So the vet said that Chance was hypothyroid so he put him on .8 mg of Thyro Thyrosyn 2x daily, (he weighs 92 lbs.). The results of his re-check blood draw they found him to be hyperthyroid. So they said they want to try him out at 1/2 the original dose. Okay fine...but here's the thing. I probably forgot as much as I remembered his night time dose, (I know, bad mom ). On the day before his test he got his usual morning dose but the I skipped the evening dose because, since he usually gets the 2nd dose late, (like 11pm), and he had to have a pill 4-6 hours before his appointment, which put it at 5am, I skipped the dose the night before. So I'm thinking that maybe he needs to go on an even lower dose than what they're saying. I hope I'm explaining this right...

Anyway, they left a message about all this and I need to call them back, so I'll of course bring all this up with them when I call, but I just wanted to get some opinions here first. TIA!

Another thing, it's been 4 weeks since he first started on the med and he's already lost 4 lbs. Do they work that fast?

Edited to add: Just called the vet and they gave me his levels from the two tests. First one was .5, second one was 5.9.

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Karen, Chance, Lucy and Savanah RB



“Everyone needs a dog to adore him, and a cat to bring him back to reality”

We send our thyroid tests to Michigan where we get more than a T4... When we send just a T4 to Idexx, my understanding is that the T4 should be slightly elevated, above high normal. If his value is in the reference ranges I am familiar with, it doesn't seem very high. In general, with a truly hypothyroid dog, we medicate the dog with 0.1 mg per 10 lbs once or twice daily. My Sally was borderline and weighed sixty lbs and she got 0.6 mg once daily. And yes, they can dramatically lose weight.

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Janice and The Celebration Gang -
"Samantha, George, Tiki, Emily, Mick and Basil" Gone but not forgotten, Sally(Windjammer's Ima Country Girl CDX CGC), Laney(Mandell Marlenes Celebration UD RA CGC), and Cookie(Starseeker's Kissmas Cookie CDX RE CGC).

I would be running a full thyroid panel and I believe the dosage is 0.1mg of what the doh *should* weigh. So if your dog is 100lbs and it should only weigh 70 I would think its 0.7mg twice daily. At least thats my understanding from working at a clinic.

Sometimes, the T4 comes back normal and the vet says the dog is fine when really its not which is why a full panel is best.

Mines thyroid was not to bad so he only needs 0.4mg twice daily as 0.5mg was a tad to high. Hes 62lbs and he seems fine on the 0.4mg twice daily.

As for your evening dose, I dont think it matters as long as you resumed the morning dose. Ive accidentally skipped a dose here and there

Yes, you should be using the free T4 in order get the meds right, and the therapeutic range for the usual T4 is at the upper end of normal, and in some cases even elevated. Some dogs also need the free T3 monitored, but most will do find adjusting on the free T4.

The rest of the stuff on the thyroid panel you don't need after meds have been started.

Were you asking whether your dog actually got properly tested since you had last given the medicine over 24 hours before the blood was drawn for the test? I imagine your vet asked you when the last dose was given and factored your answer into the interpretation of the lab results?
As for how to remember to give the medicine: I am sure you read here on the forum or online that thyroid medicine is best given either 1 hour before or 3 hours after a meal. The problem is, if you are not home all day with your dog, it is nearly impossible to manage that administration schedule.
So, I always just give Brooks' medicine when I feed him at 7 am and 5 pm (he gets .8 in the morning and .4 in the evening, per Dr Dodds and my vet's recommendation).

He actually got his dose at about 4.5-5 hours before his appointment. I was just wondering if the 1/2 dose, (of his original dosage), they want me to give him is low enough. I talked to his doctor and feel comfortable with .4 mg twice a day. We'll re-test again in 4 weeks.

I didn't know about the timing of the pill with food, they never mentioned that. I could do the 1 hour before his breakfast and then 3 hours after his dinner. I'll start that tomorrow. Thanks.

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Karen, Chance, Lucy and Savanah RB



“Everyone needs a dog to adore him, and a cat to bring him back to reality”