The Adventures of Rudie's Thyroid.
Prior to medication here is a little profile of Rudie: -Good bloodwork, no problems besides thyroid -Bald spots on the base of his tail, slight thinning on the nape of his neck. Gorgeous coat otherwise! -99lbs, vet said he could lose 15lbs -Very lethargic, sleeps as much as possible.. will sleep anywhere! -No interest in cuddling, very little interest in showing affection -Does not play with other dogs -Very slow walker, hates long walks, has a hard time keeping up, puts on the brakes sometimes. -Hungry ALL THE TIME -He stinks. Two days after he gets groomed he smells again. After only a few days we saw a little bit of a change in personality: -Came up and cuddled on the bed with me this morning, and on the couch with Dave this afternoon. He's never done this before without a treat to bribe him. -Played a little bit of tug o war with Marley, something he only does if he is very happy I might be exaggerating the changes in my mind, but I couldn't believe he came up and cuddled with me this morning. I was thrilled and shocked. Can't wait for more updates! |
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| The thyroid can do strange things to our babies when they are out of wack. Hopefully you will see positive changes now that he is on the medication. The beast will probably be unleashed... and look out. LOL |
The first thing I always notice with Morgan when he goes back on his meds (he usually can't keep it down when he has pancreatitis) is how much more energy he has - and now that you mention it - he does cuddle more  |
| Yep, we put Glacier on thyroid after her tail cyst episode. The change snuck up on us. She went from: *lethargic white blob who would sleep inside all day and night to a dog who doesn't want to be indoors, needs to be outside. *she promptly lost those final 10 lbs that needed to come off....153 to 83 lbs. * her coat was no longer greasy, her thin hair spot on her lower back is filling in, though very tender/ticklish. * she has become a pest, nosing her way into everyting. Be prepared for a change! |
| Great to hear he's snuggling. Looking forward to hear how things go. |
| Thyroid changes everything. Getting it back on track will bring untold changes for the better. I look forward to your updates! Good luck to you. |
| I'm glad to hear you have treatment for Rudie. Hope to hear about his improvements soon!! |
| I can't wait to hear more updates. It seems amazing how many things are dependent on one part of the body. |
| We had the same changes you mentioned. Bowie went from what you described, to a totally different dog after starting the thryoid meds. He had more energy, would want to play, got up in the morning easily and just had a sort of "happier" face! We started on one pill 2x, day, then we were tested again and we went to one and half in the am and one in pm and finally we are at one and half am and one a half pm.... I think you and Rudie will be glad you found the problem and can correct it so easily!!! |
| Heather--that's great that you can see changes already. Barney just started on that medicine yesterday, so I'm excited to see what it will do for him too. And I'm glad Rudie decided to cuddle with you without treats! |
| I'm almost crying with laughter, I have underactive thyroid and all these things sound like me!! Especially Quote: *lethargic white blob who would sleep inside all day and night Greg will testify I'm more cuddly when my meds are right. For me, the levels can be up & down, I don't know if that's the same with dogs, but keep an eye on Rudie in case he ends up with wrong levels of meds. Last year 75 micrograms was too much for me, this year I'm struggling to stay active on 250 micrograms! |
Hint of Mischief wrote: I'm almost crying with laughter, I have underactive thyroid and all these things sound like me!! Especially Quote: *lethargic white blob who would sleep inside all day and night Greg will testify I'm more cuddly when my meds are right. For me, the levels can be up & down, I don't know if that's the same with dogs, but keep an eye on Rudie in case he ends up with wrong levels of meds. Last year 75 micrograms was too much for me, this year I'm struggling to stay active on 250 micrograms! OMG, Cassie, thanks for the laugh!!! But seriously, you may be white (it's a LONG winter), but a BLOB - I think not! |
| Thanks for all the encouragement. I don't think I've heard anyone say that they tried thyroid meds and it didn't make a difference with their dog so that makes us very optimistic. I have to say though, Dave and I had a little laugh about what we were getting ourselves into. His full name isn't Rude Dog for no reason, so it may be time to call a trainer! |
| Last night, Rudie ran. I couldn't believe it, I hadn't seen him run since I had a churro in my hand and he was chasing me. Today, Dave took both dogs on a little adventure and he said they were actually playing. They literally have played maybe twice before, and this time it actually lasted more than 15 seconds. So excited for these improvements  |
| It is amazing the difference, isn't it! So glad Rudie is enjoying life again. Mine did not take weight off right away. He just became a different dog doing everything fun again. So don't be discouraged if the weight doesn't come off so quickly. The meds might need to be adjusted too so be sure to get a reevaluation after about three weeks. Welcome back to fun Rudie!!! |
| Sounds like good news!!! Go Rudie! The bassets aren't all spuds, so good to know it's medical........not genetic.....  |
| ok, so at the almost 2 week mark we are seeing more and more spunk everyday. Yesterday we asked the dogs if they wanted to go to the park?! and boy did they! Marley ran around and Rudie chased her, barking, skipping, and murdering her stuffed giraffe. Marley doesn't quite know what to make of this new psychotic brother she has. In the park they played and he ran. He is still very overweight so he doesn't keep up very well but he is getting there. The downsides: -He paces now. click clack click clack all the time, it drives us nuts. -He is panting. This makes me a little nervous, I don't want him to be anxious or anything from the meds. I don't think he is in pain, but I suppose he may not feel well from the meds either. -His digestive track seemed to have been a bit upset by the meds, however we've always had problems with it so who knows if there is actually any correlation. -His naughty habits like barking and being grumpy with dogs in our building are amplified. We're moving in May and he only does it in the building, so we're hoping this won't be a problem we will have to address too much. So that's our update! In 2 weeks we will go in for a full blood workup to make sure everything is working order. |
| Heather, I was just wondering about you guys today. That's interesting that you say you think the meds are affecting his stomach. Barney has had an upset stomach since last Saturday night. We thought it was one of the other meds he was on, but maybe it is the thyroid medicine. We're getting his levels checked next week. I'm so glad Rudie seems to be having so much more energy. That's fabulous. |
| All pills go down so nicely wrapped in nice soft squishy Wonder Bread! Heather, one word: "Area Rugs and Runners"  |
| Well it's been about a month... Rudie is kind of a nightmare. All of his bad behaviors have amplified and it's almost like he has nervous energy that he doesn't know what to do with so he just does bad stuff. Obviously this means he needs more exercise, but what a bummer of a transformation :/ Also, today he took Marley's favorite toy and started *eating* it in the bedroom and when I tried to take it away from him he started guarding it. Luckily it doesn't take much to trade up with him so I got it back...but this is a new behavior that I am sad to see. The panting is also still there. In all I'm frustrated with him and know that he needs training, but also think that he is a little bit crazed right now and maybe we need to reduce the medication. |
| I would guess he's on too much thyroxine, and maybe could do with a little training. What does the vet say? Can you reduce dosage? |
Oh, sorry to hear about Rudie's problems  I forget what his dosage was for the thryoid...We take Soloxine. Is that the same as the one he takes? Maybe a change will help with a lower dosage...I'm thinking he has now gotten comfortable with you in his new home and possibley some negative traits are coming forward...Maybe he is just testing you....Not sure but definately think some obedience training will help and a trip to the Vet for a blood recheck on the thryoid. I am assuming he is neutered....or I would recommed taht as well... Good :Luck. Don't give up...I'm sure its just another adjustment for you all to go through... |
| Heather, when is he due to have his levels checked? What you describe sounds a lot like a friend's dog who was purportedly hyperthyroid. I know, not what you would expect in an OES  If his meds are too high for him then I suppose it's possible he's overly amped up much like she was, only naturally in her case. Hopefully that's all it is and once you get his meds right he'll revert to his merely moderately annoying self. How much weight has he lost with all this pacing and panting? Kristine |
| Morgan got very hyper for a while after the thyroid meds. He actually still tested low and had to have hsi meds increased. It got worse - we started a lot of obedience training. He did level off in activity level ( I assume as his body adjusted to the meds), but he still has crazies he never had before. |
| He's getting tested next weekend. I am hoping that we can lower the dosage! He's driving us crazy! |
| Yes, retest. Glacier is now spot on, but she pants when indoors and can pace a bit. Fortunately I can let her back outside where she is most comfortable......I've blamed the house warmth and her big hairy coat...now I wonder. Her blood work and heart/lungs always come out fine. She does have some arthritis which I give her minimal dose of Rimadyl to ease her along. Hope your guy checks out OK. |
| So, good news, Rudie's thyroid levels are too high so we get to reduce the medication. I'm excited that we may be able to find a happy medium. I hope he will continue to play with toys and other dogs so we can have a nice summer. Also, the intestinal stuff seems to be doing better (although I don't want to jinx it). We've been giving him probiotics with his food and avoiding treats. He was even fine after his most recent foray into the garbage can where he ate an entire green pepper. |
HeatherRWM wrote: He was even fine after his most recent foray into the garbage can where he ate an entire green pepper. An entire green pepper No wonder he was a bit crazed! Hope things improve. |
| Good news! May he settle a bit. Glacier still has the huffy puffies but at least settles for a bit. We'll keep up on the blood tests, in case she slips to too high. |
| I hope that lowering the medicine works. We'll be starting Barns back up on his thyroid meds soon, so I'm always interested in hearing stories. |
| oh i forgot the best part! he lost 6 lbs last month! |
| Wow - he was active! |
| It takes a lot of energy for a stubby legged dog like that to get on the counters! |
HeatherRWM wrote: oh i forgot the best part! he lost 6 lbs last month! Congratulations! That's a nice start, you must be so proud! How much more does Rudie have to lose? |
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