"Superstar Pet "

Presenting our current "Superstar" pet !

Bodacious woke up one Saturday morning terribly ill. Normally a happy, very active, young dog; Bodacious didn't want to get out of bed.  She was vomiting, very weak in the rear legs, and was having accidents in the house.  Bodacious was refusing her meals.

Her owners became concerned immediately and took her to a veterinary hospital. After numerous tests they still were no closer to finding out what was wrong with her.

Bodacious's owners decided to bring her to our office in hopes of getting to the bottom of her mysterious illness.  Dr Blankman reviewed the previous tests, performed a full comprehensive exam. After performing an ACTH Stimulation test Dr Blankman was able to diagnose Bodacious with Addison's Disease.   http://www.fountainsah.com/site/view/123176_PetMedicalInfo.pml

( click on link to learn more about Addison's Disease)

Patients are usually young (age 4-5 years) dogs but any age dog can be affected. (This disease occurs in cats but is very rare.) There is a genetic predisposition for Addison's disease in the standard poodle and bearded collie. Female dogs are affected twice as often as males.

At first signs are vague: listlessness, possibly some vomiting or diarrhea. Ultimately, the disease results in a phenomenon known as the Addisonian crisis. The animal collapses in shock due to its inability to adapt to the caloric and circulatory requirements in stress. Blood sugar may drop dangerously low. Potassium levels soar and disrupt the heart rhythm because there is not enough conserved sodium to exchange for potassium. Heart rate slows, arrhythmias result. The patient may not survive this episode

After beginning treatment Bodacious quickly was back to herself, active, hungry, and happy.

On Bodacious's follow up visit last week she gave everyone at our office kisses!