Cushings

Question
My dog has always had a stomach problem, ever since he was a pup he had terrible diarrhea and after having loads of tests and (most likely, pointless) surgeries we found out he was allergic to chicken. Now he isn't well again but it's not allergies. He's not eaten for a week (except the occasional slice of ham) or had much to drink and his stomach is very swollen. We have taken him to the vet for scans and xrays and they say he seems to have a gas build up in his stomach and perhaps even a blockage. However, they also say that his liver enzymes are increased and so is his white blood cell count. Previously, our vet mentioned cushings but this was before he showed any symptoms and simply because she saw him walk straight to a bin (he does this all the time but he only sniffs) - now she seems to think it's cushings again but I have yet to see her think of anything else it could be. She is only using these test results to back up her theory. I don't mean to sound paranoid but I don't trust her. Is there anything else that could be the cause of high liver enzyme and white blood cell count? Thanks, I really appreciate this. x

Answer

Hi Angharad,

It's not at all uncommon that a sick dog should need repeated trips to the vet, and additional diagnostic tests. I know it's a lengthy process, but when a dog doesn't respond to treatment, and the condition persists, the only thing to do is more testing. Sometimes humans need to same care to diagnose a problem.

Cushing's disease can be diagnosed by blood tests, so that should be done to rule that out.

A high liver enzyme count is an important sign that the animal is suffering from a disease which affects the liver. When organs of the body such as the the liver, the heart, the kidneys, pancreas are damaged, the animal is likely to have a higher count of liver enzymes.
An elevated white cell count indicates infection.

If you don't trust your vet, by all means get another opinion. Since the problem has been going on for some time, it might be worth having your dog examined by a specialist, who sees difficult cases more often than your local vet does.  If your current vet can't give you a referral to a veterinary specialist, you can locate one here:

http://acvim.org/websites/acvim/index.php?p=228

Best of luck,
Patti