futhi kimi bekuyi kuhle - I abangane abaningi abasha abalulekile, babantu engangibafundela babe ngento eyodwa - sonke ngiyazithanda izinja Addison wethu. Simba ayekade "yakhangiswa" wonke izwekazi ngisho UK, kanjalo weza neqembu lakhe siqu of abayithandayo yena, futhi mina Keith wangena iqembu naye.

Ekupheleni June 2013, nje 3 emva kwezinyanga samukela kuye, Simba aphuma evenini uKeith egalaji futhi waphula emlenzeni wakhe. Yini elandelayo for lomfana darling! Kwaba a break esibi kakhulu futhi wagcina nge plate steel in ingalo yakhe plus wire zihambisana nxazonke isihlakala sakhe. Satshelwa ukuthi lwaluyisenzakalo 90% chance ukuthi kwaba umdlavuza, kanjalo ezilungiselwe ukunqunywa kunokwenzeka kwalandela ukwelashwa tamazashvili. Simba kwaba lucky futhi angena 10% kucace! Wayengumuntu Trooper efana ne imbande yakhe futhi begqoke "bonnet yakhe,"Bese nje lapho waphulukiswa yena, kwadingeka babuyele 6 izinyanga kamuva ziye ungcwecwe isuswe.

Ngakho thina ekhuphuka eya 2 Eminyakeni kusukela samukela Simba - ubelokhu imnandi. Nguye "umuntu wakhe siqu,"Akafani namanye dogs. Muhle unkom 'idla yodwa, futhi "ukuzivocavoca lactose." uhlu waKhe meds cishe yanyamalala - once medicated kahle, previous nezindaba isikhumba banyamalala, ekuchitheni wayeka. Simba wabukela ezinye izinja ukudlala kodwa ungalokothi wafunda ngempela indlela iqhaza lapho esemncane. Wayeka eziningi "kwentsha fun 'yakhe ngokuba Autism Service Dog, futhi ngokuba kanjalo wagula kakhulu. Kodwa isikhathi sakhe sesifikile - anakho usuku lokuzalwa 8 okuzokwenzeka - futhi anakho a Mom & Ubaba abamthandayo kakhulu futhi angenza noma yini ngaye, a River umfowethu ojabulela kokuba naye lapha, futhi udade Pinot omusha ngeke oye ukhohliwe ngempela ukuthi esebhavumula at wakhe ngosuku lokuqala kade lapha, kodwa kade ziba ngcono. Simba lisho "iNkosana" futhi yilokho nguye!

Pinot kuyinto cocker spaniel / mini poodle mix, ozalwa May 4, 2009. Wayehlala for 5 Eminyakeni emndenini zazo Ngiyazi lutho. Kodwa ngaphambi nje yakhe 5^th birthday, amletha Clinic Emergency nge umchamo ukuvaleka futhi once got namandla ngokwanele, enomuzi cystoscopy urinary. U-Elsa wayiswa ekhaya kodwa wabuya ngosuku noma ezimbili esibucayi. The vet wayefuna ukuhlola for Addison kodwa ngaleso sikhathi umndeni wakhe ababefikele breaking yabo iphuzu futhi wacela ukuba ukusiphumuza. The vet wahlela ukuba wakhe umaluju kuye futhi kwatholakala ukuthi unesifo i ACTH ekuqaleni May. Wabe waphila the next 4 izinyanga in the emtholampilo. Sasizigqokele emtholampilo kanye River ngelinye ilanga futhi wasitshela mayelana Pinot futhi bemletha ukuhlangabezana us. Yena iphahlwe in, bounced up on the ebhentshini, futhi nje akakwazanga ukulawula amandla wakhe. Wayengumngane ibhola fluff and cuteness. Ukuqhubekela kanye, SPIN (Abazithanda ngayo izinja Standard In Need) wathatha ukulawula kwakhe UKeith I yayikhuthaza wakhe. Pinot kuba brilliant! Kosuku lwayo lokuqala, yena ngokoqobo latched emapulangweni bobabili Keith & River, futhi kuze kube namuhla bobabili ekucindezela yakhe main. Emtholampilo, babekade kokumnikeza 1.0 mg of Prednisone nsuku zonke wabe laliba 14 amakhilogremu. Ngakho, Pinot waba nezinkinga ezinzima incontinence. Sasebenza at ukwehlisa Pred wakhe kodwa ngisho nalapho kwaba phansi 0.2mg, wayesakhonza avuzayo. Sazama enikeza Propalin wakhe (Microwave) nabathile impumelelo kuphela. Kodwa once waqala ukuthatha Stilbestrol (DES) nsuku zonke, kade wawusomile.

Ungase ucabange ukuthi SPIN wayengabuzi ncamashi waphuthunyiswa izinyawo zabo nabantu ababefuna ukuba zamukele lesi silwane ngokuphelele darling. Bakhona ababethanda ngokwanele ukuba bafunde ngoNkulunkulu Addison sika & cabanga wakhe, kodwa avuzayo kwaba yephula deal. Zonke isikhathi, I wayebhala ngokubaluleka yeka kade, I eyayina more and more in love naye ngokwami. Thina zizosuka ngokushesha lolutawudzinga a 7 uhambo ngemoto imini kusukela kwase 2 abazithanda ngayo izinja standard, asizange sicabange sasikwazi wamukele 3^rd. Thina ekugcineni sanquma ukuba 'wing it "- Pinot lalikude ekhethekile kakhulu -UMose bajabulele wakhe. Yena fanele us, akuthina naye. Ngaphandle, singasenza kanjani ngisho alokothe ​​acabange wakhe kude River! Ngakho, on Dec. 21, 2014, Pinot waba ezethu phakade. Yena kuyajabulisa enjalo. Yena Unikeza wena slipper lapho ungena, nakuba kungase kube NOT eyakho, kodwa betfulelwa nyakazisa ukuthi nje ukuthatha noma kunjalo enjalo darling bum. Yena wenza imilutha Squeaky amathoyizi - sikhulu futhi squeakier ngcono - lokhu kuyinto umlutha ukuthi Wazisa River futhi unawo ngokuxabana ambalwa phezu "umhlabeleli" omunye. Pinot kuye kwathonya izinhliziyo zethu futhi zihlale phakade.

 

Klara wazalwa ngomhlaka 12 August 2009. Wayehlale puppy ethokoza futhi ephapheme, a Tomboy nge ilukuluku esikhulu konke entsha. Izinguquko weza ngemuva ukushisa wakhe wokuqala. Waba idla ngikhetha, okuyinto Ngangicabanga sihlobene ukushintsha kwama-hormone. Waba ethule futhi asabela bethukuthele lapho izinja esondelene kakhulu, ngisho wakhe best inja buddies. The noboya black imilenze front waphenduka gray.

Khona saphinde isikhathi eside lapho konke kwabonakala kuzolunga. Ngokushesha ngemva lokuzalwa kwakhe 3rd, konke yimbi. Yena kwakufanele a ngegciwane endlebeni esibi kakhulu amagciwane multi-ukumelana. Ukuze uthole ukulimala kwamathambo elawulwa, imiselekazi indlebe bahlanza ngaphansi izinzwa. Ukudilika kwenhlabathi waqala. Waqala lokwenqaba ukudla kwakhe. Ngezinye izikhathi, wadla lutho 3 izinsuku. Ngezinye izikhathi, wayesenemali uhudo noma wahlanzwa. Ephelelwe ithemba, saqala amahlaya ukuthi maduze siyobe uthole yokungena lwethu emtholampilo. The yindlebe wayesalokhu ebangela inkinga bese Klara got yesibili indlebe yokuhlanza wakhe ngaphansi izinzwa.

Khonamanjalo, wayesenemali sohudo ngokuphindaphindiwe, ukuhlanza, futhi ukuqunjelwa. Sachitha Eva Christmas and New Year ngo emtholampilo. Ukuvivinywa for izimuncagazi zaba negative. The bloodwork kwaba omuhle. The yindlebe zazilokhu Niyosindiswa.

Winter 2012/2013, sasiba sezulu emangalisayo. Lots of iqhwa nelanga. Izinja My abathanda iqhwa Klara ehudulwa lingunina eqhweni. Wayengenakho fun. Ungase ubone ukuthi wenza kahle. Iningi isikhathi ilele. The vets icala.

In February 2013, kwaba nakakhulu. Uhudo, ukuhlanza, wayebonakala in pain, benqaba ukudla kwakhe, kodwa waphuza amanzi amaningi. The vets wathi, "Kufanele ulinde. Kungenzeka ngenxa yokushisa kwakhe. "Ngakusasa lapho ngafika ekhaya, Kwadingeka umuzwa ongavamile – kukhona okungalungile kakhulu lapha. I waxosha aphinde esibhedlela kanye vet wayefuna ungimukise, “Thina can't owathola. Ngicabanga ukuthi ukushisa wakhe!”

Lokhu kwaba kakhulu. I wathukuthela futhi iceliwe uphenyo. “Kukhona okungahambi Klara. Angiyikukhuphuka!! Ingabe umsebenzi wakho!” Benza a blood test ephelele bese, the vets awabuthembi kakhulu. Potassium Her kwaba 7.6 in a ezahlukene 3.5-5.8. Sodium Her kwaba 139 in a ezahlukene 144-160. The bloodwork wasitshela ukuphila kwakhe kwakusengozini. Yena waba emzimbeni ngokuphelele. Ekugcineni, bawafuna imbangela. Ubuthi, ultrasound kwezinso, Leptospirosis. Wanikwa i IV nge ukumnika izikhwama. I kungathatha Klara ekhaya. Saya nsuku emtholampilo futhi benza ukuhlolwa eminye. Bakhuluma ukwehluleka kwezinso kodwa awazange abuthole imbangela. Igazi amagugu Klara sika yayiqhutshwa kuphela infusions kodwa nalokho akuzange wusizo. Amanani igazi yaba mibi. Kwaphela izinsuku, wayeselahlekelwe force fed, kodwa walahlekelwa isisindo ezingasho. Uphuthunyiswe ICU futhi thina kwalungiselelwa ukulahlekelwa wakhe. The vets bathi wayefuna ukuhlola into eyodwa last. Bathi kungaba Addison's Disease and wayefuna ukwenza isivivinyo ACTH. Imbangela kwatholakala. Klara kwadingeka Addison kanye ukwelashwa kwaqalwa. Ngosuku olulandelayo, Ngangibona ekhaya lakhe.

Yena ngalulama ngokushesha futhi konke kwabonakala kuhamba kahle. Nokho, kade njengoba donsile njengoba izinja enempilo. Yingakho ngiye ukusebenzisa Florinef ukuba Percorten.

Ngosizo iqembu, sisebenzela ukuthola Klara's umthamo umhlabeleli. Manje, enesisindo 27 kg and uthola 0.40ml of Percorten zonke 28 izinsuku 1mg of Prednisone nsuku zonke. Kwami, kufana isimangaliso ukuze ukubona ukuthi ujabulela ukuphila kwakhe ngaphandle kwemingcele. Manje, cishe 2 Eminyakeni kamuva, Klara uzizwa kangcono kunangaphambili. Ukushintshela ku Percorten kwaba isinqumo esingcono ezake. Klaraismentallybalanced,onamileyo, bold, futhi enesibindi. Futhi emva kanye usuku esemsebenzini(ungu- nomsizi wami trainer, I am a trainer inja) usalokhu uye amandla kwesokunxele ukudlala injabulo ngokugcwele nomfowabo futhi nami!

I am Annet and I live in The Netherlands. We have 4 izinja, two English Cocker Spaniels, a Boomer and a Belgian Griffon. One of the cockers – his name is Flip and he is 4 ubudala – has Addison’s since April 2014.

He drank tons of water and wasn’t his exciting self for a few weeks. So when the dogs had to have their annual shots, I asked if the vet could check his total bloodwork, because he was not well. When we got home, Flip disappeared under the table and stayed there, he didn’t even come out for a treat. And that is something that is completely NOT Flip…. After a few hours the vet called and said that his potassium was dangerously high and his sodium very low. So he said I suspect he has Addison’s disease. After travelling in ‘Addison’s world’ for almost a year now, I know that my vet did wonderful by diagnosing it this early! He wanted to confirm with the ACTH test, but it turned out that the test was not available in Holland at that time, not at a vet nor at a veterianarian school! So Flip was never definitively diagnoses with the ACTH test because it simply wasn’t possible. He got fludrocortisone and hydrocortisone and after a little while in ‘Addison World’ I weaned him off of the hydrocortisone completely. The Dutch protocol for Addison is ‘Fludrocortisone and high dose of hydrocortisone for the rest of the dog’s life’. My vet said Okay to wean him off the hydro, but afterwards he said to me that he feared it, because of this protocol. Addison’s is of course a rare disease so that is what he knew and never questioned.

But it went very well so Flip only had fludrocortisone. The only thing is that Flip didn’t do his best on it and we ended up adjusting his dose almost every two weeks. Flip weighs 18 kg and he had 0.8175 mg fludro. He had too much glucocorticosteroids in his medication, that was for sure! He has always been an outgoing dog, but this was ridiculous, whining when he got a little bit excited (so by going out for a walk, getting a treat, getting dinner, thinking we were going out etc), poor Flip…….
Luckily I found a person who could provide Percorten (or rather that person found me) and this resulted in a memorable event on 5 January 2015: Flip was the first dog in Holland to get an injection of Percorten!

He is doing great on it, his personality is normalising, his hair is becoming red again (instead of becoming blonder and blonder) and it is growing again.

Ngiyakuthanda ukubhala, kodwa mina uhlalele lapha uligqolozele a screen blank, besaba ukuthi angikwazi ukwenza Pepsi Indaba ubulungiswa. I ukwabelana le ndaba nonke enethemba lokuthi luzosiza omunye umuntu. Thina bamukela Pepsi lapho eseneminyaka 6 izinyanga ubudala ngoDisemba of 2003. Wayengumngane inja eyingqayizivele amazing, kodwa akuzona bonke ngendlela yazo ekhethekile?

Pepsi kwadingeka a Esikhatsini lesinyenti evamile puppy-hood, kodwa akazange banezifo ngaphezu izinja eziningi do. Emva waphenduka ezintathu, waba izilonda ngemomozi wakhe. Emva nohambo kaningana oluya vet, bese ziguquka vets, futhi uzama ezinye izinketho more, sase sicabanga ukuhlinzwa yokwakha ngemomozi wakhe. Nokho, waqala uya ekwehleni ngokushesha. Yena ukuncipha, shaking, futhi iningi konke, I nje ukuthi kukhona okungalungile. Saya vet emva vet lapho bonke isichithile kimi yathi "nje ukuthola amadala sekuyahlwa." Ngalesi sikhathi kwadingeka sakhe ehhovisi udokotela wezilwane zonke ngesonto izinyanga. Saze wazama sizibulale vets a izikhathi couple. Energy sakhe ancipha ngokushesha. Ngokushesha, ubengakwazi ngisho ukuphuma egcekeni ngaphandle kokuthi walala phansi futhi sithathe ikhefi kancane. Ubethula unenkinga abanesimo ukunyakaza wamathumbu. Ngaphinde ngathatha yakhe ehhovisi udokotela wezilwane sika, lapho benza uxilongwe wakhe nesifo. Sathola ekhaya, futhi wayengenakukwazi ukuphuma emotweni.

Ngangazi ukuthi lokhu kube, kanjalo Ngisanda emuva emotweni anikele Chicago - kwedolobha elikhulu. Within 10 Amaminithi us engena esibhedlela eziphuthumayo in Chicago, wayeselahlekelwe wokulungiselela unesifo Disease Addison sika, futhi Ngatshelwa ukuthi cishe kwakungeke wenza esinye ebusuku ngaphandle kokwelashwa. Wahlala khona 3 noma 4 zinsuku lapho befika kwakhe eziwuketshezi up, namandla wakhe emuva. Wayephinde i test ACTH kwenziwe ukuqinisekisa Disease wakhe Addison sika. Njengoba wakhululeka njengoba ngangineminyaka ukuba ezomlanda esibhedlela, Kwangimangaza kabi impela lapho ezwa ukuthi ukwelashwa kwakhe kungadla cishe $400 ngenyanga. Ngangingabazi nhlobo indlela ngiyaphi ukukukhokhela, kodwa sizokuya ukuthola indlela.

Yilapho ngaqala bacwaninge ngokwami, futhi bathola iqembu a K-9 Addison ukuthi kungenxa ukuphila Pepsi sika. Bangisiza ukuthi ngiqonde isifo, ukuchaza izivivinyo zakhe, futhi uthole wakhe on the umthamo ilungelo imithi. Ngemva kwalokho, singeze wabheka emuva.

Ngaphezu kwe 1.4 ml of Percorten-V zonke 28 izinsuku 1 mg of Prednisone nsuku zonke, Pepsi futhi wathatha Izithako eziningana. Wagcina esehlala 7 Eminyakeni omuhle Ukweqiwa okuyiwonawona imithi yayo, konje, kuphela kubiza me esingaphansi $80.00 ngenyanga. Pepsi waphila ukuba 11 ½ ubudala, okuyinto pretty olukhulu 130 ganda inja. Pepsi wabulawa umdlavuza ngayizolo Thanksgiving in 2014.

Ukuthola ukuxilongwa Disease Addison ingaba scary futhi okwesabisayo, kodwa Pepsi kwakuwubufakazi bokuthi ungaphila ukuphila okujabulisayo nokunenjongo kanye imithi lesifanele. Ngenxa Pepsi, wonke umuntu amthinta ngafunda okuningi kakhulu ngokuphila uthando nobungane. Yena uyobe wadabuka kakhulu.

 

Valentino weza empilweni yami Feb 2007 lapho eba foster yami emva ucingo close at a high ngokubulala yokukhosela. Wayengumuntu isigamu sehora ekubeni euthanized. Wayengumuntu edukile ewuthi lokuvungula abalahlekile iningi izinwele zakhe ezinhlangothini zakhe (isikhumba sakhe kwaba pink bright shiny!) futhi isiqeshana of izinwele ezimhlophe like a mohawk phansi emuva kwakhe, enesisindo ngokulambisa 30lb – manje 55lb enempilo. Kuthathe 3 izinyanga ukubuyisela kuye impilo, futhi isisindo. Ngaleso sikhathi, Ngase ngibe ukwehluleka foster, futhi Valentino kwaba yonke mine! Walala iningi labo kuqala 3 kwezinyanga ukudla kanye potty phambi wayebonakala ephile. Waqala kokuba izimpawu ukucobeka, ukungabi namandla futhi ukungakwazi ukuthola in / out of the car for ezimbalwa futhi ngesikhathi akazange aphelelwe ngokuphelele emnyama, yena waba ukukha at ukudla kwakhe ezama adle, Ngangazi kukhona okungahambi, kodwa udokotela wezilwane yethu ngesikhathi (isikhathi sokugcina!) isichithile ukuziphatha kwakhe njengoba “nekulingisa”. Khona wawa Dec 2007 futhi uhambo lwethu kanye Disease Addison waqala. Udokotela wezilwane Yakhe lalingakwazi “uvumelane” Valentino in for elinye isonto futhi sahamba saya vet womngane ngubani wakwazi uvumelane nathi. Kunzima ukwazi uma AD yakhe zazingase nokupholisha futhi isiphela ngaphambi njengoba kade egula kangaka lapho ngiqala kuye. Ukuwa lakhe Dec 19, wachitha 2 izinsuku esibhedlela okukhethekile, futhi by Dec 25, wazizwa kahle ngokwanele ukuba bazame abscond ne duck Christmas ukuthi kwaba nkinga in echibini ekhishini – Ngenhlanhla wayeseshaywe Kuboshwe en flagrante kanye duck wasinda ukusizwa for dinner Christmas njengoba ayehlose!

Valentino was started on Florinef/compounded fludrocortisone at .4mg (ngaphansana Kunconywa for isisindo sakhe) futhi 2.5mg Prednisone in 12/07 – kodwa electrolyte yakhe yayiphelele (!) unyaka. Ngemva konyaka, electrolyte yakhe waphuma control, and he had weekly increases in his Florinef, waze wafika 2mg kodwa electrolyte zakhe zazingakabi sesimweni ngaphansi kokulawula.

Sathola vet 1.5 amahora away owayezimisele ukusebenza nathi futhi uqale Valentino at 1.8ml, okuyinto kwakubhekwa the “umthamo low” in 2009, umthamo standard kwaba kancane phezu 2ml (Ngikhumbula ngicabanga ngeke ngisho uthole 2 kuhlukaniswe imithamo out of umfuma ngamunye ngemali ngenyanga mayelana $100 nje Percorten-V!) Eminyakeni edlule, thina kancane sancishiswa 10-20% ngesikhathi. Saqala at 1.8ml in 7/09 futhi akazange ngisho uthole 1ml til 9/10, .75ml in 6/11, .5ml in 10/13, .4ml yamanje 9/14. Sasizigqokele a lot more ngoludala ngaleso sikhathi futhi asizange sibe info eyanele uya ukwehlisa Ukweqiwa………ngaphandle ngokusebenzisa okuhlangenwe nakho kwamanye amalungu eqembu. Kwaba yonke indawo entsha! Uma umthamo cwaningo low ayekade litholakale 2009, besingaba waqala at .95ml futhi ayithole ukuba umthamo ngempumelelo aphansi Valentino ukuthi okuningi ngokushesha futhi asindisa imali eningi Percorten-V and electrolyte nyangazonke testing njengoba ibhonasi. Angikwazi ukusho ngokwanele mayelana umehluko on imithamo aphansi eliwenzile kanjani Valentino uzizwa kulo lenyanga electrolyte yakhe ukuhlala pretty eduze nawo-range phakathi Ukweqiwa. Wachitha iminyaka enza “kulungile” – mopey, lethargic for 2 amasonto emva shot ngamunye, ozwa kancane more perky cishe isonto ngaphambi shot wakhe olandelayo kwakumelwe, ke kokuzizwa lethargic lapho efika omunye shot aphinde – kodwa manje akwenzayo “omkhulu” yonke inyanga elide umthamo ephansi kakhulu of Percorten-V! Kanye yakamuva Percorten-V ukuncishiswa, Ngiye ngakwazi ukunciphisa Prednisone yakhe ukuba .5mg – yena ngabe iye emoyeni phakathi .75mg ebusika ukuze 1.25mg ehlobo iminyaka. We have also switched to liquid Prednisolone as his liver enzymes became elevated and he was shedding a lot……….

PS – Ngokuhlupheka Valentino njengezwe abagulayo, edukile engadingeki kwaba ugqozi for ukuzibophezela kwami ​​okujulile futhi ezimpikiswaneni benhlalakahle yezilwane in San Antonio! Bangaki izinja like nje Valentino wafa ngoba kwakungekho muntu ukwandisa phambi the amandla 72 period hr hold edukile yaphangalala?

 

The khulula lase zonke namazinyane azo spayed noma neutered ngaphambi kokuba kuthathwe ekhaya. Argus waba neutered at izinyanga ezimbili ubudala, futhi thina wamletha ekhaya kamuva ngalolo suku. Ngemva kwezinsuku ezimbili yena waba ice cold futhi beqhaqhazela kanzima kakhulu. Sabukela imbobo yakhe site izimpawu zokutheleleka futhi zihambisana naye zokulala ukuzama ukuxoxa naye. Ngaleyo ntambama thina wamfaka Vết ukuthi wayenze ukuhlinzwa (45 imizuzu away). The vet uthe lalinethonya ukusabela ukuhlinzwa futhi kungaba emihle. Wamnika shot futhi yanginikeza ezinye amaphilisi ukunikeza izinsuku ezimbalwa ezizayo. By the morning elandelayo, yena waba ngcono kakhulu. Saya ukubona udokotela wezilwane ethu for the new isheke puppy. Bavele bathatha away the amaphilisi ukuthi thina banikwa wathi a puppy akufanele inikezwe la. Angikhumbuli lokho amaphilisi gade, kodwa shot kwaba Dexamethasone futhi manje ngikholelwa ukuthi yilokho wamphakamisela out of okwakwenzeka.

Wayengumuntu pup ezahlukene kakhulu kunanoma iyiphi siye sabhekana phambi kwakhe. Wayengumuntu mellower kakhulu kunanoma iyiphi pup I ezake zaziwa. Uma sibheka emuva, kuyacaca ubengikhombisa izimpawu Addison yakhe kusukela ngosuku olulodwa. Yena waba futhi kwancipha cishe iminyaka emibili. Ngalesi sikhathi, silahlekelwe "umfowabo omdala,"Kwakhuthaza puppies ezimbili for kwamasonto ambalwa ngamunye, futhi waletha enye umdlwane emzini wethu. On December 6, 2010, Argus bayeke bedla. Usuku ngalunye bathuthuka komunye izimpawu (hind ekupheleni ubuthakathaka, izihlubuki zibanjwé, ice cold, njll). Udokotela wezilwane wethu uthe amagciwane esiswini sayo – yena Kuzolunga - siphe ukudla ilayisi abilisiwe (akukho ukuhlola ukugijima). Ngemva kwezinsuku couple, sasiya vet ezahlukene owathi izitho zakhe ukucisha futhi yena befa – Makahambe!!!! Njengoba engangihlala ngikuphethe Argus, Sekwaba phezu izingalo zami kuze udokotela wezilwane wesithathu, Ngangicabanga akasoze umlethe ekhaya. The vet wamnika eziwuketshezi wagijima a test igazi, kuso ukuhlolwa, x-rays, lonke imisebenzi, futhi wamgcina khona. Ngalobo busuku waqamba wathi, “Ngiyasola into engifuna ukuba avivinye ngoba ekuseni.” By ngalobo busuku wachaza yonke into kimi. Wahlala on eziwuketshezi got shot yakhe yokuqala. Kuze kube kuleli qophelo, ngesikhathi mina nomyeni wami babeshintshana ehlezi naye, asinika okuncane. The vet wayengafuni Makahambe ekhaya ngoba namanje ngeke udle. Ngosuku olulandelayo, Ngahamba futhi wamtshela ngifuna ukuthatha naye ekhaya. Yena wagcina evumile uma mina wathembisa ukuletha kuye ukube angizange ayithole kuye ukuba adle the next 12 amahora. Uma she wamkhipha, Wagxumagxuma wonke us kanye vet wathi, “Yep, udinga ukuya ekhaya!” Ngakho kancane bajikela wadla sathuthela imikhosi kaKhisimusi endlini kadadewethu bathula futhi ngokucophelela konke sakwenza. Manje lokhu vet wangitshela yokumngenisa zonke 28 izinsuku shot yakhe, amnike Prednisone yakhe zonke izinsuku futhi bayojabulela ukuphila okuvamile.

Argus kuba 60 lbs, futhi wanikwa 2ml of Percorten zonke 28 izinsuku eziyisishiyagalolunye by the tech vet. Wangena 5mg of Prednisone for ezimbalwa. Into yokuqala Ngathola ulwazi Prednisone. Sasidela ebusuku futhi ngathola yena kufanele balusebentise it in the morning, ukuze sesishintsha ukuthi. Ngifunda isihloko mayelana nokushintsha kokudla nokufakwa futhi sifika ukuthi phansi 2.5mg. By the ngenyanga yesishiyagalombili ngabona ukuthi ukuphila Argus 'wayengekho evamile. Wayengenaso spunk. Wayebonakala lethargic. Wayengacabangi of an khona kuka impilo! Kulapho ekugcineni ngathola iqembu Internet. Ukuhlolwa kwegazi electrolyte - WHAT? None of lokhu okwakwenziwa. Kwaba isikhathi omunye shot ngahamba ukukhuluma Vết (engangiyiboné ngamgcina eziningana). Yena babethuthele up enyakatho ukuvula mkhuba wakhe siqu. Ngacela ukukhuluma komunye vets. The vet ukuthi ungumnikazi isikhungo wangitshela lokhu kuhlola kwenziwa kanye ngonyaka umthamo Percorten kuyomane uma isisindo sakhe washintsha futhi ngeke ngikwazi ukwenza shot ngokwami. Wayengeke ukulalela izwi elilodwa Ngathi noma sibheke info ngazama ukwethula kuye. Isimo sakhe wangitshela kwadingeka ukuba uqine futhi bazakhele amakholi wefoni. I phone yaxoxa vets eziningana phezu ezalandela. Bonke wayazi konke mayelana Addison sika. Omunye udokotela wezilwane ekugcineni ngokuthi kwami ​​ngingakakhulumi nicela utho wakhe, Wangibuza lapho electrolyte (“Lytes”) base last ihlolwe. Lapho engitshela ukuthi sidinga ukwenza lokho kuqala ukuze sibone uma esekulungele ukuba omunye shot and uma sidingeka ukuze kwehliswe, Ngangazi ukuthi lokhu kwaba udokotela wezilwane engangikudinga ukuzama. Ngemuva kokuthola lezi lytes imiphumela Vết wangitshela, "Sinomsebenzi kokulinda isikhathi eside, yingakho uye ukuzizwa kahle, uwukwenziwa phezu medicated. "Wayengazi nje esingakanani of kokulinda! We hlola lytes zakhe kanye ngesonto iminyaka engaphezu kwemithathu izinyanga. Kwaba a little phezu 100 izinsuku lapho ekugcineni K wakhe wasukuma kancane ngenhla maphakathi no-range. Waqala naye at 0.5ml ngaleso sikhathi kanye Ezinyangeni eziningana ezalandela, yayibizwa kwehlisa saze safika 0.3ml. Emva kwezinyanga ezimbalwa, sidinga ukuyibuyisa kuze 0.32ml. Lokho umthamo ubelokhu esebenza omkhulu izinyanga eziningi manje. Le udokotela wezilwane wayemkhulu ne Percorten, kodwa akazange acabange ngempela Prednisone kufanele kwehliswe. Ngambuza uma izonginika ngizame, azi ukuthi ngingathanda ukuyibona eduze, futhi wavuma. Usuke ukubanjwa 1mg manje nsuku zonke.

Futhi manje, silapha, kanye imithi esilungiselelwe, cishe 6 ubudala, sinalo puppy ukuthi kwakufanele kwasekuqaleni!

 

Thina bamukela Lexie kusukela yokukhosela ezweni lakithi e July 2010. Yena elinganiselwa ku mayelana 4-5 izinyanga ngesikhathi. Mina nomyeni wami baletha ekhaya wakhe “kwecala” ngenkathi yethu 2 Amadodakazi bengekho ekamu summer, njengoba umyeni wami has komzimba futhi oludingekayo ukuze sibone ukuthi kazi uzongamukela kanjani. Well, Ngangazi okwamanje esasinakho Lexie in sizinakekela ukuthi ngeke emuva kuleyo ndawo yokukhosela – wazihlanganela nekhehla lomlungu nje kufanele siphile ngayo komzimba wakhe!!

Zingakapheli izinsuku yokuba nathi, Lexie kwadingeka isenzakalo of ukuhlanza, ukukhishwa yisisu, futhi uhambo esesaba ukuba udokotela wezilwane lapho ethola nitholakale ningenayo parvo futhi wathunyelwa ekhaya imiyalelo ukugodla ukudla usuku bese ukuqala ukudla eliphuphile. Yena bounced emuva emihle, futhi phezu elandelayo 2 Eminyakeni wayeqhubeka ukuba iziqubu ngezikhathi ezithile of ukuhlanza, ukukhishwa yisisu kodwa akazange kubonakale yini enkingeni. Wajabula futhi esebenzayo, futhi babebonakala lesinyenti enempilo. Ngesikhathi entwasahlobo nasehlobo of 2012, thina waphawula ezinye izimpawu, kuhlanganise amehlo goopy, indlebe izifo, futhi isikhumba noboya nezindaba. Waqala ikhotha ngezidladla zalo ngokweqile, to the point of rawness. Izimpikiswano esiswini waqhubeka futhi ayesondela sibi. Yena ekhathele kalula nge umsebenzi futhi wayelala phakathi ekuseni, ngisho nihlupha ukuvuka ukuba adle ukudla kwasekuseni. Ngomunye uMgqibelo ekuqaleni kuka-December, 2012, saya wendawo kubukiswa kaKhisimusi bese wenza ukuvakashelwa epaki inja. Lexie nje wabeka khona njengoba ezinye izinja bajikela futhi wahogela iphunga kuye – kanjalo ngokungafani Lexie. Kamuva ngalobo busuku, Ngenza ukuvakashelwa emva-amahora Vết naye, lapho shaking futhi unuka funny (like ammonia). The vet emhlola futhi akazange abone lutho ezisobala ukukhathazeka, futhi wathi ngibuye ngakusasa for bloodwork uma wayebonakala kubi. Well, ngalobobusuku embi, kanye Lexie shaking ngasezinyaweni zami njengoba sizama ukulala. Emuva vet ngosuku olulandelayo ukuze bloodwork. Ngenhlanhla, udokotela wezilwane yami okusolwa Addison lapho ebona bloodwork. Ngalesi sikhathi, Lexie wayegula kakhulu futhi walaliswa esibhedlela for eziwuketshezi kanye test ACTH, okuyinto yabuya ithi senginalo.

Ukukha Lexie up ukuletha ekhaya lakhe kwaba an amazing, Yisikhathi esikhandlayo ngokomzwelo, njengoba wagijima kithi injabulo enjalo kwakungelamuntu izinyembezi emtholampilo vet!! Ngalesi sikhathi, Ngase ngilitholile usizo ngokusebenzisa online umphakathi Addison kanye kwadingeka vet elikhulu owayezimisele ukuzama into entsha – Low Dose Percorten. Namuhla, Lexie kuba 70 lbs futhi kuthatha 0.4 ml of Percorten, kanye umthamo wakhe yansuku zonke Prednisone.

Ngikholelwa ukuthi Lexie wangena ekuphileni kwami ​​ngenxa yesizathu. Ukuhlala ngaleso yokukhosela kwakuyosho ukufa ezithile ngenxa yakhe, Ngiqiniseka, futhi umndeni wethu uyakwazi ukunikeza kwakhe kanye nokunakekelwa okukhethekile edinga. Ngenxa yakhe, I babe new “abangane” emhlabeni wonke. Ngingasho kugcwale umlomo ukuthi Lexie akakaze kangcono – Uphethwe Addison sasingeyona kusho isigwebo sokufa, kodwa kunalokho waba sokuqasha omusha ngokuphila!!

 

I bamukela Dharma kusukela yokukhosela County lapho kade 8 amasonto old. Wayengomunye woFakazi 7 imidlwane, onomkhaya foster. I okuthiwa wakhe imvelo yakhe pensive; amehlo akhe ayeveza ajulileyo. I babevame ukuntela enendawo ubuntu umama kuphela angathanda; yena kunjalo nje ... uh, uyinqaba. Yena okuphambene zonke izinto inja stereotypically. Lapho eseneminyaka 5 ubudala, Ngafika ekhaya ngivela emsebenzini, ngoLwesithathu, ukuthola 7 ihlanzela, futhi 4 diarrheas. I wamusa Vết ngakusasa. Over the next 3 amasonto(futhi ambalwa ngama-dollar angamakhulu), udokotela wezilwane lami 10+ Eminyakeni wagijima ukuhlolwa kwegazi futhi, ekugcineni, wathumela us ekhaya komdlavuza (ngokusekelwe "iminyaka ekunqabeleni 25"), ibhodlela amaphilisi prednisone 20mg, kanye pat enozwela on the head. Ngaya for a umbono 2nd. Emasontweni amabili namakhulu amaningana amaRandi (okuningi) Kamuva, safika esibhedlela egcwele ongoti. Ngemuva umsebenzi, on a ebusuku ngoLwesithathu, Benza a sonogram. Still izimpendulo; njengoba 'uchwepheshe "kungaba ngosuku olulandelayo. Othile okukhulunywa testing for Addison sika (ngoba omunye $250). The sonogram kwaba $500+, futhi Ngiyavuma, Ngangineminyaka ekupheleni wit yami, sizibuza ukuthi ngingabasiza iyaqhubeka ikhokha for test engapheli kungekho izimpendulo. Ngabatshela Ngizobe isikhashana, futhi balindele nencazelo ngokwengeziwe sonogram, ngosuku olulandelayo.

Ngakusasa ekuseni, at 4:20 a.m., Ngazizwa isasasa obungavamile on entanyeni yami. Kwaba ukuphefumula Dharma sika, ngokulambisa. Nasekhanda lakhe ehlombe lami, futhi kwangithatha kancane ngaqaphela ukuthi ukuphefumula kwakhe wayebuthakathaka futhi abathathela. Kungazelelwe, I sigcwaliseke isidumbu sakhe contorted kabuhlungu, like a pretzel. Amehlo akhe blank ngokuphelele. I leapt embhedeni, waphonsa izingubo, uhambe wakhe up ngengubo yokulala, futhi wagijimela imoto. Ngalibangisa yedolobha, endaweni thina ngabe kade ebusuku ngaphambi. Ngenhlanhla, I ngabe kwenzeka ukuqaphela ayengabantu 24 indawo ihora. Ngenza 45 uhambo umzuzu 25. Njengoba mina sprinted ngomnyango nge Dharma ezingalweni zami, Inhliziyo yakhe wayeka. Futhi kanjalo ukuphefumula kwakhe. I wamnika ukuba isikhonzi wathi, "Ngicela ukumsiza".

The vet eziphuthumayo duty wenza isimangaliso, futhi waletha Dharma emuva ekuphileni, ngaphandle unomphela. Kodwa thina namanje abazange bazi ukuthi yini engalungile naye. The test ACTH wawenziwa, kodwa imiphumela kwakuzothatha 24 amahora. Ayengaqiniseki yena siyohlala isikhathi eside. Benza surgery nangekwehlwaya, ngokusekelwe kulokho abakubona in the sonogram. Babesola a ukuvaleka. Afica nezindlala engavamile encane adrenal. Angazi ukuthi kanjani wasinda ukuhlinzwa. Izimangaliso ezimbili ngosuku olulodwa.

Olandelayo, sisalindile. Ngatshelwa ukuthi, uma kwakungeyona Addison sika, ke kwakukhona cishe lutho babekwazi ukukwenza, njengoba singathanda kakade uhlolelwe, futhi surgically bamfune, bonke kodwa obscure kakhulu.

Ngosuku olulandelayo, lapho ngathola ucingo engitshela kwaba, empeleni, Isifo Addison sika, Ngakhala izinyembezi zingalawuleki happy. In ngalowo mzuzu, konke ukucindezeleka nosizi of usizi lwethu wageza phezu kwami ​​isikhukhula ukukhululeka. Kwaba ekugcineni phezu. Ekugcineni kwadingeka impendulo.

Ngiye kusukela wayecabanga ukuthi ukulandelana kwezenzakalo. Inani lokusangana imali Walahlekelwa ukuya ukuxilongwa (ake nje ukusho sekukonke kwaba ngaphezu ngachitha imoto yami) kwanele ukuze abangele umuntu ukubonakalisa. Kunye nje kuphela yami ukuhlupheka enyantisayo Dharma wakhuthazelela. Inselele kuphela My uthethelela Vết original ngokusithumela phansi ukuthi endleleni. Lokhu okuhlangenwe nakho kwafundisa umama wezingane ezimbili esezikhulile mayelana uhlobo olusha of love. One esikhona, nakuba akusho NIBE ukuba.

 

Gracie is a 10 year old 134 pound English Mastiff. Gracie was abused until she was 6 months old. At that time she then went to a loving family. Unfortunately, that life ended all too soon with the tragic accident. The husband and the child of her family were killed in an automobile accident. Gracie comforted the mother for the next 6 izinyanga. The mother then had to move and could not take Gracie with her. This pained her so much. She looked into a rescue group.

The foster mom promised her that she would wait for the perfect family to adopt Gracie. Gracie stayed in foster for much longer than normal.

I had a mastiff who was diagnosed with Addison’s at 7 months old. She was the runt of her litter and was on death’s door when I rescued her. Once we found out she had Addison’s, she lived to 4 ½ ubudala. Her kidneys, which were never formed correctly finally gave out on her. She was my first mastiff and I fell in love with the breed despite the issues she had. I decided that I needed to rescue another one.

I found Gracie on the website of the rescue group I had started helping with. I was just drawn to her and her story. I talked to her foster mom for hours about her. We both knew that she was going to come to her forever home with me. She was several hours away so the foster mom and I met halfway.

Right away Gracie came up to me and my daughter and she leaned on my leg and sat on my foot. The lean is everything for a mastiff. If they lean on you they like you. It was love at first sight for me and my kids.
Fast forward to 7 months later, Gracie crashed and could not get up my stairs. My son carried her up and into the car and we rushed her to my wonderful vet. I will never forget that day. Gracie was on IV’s and in a kennel with me sitting on the floor next to her. My vet walked in and sat on an empty kennel. He told me that he was going to do the test for Addison’s or that she could have some type of cancer.

The next day all four of my vets came into the room and told me that she indeed did have Addison’s. One of them said he stayed up half the night looking for mastiffs with AD and there just were not too many (at that time he could find none). They told me they were sorry that I now had my second Addisonian Mastiff.

I told them I was happy that it was indeed Addison’s. I already knew Addison’s was manageable and a dog could live a full and normal life with it. I even had some meds left over from my first girl. My first girl took .8 mg of Florinef 2 times a day. We started Gracie on that dose and kept playing with it over the next year. She finally ended up on 1.5 mg Florinef 2 times per day. She has been on that dose for 7 years now.

No one can tell me that this girl was not meant to come to live with me. Her foster mom had turned down other potential adopters because of the promise she made to Gracie’s owner former owner to find the perfect family.

When Gracie was 4 she somehow got out of my yard by going under my fence. I never thought a 134 pound dog would go under my fence but she did. She got hit by a car and Animal control had to get her by the pole neck chain because she was being aggressive. My neighbor saw animal control with her and told them that she lived with me. They knocked on my door on this Sunday. They had her good side facing me so I did not know she was hit. Then they turned her and she had a deep gash in her chest. My car was in the shop and I had no way to get her to the ER vet. Animal control drove me.

I went running in the door screaming that she had Addison’s.

The vet on call was the husband of one of my vets that cared for Gracie. Gracie was on death’s doors; she went gray and limp. They dosed her with high amounts of prednisone and put in a chest tube. She had air around her lungs. Since the ER vet could talk to my vets that night, the plan was to Gracie to my vet in the AM for surgery. The ER vet was just not comfortable working on a dog with Addison’s.

The next day my wonderful, amazing vets waited until their lunch hour to do her surgery so all four of them could be in there and monitor her. Her sternum was broken and they could not do anything about that. They were able to close the wound and keep her safe. She recovered from that.

I fixed all of my fencing however, from that day forward she is very scared of cars on the roads.

About a year after that, Gracie started to gain lots of weight. My wonderful vets (have I mentioned how much I love my vets) did a thyroid test and sure enough she had low thyroid. The weight came off as soon as she was put on meds and she was back to her happy healthy self.

In 2011, tragedy struck my household. My children’s father was killed in a car accident. Gracie is the kind of dog who reads people so well. She comforted me and my children the same way she did with her first owner.
Gracie continues to be by our side whenever we are feeling down. Once again, no one can tell me that this girl was not meant to be in our lives.

About a year ago Gracie developed acute onset glaucoma and went blind in her left eye. My vets were able to shrink her eye so she would no longer be in pain. She could lose her other eye at any time, but so far the drops I put in her good eye are working.

Gracie also has chronic subcutaneous cysts all over her body. She has two that keep popping and becoming infected. She now takes antibiotics every 30 days for 10 days and that is working well. Because of her age and her Addison’s, the vets and I have chosen not to remove the cysts.

Through all of this, Gracie has always been a fighter and a champion. Nothing gets her down. My vets continue to be amazed by her.

Gracie turned 10 on Feb. 5, 2015.

No one thought she would live this long. She is still a happy girl, gets around great and is the love of my life. She is truly my heart dog.

This is more than a story of a dog with Addison’s; this is a story of a dog that was put on this earth to comfort her families though the good and the very bad times.

Addison’s is just one part of her story but it also shows that a dog with AD can live life to its fullest and get through the tough times also.

 

Kindle is a grey Belgian Shepherd (Tervueren) born in 2007. She was always (hindsight is a wonderful thing) a fussy puppy with food but otherwise normal for the first few years of her life and excelled both in the breed show ring and in her first agility competitions.

In August 2011, she started to appear a little lethargic – seemed fine otherwise but just didn’t have her normal drive in training and was just a bit quiet. A week later, she threw up a whole chicken neck which she had been given for dinner 2 nights prior so off to the vet we went. By this stage her litter sister had just been diagnosed as Typical Addison’s so I made the vet aware but as her sodium and potassium readings were normal, the vet dismissed this possibility. He did pick up an issue with her heart so we had a full heart test done which did show some anomalies in the rhythm. We were referred to the National Veterinary training facility who listened to our story and the first they did was run an ACTH test and bingo we had our answer. Kindle had Atypical Addison’s.

For the next 18 izinyanga, she was maintained on Prednisone alone and got her drive back, continued to compete in agility and was very well indeed. We had moved cities and really fell on our feet finding a relatively young vet who had been really involved with a few Addison’s cases during his first couple of years in practice.

In the December of 2012, we were out of town at a show and she just didn’t seem “right” on the Saturday morning. We whipped her to the vet who did bloods and told me she was in full renal failure and would probably not last the night. Nokho, one look at her sodium and potassium levels told me she was in an Addisonian crisis and I convinced the vet that this was what was going on. It is often hard to get out of town vets to listen to you as he did not know her history and also happened not to know anything about Addison’s either. He was great, however, and went along with the mad woman who insisted he write a script for Florinef which I grabbed from the local pharmacy. He looked up starting doses and she stayed at the clinic overnight. I will always be grateful that he listened and tried for me as the prospect of driving around a strange city on a Saturday afternoon trying to find someone who knew about Addison’s really did not appeal.

He rang first thing in the morning to say that she was bouncing around the cage, had ripped out her drip line and was generally being a pain in the butt. He could not get over the difference to the very sick dog who had arrived the previous afternoon. They ended up keeping her in for 48 amahora, at the end of which I think they were well pleased to get rid of her 🙂 . She was “helping” in the kennels and getting cuddles from everyone.

Like most, I have learned a lot about the disease in the years since her diagnosis. She is now a happy, healthy, energetic, nearly 8 year old who screams around like a puppy with absolutely no side effects at all. She is the biggest gannet around food and will eat anything – we now have to be careful she doesn’t get overweight – what a difference!

She retired from agility at 7 years only because she had broken her leg as a 2 year old (she really has been my problem child) and I wanted her to stop before it caused a problem for her later on.

Her medications are just part of our everyday life and you would never know she has the disease. Her Florinef dose is pretty high but it is what it is and she is fine on it. Those out there promoting information and assistance to people with Addison’s dogs are amazing. Thank you all!

 

Skye is a beautiful Tervueren who shares her life with Denise Strom in Sweden. To save you some “googling”, a Tervueren (alternate spelling Tervuren) is a Belgian Shepherd, named after a village in Belgium. Skye now weighs 24kg (53 lb) and is 6 ubudala. She was diagnosed with Typical Addison’s just one year ago early in 2016 at the age of 5. She was treated with Florinef initially and managed very well although her sodium levels were always on the low side.

Then throughout October & November 2016 she suffered numerous bouts of bloody diarrhea. Increased doses of Florinef, up to 0.8mg daily, and extra prednisone failed to prevent recurrences. Denise joined CARE in November and presented Skye’s symptoms while asking for advice. She credits Merrie Gahr Spiekerman who asked if Skye had been checked for pancreatitis. Denise was pondering this possibility when Skye got diarrhea again and this time she could not stand up. Skye was rushed to the Emergency Clinic where they performed a “quick test” which was positive & pancreatitis was later confirmed by the specific cPLI test. Luckily, it was a mild attack. Skye received pain relief, an increase in prednisone, and most importantly, her food was changed to a low fat diet.

Denise waited two months before reporting on Skye’s progress to make sure that all went well. Since the change in diet almost 2 months prior, Skye has been healthy and stable on Florinef 0.6mg and 5mg hydrocortisone, and her electrolytes are great. Denise’s vet is reluctant to reduce the hydrocortisone at this time since Skye has been doing so well.

Skye had never had bloody diarrhea before she got Addison’s so this was one symptom that stood out. Denise wanted to tell Skye’s story because she suspects that Skye is not the only dog with increased susceptibility to bloody diarrhea and/or pancreatitis following an Addison’s diagnosis. Kunjalo, this may not be applicable to others, and in fact it has not presented as a highly probably issue among the many canine members in CARE, but it is worth bearing in mind.

Skye – Denise S.
Chofoza image ukuze sandise

Denise sends her sincere thanks to the members of CARE, in particular to Merrie. She notes that the Florinef information in CARE’s files does make reference to avoiding fatty foods, something she was not aware of before.

Daisy is a Jack Russell Schnauzer mix who shares her life with Amanda Hutcheson & her husband Justin. She currently weighs 14.8 lb and is treated with 0.2ml of Percorten every 28 izinsuku. Daisy is roughly 8-10 yrs old, she certainly didn’t come with a birth certificate!

Daisy was picked up from an older couple in Texas who was coming to visit family in Beaufort SC where Amanda lives. They listed her in many online “dogs available” groups with no success. Amanda heard of her and immediately took her in, with her hair completely matted and basically looking & smelling very gross. Daisy was shaved down, bathed, and got a clean bill of health from the vet. She had found her forever family!

Two years later, in March 2014, Daisy got run over by a golf cart driven by Amanda. About a month later, Daisy’s mood started to change, her appetite decreased, and she was dehydrated. A visit to the vet for a steroid shot and some IV fluids seemed to perk her up & she was back to her normal self.

Another month went by and the same things happened again, so back she went to the vet. This time they did bloodwork along with the usual steroid shot & IV fluids. The vet’s conclusion was that everything was perfect.

Another month, and now it’s June. Daisy crashed – hind leg weakness, dehydration, no appetite, not drinking, basically doing nothing. The vet who was contacted told Amanda to bring her in the next morning. Amanda slept in the bathtub with Daisy that night & got her to the vet early the next day. Daisy was barely alive. The team sprang into action to save her and she stayed at the clinic for over a week, fighting to stay alive. The vet suspected it was either Kidney Failure, umdlavuza, or Addison’s. Thousands of dollars and about a week later, Addison’s was confirmed with the ACTH stim test on June 23, 2014.

Daisy came home weighing only 4.3 lb. and she was initially treated with Florinef. Amanda joined CARE early in July 2014. After her diagnosis, Daisy had 3 more Addisonian crises throughout the remainder of 2014. On December 3, she was switched to Percorten & daily Prednisone and she has remained stable ever since.

Daisy continues to impress everyone she encounters & loves them all. Florinef is a great option for dogs with Addison’s if their bodies can absorb it & they are on the correct dose. Daisy’s body just couldn’t metabolize it properly.

It’s been an amazing journey over the last two years with everyone that we’ve met in CARE. We are so very thankful that we still have Daisy with us and cannot thank this group enough for the knowledge & understanding everyone has. You all are a blessing and we are glad you all are a part of our lives.

One added note from CARE is that because of her experience with Daisy, Amanda decided to become a vet technician & has only one year left in her studies. Congratulations Amanda, and thank you Daisy.

 

We noticed that Lucydog seemed to have a bladder infection. I took her to the doctor on my Friday off. It was confirmed that she had a UTI and also an ear infection. They drew blood, but waited to send it at my request since that would be another $200. They were concerned that she hadn’t been eating, but figured it may have been because she just didn’t feel good.

She got antibiotics and seemed a bit better, but still wasn’t eating. She was having tremors/shaking, but she tends to do that a lot when sick or stressed. I started to get concerned when she wouldn’t even eat a marrow bone, though. Then we were both at work Wednesday. When I got home, I went in to let her out of her kennel to go potty…and she couldn’t stand up. Couldn’t even get her paws to cooperate to get them flat on the ground. I freaked and immediately went and got the phone, called Will and said “Lucy can’t walk.” I then called the vet, which thankfully had not closed yet (they would in 15 Chofoza ku-) and they told me to bring her ASAP.
Will got home an hour and a half later or so, and they had been able to stabilize her. They thought it might be Addison’s disease, which was thankfully treatable. It presents in young dogs, is more common in females, and had lots of symptoms in common. Will still thought it may have just been severe dehydration. After 2 scary nights with her in doggie hospital because she still was not strong enough to walk, the blood test results confirmed Addison’s Disease. The UTI and ear infection pushed her body into crisis and she was probably close to death (what if I had been stuck at work for 45 minutes longer that day? omg). Ngenhlanhla, it is treatable with a monthly injection, one she will need for the rest of her life. But that life will be long and happy.

Ngakho, we still have a Lucy-lifetime to regulate her disease. But I am happy to report that as I type this, Lucy is loudly chomping a rawhide bone that I bought her in her cage right behind me. And other than a shaved paw where she had an IV and super-frequent peeing because of her recovery meds, she’s pretty much back to the same ol’ Lucydog. And we love it. I am very thankful that our vet gave her a quick and correct diagnosis and got her back on her feet (literally) quickly.