It has taken me a week to write this blog. After Zoom's diagnosis of Cushings we started with her withdrawal from pred. In reaction to this Zoom had an Addison Crisis last Thursday, a week ago today. Her system simply didn't cope with the withdrawal of the Pred. The initial conclusion based on her very low blood cortisone levels even after prednisone dosing was that her adrenal glands may be atrophied beyond the outer layer and may not be able to produce cortisone again. Which essentially meant that she could not live with or without the cortisone in the long term. Needless to say I was shattered. And as much as I tried not to, I blamed myself for not being more assertive in chasing the definitive diagnosis we needed back in August / September last year when I first knew she was not herself; and for not making myself fully aware of ALL of the side-effects of any medication my dogs take, and putting all together for a holistic picture rather than treating each problem as a separate issue. I've struggled so much over the past few months watching her go from one medical problem to another, and whilst there are times when she is better than she was in January or February, she has not been close to being the dog she was 12 months ago- there have been times when she was improved, but I am getting so used to a lethargic Zoom, that it is blurring my memory of what she is like in true health. Though gosh, just two weeks ago she was competing and qualifying in agility. The things our puppies do...
In the early hours of Saturday morning, I had decided that I couldn't continue to put Zoom through this barrage of drugs, tests and stress on her system. She looked in so much pain trying to recover from the Addison crisis. Where Katie had just looked tired toward the end, Zoom looked in serious pain and her eyes seemed to be begging me to make it stop. Whilst she was much improved by the Friday night there was a still a dullness and listlessness that was so unlike her. I didn't want a repeat of this attack, or for her to slowly decline to the point where there was no energy, no spark, no joy left in her body. Glenn and I decided to stabilise her again on the cortisone and give her a few weeks of doing all her favourite things in life, like swimming, chasing Missy in retrieve games, running on the beach, going anywhere in the car, sleeping on our bed and of eating all her favourite foods like roast chicken skin, bacon rind, lychees, meaty bones and pigs ears. We generally wanted to embrace her with all the love we could give her before putting her to sleep.
Over the weekend I attended the Chris Zink seminar in Brisbane. I "had" been looking forward to this for at least 6 months; but my mind was not at the seminar, it was continually thinking about Zoom and Glenn at home, hoping he was being attentive and super-observant, and in many ways thinking I should be with her instead. Then I had the opportunity to speak with Chris about Zoomy and her medical history. She completely turned me around. She was of the opinion that a 4 year old dog can come back from this; she believed if we took it slowly enough that she could regenerate the tissue and function required in the adrenal gland as long as it is only the cortisone that is the basis of the Cushings. She laid out a plan where we could reduce it milligram by milligram over a long period of time; then increase the dosing period hour by hour, until she was eventually free. Her confidence in this plan working was contagious. She had buoyed my spirits. I wasn't ready to give up on getting my big girl healthy again; I scheduled an appointment with my vet again for Monday evening.
Well it seems he'd had the same thoughts over the weekend. He had spoken intensively with the specialist again on Monday morning, and low and behold they had put together an almost identical plan. The specialist believes her organs will support her on her current dosing of cortisone for 12 months without too many problems, so we have that time to slowly wean her from this drug. I now have a treatment plan on the kitchen wall that has Zoom drug free by the end of October (with no set backs) and has an exercise plan to slowly rebuild her musculature, endurance and strength in line with the reduction of the drugs.
2008 will be the year of the Zoom pup! Happy, healthy, fit, strong and loving life again with the zest that she was named for...
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