There are certain dog breeds
predisposed to this illness. These breeds are: german shepherd, poodles,
daschunds, terriers, and golden retrievers.



Types of Cushing’s disease



Cushing’s disease is known in 3 types: pituitary tumor, adrenal tumor, and
iatrogenic.



Pituitary tumor – a tumor in the pituitary gland appears and this stimulates
the over production of cortisol by the adrenal glands. This type of Cushing’s
disease is the most common in canine patients.



Adrenal tumor- the adrenal gland develops a tumor and this breaks the
equilibrium and causes big amounts of cortisol to appear. This is not a very
common type of Cushing’s in dogs.



Iatrogenic – this type of disease develops when the patient has abused with the
use of corticosteroids. The corticosteroids are used to treat different
ailments such as arthritis, allergies, and various skin disorders. Because the
blood is filled with corticosteroids the adrenal glands doesn’t secrete
cortisol and starts to decrease in size.



Clinical symptoms of Cushing’s:



-the dog starts to eat a lot, drink and urinate in big quantities

-it looses fur

-the belly becomes pot like

-excessive panting

-the skin becomes thinner

-the skin bruises easily

-the dog is lethargic and weak

-bladder infections appear



Diagnosis of canine Cushing’s:



In order to detect this illness, the veterinarian has to conduct a physical
examination, do blood and urine tests, and also ultrasound and x-ray. Further
laboratory tests may be necessary in order to determine the type of Cushing’s
disease.



Treatment of Cushing’s disease in dogs



This disease is treated with drugs. Mitotane is well known and used and it
destroys parts of adrenal cortex that produce cortisol. The dog under treatment
needs to be watched carefully but if complications don’t appear, the dog should
be able to live a long life on medication.



Another treatment is surgery. This implies that a part of the adrenal gland is
removed so that it produces less cortisol. If the extracted tumor is benign,
the life expectancy of the dog is very high. But if the tumor is malignant and
it spreads to other body parts, the prognosis is not good and the dog could
die.



The iatrogenic Cushing’s disease type is often treated by discontinuing
corticosteroid in a controlled manner. This is done by slowly reducing the
corticosteroid medication levels and, after a while, terminating the treatment
when the adrenal gland can work on its own. Be aware that no matter what the
treatment is, the dog will suffer drug side effects. This is why it is better
to also research natural treatment methods and help the dog get healthy again.