Thyroid Problems?

[krunzer]

Since my female got spayed 2 years ago she has gained a lot of weight. I took her into the vet's today for her annual shots, etc and they weighed her in at 11Kg or around 24lbs. She has never been this big. She usually gains a few pounds during the winter and then loses it in the summer and now that we have an acreage she is more active than usual. I have not changed her diet, though I have stopped free-feeding them. Now she eats about 1/2-3/4 of a cup daily of Timberwolf food. I ordered a complete thyroid panel while at the vet's office…..something I had already decided to do a couple of weeks ago when I had booked the appointment.

Has anyone had thyroid problems with their dogs? I know B's can have thyroid issues. What types of other symptoms do they have either than weight gain? I am thinking she has hypothyroidism. Is hope someone can help with these questions....

[curlytails]

It was on this forum that I first learned about the signs of thyroid disease. In our case, the one that's hypothyroid is our Shiba, not our B. I documented his symptoms on a blog post here. There are lots of useful threads on this board relating to hypothyroidism and thyroid testing as well.

In our Shiba's case, I'd say the most obvious marker was his REALLY sharp temperament (short fuse), awful skin issues, and frequent infections. Yes, there was weight gain as well, and it took him a full year to lose 10% – now that he's on Soloxine, and back at an ideal weight.

How old is Becca? Could the weight gain be a gradual result of her spay, as well as the approaching winter weather? How much more overweight than "usual" does she appear to you?

Anyway, good luck, and please let us know what the vet says! Ordering the full thyroid panel certainly couldn't hurt.

[krunzer]

Thanks for the info. And I understand the whole Shiba temperment. We had a Shiba and just had to put her to sleep this summer. She was 14 and wow she had a temper….you could pet her head but never past her shoulders. Anyways back to Becca. She is 5 yo and she is a chunk-muffin right now. I cannot feel her ribs anymore and she is usually very nice and sleek and thin. She used to put a couple pounds on in the winter then run them off in the summer. I would say that she is about 5-6 lbs overweight at the moment. The vet(not my regular, they didn't tell me he wouldnt be in this weekend) told me that the test results should be back later this week. I hope that she is ok but since the weight gain I wanted the test done just to be sure.

[dcmclcm4]

I have 2 Bs with low thryoid, both are great pill takers which is given twice a day. Dr. Tracy sends the blood for testing to MSU-Michigan State. If she is not a rescue, do you know if any of her relatives have low thyroid or thyroiditis?

Jennifer

[krunzer]

I don't know if any of her lines have thyroid issues. I looked at the OFA site but I do not see anything there. I am just waiting for the test results and then if anything pops up i will let the breeder know and ask some questions. They should be back tomorrow or Thursday.

[krunzer]

Test results got back today….yay no thyroid issues....just fat puppy I guess. I will have to watch exactly what she eats and cut her back from there if she does not start to lose some of the 'winter weight'.