# Cushings Disease in a mouse



## zany_toon (Jan 30, 2009)

Has anyone ever had a mousie with this? I'm asking because I had Perky up to the vet tonight because he is still losing hair and in the last week has started to drink huge amounts of water - I thought at first that he was pushing his bedding against his water bottle so moved it higher to be sure. He's drinking around 30 to 40ml every few days, more than three times what my other single males drink  He's lost about two thirds of his hair now and his skin has become papery thin and easily torn in some areas while in others it seems almost leather-like in that it is so thick compared to normal. The vet who say Perky has seen him for all but one of his appointments and couldn't believe how much worse Perky looks now, he was last up about 2 weeks ago and I said at the time that I wasn't sure if he had mites and was treating him just incase. But with the huge amounts of water that he is drinking on top of his hair loss and change in skin texture the vet thinks he has Cushings  He has been given medicine tonight to get started on and I've to keep an eye on him incase it affects him because the amount he needs in comparison to the size of the tablet is so small  Poor Perky doesn't need this, I don't know much about Cushings but I am sure that hamsters are prone to it and that the ending isn't good  Can some one please tell me what to expect?

Perky thankfully isn't letting it bother him at all, he is still bright and chirpy as ever, but getting very bald. I know these photos aren't as clear as they need to be, but you can see just how bad he is:












(Excuse the angle of this photo, it was to let you see how bald his underside is becoming)








Thankfully he is being very good about his medicine - he took it quite happily today.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Ive got a dog with cushings, although not a lot of help perhaps, but ive found this about cushings in Hamsters which is a bit nearer in species at least. Might be some help.

Cushing&#39;s Disease in Hamsters | eHow.co.uk


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## zany_toon (Jan 30, 2009)

Sled dog hotel said:


> Ive got a dog with cushings, although not a lot of help perhaps, but ive found this about cushings in Hamsters which is a bit nearer in species at least. Might be some help.
> 
> Cushing's Disease in Hamsters | eHow.co.uk


Thank you for the link  It does seem to point towards all the signs that Perky has just now, I'm struggling to find anyone that has had a mouse that's gone through it though to see how they fared on treatment (vetoryl - not sure if that is the right spelling.) I hope that your dog copes well with it and that it doesn't affect him/her much


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

Oh the poor little man, I'm sorry ZT I can't help but just wanted to say I hope the meds work for him and he grows some hair back. He looks a right little character though!


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## fatrat (May 14, 2012)

Poor guy  I hope the medicine helps. He certainly looks chirpy and happy.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

zany_toon said:


> Thank you for the link  It does seem to point towards all the signs that Perky has just now, I'm struggling to find anyone that has had a mouse that's gone through it though to see how they fared on treatment (vetoryl - not sure if that is the right spelling.) I hope that your dog copes well with it and that it doesn't affect him/her much


My Dogs on vetory too, its made a huge difference and she is so much better now thank you. Must admit I hadnt heard of it being used in a mouse. Ive got a 22 dog, and she started on a 30 size dose once a day, and is now on a 10 dose capsule every other day which is the smallest they do. So It must be very hard to get a mouse dosage right.


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## zany_toon (Jan 30, 2009)

Thanks everyone for wishing Perky well  He seems happy just now, thankfylly and I'm just hoping it stays that way  And yes Blade, he is a right little character - his nickname is Cheeky Chops for a reason 



Sled dog hotel said:


> My Dogs on vetory too, its made a huge difference and she is so much better now thank you. Must admit I hadnt heard of it being used in a mouse. Ive got a 22 dog, and she started on a 30 size dose once a day, and is now on a 10 dose capsule every other day which is the smallest they do. So It must be very hard to get a mouse dosage right.


It is proving difficult to get the right dose as his prescribed amount is "a tiny pinch." He's got a 10mg tablet and the vet thinks it should be enough for about two weeks (I've to open the capsule up and just take a tiny bit.) It means though that it's impossible to give him the same size dose everyday - with the number of medicines I've been given for the mice that's to be "a tiny pinch" I'm going to be looking for a scale that does micrograms so that I can give them a consistent dose


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## zany_toon (Jan 30, 2009)

So, 6 days after starting the vetoryl something's happened with Perky:







You wouldn't think he is the same boy from last week would you? There are still bald spots (near his bum, his underside)  I love my vets  I know he will never be cured, but at least for the time being he can be nice and cosy while it's cold  His new fur is super fine and soft and seems to break easily, but it's there


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## fatrat (May 14, 2012)

Aww he looks so much better now, bless him


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## zany_toon (Jan 30, 2009)

fatrat said:


> Aww he looks so much better now, bless him


Thank you  I'm so glad that I have a vet that is willing to try unlicensed treatments for my mice, Perky seems so much better and when I took him up last week I was convinced i would lose him within a few days


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Thats amazing in barely a week too, mind you I found it worked pretty quick on my dog too.


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