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Hi -My 5yr old Sheltie just has his annual exam. The only problem seems to be high cholesterol of 520. He has been eating Honest Kitchen Base mix plus we add 93% fat free protein. Rocky is appears to be healthy other than panting a lot which we think is because he is a very anxious dog and he urinates about average. We plan on upping his protein to 97% fat free and adding Viva Fish Oil and retest in 2 months. Do you think a Thyroid and/or Adrenal test is necessary first?

Hi -My 5yr old Sheltie just has his annual exam. The only problem seems to be high cholesterol of 520. He has been eating Honest Kitchen Base mix plus we add 93% fat free protein. Rocky is appears to be healthy other than panting a lot which we think is because he is a very anxious dog and he urinates about average. We plan on upping his protein to 97% fat free and adding Viva Fish Oil and retest in 2 months. Do you think a Thyroid and/or Adrenal test is necessary first?

Updated On January 16th, 2019

Pet's info: Dog | Shetland Sheepdog | Male | neutered | 5 years and 2 months old | 25 lbs

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Answered By Penelope Graben, DVM

Veterinarian

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Hello, In dogs, unlike humans, we generally don't worry about their diets with high cholesterol. High cholesterol can be associated with both hypothyroidism and adrenal disease, as well as a genetic predisposition to high cholesterol. I would recommend talking to your vet about the rest of the of blood panel and seeing if there are any other abnormalities that might point to an endocrine disorder or a genetic predisposition before changing his diet. However, some boutique, "fancier" diets are not actually balanced for canine nutrition. In particular, grain free diets have been associated with heart disease over time. I would talk to your vet about his diet and make sure it's meeting his nutritional needs before making any new changes. If you do decide to change his diet, please do so over a course of seven days so the rapid change of food does not cause stomach upset. Other signs of hypothyroidism include: increased appetite, weight gain, lesser activity levels, hair loss, and changes of the skin Other signs of adrenal disease, either Hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing's disease) or Hypoadrenocorticism (Addison's disease), can include: vomiting, diarrhea, panting, weight gain, increased thirst and urination, hair loss, and skin changes If Rocky has any of these other changes occurring, this is likely why your vet is recommending further testing to examine his endocrine health. Luckily, most endocrine diseases can be well managed over time once they are diagnosed. I hope this has been helpful! I know it's a lot of information, but I wanted to try to answer everything. Thanks for using PetCoach!

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    Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

    Veterinarian

    Thank you for your questions about Rocky. You could approach this in a couple ways. Certainly Hypothyroidism and Cushings Disease can both cause this issue and some times it can be the first sign. You may try feeding Rocky a lower fat diet (both kibble and dry) and retest the lab work. If it is still elevated or if you start to notice changes in Rocky’s habit, then pursue further testing. You could also pursue the changes you mentioned and retest. The last option is you pursue testing now. Hypothyroidism is generally easy to diagnose with a blood test. Cushings is harder to diagnose and generally involves a couple blood tests and maybe an ultrasound. Which ever you decide, I recommend to call your veterinarian prior to retesting the cholesterol and ask if Rocky needs to be fasted for 12 hours before the blood draw. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

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