Hypothyroidism

[Kermit]

I know there are some folks on here who have hypothyroid dogs. I am interested in your experiences with this disease: what age the symptoms started, how did you know something was wrong, cost of medications, how well do the meds work, stuff like that.
Connor has a LOT of "issues"... and when you add them all up it is starting to look like a thyroid problem. We can't get to the vet until next week but in the meantime I am trying to prepare myself and learn as much as I can.

I have always had relatively healthy dogs... until now! Connor is a genetic DISASTER!!! I think whoever bred him must have been seriously unethical... probably didn't do any testing of the parents... shoot I didn't even realize how important thyroid testing is for breeding stock!

Anyhow, if anyone would like to share experiences here that would be AWESOME.
Thanks!
 

[kathryn]

I can't help with a hypothyroid dog but I have hypothyroidism .  The synthetic thyroid tablets run about $20-$30 for a 90day supply for me.  The meds are determined off of weight, of course.  But there are so many out there now that the generic brands are pretty cheap.  I'm assuming that the symptoms might be pretty standard for any mammal.  You can have fatigue, weight gain/loss, and a lump can form on the thyroid (like a goiter).  Sorry, I know it's not much help

Kat

[Kermit]

Thanks Kat and Liz!!!
 

[Jason]

Oreo was diagnosed with Hypothyrpoidis m last year when he was almost 9 years old. He was originally tested for it after several rounds of different antibiotics and treatment didn't help a major skin problems. Originally I was giving him 1.2 mg of Soloxine every 12 hours, but we have cut that to .8 mg every 12 hours recently. The pills are .8 mg each and 180 of these (3 month supply) is about $90 here in Atlanta ($.50 a pill). I know for a fact that the vet marks this up 100%.

In the end, the Soloxine appeared to help a little, but a major change in diet solved the skin problem completely. I keep him on the Soloxine though because he has had immune deficiency problems before (Anemia) and I just love the challenge of getting these small blue pills down his drooling gullet every day.

By the way, the test they did to determine the hypothyroidism was a T4 and that was about $43.

Hope this helps.

Jason

[Kermit]

Oreo was diagnosed with Hypothyrpoidis m last year when he was almost 9 years old. He was originally tested for it after several rounds of different antibiotics and treatment didn't help a major skin problems. Originally I was giving him 1.2 mg of Soloxine every 12 hours, but we have cut that to .8 mg every 12 hours recently. The pills are .8 mg each and 180 of these (3 month supply) is about $90 here in Atlanta ($.50 a pill). I know for a fact that the vet marks this up 100%.

In the end, the Soloxine appeared to help a little, but a major change in diet solved the skin problem completely. I keep him on the Soloxine though because he has had immune deficiency problems before (Anemia) and I just love the challenge of getting these small blue pills down his drooling gullet every day.

By the way, the test they did to determine the hypothyroidism was a T4 and that was about $43.

Hope this helps.

Jason

Thanks Jason, that is VERY helpful! May I ask what you did with his diet that helped the skin issues Oreo was having?
 

[Jason]

Thanks Jason, that is VERY helpful! May I ask what you did with his diet that helped the skin issues Oreo was having?
 

For 6 years Oreo was on Science Diet Large Breed formula. I knew it wasn't the best, but he liked it and the food agreed with his system so we stuck with it. About 2 years ago, Oreo became anemic, went through drastic weight loss and was on some pretty strong steroid meds(prednisone, I believe) for 2 months or so. He got through everything OK and his food didn't seem to be a contributing factor in the anemia so when his skin showed problems a year later (and I forgot to mention the ear infections earlier, and licking his feet), food issues weren't the first diagnosis. Like I said, the first treatment was antibiotics. After several rounds of that, some tests to rule out worms and stuff, he had the T4 done which showed hypothyroidism . We treated with Soloxine and a different antibiotic, but like I said, the results were less than stellar. That is when we looked at allergies.

After consulting with an allergist, I decided to try changing food and treats before going through all the lengthy tests and stuff. In Atlanta, there is a place called Red Bandanna dog food and I talked to them about the problems I was having and asked for recommendation s. They gave me several options and I picked a Trout and Sweet Potato formula from a company called Pinnacle. Oreo loves it and it helped tremedously with his skin condition. From the difference in the ingredient's list, the best guess is he is allergic to chicken or wheat.

I will also note that on the onset of his skin condition, the vet recommended giving him 4 3V caps (from DVM) a day. It's basically vitamins with omega-3 supplement. That did help some as well and I still give him that daily.

I may have missed early posts, but you never really said what Connor's "issues" were. Is it a skin issue? Infections?  Behavioral?

Jason

[Kermit]

I may have missed early posts, but you never really said what Connor's "issues" were. Is it a skin issue? Infections?  Behavioral?

Jason

Oops, sorry. 
The thing that stands out the most for indicating thyroid problems is that Connor has lost most of the hair from his legs and underside, with no itching, and the skin pigment is changing. I told a holistic vet only that much info, and the first thing he said was have his thyroid checked.

Connor also has anxiety, digestive problems, and weight loss, which I have found out can also be symptoms although usually it is weight gain.

Connor was supposed to be my "foster dog"... and then these health issues started cropping up, so I kept thinking that as soon as I have him healthy I will put him up for adoption... well I haven't quite reached that point yet since every week it seems like something else is wrong with him. He can't digest kibble at all, except for Hill's Prescription Diet I/D which I refuse to feed him because it has ethoxyquin and a bunch of other crap in it. So I prepare all his meals (and it has become pretty fun), so he finally does pretty well on rice, oatmeal, cooked chicken or beef, some vegies and supplements.

I am hoping the local holistic vet can do a full panel to test for all the different types of thyroid problems, I would really like to see all these symptoms gone! He does pretty well though, I have gotten used to taking special care of him so I don't think of him as a pain in the behind. And he doesn't get anxiety as much now that we stopped using a crate for him. That was making things worse, as was taping up his big ol' honkin ears.

[sc.trojans]

Connor also has anxiety, digestive problems, and weight loss, which I have found out can also be symptoms although usually it is weight gain.

So I prepare all his meals (and it has become pretty fun), so he finally does pretty well on rice, oatmeal, cooked chicken or beef, some vegies and supplements.

I am hoping the local holistic vet can do a full panel to test for all the different types of thyroid problems, I would really like to see all these symptoms gone!

I think you have received some good info here already about hypothyroidism and are on the right track given the above.  So glad to hear you are feeding fresh food and recognize how bad that "D" diet stuff from Hill's is for these animals.

Take a look at my friend's site here who put up a great testimonial on a rescue case.  Just be sure the skin condition doesn't look like this first:

http://www.healthy-paws.ca/testimonials.htm

One other thing worth mentioning is that the thyroid is driven by the adrenals, driven by the pituitary gland. This is the endocrine system and the pituitary gland should always be kept in mind here since we can address the thyroid and put the dog on Soloxine (that is fine) but it can at times merely be a bandaid for a bigger issue with the adrenals or pituitary that surfaces later...so if the thyroid is weak at all, be sure they take a good look at the whole system.

As someone already said - there is a wide range of "low thyroid" - some are very borderline/mild and can be naturally supplemented - other more clinical and require Soloxine. The thyroid fluctuates as well and may only dip at times - it is not constant.

Just be sure your panel is truly a complete panel - not their high level T3 and T4 check.  They need to evaluate the Free T3 and Free T4 as well as the autoantibodies for these in order to know if there is active thyroid degeneration going on.

Good luck

[Kermit]

Well here is an update on Connor!

Let me start by saying that I feel like a crazy woman. After looking at Connor in person, my vet does not think he has thyroid issues at all! AND after examining Connor's skin and thinning hair, he didn't even think it was worth doing a skin scraping! He said Connor is fine (and I am a paranoid mother ) and the "hair loss" that (I am imagining?) I am seeing is normal for dogs with this type of coat, he sees it all the time in Danes and Dobies! Then the tech told me that if I am worried about thyroid, keep an eye out for sudden weight gain, but Connor just doesn't fit the profile!!!!

So... WOOHOOO!!!! 

Otherwise in the land of Connor's health, he had his second eye surgery today so hopefully we are done with that. And now he has two normal, matching eyes with no nasty cherry eyes or weird deformities causing him pain and troubles. Whew! And he is home, snoozing, and I'm sure will be his usual bouncy self by tonight.

(and by the way... THANK YOU to everyone who gave me fantastic information and links! you guys rock!!! )

[Kiahpyr]

I'm so happy Connor's home and is doing well.