Adrenal Health

 Dog Adrenal Glands secrete hormones that control areas of your dog's body such as heart rate, glucose levels and sodium levels. When there is a problem with too little or too much hormone secretion, problems occur such as Addison's Disease and Cushing's Disease. The cause of these conditions includes problems such as as adrenal gland tumor.

Adrenal gland disease in dogs can cause many problems for your dog. There are two adrenal glands located on each side of the kidneys. The glands are part of the endocrine system, the body's way of producing hormones to regulate levels such as blood pressure and glucose among other things.

Hormones are used to both trigger some action in the body and also to keep that action within normal ranges. When a tumor or some other problem exists such as when the body mistakenly attacks a gland (autoimmune disease), the gland either produces too much hormone or too little.

Hormones that are produced by dog adrenal glands include:

• Epinephrine: Stress response, stimulates the heart beat and raises blood pressure.
• Cortisol: Responds to stress, metabolism of protein and carbohydrates, blood sugar levels, blood pressure and muscle strength
• Oldster: Regulates water balance, salt and potassium

Canine Addison's Disease (Hypoadrenocorticism)

Addison's disease occurs when the dog adrenal glands secrete too little hormone. It occurs when another condition or drug negatively effects the glands such as a tumor, medications (steroids in particular) or infection. It is possible that for some reason your dog's body had what is known as an autoimmune reaction, and started to attack the adrenal glands with no other reason.

Addison's causes a drop in cortisol production, lower sodium level and as a result lower blood pressure. Unfortunately it also triggers over production of potassium which doesn't allow the heart to pump harder to make up for the blood pressure drop. If this isn't corrected a deadly condition called Addisonian crisis can set in.

Addison's could also be triggered when a dog is being treated for Cushing's Disease whose goal is to reduce the over secretion of hormones. If the hormone levels are brought too low, then Addison's could be triggered.

Symptoms of Addison's disease are diarrhea, vomiting and weakness.

Canine Cushing's Disease (Hyperadrenocorticism)

Cushing's is a common endocrine system problem in dogs. In 85% of cases it isn't caused by adrenal gland, but by the pituitary gland, called pituitary dependent hyperadrenocorticism (PDH). 15% of the time the condition is caused by a tumor on the adrenal gland problem called a functional adrenal tumor (FAT).

Breed where an above effected by Cushing's CS is typically found in middle-aged to old dogs. Common breeds include miniature poodle, dachshund, terrier breeds, boxer, beagle. FAT tend to occur more frequently in large breed dogs than PDH.

As mentioned, when the adrenal glands secrete excess hormone (glucocorticoids), then your dog is suffering from Cushing's Disease. This could be caused by a tumor on the adrenal glands or if you dog has been on a steroid medication for a long period of time.

If your veterinarian detects an adrenal gland tumor, she will also look for a tumor on the pituitary gland (PDH) since these two types or tumors are often seen together.

Symptoms of Canine Cushing's disease include hair loss and blackheads on the abdomen, excessive urination and excessive thirst. Cushing's can trigger other problems in your dog's body including infection, diabetes mellitus, and high blood pressure (hypertension).

If the Cushing's was triggered by a medication, then if your dog is taken off the drug, then the condition can reverse itself.