Hair loss and losing colour

[chrisshub]

Hi,
I have a 'black' female PWD who is 10 now.  She was 6 when she was diagnosed.  Over the last year her coat has turned very 'thin' both in texture and density .  She is on Florinef 2 X 2 a day and Prednicare 5mg 1 X 1 a day.

Last year it got so that she had bald patches, her coat quality was poor and her coat turned white in patches.  At this time we were being given 25mg tablets of Prednicare that we had to split into 5mg sections. I spoke to the vet about the quality of her coat and if was due to the medication levels.  He then said he could give us 5mg tablets of the Prednicare, so we didn't have to split them given a more accurate does. Her coat did improve and grew back on the bald patches and grew back black too.

Recently I have noticed her coat thinning again. I have now removed all her long coat because it is matting up so easily as it is more like wool than hair now.

Question is: Is this normal for an older dog with Addison's OR should we be looking  at the medication?  She for the most part is fine in herself and so I am concerned about fixing what aint broke, BUT if it is a sign that we should review her medication I would rather do it before she was ill.

One of the problems is, of course, that it isn't that common and so the normal vets don't have much experience of a number of dogs living with the disease so they can see a pattern as the dog ages.

[patp]

My dog's coat has certainly improved since she was medicated properly and stabilised.

There is just the thought of Thyroid problems in the older dog of course? Given that her coat improved with tweaking the steroid it would probably be the first option?

[Jo CIMDA]

Hi

I would definitely check her thyroid.  It is not uncommon for dogs with Addison's disease to develop hypothyroidism as they get older and hair texture and colour changes and  baldness are a common clinical sign and worth checking out.   They are both autoimmune endocrine diseases so it is not surprising. 

Is it absolutely essential to maintain her on daily pred?  Most dogs with Addison's, when the maintenance dose of Florinef has been established, need only prednisolone at times of stress and not as a routine daily dose.

Please let us know the cause when you finally get to the bottom of it.

Jo

[chrisshub]

Hi,  Thanks for your replies.  I will get to the vets for a blood test then. I think my fear with the Addison's is messing with the meds and her getting sick!  Because she is well in every other way.  She isn't really stressy that's the thing.  When I got her she was really really really nervous, I think she must have worn out her adrenal gland then LOL. 

[patp]

I know what you mean about not rocking the boat with the meds. Willow was on daily steroid (hydrocortisone in her case) and I have been reluctant to wean her off because she is so well. I eventually bit the bullet and asked the vet if we ought to be reducing it and she agreed. It happens really slowly so takes a while to notice any changes. It is always possible to up the dose again of course!
Willow seems fine on the reduced dosage (every other day) though we have noticed that she seems thinner. This has always been a problem with her. Rabbits have moved into the garden so she does not rest as much as she used to! I feed her three times per day or more to help her keep some weight on. I have just introduced Viacutan, on the recommendation of someone I met, to help her coat condition. Must check with the vet though as this is an oil based product.