Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

My big Golden Retriever, about 10 years old, has started loosing patches of hair and black spots have been forming under his skin. These spots look like dalmation spots, so not really like scabs. At first we thought it might be a form of demodex, as my other Golden Retriever suffered from it at a very high level but is fine now, but he never formed these black spots. I have four dogs, and he is the nicest and sometimes is left out of the gang, but I always try to have time with him alone so that he doesn't suffer from any psychological problems. He has been licking his lower foot cosntantly, and I know that is a sign of anxiety, but also, these black spots formed.

Can someone give me a referance, I already tried Wikipedia, but nothing specific except cushing's syndrome arose....

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

It sounds like hypothyroid to me. Your vet needs to test for either disease. Lick granulomas are tough to treat, I had 2 GSDs with them and they were an ongoing problem.

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

Are you sure the black spots are not just the normal skin pigmentation? It sounds like some sort of a immune problem. I would have guessed allergies. I would suggest going to the vet for some steroids.

It is probably not demodectic mange unless there are red areas on the skin.

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

My boss's dog developed diabetes and cushings. There is a bloodtest to check for it. She started to lose hair, excessive thirst, urinating. Cushings also mimicks a tumor on or near the pituitary gland. They opted to treat both-and the odd thing is, the diabetes was a side effect of the cushings. She is still oninsulin-but doing great for a 12 yr. old! Good Luck!

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

I tend to agree with ginbark. It sound more to me like a thyroid problem. Golden's in the senior years can develop this. I'd have your vet run a thyroid panel on your Golden and see what that turns up before I'd suspect Cushings.

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

Well Chushings does cause hairloss, and pigment changes, it is pretty common in older dogs..

But, another thought would be Thyroid.. VERY common in golden retrivers..

Best bet would be, have some bloodwork done, Full chemstry profile and a thyroid test.. Not terribly expensive.. actually most labs offer a senior screen that has a reduced price as a cobination test.. then if you do each test individually.. at 10 good idea to have a annual profile anyway.. Just because several conditions, liver, kidney, thyroid problems are VERY treatable when found in the early stages..

A Chem panel/CBC/T4

and actually would give you a answer for both issues..

With cushings, almost ALL the time the liver value ALKP is high, this is because Cushings does cause a over abundance of cortisol.. that effects liver function,, somtimes dogs do show other symptoms.. pant a ton, drink a ton and urinate a lot.. But often the changes are apparent on the bloodwork before symptoms..

A high ALKP is HIGHLY suggestive of cushings, although more testing is needed to confirm.. Such testing like abdominal ultrasound, ACTH test, Low dose Dexamethasone test are a few, cushings is treatable,, although one treatment is not all that effective,, but inexpensive and safe, the other is expensive and can serious side effects.. Some dogs never recieve much treatment because the workup is expensive,, and treatment risky..and do ok,, but knowing the condition is their is important,, and cushing can cause signifigant problems with blood pressure, healing time, and other organ problems..

Doing a thyroid test T4 or FT4 will tell you in most cases if your dog has a thyroid problem.. sometimes you get a result that is in the Grey zone with a simple T4 test,,so it is not the most ideal test, but can be done at a good test at a resonable price.. it does give you a definite NO but somtimes not a definite YES.. and depending on your situation and your dogs results.. your vet may recommend a more comprehensive thyroid test, or sometimes even a trial of thyroid hormone..

Hope this helps and good luck..

Amanda

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

veterinarypartner.com

Cushings disease is usually a side-effect of diabetes, though.

Could my dog have Cushing's syndrome?

i guess so