What Causes Cushing's (Cushion's) Disease In Dogs

There are five main symptoms of Cushing's (Cushing's) disease in dogs, and two main causes of the disease in our canine friends. These five symptoms may include, but are not limited to, increased thirst and increased trips outside to urinate; increased eating habits; fast weight gain; a much thinner coat of hair, and; skin care troubles.

The two main causes of Cushing's disease are little tumors on the inside of the pituitary gland and tumors in the body sending mixed signals to the adrenal gland. Take a look at all of the symptoms and causes one at a time.

Increased Drinking And Urination

Watch your dogs drinking and urination habits. Has your dog been drinking a lot more than usual? Has he been going out more often to urinate? If so, this is one of the symptoms associated with the disease.

Increased Eating

Has your dog been eating more than they normally do? Does your dog still seem to be hungry after eating their usual size meal?

Rapid Weight Gain

Has Your Dog seemed to be gaining weight very rapidly? Has your dogs legs seemed to get skinny, and have less muscle than they usually do?

Loss Of Or Thinning Hair

Has your canine friend been loosing hair? Has your dog developed patches of missing hair on their body?

Skin Problems

Has your dog developed a lot of acne, and blackheads on their skin ?

Cushing's disease in dogs usually happens when the adrenal gland delivers too much of a body chemical called glucocorticoid. There are two conditions that can cause this to happen. The first condition is that there could be small tumors on the inside of the pituitary gland causing it to send the wrong signals to the adrenal grand, in turn causing it to produce to much glucocorticoid. The second reason is that there could be a tumor growing on the adrenal gland. This could cause it to grow bigger in size, causing it to produce more of the chemical.

Thanks to modern medicine both of these causes have treatments available. The pituitary gland is usually treatable with medications. These medications must be given to your dog daily. The adrenal gland is usually treatable with a surgery to remove the tumor from the gland. This will shrink the gland back to it's origional size.

There are also other things that can cause Cushing's disease symptoms in dogs, such as an allergy to their dog food. Some dog food companies use a lot of chemicals and dyes that can be very harmful to your dog. But always remember before you try to make any diagnoses, or come up with your own conclusions. You should always consult your local vet.


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To find more information about your dogs health condition. And to find out how some commercial dog foods could be harmful to your dog and shorten their life span without you even knowing, check out the information at Health Dog