As those of you that have been following the Castration topic may well be aware, my 7 month old Weimaraner is in the process of having an Addison's diagnosis confirmed via an ACTH test.

Has anyone on the board experience of this condition or actually own a dog with the condition? I would be grateful to hear your experiences if you have.

I have looked at numerous articles from a search on Google, so am up to speed on the 'facts' I would just like some personal experiences if anyone has any.

Many thanks.

I have experience of this condition with a HWV. If you e mail me I may be able to answer any queries.
Diane

I'm sure that your Google search will give you tons in background info. A friend of mine has a Flatcoat with the problem, who has been on medication four times daily for about five years now, and looks fine. The owner learnt very quickly to recognise the signs that things were going off balance , and treated accordingly - your vet will surely advise you of this.

The only thing that I can say as a layperson is that I do hope you have the type of insurance that carries cover from year to year, as you will find it's pretty expensive otherwise after the first year is up.

Good luck - you were lucky to get it diagnosed; I believe it often goes unrecognised until too late.

Jo and the Casblaidd Flatcoats

Hi and thanks for your reply. Yes, luckily, my dog is insured with PetPlan so hopefully they will 'come good' for us, I have yet to make a claim with them so hope it will be as straightforward as I have heard.

Yes, we have been lucky in that it has been the first thing our vet has pursued rather than the last (as is often the case) so hopefully he will be spared the crisis element of this condition.

Thanks for your interest and I will post any further info I get from the vet later today.

Well, I can't really believe this. I am completely confused! Apparently the results from Otto's ACTH test last week are clear. Absolutely 'smack bang in the middle, normal' (the vet's words!).

I am as I said, very confused by this to say the least. The vet then went on to say that his results last week were obviously just a 'blip' and that he is a growing dog and that at the moment he is healthy! I still questioned the previous results as I was unsure as to how they could be so far apart (the sodium and potassium levels) one minute and fine the next.

The only thing that she can suggest is that there is a possibility that he may be showing signs of developing the disease and to keep an eye on him for any future possible symptoms.

Well, as surprised as I am, it is of course fantastic news, and I am very glad for Otto. One thing to come out of this is that I am now familiar with this condition and can keep an eye out for it, for that I am grateful.

Otto has of course wondered what was going on all weekend, loads of extra treats, shorter walks (just in case he found it too stressful), me stopping Molly from running rings round him whilst out (it's a thing they do, dog tag I think to you and me!), loads of extra attention and me close to tears thinking that he is going to drop down dead every time I look at him.

If only he knew about all of this, it'd go straight to his head!!

Thank you to everyone for all your words of support and help with info regarding his suspected Addison's, I have really appreciated it.

So pleased to hear your results. You must have been on a rollercoaster of emotions ! As you say you are now read up on the subject and know what signs to be aware of IF it was an early warning. Hopefully it was a one off and with time you will be able to relax and not be watching for anything out of the ordinary.
Good luck for the future with Otto. :)
Sara

That's really good news. And the added 'bonus' (if such it can be called) of both you and your vet being on the ball if the situation did ever change (heaven forbid)

Nice to hear some good news for a change!

Jo and the Casblaidd Flatcoats

Just having heard of a recent case of Addison's in my breeding line, I wondered if anyone has any to clue as to wether it is hereditary.

Hi Archie,

Following the research I did when I thought my dog had this, it appears to be a genetics issue, I couldn't find any hereditary involvement although I did searches on Addisons and an owner of Duck Tolling Retrievers (who seem quite prone to this condition) had a litter with 2 or 3 pups affected - diagnosed at different stages in their lives.

So, although I couldn't find anyone prepared to say "Yes, it is hereditary" if you look hard enough, you can find cases where the same lines are subjected to this condition so from that you have to draw your own conclusions I guess.

Sorry this isn't the conclusive answer you wanted but I don't think that you will find that stated categorically anyway. Hope that helps a bit,
Nina.

Many thanks weimowner for the quick response to my question. I had to come to the same conclusion. As with most of these conditions that arise, the people concerned just keep their mouths firmly shut.

Hi,
About 17 years ago, my mother's 8 month old Schnauzer puppy developed Addison's Disease. There was no sign of it in her lineage at all. She didn't tell me until years later, that she and the vet basically concluded that it was highly probable that that the serious stress over several months could have caused an permanent imbalance in the adrenal glands.

It turned out that my boyfriend at the time,who became my ex-husband abt. 14 years ago, would play-fight this tiny puppy while he was waiting for me. Apparently he was extremely rough and would throw & wrestle her around. I couldn't believe that my mom didn't tell him to knock it off--not like her at all..anyway long story on that. Wish I had known he had rough tendencies way back then.

So for the next three years she would medicate the dog on a daily basis to attempt to balance out the adrenaline. It was rough to determine what level she would need from day to day. Eventually, the poor dear's heart gave out and she was put to sleep instead of further suffering.

My mother swore never again would she go through that again -- for her sake & the animal's. It was very difficult to moderate, but perhaps technology has progressed to determine levels. I know that it was rough on her that her first purebred puppy had this disease. Hope this helps a bit.
toodles

A friend's Flatcoat contracted this some years ago and tragically died. As most of you know it is not the easiest disease in the world to diagnose as it tends to mimic so many other things. Knowing the lines which went into that bitch I know of nothing else which ever had Addison's. Of course that in it's self means nothing, dependant on mode of inheritance (Recessive, Polygenic or whatever) if indeed it is hereditory.

Quoting from a Vet college handout:-

Etiology: The cause of primary adrenocortical failure usually is not known. most cases probably are the result of an autoimmune process. other causes can be distruction of the adrehal gland by granulomatous disease, matastatic tumor, hemorrhage, infarction, or an overdose of o,p'DDD, an adrenocorticolyic drug. Causes of secondary adrenal insufficiency due to insufficient secretion of ACTH from the pituitary include sudden termination of prolonged or doses of glucocorticoids and any lesion that causes destruction of the hypothalamus or petuitary.

No clues to hereditory links there so I guess the jury is out on that one.

Regards, John