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Wheres my coat gone?

Alison_Leighfield

Well-known member
Well...I took Honey to the groomers for a "summer trim" I have never had her trimmed before but thought it would help with her "curly coat" condition. This is an illness not a curly coat. Honey is my blenheim.

I cried all the way home. Her coat was gone! We have flaps for ears a rats tail and a bare belly. my poor, poor Honey.

Saying all this though she hasn't stopped wagging since we got home so obviously she likes it.

How long will it take for a coat to re-grow?

Honey also has Cushings syndrome which I gather slows down the re-growth also.

Alison, Wilts, UK.
 
Oh the poor thing but she must feel better for it, Cushings and hot weather do not go together well.

The cushing will have an effect on the coat, she may even loose some of it, I had a yorkie with it and her beautiful coat went from soft and shiny to looking greasy but dry and brittle to touch . :(

I found the women who wrote this book a great help at the time she had a yahoo group just for owners of dogs with cushings but I can’t find it listed now?

http://www.petcarebooks.com/books/ddad.htm


just found the link to the Yahoo groups Cushings list
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caninecushings-autoimmunecare/
 
a friend who's dog has Addisons swears by the advice and guidance she's received from a dog nutritionist named Catherine Lane
http://www.thepossiblecanine.com/ . I don't know if that would help or not. Addisons is kind of the opposite of Cushings, but nutrition is holistic.
 
Thanks so much to both of you.

I found the group, thanks so much.

Yes her coat has started to fall out with the Cushings. Honey also has Dry Eye Curly coat yet another auto immune disease.

The small animal Health trust at Newmarket UK are doing research into the C/coat and Honey is part of their ongoing research there. it seems that it is only in Cavaliers that severe Dry Eye is combined with the Curly Coay auto immune side of it. Now that she has the Cushings along side the C/Coat she is of some fasination to them and receives the very best medical attention available, however the groups are good as we learn so much from other owners.

As to date there are only half a dozen dogs with C/Coat in the UK as most breeders when Cavalier pups are born are PTS. This little girl was rescued from a Puppy Farm last June so I guess they would never have noticed if she was affected or not.

Honey was also MRI scanned for SM and was totally clear which is wonderful as I have lost three other Cavaliers to SM in the last 18 months.


So thanks again, your help is gratefully received.

Alison, wilts, UK.
 
Is the condition so severe that pups really need to be pts? Or is that more so they aren't bred from? I would think cav rescue could help place those puppies.

That's wonderful that Honey can be part of this research to help other dogs! And also nice that you know she is getting such good care. It can be so confusing when your dog has a reare health condition, to get information and support and the right care and it sounds like you have all three.

I hope her coat comes back in quickly! But if she is happy and a hot summer is around the corner, let her enjoy her new air conditioned state!! :)
 
Hi Karlin,

Dry Eye/Curly Coat is a very severe condition. The dry eye is always very severe with it and I mean as severe as it gets. Almost blindness and ulcerated corneas. When you look at Honeys eyes they are blue, ulcerated and very sore. Along with the compromised immune system that doesn't fight infection well, it leaves them open to all sorts. I have just brought Honey through a nasty chest infection, believe me it wasn't nice. Then there are the nails which drop out on a regular basis. sometimes Honey doesn't leave her bed for the soreness and the pads on her feet split and bleed all the time along with her nose. The coat is harsh, itchy, and like a brush, it grows in tufts and falls out, no matter what you try nothing helps. It is part of the condition.

I carry her to the park or in the car and keep her on the grass only. Pavements rip her feet to pieces. I Soak her feet twice weekly to soften them and smoother them in cream. Three lots of eye ointments throughout the day and now the Cushings as well.....

I am in contact with other owners, mainly breeders, that have kept a puppy with Cushings and I like them wouldn't wish this on another, to be honest they don't often talk about it and it was hard finding any information out.

At Malvern in March this year I did a health table for the condition. I was amazed at the interest shown. Upon talking with long time breeders that were showing on that day they remember it from years ago, it seems that is is something that was "bred out" but now and again the odd one pops up. not surprising with Honey being from the Puppy Farm is it, they don't do health as we well know.

It is genetic and obviously of interest to those in their field. The co-incidence of the two conditions running together is very rare.

So my little coat less Cavalier copes remarkably well all considered, still waggy and still at my feet with every step!

I do look at her quality of life, the others working with her are also aware of this. it is a thought always in my mind and theirs...we just enjoy every day as it comes.

Alison, wilts, UK.
 
Alison what a great person you are - I had no idea the ailments you have to deal with..... :flwr:
 
I too had no idea this was such an affliction. The name makes it sound so mild! I can see how quality of life would indeed be a consideration for difficult decisions. You are certainly giving Honey the best possible care.

One can also only imagine how many puppies poor Honey gave those genes to, and how many of those will also be bred. :( Farmers would never be allowed to manage livestock in such a way; it enfuriates me that dogs can be bred so indicriminately and uncaringly. :swear:
 
Claire,

The dogs even with all their problems are so easy to manage compared to a stroppy teenage son and a lovesick 21yr old that spends most of his day with his umbilical cord tied to his mobile waiting for the "girlfriend" to ring! :yuk: LOL

Believe me!

Give me a dog anyday!

Alison, Wilts, UK.
 
I am in contact with other owners, mainly breeders, that have kept a puppy with Cushings and I like them wouldn't wish this on another, to be honest they don't often talk about it and it was hard finding any information out.

Very true, I did have a lump in my throat last night reading your post. :(

It’s been nearly three years since I lost my Dizzy and it’s still hard, especially looking back at the photos and seeing the change in her. Cushings can be a very visible illness as it slowly breaks the body down. One of the hardest parts is dealing with a dog in permanent starvation mode. She would scream for her food.

At the time I think I looked up as much as I could find and was told by one nurse that I knew more about the condition then she did as they only had half a page of a book on the subject when they were studying at collage.

The biggest problem is if the drugs don’t work well with the dog.. Dizzy didn’t take to the first drugs they gave her and the second drug didn’t control the cushings that well. She had also developed diabetes because of the Cushings and her sugar levels were all over the place. So she was very hard to control.

But that’s not every dog! I know of another dog who is also Cushings/diabetic who has fared much better on the drugs and apart from the cataracts looks and acts like there is nothing wrong with him.

With all Dizzy’s problems she did managed to get pass the six months marker and lived for two years with the condition. Unfortunately we had one of the hottest couple of weeks, she been in and out of the vets many times but there was nothing they could do but for us to keep her cool . On the day she died the hottest day on record. Her poor body could not cope and she passed away with me by her side.

I hope you joined that group because you will find a lot of info on there to help and probably teach them some new things as well.

I know Honey is with the right person, so she will have a good life.

I wish you and Honey well and pray that things will get a big easier :flwr:
 
Davy,

your posting rang so true, very similar to my Honey.

This afternoon we had our weekly consult with our vet. We had tests done last week and we were waiting for results.

I know today that she is a sick dog. the tumour in the pituary gland is large, larger than we thought. it isn't good news is it.

Yes I joined the group and I need to know more straight away, no waiting with this I fear.

Yes she screams in hunger and drinks forever. I keep sliced carrots and beans for her to nibble on, and I lift the water bowl or she would just drink and drink.

We are returning in two weeks to see if the new meds "Vetoryl" are doing the job. Meanwhile we do every day as best as we can.

Alison, Wilts, UK.
 
Hi Alison

With her drinking so much have they tested for diabetes, one of the problems that comes with cushings, most owners like me don’t find out about the cushings till the diabetes happens.

I don’t know how much you do know but here are some links that may help?

http://www.petdiabetes.org/cushings.htm

http://www.caninediabetes.org/kriscushingscorner.html

http://www.petdiabetes.com/cushingsdisease.html

You do tend to find a lot of info on the dogs diabetes pages as cushings is one of the causes of diabetes in dogs.

Vetoryl was the first drug we tried but her body just didn’t take to it so we had to go on the lysodren which meant I had to wear gloves and a mask when I gave her the drug.

Dizzy would sometimes go in to a hypo on the day she got lysodren but the little minx’s worked this out and would fake a hypo to get more food.. Also make sure Honey can’t get near the bins as that’s another thing they will go for to get food.
 
Yes she found the bin in the kitchen a while ago....caught her up the garden with it everywhere...she even pulled my sons lunch out of his school bag, they go manic for food don't they? Everything is now out of reach like the veg rack etc..

Thank you for all the links I will use all of them and find what I need to know.

This must be painful for you to remember all this but you have helped so much with all the information, thank you.

Alison, Wilts, UK.
 
I had birds and fish at the time she would try and eat their food as well. Heard of one woman who had an aviary, her dog ate a whole large bag of bird seed. She said he was pooping just seed for days! :yikes

Yes it’s hard to talk about, like with any love one you only want to remember the good times and block out the bad times. Still remember the day they told me she was a diabetic and the day they told me she had tested positive for Cushings.

But she had a big terrier character and that’s what I always remember, and because of her the vets asked me if I would take on SiânE who is also diabetic but not Cushings I glad to say.

That’s why I call SiânE my little angel, she is so good with her condition, never (touch wood) any problems and as good gold and the only thing that kept me going when I lost Dizzy.

I know I have forgotten a lot of the things I learned back then but if you need any help you can always email me I am happy to help if I can.
 
Curly coat syndrome or rough coat syndrome apparently is another of those conditions either unique with Cavaliers or certainly much more prevalent than in other breeds (others being early onset MVD, episodic falling, fly catcher's syndrome, glue ear, oversized platelets, and, of course, SM). I know of a litter of curly coat Cavaliers born about 12 years ago to a novice breeder in the US. All of the puppies had curly coat syndrome. It was only the breeder's second litter of Cavaliers, and it turned out to be her last. "The litter from hell", as she calls it, drove her from breeding. She has remained a faithful Cavalier pet owner.

We are fortunate that Dr. Keith Barnett, along with Dr. Cathryn Mellersh, senior canine geneticist at the AHT, are leading a team who are researching the DNA of curly coat puppies. They have been collecting blood samples and skin tissue samples from affected puppies, their siblings, and parents to identify the responsible genes. Dr. Mellersh reports that thus far 27 candidate genes have been identified. See http://www.cavalierhealth.org/dry_eye.htm for details and how owners of curly coat Cavalier puppies can help.

Rod Russell
Orlando, Florida USA
 
Hi Rod,

The team at Newmarket AHT are wonderful, nothing is any trouble and they always return my calls if I have a worry/problem with Honey. We had lots of pictures, bloods, samples taken etc for the reasearch.

Like you quite rightly point out there are not many that will want to own a second Curly Coat Cavalier. To see one in a lifetime is plenty enough.

More widespread information should be available about this condition, it's a nasty one. I do my bit like at Malvern this year with a simple stall with info that I have managed to find. There wasn't much about so I shall keep digging for next year as well.

Your Cavalier health site was a great help, it set me on the tracks!

I hate to think of the many, many litters that Honey gave birth to in the Puppy Farm, I was told 6/7 and the owners who might have an affected dog out there.

All you can do is awareness of the condition.

Alison, Wilts, UK.
 
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