thyroid problem...makes dogs fat

[khpence84]

In petsmart today a girl had a 7 year old golden retriever. He seem to be extremely, extremely, extremely obese. This dog outweighed me any day and i am 156lbs. Very wide he got around fine though no problems there was happy as could be so i aproach her and asked if i could pet him she said yes, he was a sweet dog. I aksed her why he was so big, i have seen some fat dogs in my day but nothing this size, and she said he had a thyroid problem. Does that make dogs that large? I also thought there was medicine for it?

[carrie]

One function of the thyroid hormones is to regulate metabolism. Hypothyroydism is a failure in the complex system involved in the release of these hormones or, more usually, the thyroid gland itself. A common symptom of hypothyroidism is weight gain and obesity. Diagnosis is simple by a blood test and treatment is given by synthetic hormones for the duration of the dogs life.
Golden Retrievers are prone to this condition but you have to ask why did this dog get to such a size before help was sought? People,eh? Hope this answers your question.

[AdoreMyDogs]

My yellow lab had thyroid problems...he gained alot of weight and his coat was thinning and his skin would get scabby and have a terrible, obnixious odor. We took him to 3 vets before they identified the problem correctly and gave us thyroid pills. He took them for the rest of his life. His coat cleared up, hair grew back, and he began to lose weight almost immediately after we started him on his thyroxine (think that was the name of his thyroid pill).

He gained weight but it does not sound like he gained NEARLY as much as that golden you were talking of. I think his highest weight was 110 before we started him on the medicine if I remember correctly.

[carrie]

Adoremydogs, I am amazed that it took three vets to diagnose your dogs thyroid problem. THE classic signs are weight gain, hair loss and skin problems! It is a far more common problem than is generally realised and many dogs with chronic skin conditions have thyroid problems but are left untested as their weight is controlled. Good for you for taking him elsewhere.
Thyroxin is the usual drug used to treat the condition.

[Doxiedoxie]

My younger doxie, Blue is also on thyroid meds.. and it does help keep her from being a butterball. Her coat is better also, it had been thin around her tail, I'm ashamed to say my groomer noticed it and suggested the thyroid test, even though I was working at the vets at the time! ( It was just mild thinning/ slow regrowth by her tail)She also has allergy problems, poor doggie.

Anyhow, it sounds to me like the golden's owner in question is either not treating the problem, just started treating the problem, or using it as an excuse to allow her dog to be overweight!

[AdoreMyDogs]

The first 2 vets told us that Beener had allergies, they gave us special shampoo, we had to bathe him EVERY DAY, which he was not too thrilled about. None of the allergy stuff worked. I can't believe they did not know that it was thyroid related and not just allergies...the third vet knew suspected right away, did the blood test and when the test came back, prescribed thyroxine. He's still our animals vet. Of course I will not go back to the other 2 again.

[lbaker]

My youngest dog, Thunder, (mostly boarder collie) has just been diagnosed with a thyroid problem and is now on medication. No visible weight gain but hair loss and very bad skin odor. Generally was very unhappy and embarressed. His doctor said we (Thunder & I) should notice a great improvement within a week. I guess he will be on the meds forever but thank Dog it's something treatable. DO NOT WAIT before having a doctor check it out. It's not necessarily life threatening but think of the quality of life. Love this WEB site.

Originally posted by khpence84:
In petsmart today a girl had a 7 year old golden retriever. He seem to be extremely, extremely, extremely obese. This dog outweighed me any day and i am 156lbs. Very wide he got around fine though no problems there was happy as could be so i aproach her and asked if i could pet him she said yes, he was a sweet dog. I aksed her why he was so big, i have seen some fat dogs in my day but nothing this size, and she said he had a thyroid problem. Does that make dogs that large? I also thought there was medicine for it?

[lbaker]

My poor little Thunder (mostly boarder collie) was just diagnosed with a thyroid problem and is now on meds. He too was losing hair and had a bad skin odor. No noticable weight gain however. Although it may not be life threatening it's a matter of the quality of life. Poor little guy was embarrassed and you could tell he was not a happy fella. Magic pills will do the trick and take your dog to the Dr at once if you even suspect something like this. Be aware. Be forwarned.

[havello]

My yellow lab had thyroid problems...he gained alot of weight and his coat was thinning and his skin would get scabby and have a terrible, obnixious odor. We took him to 3 vets before they identified the problem correctly and gave us thyroid pills. He took them for the rest of his life. His coat cleared up, hair grew back, and he began to lose weight almost immediately after we started him on his thyroxine (think that was the name of his thyroid pill).

He gained weight but it does not sound like he gained NEARLY as much as that golden you were talking of. I think his highest weight was 110 before we started him on the medicine if I remember correctly.

What pills did your vet give you for the thyroid problem?

[K9soul]

What pills did your vet give you for the thyroid problem?

My golden was recently diagnosed with thyroid autoimmune disease, meaning his body creates a chemical that destroys his own thyroid level. The treatment is the same as for just regular low thyroid and he is on levothyroxine (which is the generic for the following brands: Eltroxin (Can), Levo-T, Levotabs, Levothroid, Levoxyl, Synthroid, Thyrox, Unithroid). Dogs are treated with the same medications for thyroid that humans are (but dosing always depending on the size of the dog and the level of thyroid).

[angelssunrise]

One function of the thyroid hormones is to regulate metabolism. Hypothyroydism is a failure in the complex system involved in the release of these hormones or, more usually, the thyroid gland itself. A common symptom of hypothyroidism is weight gain and obesity. Diagnosis is simple by a blood test and treatment is given by synthetic hormones for the duration of the dogs life.
Golden Retrievers are prone to this condition but you have to ask why did this dog get to such a size before help was sought? People,eh? Hope this answers your question.

I have a 8 year old Golden Retriever who was just taken to the vet yesterday because she had dry flacky spots all over she was extremely overweight and having a hard time getting around. When they weighed her she was 143 pounds, we knew she had been gaining weight and could not understand why she was eating the dosage that the last vet said to give her. The last vet saw her about a year ago and said give her 2 1/2 to 3 cups a day. So this is what we did since at the time she was overweight.

About 8 months later we moved and figured she gained weight due to not moving around much. It seemed like she was still gaining weight we were at a loss. So since we are in an area that gets colder she had a very hard time getting up one day. Between the skin and this issue we said enough, and took her to this vet here. The moment she saw her she suspected hypothyrodism this was before she even touched her. They did the bloodwork which cost us 65 dollars normally it would of been 150.

We got the bloodwork today and she barely even registered numbers, and she is slightly anemic. So Thursday we go pick up the pills and she starts the treatment for the rest of her life. They are saying that this will help her lose weight. I am hoping.

My point is that people looked at her and thought we were feeding her to much. What they did not know is that she was put on a strict diet, she did not get people food or lots of extra treats. For the past several years we had her walking on a treadmill daily until it died. I took her to a vet when she had the exact symptoms just not as bad as now. His answer was she eats to much put her on a diet.

My only regret in all of this is I wish I known that the skin condition was a sign of a more serious condition instead of the breed is known for skin issues. If I had known this and the constant ear infections was something more serious I would of insisted that they dig deeper. I was trying to be the proper parent to my dog. So again please do not automatically assume that it is the owners fault by loving the dog to much or whatever the reasons would be.

If I can remember how to get back to this page I will post how she does on this medicine and how her progress is. If there are other owners out there who are like me they know they are feeding there dog the correct amounts and they are still gaining weight talk to your vet about other causes, and ask about this test. It has to be the full panel that is why it cost more but you might get the answers that you are looking for.

[Karen]

Awww, glad you finally got a diagnosis - thyroid issues can be tricky to diagnose in humans*, never mind dogs! Do keep us up to date and let us know how she is doing!



*From experience, my thyroid and I parted company this summer!

[mon]

Just wanted to thank the person that gave me some advice. My Aunty's 17 yr. old dog had such a terrible skin problem. I was told they should do blood work and that Asia would probably need steroids. That's exactly what they did. They took her back to a different vet. She took steroids for a while after the bloodwork and she is fine as wine now! My Aunt and Uncle and I'm sure Asia are so relieved and grateful. Thanks SO much!! I love Pet talk

[Karen]

Just wanted to thank the person that gave me some advice. My Aunty's 17 yr. old dog had such a terrible skin problem. I was told they should do blood work and that Asia would probably need steroids. That's exactly what they did. They took her back to a different vet. She took steroids for a while after the bloodwork and she is fine as wine now! My Aunt and Uncle and I'm sure Asia are so relieved and grateful. Thanks SO much!! I love Pet talk

That's good to hear!