Thanks for the kind words
4/18 Mid-Afternoon Update (48 hours @ the Hospital):
The doctor called to inform me that my dog's kidney ultrasound showed NO kidney abnormalities. No news is good news! He did, however, state that his adrenal glands looked a bit smaller than they should, and that this coupled with the other symptoms may be a sign of Addison's disease.
Quote:
Addison’s disease (hypoadrenocorticism) is caused by a lower than normal production of hormones, such as cortisol, by the adrenal glands. The adrenals are small glands that are located near the kidneys. Adrenal hormones are necessary to control salt, sugar and water balance in the body.
When a pet is stressed, their adrenal glands produce more cortisol, which helps them deal with the stress. Because dogs with Addison’s disease cannot make enough cortisol, they cannot deal with stress, so the signs may occur or worsen when stressed. What a dog finds stressful depends upon his/her temperament. For many dogs, any change in their day-to-day routine, such as being boarded or having house guests, is stressful and may precipitate or worsen signs of Addison’s disease.
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My dog does have stress issues lately, as we had some neighbors move in next door with two large Pits. One of the pits came off-leash and attacked my dog last September. Ever since then, he has been extremely scared of other dogs, and sometimes other people. He gets extremely frightened when he hears noises, and freaks out when he hears the neighbors come home. He makes an awful shrieking sound and appears to be very nervous. On the night where he got sick, he heard the neighbors come home @ around 2am, and was extremely vocal, running around the house crying, growling, and nervously barking. His vomiting episode started shortly after that.
The doctor will be performing a cortisol test later this afternoon, which should assist with the doctor's diagnosis. I'll poster later tonight with updates.
The good news: Puppy will be coming home tomorrow, regardless. We're excited to have him back