Congratulations Molly!
Molly came to see us back in November. She was feeling shaky, refusing food, and just not herself. She had also been losing weight over the past year, and her family couldn’t seem to get her to gain any back. We ran some bloodwork to see what was going on with the poor sweet girl. Her results came back suspicious for Addison’s Disease, and a confirmation test was done which confirmed the diagnosis.
Addison’s disease, also called Hypoadrenocorticism, is a condition where the dog’s adrenal glands do not produce a sufficient amount of mineralocorticoids (aldosterone), glucocorticoids or in many cases both. These hormones help regulate many of dog’s bodily functions such as metabolism, blood pressure, and stress response. When these hormones are low they can cause many symptoms which include lethargy, diarrhea and weakness due to shock; it can be very life threatening. With proper treatment a dog can participate in all of their normal daily activates. After get ting the test results for Molly, we wanted to get her feeling well, eating, and avoid any episodes of shock. She was currently suffering from the first signs of the disease. Most dogs are not diagnosed before they experience a dangerous episode of crisis.
Molly was hospitalized for a few days receiving IV fluids and appropriate medications to treat the Addison’s including a Percorten injection to regulate her electrolytes and low doses of Prednisone as glucocorticoid supplementation. Molly began to feel better and went home. She was eating very well and feeling happy. She is being monitored periodically with blood testing to confirm we have control of the disease and continues to receive her daily medications and monthly injections.
Her mom reports she is a happy Diva and is eating better than she ever has. Overall she is doing fantastic!
When treated properly, Addison’s disease can be controlled and does not have to affect a dog’s quality of life. We are so happy that Molly is doing well!
