Thyroid Disease - Something to look into.

Marquez was last week diagnosed with secondary hypothyroidism after I asked his vet to check his levels to see if we could find the source of his seizures. While there are a number of symptoms of hypothyroidism the only other ones he displayed were lethargy (sleeps way too much - more than any other dog we've owned), exercise intolerance and weight gain along with the seizures.  He didn't display any of the skin or coat issues which is probably a result of his being fed raw.  He also doesn't have an intolerance to cold and in fact has the opposite which would be seen in a hyperthyroid dog.

Following are some of the typical symptoms of a hypothyroid dog:

Symptoms

• Lethargy
  
• Generalized weakness
  
• Inactivity
  
• Mental dullness
  
• Unexplained weight gain
  
• Hair loss (alopecia)
  
• Excessive hair shedding
  
• Poor hair growth
  
• Dry or lusterless haircoat
  
• Excessive scaling
  
• Recurring skin infections
  
• Intolerance to cold
  
• Change in behaviour (aggressiveness, fear)
  
• Tilting of head to one side (uncommon)
  
• Seizures (uncommon)
  
• Infertility (uncommon)
  
• Chronic Ear Infections
  

Ref: http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/endocrine/c_dg_hypothyroidism

What I noticed in my research were some symptoms that I've noticed in a few of my other dogs (Dogo Argentino) and should've probably had them tested to see if the cause of their skin issues (recurring infections and coat issues) was something else other than food intolerances/allergies.  Change of food helped a little bit but the long term over medicating and harmful treatments to try and treat the skin issues did a lot of harm to their immune system which resulted in early death.  Had I had access to the information I have today back then, I could've probably worked out other possible causes for our dogs issues and had them tested but it is too late now.  One thing I am sure of is that all three of my past dogs that had the issues were all related and had very similar issues.  It wouldn't surprise me to find out that they all had some sort of thyroid dysfunction as thyroid disease is hereditary and it is one of the known issues with the breed which I've only just found out. Dogo Health 1 Dogo Health 2

With the approval of our vet, we are going to try natural treatment to see if they will help Marquez.  As he has low TSH and low FT4, he has what is called Secondary Hypothyroidism, caused by inadequate production of TSH from the pituitary gland, accounts for fewer than 5% of hypothyroid cases.  The prognosis based from what I've read isn't great and I don't even know if drugs, herbs or homeopathy can help but I feel we have nothing to lose by trying natural methods first.

Secondary Hypothyroidism - This form of hypothyroidism involves the destruction or incorrect function of the pituitary gland which is located in the brainstem. When the pituitary gland is unable to function correctly it cannot produce the hormone TSH (Thyroid-stimulating hormone thyrotropin). TSH is a peptide hormone which is synthesized and secreted by the thyrotrope cells in the anterior pituitary gland. This hormone regulates the endocrine function of the thyroid gland.

Dogs suffering from secondary Hypothyroidism unfortunately have a poor prognosis because there is a chance that cancer will develop or the pituitary gland which is situated in the brain stem will become damaged.
Ref: http://www.k9-wellbeing.net/dog-hypothyroidism.htm

Following are a number I've links that I've found interesting reading in regards to Canine Hypothyroidism and Canine Thyroid Disease.  I know Staffords have problems with skins issues and I can't help but wonder if some of the staffys with them are actually hypothyroid.  

It is also common to see hair loss that involves the front of the neck down to the chest, the sides of the body, the backs of the thighs, and the top of the tail. The hair is excessively dry and brittle, and falls out easily. The exposed skin is dry, thick, puffy, and darkly pigmented. Some dogs develop secondary seborrhea.

Other signs of hypothyroidism include weight gain, intolerance to cold, a slow heart rate, absence of heat cycles, lethargy, and a variety of nonspecific symptoms that could be due to a number of other diseases. Hypothyroid dogs may develop blepharitis, corneal ulcers, deafness, adult-onset megaesophagus, chronic constipation, and anemia. Hypothyroidism has been found in association with dilated cardiomyopathy, strokes, coronary artery disease (rare in dogs), von Willebrand’s disease, and myasthenia gravis. Ref: http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/hypothyroidism-in-dogs

http://dogaware.com/articles/wdjhypothyroid.html
http://www.canismajor.com/dog/thyroid.html
http://www.acvim.org/PetOwners/AnimalEducation/FactSheets/SmallAnimalInternalMedicine/HypothyroidisminDogs.aspx
http://thyroid.about.com/od/hypothyroidismhashimotos/a/Thyroid-Problems-In-Pets-Dogs-Cats-Gary-Weitzman.htm

I'll add some more links as I come across more information that I think is beneficial to read.

http://clumberhealth.org/PDF/thyroid_canine-faq.pdf

20 June 2014 - More Info

Chronic Ear Infections -  well this was interesting as Marquez was experiencing this and it was pretty bad.  Even thought he wasn't eating any of the usual things that would promote ear infections, I now see that it can be a symptom of hypothyroidism. He has been using the medicated the ear drops and his ears are perfect now.  I'm further surprised to see that ear infections can actually also cause seizures too!
http://www.happytailsspa-blog.com/2009/06/01/hypothyroidism/
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/cliented/hypothyroidism.aspx

All very interesting, thanks for sharing Diane   

Great post Diane. Certainly gives more than a few things to look for and will be useful for others I'm sure.   

all symptoms much the same as our thyroid disease,interesting to read   

That's fab Diane, thank you for doing that   xx

stella wrote:all symptoms much the same as our thyroid disease,interesting to read   

They sure are and just like the human hypothyroidism, not all symptoms are the same nor do you have to have them all to be hypothyroid. I'm hypothyroid as well and the cold intolerance DEFINITELY doesn't apply to me. I'm the total opposite and I'm always feeling hot. The hubby complains that I have the air conditioner on the lowest temperature or when I have all the aircons on in the house that he complains that it feels like being in a freezer    We spent christmas and new year in Spain and Andorra and I wore a jacket probably only 3 days in 2.5 weeks. Sure the weather on the Costa Blanca during the winter is very mild compared to the UK and other parts of Europe but everyone thought I was nuts not to wear warmer clothes in Andorra which is in the Pyrenees and very low temps. The only time I felt a little cool was when it had been snowing for a bit, but even then I wasn't freezing at all.

Definitely something to consider if any of you reading feel something isn't right with your bodies and maybe get your thyroid levels checked too.

Very interesting Diane I have thought of mentioning this to my vet as Vin has a lot of those symptoms   

Inez Maria wrote:Very interesting Diane I have thought of mentioning this to my vet as Vin has a lot of those symptoms   

The way I see it is that you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by getting this tested and at least ruling it out if his thyroid is fine.

Have discovered the link between seizures, chronic ear infections and hypothyroidism which I've added to the end of my OP.

It got me thinking last night after I was cleaning Marquez's ears and I had a thought to google "ear infections and seizures in dogs" and was surprised to see that that can in fact cause them. Looks like we are finally getting our answers to Marquez's seizures and it's all related.

Chronic Ear Infections - well this was interesting as Marquez was experiencing this and it was pretty bad.  Even thought he wasn't eating any of the usual things that would promote ear infections, I now see that it can be a symptom of hypothyroidism. He has been using the medicated the ear drops and his ears are perfect now.  I'm further surprised to see that ear infections can actually also cause seizures too!
http://www.happytailsspa-blog.com/2009/06/01/hypothyroidism/
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/cliented/hypothyroidism.aspx

Hi All,

Just wanted to add my story in case it helps anyone else.

Itachi was just diagnosed with hypothyroidism this morning, after a full thyroid panel and blood tests Friday night.

It all started a few years ago he lost all the hair on the top of his tail (looks like a rat tail). Didn't really think much of it, maybe he was chewing it, didn't really know the cause. Then slowly he started gaining weight. We put this down to not walking him very often (he tires so quickly - you'd throw his ball maybe twice at the park before he laid down to rest). Then he got a bad ear infection and his hair started to fall out all over the place. Mainly his thighs and back, but his skin was scaley and sometimes there was pus.

The vet did some skin scrapings and hair samples which all came back negative. She suggested a biopsy if tablets didnt help and put him on yet another course of corticosteroids (he's probably been given them once a year since a pup, twice in the last 6 months).

Nothing was helping so I decided to try an elimination diet seeing as staffy's (esp white) are prone to allergies. I changed him to raw kangaroo and vegies which seemed to help his coat a little but he was still losing patches of fur and the skin was still scaley.

Then about 2 weeks ago he had a very small seizure. Luckily I was at home and saw it (only lasted a few seconds) so off to the vets once again. She really had no explanation for it and I was told to monitor him.

After all the research on allergies their was one thing that was bugging me. Allergies =  itching. Itachi NEVER scratches. I mean ever. I can count on one hand the amount of times I've seen him scratch over the years. So back to Dr Google it was. This is when I found some info on hypothyroidism. Itachi had almost every single symptom. Weight gain, skin problems, ear infections, mucky eyes, always cold, lethargic, some aggression and then the seizure.

So I found another vet last week and booked him on Friday for the testing. As soon as I walked in to this new vet they saw his tail and his weight and the fact he had a seizure and said I was probably on the right track. Also mentioned that he recommends any dog that has a seizure to have blood tests done to find the cause.

The vet I had been taking him to since 11 weeks old (over 5 years!) had not even suggested a problem with his thyroid.

I'm very thankful sites like this exist and that their is so much information available online. If something doesn't seem/feel right, look for a second opinion.

I'm off to pick up his meds tonight so fingers crossed everything will start improving and we'll have our happy boy back.

Lilmissdanae wrote:Hi All,

Just wanted to add my story in case it helps anyone else.

Itachi was just diagnosed with hypothyroidism this morning, after a full thyroid panel and blood tests Friday night.

It all started a few years ago he lost all the hair on the top of his tail (looks like a rat tail). Didn't really think much of it, maybe he was chewing it, didn't really know the cause. Then slowly he started gaining weight. We put this down to not walking him very often (he tires so quickly - you'd throw his ball maybe twice at the park before he laid down to rest). Then he got a bad ear infection and his hair started to fall out all over the place. Mainly his thighs and back, but his skin was scaley and sometimes there was pus.

The vet did some skin scrapings and hair samples which all came back negative. She suggested a biopsy if tablets didnt help and put him on yet another course of corticosteroids (he's probably been given them once a year since a pup, twice in the last 6 months).

Nothing was helping so I decided to try an elimination diet seeing as staffy's (esp white) are prone to allergies. I changed him to raw kangaroo and vegies which seemed to help his coat a little but he was still losing patches of fur and the skin was still scaley.

Then about 2 weeks ago he had a very small seizure. Luckily I was at home and saw it (only lasted a few seconds) so off to the vets once again. She really had no explanation for it and I was told to monitor him.

After all the research on allergies their was one thing that was bugging me. Allergies =  itching. Itachi NEVER scratches. I mean ever. I can count on one hand the amount of times I've seen him scratch over the years. So back to Dr Google it was. This is when I found some info on hypothyroidism. Itachi had almost every single symptom. Weight gain, skin problems, ear infections, mucky eyes, always cold, lethargic, some aggression and then the seizure.

So I found another vet last week and booked him on Friday for the testing. As soon as I walked in to this new vet they saw his tail and his weight and the fact he had a seizure and said I was probably on the right track. Also mentioned that he recommends any dog that has a seizure to have blood tests done to find the cause.

The vet I had been taking him to since 11 weeks old (over 5 years!) had not even suggested a problem with his thyroid.

I'm very thankful sites like this exist and that their is so much information available online. If something doesn't seem/feel right, look for a second opinion.

I'm off to pick up his meds tonight so fingers crossed everything will start improving and we'll have our happy boy back.

Thanks for sharing your story and it's good to see that Marquez isn't the only one to be going through this. It's funny how some vets don't even consider or think to testing thyroid. Lucky for our dogs we did all the detective work and found out the cause of dogs problems.

Have you considered trying alternative therapy treatment. We actually have T3 and T4 in the house because I'm hypothyroid but I decided to try out my thyroid herbals and noticed a major improvement within a couple of days in terms of energy as well as the lethargy/sleeping all the time. He's also stopped shedding as much too. He definitely more lively and his tail is always wagging and he's just a much happier dog. I had ordered some homeopathy for hypothyroid but as that was going to take awhile to get to me (I picked it up last week when I was back in Perth visiting family) but I will continue using my herbal thyroid support for now as he goes into boarding for 2 weeks on wednesday before he flies out to Spain to join us and then test out his homeopathic Hypothyroid set.
In case you're interested, he's on the NOW Thyroid Energy Support (he takes 1 capsule in the morning and 1 in the evening) that I order from iHerb and it gets to Perth usually within 3-4 days from the US and there's a great company located in Southern River called NaturalPaws that I get all Marquez's homeopathy from and Davina info@naturalpaws.com.au was able to order me the Hyperthyroid Support Set.

Oh and after speaking to my vet nurse friend back in Perth during our visit who has over 20 years experience, she said she wouldn't be surprised if Marquez's secondary hypothyroidism was triggered by his reaction to the bordetella vaccine back in February which is when his seizures started and a result of Vaccinosis. His symptoms had progressively gotten worse since that that vaccination and we couldn't explain the weight gain (fortunately since supplementation his weight hasn't increased - he's definitely losing the fat but getting more muscular due to more exercise now). She was very interested in Marquez's response to herbal treatment and will be recommending it to a friend who has a GSD who exhibits signs and symptoms of hypothyroid but who's vet refused to even blood test the dog let alone treat it. My friend did the test for her and they weren't surprised to see that the dog was hypothyroid.

Thanks for the info djstratton. I'll definitely look into some natural products for long term use. Just have to stick with the meds from the vet as he gets retested in 4 weeks to see if it's the correct dosage.

I read a few articles that said prolonged use of corticosteroids can have a detrimental affect on the thyroid. Also read a holistic article saying dogs that are lead pullers tend to get this as it's direct pressure on the thyroid. I'm not sure of the cause, just glad it's finally diagnosed and can be treated.

Lilmissdanae wrote:Thanks for the info djstratton. I'll definitely look into some natural products for long term use. Just have to stick with the meds from the vet as he gets retested in 4 weeks to see if it's the correct dosage.

I read a few articles that said prolonged use of corticosteroids can have a detrimental affect on the thyroid. Also read a holistic article saying dogs that are lead pullers tend to get this as it's direct pressure on the thyroid. I'm not sure of the cause, just glad it's finally diagnosed and can be treated.

We've had some bad experience with longterm use of corticosterioids in one of dogs years ago when his vet prescribed them for skin allergies when he was a pup. We learnt the hard way that his skin conditions could've been other things and something as simple as a change of diet could of helped.  After he passed from immune mediated disease and secondary complications of ehrlichiosis we made sure not to make the same mistakes with our next dogs that as a breed was predisposed to skin disorders and other immune issues so diet became a priority.  With Marquez, we're avoiding any and all drugs that can cause seizures (like Frontline, wormers, etc) and he's also gotten Vaccine Detox (after he had to get another rabies shot after failing his first titer test to enable his travel overseas) as well as a ChemDetox (both homeopathic preparations) as he had to take a months course of domperidone to help boost his immune system to fight Leishamania which he has a risk of contracting next month when we move.  He's now started on the Leishmaniasis Nosodes that Davina from NaturalPaws was able to get through HAMPL (also in Perth) that do all the homeopathy. The ChemDetox might come in handy for your dog to rid his body of harmful effects of the corticosteroids too.

I think there "could" also some connection between lead pullers and pressure on the thyroid which is why we switched Marquez to using a harness during his walk.  He only wears a loose collar in the house so that we can grab him when the house cleaner comes down the stairs and so that he doesn't go up to her (she's muslim and they don't like dogs).

So has your vet prescribed corticosteroids for your dogs hypothyroidism? Certain drugs including corticosteroids would suppress his T4 levels. I would've expected him to be put on T4.