As I’ve previously talked about in my Instagram Maisy was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism last October.
Hypothyroidism occurs when your dog is not secreting enough of the thyroid hormones, causing your dog’s metabolism to slow. (see image below for the location of the Thyroid glad) This condition is more common in dogs than in other domestic animals, but it usually responds well to appropriate medication.
Our Vet had failed to test her even when we took her for numerous appointments with concerns. (I’ll get into the signs and symptoms later)
It was an incredibly scary time for us, we genuinely thought at one point that we would loose her. We had been terrible owners and failed to noticed that she needed treatment. But we weren’t alone, many of the people we spoke too had similar experiences. It wasn’t diagnosed or misdiagnosed!
We were fobbed off by our vet for 3 years that it was a ‘collie’ thing.
We never attempted to diagnose her ourselves, that’s why we pay vets. If we had we would have pushed for a blood test.
That’s where Chester came into the equation.
I obviously was desperate for another dog. But a significant reason behind getting Chester was for Maisy.
She was at the point where she would refuse to walk, lie in the house all day snoozing. Mum put it down to her anxiety and old age. As a family we had stopped adventuring, we were barely going round the block. I was sad looking back at all the times we’d spent training, and throwing her tennis ball. I wanted that back. I suppose I thought if I could have that with a new puppy that it might have encouraged Maisy to join in. It did. Within weeks of getting Chester she was much more herself again. We started walking (with a bit hesitation) again. But she still wasn’t quite right.
In October, Me and Chester were away with friends and my mum rang me in a panic. She told me one side of Maisy face wasn’t working and her eye was sagging. I told her to ring the emergency vet and she went to the appointment. They told her she had facial paralysis and there wasn’t much that could be done without a scan. She gave mum prednisolone and to come back in a week.
At the next appointment, it was made clear that we needed to pay for an MRI scan as they were almost certain it was cancer. The MRI cost us £2406.27. We took an emergency appointment at Wear Referrals Veterinary Specialist & Emergency Hospital. The staff there were amazing.
We still don’t know what the trigger was. But her specialist seemed to think it was Chester making her play had finally brought the Hypothyroidism to the surface.
Once we had her diagnosis, she began medication. She is on Thyroxine tablets now for the rest of her life. Her face still has paralysis and may never recover fully.
Ever since, I have been passionate about making sure no other dog has to go through what Maisy went through.
Here are the guidelines of the symptoms:
Maisy had 6 of these, but she also had weight loss too.
The biggest issues is what happens when it remains undiagnosed. With Maisy it was facial paralysis. Unfortunately there are a host of problems that can come if it left untreated, diseases including corneal ulcers, anemia, and a devastating disease called adult-onset megaesophagus, which will eventually lead to death.
Please if in any doubt ask your Vet for a blood test checking T4! Prices can range from vet to vet but we pay about £40 to £60 every 6 months for Maisy’s.
Thank you for reading and if you would like me to answer any questions please message me on Instagram or comment below.
Sarah, Chester and of course Maisy x