Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

I took my dog to the vet today for boosters and they noticed she had a little patch of hair missing ftom her tail. She asked if Lucy chewed on that area and I have never seen her do that. So she asked if she could test her thyroid...with a blood test and it came back at the lowest end of the normal range. She said we would have to retest in 6 months and if it dips below that magic mark on the scale, she would have to go on meds, twice daily for a month. If you have experience with this, please tell me what you know. We love her dearly, but at the same time, she is a dog. What would an underactive thyroid mean for her? Just curious...please don't judge me about saying she is only a dog. She is overly loved in our home...I just don't want to throw money at the vet if I don't have to.

Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

Hypothyroidism is a fairly common condition in dogs. The good news is that it's also fairly easy and pretty cheap to treat. Usually dogs go on thyroid medication (my vet uses thyrosin) often just one pill twice daily. Dogs that are treated (especially if they are caught early before symptoms are advanced) live very normal lives, usually they just urinate a little more because of the thyrosin. Dogs that are not treated are more prone to infections, obeisity, and dramatic (and sometimes dangerous) changes in temperament.

Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

It's called hypothryroidism. It's not uncommon.

Meds are relatively cheap.

She'll do fine for a long and healthy life on meds.

Good luck.

Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

Yes, it is VERY common and the meds are about as cheap as they come.

Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

I had a Miniature Poodle who had hypothyroidism. She was treated with a small dose of thyroid meds and lived to be 19 yrs old. Her symptoms were sluggishness, a total loss of hair on her tail and flanks and a thickening of her skin. She lived a happy life and her condition didn't seem to bother her a bit.

Maryclip

Has anyone ever had a pet dog that was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid?

hypothyroidism is very common! however, to be thorough, your vet needs to run a tsh and a free t4 blood tests (no the t4 is not free, the test is called free t4) to make absolutely sure and there is no reason to wait 6 months to retest and start on meds. uncontrolled hypothyroidism can make things worse for your dog. also, your dog will more than likely need to be on medication for life, not just a month.