My dogs were diagnosed with naturally occurring Cushing's disease. One of my dogs had a tumor on his adrenal gland and the other only had an enlarged pituitary gland.
After doing lots of research on what I could do to help them, I converged on trilostane as a viable option for treatment. Trilostane is a drug used in dogs to decrease cortisol production in dogs with Cushing’s Disease (hyperadrenocorticism). It did not cure my dogs, but it did save their lives.
Their Symptoms
My female dog's symptoms, a cocker spaniel, started when she was around 6 years old. She didn't have much energy even though she was sleeping almost all day long. This resulted in her gaining weight which made everything worse.
There is no worse feeling in the world than seeing one of your dearest pets decline. It truly broke my heart. I was so worried about her I think I lost 5 hours of sleep a night!
Then she started having problems with passing urine. At first, it was just every now and then but eventually, she couldn't even make it to the door or outside anymore. At first, II thought it might be diabetic because I heard that’s a symptom.
I took her to the vet who diagnosed Cushing's disease, based on symptoms. Then he wanted me to bring in my other dogs for testing as well since she got the disease from one of them (they are littermates).
The test results showed that my female dog's urine contained a lot of blood and crystals. Her cortisol levels were four times higher than normal also, which is why I assume that they came up with a diagnosis of naturally occurring hyperadrenocorticism. Which was caused by a tumor on the adrenal gland, rather than induced Cushing's disease due to a pituitary tumor.
Their Trilostane Treatment
The dogs were treated with trilostane for four months and the cortisol levels returned to normal as well as their weights. Seeing disease in dogs I love so much was very stressful.
After another year, my male dog's symptoms started to show, so I got him tested as well and he was positive for Cushing's disease as well.
He didn't have a tumor though, just an enlarged pituitary gland. Once again his cortisol levels became too high which caused him to gain weight and also made him stop urinating on his own.
Both dogs were put on Trilostane and after about nine months they both had normal cortisol levels again and stopped gaining weight!
Although it wasn't a 24 hour difference, it certainly will help all dogs. They are both still alive today (2 years later) although they do still drink a lot of water. Both dogs showed an increase in happiness.
I believe it may also be because of the Trilostane though, as dogs with Cushing's disease do drink a lot of water but mine didn't before they started taking the medicine (and after as well).
I am very grateful for this medicine and I really hope that your dogs can benefit from it as mine did! I started my dogs on Trilostane with such little hope but I am so pleased with the results. The fact it was in an oral liquid suspension was unbelievably convenient.
Both dogs had different flavors. One had grilled salmon and the other had beef flavor. It was an absolute dream administering it to them! We all know how difficult it can be to give dogs pills or capsules. No more treat crushing! Having an oral suspension is the most high-quality formulation I could find in all of veterinary medicine.
Trilostane is FDA-approved and has minimal side effects. From dogs to cats Express Vet Pharmacy has you covered!
