Addison's Disease

SugarNSpikes

SugarNSpikes

New Member
After several days of being hospitalized at the vets and being extremely sick, my basset hound was diagnosed with Addison's disease. We will have the official results tomorrow but based on everything that has happened and testing, that is the opinion of my vet. Has anyone had to deal with it? How expensive is the treatment? I know it is a monthly thing and someone said approx. 140$ a month for the Prednisone shot plus whatever else. I almost had a stroke over the $1,000 vet bill but my furry companion is completely worth it... I am just sad that there is very little I can do right now.
 
Loper

Loper

Animal Poor!
SugarNSpikes said:
After several days of being hospitalized at the vets and being extremely sick, my basset hound was diagnosed with Addison's disease. We will have the official results tomorrow but based on everything that has happened and testing, that is the opinion of my vet. Has anyone had to deal with it? How expensive is the treatment? I know it is a monthly thing and someone said approx. 140$ a month for the Prednisone shot plus whatever else. I almost had a stroke over the $1,000 vet bill but my furry companion is completely worth it... I am just sad that there is very little I can do right now.
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:howdy: I have a flat coat retriever that was diagnosed 7 years ago. She's 13(at the youngest) now. Dr O'connor at Three Notch has been her vet all that time and I credit her for figuring out what it was when she (the dog) only had hours left. She is 77 lbs and require 2 mil of DOCP injection every 4 weeks (28 days) that is 105.00, she is on a daily 5 mg of Pred now but was 2.5 every other day for a couple years. That will be something you and your vet will need to find out what a good dosage of Pred will be for your pup. The pred is the cheapest part of it. :) Depending on your pups weight, it may only require 1 mil of the DOCP injection and be cheaper. Feel free to PM me with any questions or post here for others to read. Good Luck!
 
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SugarNSpikes

SugarNSpikes

New Member
Thank you so much for the kind words. I did read that website, I've been reading a lot to be as informed as possible. Poor Ernie was on his deathbed for sure and he took a turn so fast. It was a matter of a day. Was your dog refusing to eat, lethargic and vomiting as well?

He is 70lbs as of today's weight measurement so I'm assuming the dosage will be the same. We brought him home tonight to relax and will take him back tomorrow for more fluids (he still can't keep much of anything down although he tries to). I love this pup so much, it's so hard to see him like this.

I am glad to hear about your success story, Loper. It gives me hope that my boy will be back on track soon.
 
SugarNSpikes

SugarNSpikes

New Member
I hope it attaches, here is a picture of the very tired/sick boy. He's so tuckered out.
 

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Loper

Loper

Animal Poor!
SugarNSpikes said:
I hope it attaches, here is a picture of the very tired/sick boy. He's so tuckered out.
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aww poor guy!! don't get discouraged in the beginning because you most likely will have ups and downs. Just make sure you have the Pred pills on hand for any stressfull times and low feeling moments by the pup. It took us a couple months to get the correct Pred dosage right for ours. How old is the pup? Also, Dr. Benedict from Tidewater is familiar with Addisons and has some cases. I don't know what area you are in or who your vet is. Just wanted to throw in some options in case you ever need them. Dr. O'Connor had us testing electrolytes every 6 months for the first couple of years until we could get a baseline. Now she only has it tested on her yearly exam. Also, Three Notch doesn't charge me a office visit each month for her injection. I looked into buying the shots myself years ago but it was not really saving much. You could look into that route.

so after rambling, your dog can be a fully productive member of doggy society, most people would never guess my pup has it and can't believe she is at least 13. Also my husband and I call shot days as super juice days. LOL
 
Loper

Loper

Animal Poor!
SugarNSpikes said:
It was a matter of a day. Was your dog refusing to eat, lethargic and vomiting as well?
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She was very lethargic, wouldn't eat, vomitting and head hung low. She was a rescue from a good friend who passed away. (hence not knowing her exact age) She wasn't with us (with my sister) when this happened. When I saw her I immediately took her in to the vet. So I really can't say how fast it came on. Her original rescuer contracted leukemia and passed in 6 weeks. We think the stress of her original owner not being home brought it all on. All cases are different, but ours produces too much potassium and not enough sodium.
 
SugarNSpikes

SugarNSpikes

New Member
We are in LaPlata but we travel quite a ways to our current vet. They charged us an arm and a leg (everywhere they could apply a charge, they did) for the treatment so once we get everything settled in, I will look around to see who can offer the best pricing (and if it happens to be our current vet, so be it). Oh, and he is 6 years old.

I called Dr. Satterfield (he takes care of my horse) and filled him in, so I will most likely talk to Tidewater about treatment too. He's always been so kind to me and answered even the most insane questions so it's nice to feel like you have someone to go to that is an expert.

Also Loper... does your dog have a special diet? I read a little about stressful situations.. I am so worried that I caused the 'onset'. I had to cut his nails (which is always a horrible day) and I wonder if that just caused too much stress.

In any event, thank you so much for your words of wisdom. You've made me feel so much better and I'll do everything I can to make my sweet boy feel better.
 
Crashpupty

Crashpupty

havoc is havoc
SugarNSpikes said:
We are in LaPlata but we travel quite a ways to our current vet. They charged us an arm and a leg (everywhere they could apply a charge, they did) for the treatment so once we get everything settled in, I will look around to see who can offer the best pricing (and if it happens to be our current vet, so be it). Oh, and he is 6 years old.

I called Dr. Satterfield (he takes care of my horse) and filled him in, so I will most likely talk to Tidewater about treatment too. He's always been so kind to me and answered even the most insane questions so it's nice to feel like you have someone to go to that is an expert.

Also Loper... does your dog have a special diet? I read a little about stressful situations.. I am so worried that I caused the 'onset'. I had to cut his nails (which is always a horrible day) and I wonder if that just caused too much stress.

In any event, thank you so much for your words of wisdom. You've made me feel so much better and I'll do everything I can to make my sweet boy feel better.
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Please do not feel you caused the onset. He like my dog had it and the trigger thing I wouldn't worry about. It tends to show up at a certain adult age. Cutting nails can be stressful. With Addison's stressful situations that you know may come up our vet said to increase the pred dosage just before, during and for a day after. I hope your boy bounces back and you have the same results that we have enjoyed.
 
Loper

Loper

Animal Poor!
SugarNSpikes said:
We are in LaPlata but we travel quite a ways to our current vet. They charged us an arm and a leg (everywhere they could apply a charge, they did) for the treatment so once we get everything settled in, I will look around to see who can offer the best pricing (and if it happens to be our current vet, so be it). Oh, and he is 6 years old.

I called Dr. Satterfield (he takes care of my horse) and filled him in, so I will most likely talk to Tidewater about treatment too. He's always been so kind to me and answered even the most insane questions so it's nice to feel like you have someone to go to that is an expert.

Also Loper... does your dog have a special diet? I read a little about stressful situations.. I am so worried that I caused the 'onset'. I had to cut his nails (which is always a horrible day) and I wonder if that just caused too much stress.

In any event, thank you so much for your words of wisdom. You've made me feel so much better and I'll do everything I can to make my sweet boy feel better.
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Sugar, how is the pup doing?
 
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