_PL_

What a beautiful boy. He will always be with you Hannahh.

Goodbye pretty Zy. Running happily with friends now. RIP

Oh dear, just a baby. I didn't realise. Very very sorry Danois. RIP Angus.

one month and one day. I miss you Button.

Again, thank you everyone for your kind thoughts. I wish you could have met her, she will always be my special girl.

Thank you both. And Cynthia, I know you are so right but ... I hope one day I can think of her and only remember happy things. Right now everything is empty. They bring her ashes back tomorrow. By Powerlegs

Deepest Thank you everyone so much for you kind words. I know you must have all been through the same thing and am so touched that you are thinking of us. I will edit post 1, adding a poem I received today. Am just feeling so crushed at the moment.

My beautiful girl passed away this morning. Thankfully she was right where she should have been, in the middle of the bed, the same place she has slept for 14 years. For that I am truly grateful. The little garden we started out the front will always be in her memory and as the sweet-pea grow this spring, each bloom will be for her. Goodbye my fiesty and loyal friend. There are no words to describe how empty your home is without you. I hope you ran straight into the waiting arms of Dad and I will see you both someday. :p I love you. Rest in Peace. :p Baby Button adding a poem (& thank you to the lovely lady who sent it): And therefore I look upon everything as a brotherhood and a sisterhood, and I look upon time as no more than an idea, and I consider eternity as another possibility, and I think of each life as a flower, as common as a field daisy, and as singular, and each name a comfortable music in the mouth, tending, as all music does, towards silence, and each body a lion of courage, and something precious to the earth. When it's over, I want to say all my life I was a bride married to amazement. I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms. by Mary Oliver

Thanks Monelite. And good to hear Ruthless, I think that sounds perfect.

Bump! Can someone give me a number to pass on please?

Peakhurst. Apparently it's ten or fifteen minutes from them. How's Chopper enjoying things? :D

Not sure who is in that area it's for friends, and they are looking for basic obedience in a group class: walk on leash, sitting, paying attention :D . Can anyone recommend somewhere? And mid-week classes are cool too.

It's getting urgent for Wiggle. Please, if anyone knows a carer who could take on an energetic and clever little guy we would happily organise in-home visits to assist in his training. And being a foster dog, all vet expenses are covered. His current carer cannot keep him any longer and he's not going to benefit from being kenneled. Please call our co-ordinator Norma at DABS on 02 9798 6767 Wiggle is located in Sydney.

It's been suggested in rescue that our Wiggle would be suited to a dog sport! So here he is and here's his story. Ta. - Powerlegs

That's the most beautiful pic. :p What a big smile she has when her mum is giving her a hug. Glad she's doing so well! You don't sound so worries either which is good. Light at the end of the tunnel I think. Oh yeah, Button had her final tests today and is off the supplement prednisolone and completely 'normal'. A bit itchy as her hair comes back but that's passing. She does have a small tumor that needs removing and vet is keen to see her lymph nodes also but we'll be ok. At almost 14, every day is a gift so we just soldier on.

No rush if the vet isn't happy. Poor boy must be even worse than his piccies. Trish is right about his food. Hungry dogs can be a bit funny about food, once out of quarantine, pick up all the treats and chews, even kongs that may have had a few bits and pieces in them or anything the dogs might compete over until you know what he's like around them. Thank you for taking him on. He'll make a lovely companion.

He's gorgeous K We use Jalna plain biodynamic yoghurt here because I'm too lazy to make my own. And Protexin powder as a pro-biotic (but if he is put on an antibiotic you can't use it till the course is over). Too much rich food to start with may give him the runs so start off cautious and small. Missing Link is good for coat and skin but he's so young I think a nice healthy diet will see him right in no time. Let me know what the vet says about his general health. :p

All good news. How cool that she's charmed all the vet staff already! I bet she's such a sweetie. Hugs to you all Kelly_Louise.

Awwwww Isn't she cute with her scarf and square patch shaved off her belly! So glad her ultrasound was clear. :D Things will move forward faster now and it won't be long till all this uncertainty is a memory.

Loraine you are a wealth of info. Kelly_louise, how did you go today? No, I don't think the diagnostic stuff is painful for them, just annoying. Button always views it as a huge inconvenience and great insult to have to skip a meal for any reason. She did bruise fairly badly when bloods were taken. Distressing for me but not so much for her. And as she deteriorated very rapidly before surgery she could only digest baby food. Poor girl. She basically drank, slept and peed or wandered about looking lost and anxious. So, in the scheme of things, meds and tests are the less of two evils if it means a healthier old age. You will get the odd pee accident until things are sorted. It's one of those Cushings things.

That's a really nice offer Loraine

Trusting your vet is a biggie. I'm so glad you have that. &Remember to keep updating here as she progresses. It's such a rollercoaster when any loved one is ill and you will be frightened at times. It's just that Cushings is so intangible. For us bystanders, it feels like trying to pin down smoke. Everything is uncertain and personally, I had never once considered Cushings in my vision of Button's ageing, it seemed so awful and random. But there is hope. Dogmad manages her Dixie's Cushings day-to-day, supplemented with good food and lots of cuddles :D and my Button-girl is still with us and still running the house ;) until time brings another challenge. Chin up Kelly_Louise Things will get better. Hugs to you, your gal and your mum.

Kelly, I've had the opposite experience that Dogmad has had and a couple of times have thought about writing a thread so that if other DOLers do a search it will come up and maybe be of some help. From my laymans knowledge there are two Cushings causes. Pituitary -small benign tumour in the brain -on the pituitary gland. More likely to be the cause of Cushings in smaller dogs. Inoperable and unlikely to grow any faster than the natural lifespan of the dog. Then: Adrenal - usually malignant growth on the adrenal gland -attached to the kidney -and as stats go, the larger dogs get this one. Likely to spread. Leaps to the renal system and into the bloodstream. Getting diagnosed asap is the key. Pituitary: once diagnosed, is the chemo treatment that Dogmad mentioned. I think it basically kills off some adrenal cells and restores the cortisol balance. Counteracting whatever the pituitary gland is doing. Sort of like cancelling out one thing by using another. If you stop treatment, the symptoms return because the underlying pituitary tumor is still there. As Cushings is an older dog disease, it's considered a fair option to treat this way and dogs simply pass of old age. It just means you need to manage a chronic condition the same as any other older dog problem. Adrenal: is ruled in or out by an abdominal ultrasound. If the adrenal gland is unusually large (and I'm talking millimetres here but it is crucial) and vets spot certain indicators on blood tests then that's what they will deem as the cause. As far as your options there, we only really pursued one so I'm not sure of all your choices but I recommend, if they offer an ultrasound, go for it. We seriously didn't think our girl had adrenal as she is a smaller breed but wanted to be sure. And there you go: That's what she had. Little bugger had to be different. We asked that a specialist be found who would operate, we went ahead (and my god that was a terrible time), Button was in hospital for 7 days and now a few months later is almost recovered. The surgeon removed her adrenal gland completely, the vet supplemented her cortisol synthetically, gradually weaning her off over several months. Today she is absolutely Cushings free. All the symptoms are reversing. The healing power and fighting spirit of this tiny little 13y.o. dog never ceases to amaze me. Try to stay positive and continue things as normal. The oldies thrive on routine and calm environments so I feel it makes a difference if they see you take it all in your stride. ;) (even though I almost had a breakdown LOL). Homeopathic 'supportive' treatments for you both in a stressful time won't hurt either. Hope that helps. I'm no professional so I hope what I wrote made sense. :D Good luck with your girl.

There's definitely an apple cider vinegar article on this page somewhere, I remember reading it. Are you patient enough to scan the index? :rolleyes: *Site Index Link Here* edited to add: an antioxidant article although I still can't find the apple cider one.

Same here Hopenfox, and I even wondered if she was getting a bit demented but after tests it turned out to actually be Cushings.