Best posts made by PhocoenaGirl

I got my B a raincoat, cut the hood off and he's totally fine in the rain with it. It's funny though that he'll still avoid puddles even through he's standing on wet ground anyway!

Hi Gwen,

Our family dog growing up - bluetick dalmatian mix Harley - had Cushings. We got his medication filled at a people pharmacy - lived in Michigan USA at the time. We used a little independent pharmacy because that is what was in the tiny town we lived in but I know we specifically got it there because it was cheaper. Now with goodrx you might want to check it at all the big and little pharmacies. People can get Cushing's too so it is probably cheaper through a human pharmacy.

Also, be prepared for your guy to start having accidents in the house. There's a lot in common between the symptoms of diabetes and Cushing's but they don't have the glucose spillage into their urine. Increased thirst, increased urination that they just can't control. If I had a dog with Cushing's now, I'd work to teach them how to use puppy pads in the house to stay ahead of accidents. My folks just put Harley in the garage all day. Oh the things I wish I could have known when I was a teenager!

Cushing's either comes from a tumor on the pituitary or a tumor on the adrenal glands. The one upside to the pituitary tumor type is that they also get an increase in a hormone - can't remember the name - but it modulates pain. So while Harley had hip arthritis he actually felt better once he had Cushing's. Until the very end because his tumor spread, he was never in pain from it and actually had some increases in his mobility.

Prayers for your b! He'll probably still have a couple (if not more) years of pain free happy life as long as you can manage his urination for your own and your house's sake.

@zande Hahahaha! I love to hear that someone else does this with toilet paper tubes. I fold the ends over and put a few treats inside, then make him wait while I hide them. He gets to find them when I go to work and tear them apart to find the goodies. I don't recommend doing this while you are away until you've watched your b too make sure he doesn't eat the cardboard. Mine also likes his Kong with frozen peanut butter or yogurt (no xylitol) inside when I go to work.

I definitely agree with the post about big family walks and keeping a safety space - call it Leroy's room even - like a crate with an open end or a dog bed behind the coach, under an end table whatever might work best for him and your house set up. When Leroy's in his "room", instruct your boy that he must be left alone. This gives Leroy a safe space and then he can better control when he wants to interact and when he doesn't.

I also might add that sharing in a skill you start teaching at your son's age. Much like you start teaching them to ask to play with a toy that another kid is playing with, you can get him vocalizing and asking to say hi to Leroy. You could start doing this as well. As you approach Leroy, you could say, "Hi Leroy can I pet you? Or can I say hi?" Etc. Then decide what is the behavior Leroy does that signals he says yes. Maybe it's when he stands up or only if he approaches you.
And teach your son to start doing the same. Leroy probably sleeps harder than he used to and his startle response is getting mixed up with your son's presence. If you can get your son to give Leroy more time - from the asking the question and waiting for a specific response - that may help prevent the lashing out that Leroy is doing even when your son isn't interacting with him.

Thank you everybody so much! I appreciate all the info. I had some vanilla Breyer's all natural and gave my guy a taste of that... boy does he seem to think that's a great treat! Obviously, though I don't want that to be the only thing I do. I'm going to follow up with our vet on getting a draw for the full thyroid panel at hemopet once next pay check comes through. You were right he was only checked for T4. Thank again basenji forums!

I was looking back at pics from when he was younger and weighed more. I think he's always been a bit taller than standard and had a little barrel chest. Used to call him a basenji bouncer at the dog park. He was all about playing with the labs, pits and other big dogs - probably because he knew he could outrun them if they ever got too rough. He's much more about slow walks with me and lap snuggles these days

My B will also do this - sometimes he's so set on not going somewhere he'll lay down. I usually give him a moment, then start back in the direction we're going with a really excited voice and a quick step like I'm about to run. I'll give our walking command "Let's go" and he thinks he might miss out on something exciting so he'll come with me.

If your guy nips/bites at being picked up, that's concerning. Firstly, make sure it's not a medical thing and check in with your vet - especially if it's been a while since he's gone to one. Then, you'll want to start positive reinforcement to change that behavior. Even if he doesn't get to the point of loving being picked up, he should tolerate it from you for safety sake.

@donc I totally agree with Don C. This is a huge transition for her! I didn't get my B pup until he was 12 weeks ago my experience is probably very different. My guy hated the crate at night and slept well in bed with me. He even woke me up to go out by digging in my hair! Not the best way to wake up but he definitely got the concept of telling me he wanted to go outside. Switched later to a bell. But I used classical music and once I found them, Through a Dogs ear, CDs while at work during the day and he did much better in n the crate. My guy also did well with NPR on the radio too.

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@hamtaro There's a few other suggestions above that could work - I also imagine that if you've researched how to get your dog to let you touch their paws with positive reinforcement that would be similar to picking up issues.

The biggest thing that I would add is that it doesn't have to be like a big thing. Add little steps here and there throughout your day with him. For example, when you hook him on his leash for a bathroom break, reach out and touch his side his belly whatever he's totally okay with first. Then slowly with each trip outside you move the touch until it is under him. You can reward periodically with treats but not all the time. Then you start with a little lift just enough to put pressure, keep doing this for a week etc. Then move to 2 hands then pick his front half a little off the ground and so on. It doesn't just have to be outside trips either. When you feed him, touch his belly. Whenever you pass him in the room, pet him and touch his belly/do mini lift etc. just so that there is just a lot of little neutral interactions in the direction you want to go throughout his daily life. Combine that with periodically having longer training sessions and you'll desensitize him to whatever was bothering him about being picked up. I hope that makes sense.

@debradownsouth Thanks I did just that in order to get to the one we've got now which has made the huge difference for my beagle! The other two brands I had gotten did basically nothing so you are right to suggest people look deeply into it.

I mean Brady went from not being able to jump up on the sofa and having to use his doggie steps to get on/off the bed to now, he often dashes past me on the house stairs and up into the bed beating me even into the room. I will have to post the brand later cuz it's with their food and I can't remember the brand name at the moment.

I will do some additional work on the essential oil stuff though. I'm just a little stymied though if this essential oil product is bad too. Trifexis is has caused many owners problems and my previous vet in Michigan switched us to that from Frontline because she said fleas were getting immune to it reducing it's efficacy. What's left? We're in humid N. Carolina and they just can't go without. It's parasite heaven here.

Super late here but just wanted to pass it along also. I used the Sounds True cds (Through a Dogs Ears) when my B was in his crate during the daytime. Since it is very slow paced classical music timed to a slow dog heart beat pace. It's helped my guy calm down before.
Other than that, you seem to have made progress so I think sometimes it is just a getting-to-know-you period for each b. They all seem to be so unique personalities!

@gwen,

Yes Cushing's is a life limiting disease. Our Harley lived about 2 years once diagnosed as well. If it's adrenal gland based, there may be surgical options but not sure - you'd need to talk to your very and decide what's worth it. I don't know what complications there are if it's in both adrenal glands. For pituitary, there's no good surgical options. The pituitary gland is literally in the center of the brain.

One thing that you could look into to help combat metastasis is some of the natural supplements out there that are anti-cancer. There's some for dogs now with turmeric (plus peperine) aka curcumin and reishi mushrooms. As with all supplements, read the ingredients and run it by your vet if you have questions. I'd be willing to bet some folks on here might even have recommendations.

In the meantime, love on your fur baby and enjoy your time with him. You sound like you are a devoted pet owner and he's lucky to be with you!