in this order ug/dL ng/dL ng/dL and pg/mL
Thyroids
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UC Davis doesn't use a lab, they are a lab. I know because when I do thyroid panels on my dogs my vet does the blood draw and my husband drops them off in the lab on his way to work. He works in the adjacent building on campus.
Antech does OFA panels, they get sent to their New York lab when an OFA panel is requested. This is the same lab that runs samples for Dr Dodds.
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Thanks, lvoss. Just scratch what I said about UC Davis' relationship to my vet. I don't really understand what happened there, but I do know that UC Davis was name-dropped to help reassure me of the reliability of the lab used by my vet.
It's not that I think my vet or Antech is going to give me "wrong" results. I just wanted to make sure I was getting as complete a picture as possible from people who knew what to do with thyroids. And since my vet had never mentioned this as a concern in the first place, I had reason to think that someone who has a reputation across multiple breeds as a thyroid specialist (controversial or not) would be able to tell me more than my vet who had told me nothing at all.
There, I guess that's what I should've said to my vet.
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I asked my professor at the university about dr. Dodds and her full panel.. And he commented that doing all these test isn't nessecary as basic test and he thought that if someone did recommend it.. He or she was trying to earn some extra cash.. But that was just his opinion of course… A real specialist btw
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Janneke, I would usually adopt a similarly cynical view, except for a couple things in this instance –
1. Dr. Dodd's HemoPet/HemoLife is a registered non-profit agency. Of course, even at a registered non-profit, prices on some things may be above "market" price to help compensate for or fund other aspects of a non-profit, but I don't think this is the case here, because...
2. The most expensive test provided by their lab is the Thyroid Profile 5 PLUS, which includes a T4, Free T4, T3, Free T3, TgAA, CBC, Differential, Chemistries. That's $115 USD.
My vet charged me $230.85 USD for "Superchem, CBC, T4, FT4 (ED)."
Looking at the price chart at the Diagnostic Center for Population and Animal Health at Michigan State University (MSU in East Lansing, not UMich in Ann Arbor), I think -- am not sure -- I would need a Premium Canine Thyroid Profile (which I think includes a Free T4 by dialysis?) which is $59. The comparable Thyroid Profile offered by Hemolife is $71.
I'm learning that they do things a little differently at MSU as well as HemoLife, but both are considered thyroid experts. I have one extra vial of blood for one shot at a second opinion, which I now feel is necessary after having reflected on this whole procedure. So I'll have to make a choice.
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There are different types of tests. And everyone has their own opinion. Here is my experience with my boxer and the vets and Dr. Dodds. I had a specialized test because Zina was taking Dexamethasone and we had to discount that. After we got the test back, the lab and two vets here said her levels were 'fine'. That wasn't her problem. Now, mind you, she was BALD on both sides of her body, down her legs, her face, she was depressed, not eating properly, wasn't happy with the other dogs, sensitive to touch, the list went on. I contacted Dr. Dodds, told her Zina's history and syptoms, scanned and sent her the lab reports,(this is important, get the reports and send them to Dr. Dodds yourself with the history, it may take a few days, but she will get back with her opinion) and waited. It was a Jewish holiday, so I didn't hear back from her for about a week. Dr. Dodds told me what to do, I asked her the dosage, and within a month, Zina's hair started to grow back, she wasn't depressed, and there was a myriad of good things.
So, the vets didn't want to do anything and I took a chance. I'm glad I did. Whatever you do, it's your decision. Like Pat states, it's your money, you should be able to get the tests that you want. If your vet doesn't like it, I would run, not walk to the next vet until you find one you are comfortable with. It's all your decision. If you have any questions on my experience, don't hesitate to ask.
ArleneBy the way, the symptoms were discussed somewhere on another thread in detail.
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Pat, thanks for the tip about California pet scrip laws. I'll remember that as well… I wasn't having any luck finding where the text of such a law would be archived. You wouldn't happen to know what it's called or where I should check, do you?
I believe it is required be posted in your Vet's office? It is in mine. That is where I have seen it, it is posted on the wall at my Vets office….. I can look the next time I stop by there for something.....
And as far as his age and calling it a senior panel, I have heard and seen some Vets call anything over 5 senior....
By the way, where are you in No. Calif? You can email me privately. My friend Parry Tallmadge used to live in the city and had a number of Vets that he used for his Basenjis that if I knew where you were I could get a list for your? I am guessing since you mentioned to Dan about getting the name of his Vet you are on that side of the Bay.
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Free T4 by equilibrium dialysis(e.d.) is the a minimum test you would want do for thyroid but it is an incomplete picture of what is going on so for some dogs you don't get to what is really going on.
My experience with Dr Dodds is that she was very helpful when I have sent results, my vet at the time wouldn't send them to her and wouldn't give me a blood sample, and gave a good explanation for why she made the recommendation she made. I had one of those cases where the full panel told a different story than the single result.
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We have labs, we have vet clinics, then we have clients.
The vet clinic in this instance is the middle man.
Cut out the middle man and you can get your testing cheaper - assuming the labs allow you to cut out the middle man, not all do (MSU would be one). When you have a middle man your cost helps offset their over head charges (staff, supplies, building, insurance, etc) and you are also paying for their interpretational skills which is not always created equal which is why I would prefer a board certified endocrinologist interpreting my results and my dog.
Caveat of cutting out the middle man means you now have to find someone to collect the blood for you($), put into the correct containers ($), properly pack (cold pack usually) for shipping ($$), then you have to ship ($$$) overnight and not on a weekend. You would be surprised how quickly it all adds up.
Make a mistake and you are back to square one ($$$$).
Our normal lab is Antech but we also use MSU, IDEXX and others. We have to ship just like a lay person does but due to bulk we are able to cut costs somewhat and pass them on to the client.
There are pros and cons to doing just the basic thyroid test (bare minimum would be FT4ed - skip the T4 as it is a waste, IMO but unfortunately standard) versus the more in depth testing that the OFA recommends. If you have a breeding animal - I rec'd doing more. If you are testing a non breeding animal who is showing signs of thyroid issues - I think starting with the FT4ed and basic blood profile is fine.
There is no need for the TgAA in a non breeding animal as it does not tell you anything about the function of the thyroid - which is what you are screening Bowdu for - function or lack thereof. I also feel the T3 tests are a waste in determining HYPOthyroid since the T4 is converted to T3 (the T4 is the first in line so if it is affected it stands to reason the T3 would also be so why spend money on testing it?).
Humans rarely if ever have T3's tested (in 30+ years living with thyroid disease I have never had anything but TSH and FT4ed) done. I imagine there are Dr.'s out there that feel we should be testing T3 as well but as of yet it is not an accepted method of testing for hypothyroidism. I am due for testing and looking at my test form - there is only one T3 test and its an uptake test which does not measure usable levels only circulating T3 proteins. Hardly useful in determining my function.
HSUS, PETA, ASPCA are all not for profit agencies - yet I would not lay down beside them on a National level. Just because someone or something is not for profit does not automatically mean or guarantee that they are without issues/concerns. Just something to think about.
Euthyroid sick dogs (sick from something not related to thyroid but which effects thyroid levels) will always respond to supplementation. Does not mean the dog necessarily needed it. You can also improve many things such as hair coat, fertility, etc (sheltie show people will attest to that) on dogs whose blood thyroid levels are normal. Does that mean they are hypothyroid or just responding normally to increased dosages of hormones??? Long term use though could have deleterious effects.
Having a reputation across multiple breeds as a thyroid specialist is not the same as having a similar reputation amongst your peers. I admit - I am still looking for peer reviewed and accepted articles and ideas of Dr. Dodds and am coming up short. That concerns me. As humans we naturally flock to those with similar ideas as ours, those who support our breeding practices and choices or those who validate what we are doing within a chosen field or who we are. This does not always equate to long term best interest of the dogs.
As the Antech liaison at my work I can answer your question re: why the senior panel. Antech realized many vets were ordering the same type of testing on dogs and cats of a certain age. The clinics and clients however were complaining that the tests were cost prohibitive. Antech decided to make bundles of tests that can be ordered as a unit at a far cheaper price then if ordered individually. They call them senior and or junior profiles (junior would have less tests in the bundle) amongst other things but they are the same tests that would be run on an animal of any age at any time individually. Yes - they could have just run the thyroid bundle of tests to see what Bowdu's function is but there are other things that can show up on normal blood work that can help form the big picture - increased triglycerides and cholesterol to name a few. Let's say Bowdu's thyroid levels are baseline - without symptoms or without other correlating blood work - the vets might think baseline is normal for him and do nothing. But with symptoms and with correlating blood work they might decide he is baseline now, headed for low, so lets treat for a trial of 3 months and see how he does.
Your vet was wrong when he told you "…that these kinds of extras were necessary in human diagnoses...." Human field rarely tests any of these things sans FT4ed and TSH. I think he would have been better to say those other tests are good for determining breeding animals potential for future hypothyroidism. He is correct that most of those tests tell you nothing regarding the function of the thyroid only the condition the thyroid is in at that moment in time. The FT4ed will tell you function, as will the chemistries/CBC. It is a good place to start but might not be the only place.
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Linda, just wanted to pop in and say that all that information was very helpful and I appreciate the time you took into typing all that out. I concur on your point on non-profits, for sure.
Nothing else to add at the moment as I'm still waiting on test results.
Pat, I'll be sending you a PM.
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Linda that was really informative, thanks ! … and I hope Bowdu results are good. Its so hard when you know they are not at their best.
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There is no need for the TgAA in a non breeding animal as it does not tell you anything about the function of the thyroid - which is what you are screening Bowdu for - function or lack thereof. I also feel the T3 tests are a waste in determining HYPOthyroid since the T4 is converted to T3 (the T4 is the first in line so if it is affected it stands to reason the T3 would also be so why spend money on testing it?).
I disagree. I had a dog that at 18 months old tested low T4 on a blood panel and the vet wanted to supplement. I asked they run a full panel since I wanted the FT4ed since there were no symptoms of HT. T4 was still low but he also had high T3. I sent the results to Dr Dodds for interpretation and she said wait 6 months and retest to see if anything changed. The T4 came back up into the normal range and has been normal since.
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My Eddie had some low values and some high, vet did not recommend treatment but Dr. Dodds started him on a low dose. Disposition improved (was not really bad) and oddly, his body temp seemed to lower…he had been the hottest basenji I had ever slept with, just petting him and another basenji you could feel the difference. He now seems normal, is perkier, plays more. My vet was fine with me referring to her, he is not a basenji expert, but I really think Eddie has benefitted from his daily pills.
Many people with new or controversial ideas are ridiculed or even demonized by peers at first, some are proven right later on, some not. After being published in a Vet. journal by Jennifer Yearly, more Vets at least listened to Dr. Gonto's theory. It does pay to be cautious, do your own research. Anecdotal stories off the internet do not impress most scientific people....but it does not mean there is no truth there.
Good luck with your boy. Sorry about your experience, I'm sure that affected your feelings about your vet overall.
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I disagree. I had a dog that at 18 months old tested low T4 on a blood panel and the vet wanted to supplement. I asked they run a full panel since I wanted the FT4ed since there were no symptoms of HT. T4 was still low but he also had high T3. I sent the results to Dr Dodds for interpretation and she said wait 6 months and retest to see if anything changed. The T4 came back up into the normal range and has been normal since.
What do you not agree with? What did the T3 tell you? The T3 did not dx your dog with HT, nor did it unequivocally tell you the thyroid was ok. In the end you still needed to know what the T4 was to determine/validate thyroid function.
The vets I work with, if the only problem is a low blood value - without symptoms - they reccomend recheck in 4-6 months to make sure there is not some other underlying reason for the low T4 (such as normal flucuations in values throughout the day, immune responses to something, et al).
This is where it is important for the humans to be moderately knowledgeable in disease and to be their pets advocate. If your dog does not have symptoms correlating with blood results - it will not hurt to wait. Same as if the blood results do not always correlate with the symptoms, it does not hurt to do a 3 months trial - then wean off - if symptoms do not return then there is no true disease.
The only caveat to the trial is this: 1) all mammals will respond positively to increased hormones as we all deplete our stores throughout the day. Is the positive result truly indicative of long term need or just a normal response of the body. The only way to know is to slowly wean off (to give the thyroid time to wake up after its vacation) and see if symptoms return 2) if the thyroid is not really needing supplements but supplement is used long term it can create a non functioning thyroid to the point of atrophy and "death" - so if used when not necessary you could be creating hypothyroidism.
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What do you not agree with? What did the T3 tell you? The T3 did not dx your dog with HT, nor did it unequivocally tell you the thyroid was ok. In the end you still needed to know what the T4 was to determine/validate thyroid function.
I disagree that T4 alone gives a sufficient picture of what is going on. The T3 did not diagnose my dog with HT but it did give reason to not supplement and wait to see what was going on with the T4 levels. Based on T4 alone, the vet would have supplemented.
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I disagree that T4 alone gives a sufficient picture of what is going on. The T3 did not diagnose my dog with HT but it did give reason to not supplement and wait to see what was going on with the T4 levels. Based on T4 alone, the vet would have supplemented.
Why would you have let him, without supporting physical symptoms? Somehow I doubt you would have - which is why you asked for more bloodwork.
The FT4ed is the gold standard and has been for eternity it seems. There has been nothing in peer reviewed research or print proving that testing of more hormones equals greater or more definitive diagnosis. Since the thyroid produces 80% T4 hormone vs 20% T3 hormone and disease impacts both T4 and T3 similarly, it stands to reason to test T4 first. It is also more cost effective.
Can more testing help with diagnosis or ruleouts? Absolutely. Is it necessary? Not necesarily - unless you are finding the blood results and the physical symptoms do not jive and you want to do more investigating, then again taking a wait and see approach would have told you the same thing, albeit more cheaply.
This is where Pat's implied statement that in the end - the vet works for you and your pet - comes into play. If you want to wait and see or you want to run more testing - ultimately it is your choice or your choice to find another vet who will work with you.
But IMO there is no need for the avergae person (non-breeder) to just jump into testing willy nilly and spend money that might be better spent down the road.
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Well, I guess in my shiba's case, the clinical signs did match expected test results. Bowdu's bloodwork came back completely normal. On his thyroids, he had a free T4 reading of 9.0 (sorry, I don't know the units because I don't have the paperwork on hand – I got the news via a voice message, and need to pick up the hard copies on Monday). This classes him at low borderline, but as their "normal" range is 8 - 40.0, I feel pretty comfortable about starting him on thyroid supplements ASAP and going from there.
I do dread the followup bloodwork, since obtaining this blood sample in the first place was such a nightmare. I'm really hoping to see some behavioral stabilization with supplementation (not to mention getting back the sweet, clean shiba smell to match the sweet, clean basenji smell!). At any rate, I do think it's time to find another vet altogether, and that might help start our shiba off on a clean slate.
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Actually, there are a number of breeds that should be in the upper part of that equation for levels. Since the vets and the labs go with an 'average' and not all breeds are 'average' it would benefit you to research what is best for your 'breed' as well. What is good for one is not necessarily good for another. Personally, just because the levels are within the 'normal' range for the 'average' dog, I would also give supplements. I would bet you'll see improvements. Let us know how it goes with your little Shiba.
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Yes, I wish there was a little more breed-specific subtlety to the results as well, as I think that information would be valuable. Unfortunately, all I have for Shiba is anecdotal evidence. Among breeders of Japanese dogs, more attention has been paid to Akita thyroid health. It's been interesting comparing what is known and made publicly available (through OFA, for example) about Basenji health, versus Shiba health (and other breeds, for that matter). There is a unity and a sense of shared purpose amongst good Basenji breeders that I think has helped create a really thorough breed profile, including knowledge of health problems. The details seem more dispersed amongst Shiba breeders. There are plenty of reputable breeders of excellent Shiba out there too (mine did not come from one). But I think on a deeper level, there are still a lot of unknowns about this breed.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to going in on Monday for the next step; hopefully there's already a scrip and beginning dose of supplements waiting.
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Basenjis have been there "unknowns" about the breed… it has taken a real effort among breeders to first admit there are problems, then share that information. But there are still breeders that are not fully admitting problems....
But even according to the Parent Shiba club it says that Hypothyroidism is not uncommon
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Right, but "not uncommon" is kind of evasive wording, if that's the official stance on the problem. Kind of like "It has been known to occur…" But Shiba breeders, by and large, aren't registering thyroid information with OFA, unless there's some mistake with the chart of statistics sorted by breed. MSU does have numbers which suggest that it's not common with Shibas, which I think makes it a low priority for Shiba breeders. But just from what I'm gathering anecdotally, it's definitely something worth looking into, especially for shibas with allergies, which a LOT of them are plagued with.
I'm not a member of any breed clubs, so I can't say with authority if the stance on thyroids is changing. I think it's generally of low concern, at the moment, compared to hip dysplasia, patellar luxation, eyes -- which good breeders ARE testing for.
