Pot Bellies and Cabergoline

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LuvinThisPig

LuvinThisPig

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I am hoping someone can help here. How many of our Acros present with pot bellies?? Pig has had a physique similar to that of a toddler (best way I can describe it - think of a tubby bellied toddler, but in a cat... if the cat was standing on his hind legs). Now, the last radiographs only a few months ago showed that he was severely constipated, despite the fact that he was having runny stools everyday. I know, it was the soft moving around the solid. The constipation was, in turn, making it hard for him to empty his bladder completely. It was his bladder that was causing the pot. The radiographs were all totally clean, except for the bladder. I am just thinking that maybe it is getting a little bigger...?? It is hard to tell, I am always so paranoid. His bladder has been a little inflamed as of late, because he got a little backed up. I upped the MiraLax and have seen good results. In fact, he was pretty slim (normal physique) this morning, but then he ate and it was all poofy again.. lol. Has anyone else seen this in an Acro?

What do you do if your vet will not prescribe Cabergoline? It is only because she has no experience. She seems hesitant. Should I seek another vet? Should I push her to research it further?

Where can I find some files to send her way? I am realizing I might have to do the leg work here.
 
Neko never did get a pot belly - it can be from organ growth, but I think the majority of acros do. Of course, she also had long fur and even a mild pot wouldn't be obvious. But she didn't have much organ growth, except the liver later on.

As for Cabergoline, I think a number of acro parents who use it have printed off correspondence with the Royal Veterinary Clinic - just so vets know there is something behind it. In the Cabergoline thread I started here, there is also a link to the paper from South America on it's use in acrocats. Unfortunately I haven't seen anything formal written yet from RVC.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
In the Cabergoline thread I started here,
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Yes, I have been going through this bit by bit. My vet is really good, but out of her comfort zone with this. She is also uber conservative when giving medications. It was pulling teeth to get Cisapride and Gabapentin. I think sometimes she sees me as some of her other patients. I realize it has to be heard to trust the general public. I feel if I can find the right resources then she will realize that it has backing. That I am doing research and making appropriate choices...
 
Any chance you could get the vet to consult with an internal medicine vet? Whenever my vet was out of her depth (which was often with Neko :p), she put a call into an IM vet. Printing off articles from peer reviewed vet journals also helped.
 
Yes... She referred me to an internist. But, when they called to talk about a plan based on his records, all she was going to do or wanted to do was a fructosamine test (which is useless with all the home testing) and an ultra-sound... She said she could clear him for treatment, but that was it... Maybe, I think, I need to press the internist more. Find out exactly what it is she can or can't do before spending the 500 on a visit... That is money for the SRT. I am being stingy... Lol. No sense pouring it down the drain...
 
In the mean time, research and journals will be what I use. I have access to a massive international database of all the best journals through my school. I will be taking advantage of that. As well as the resources found here. I have a week off school and a mind to see something done... Lol.
 
Leo had a bit of potbelly before the SRT. It seems to have receded.

Leo saw an internist (in Austin), pre-SRT. Her first comment was that he looked typical for an Acrocat. Mostly the enlarged jaw, the slightly clubbed feet, and the potbelly. The internist had seen multiple Acrocats, but Leo was the first one that went for SRT in her realm.

Good luck on the research. If there is stuff you can share, it would great to read it here. I wish we had a document repository on this website/forum. Somewhere in the past few years I read that the Prozinc release mechanism was designed for slow release like Levemir and Lantus. So it is almost a depot insulin since it has some lasting effects past the 12 hours. But now I can't find that info. I think it said that Prozinc was encapsulated at the particle level and the coating or encapsulation degraded. Heck, I can't find that info now.
 
JeffJ said:
Leo saw an internist (in Austin)
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Do you think it would be worth paying $500 to see her?? I just hate to spend the money for unnecessary tests. Especially if the University requires they do them there, themselves. Pig does not display many features of a typical Acro cat except for the appetite and pot belly... I am very convinced I caught it and the diabetes within a month of the onset. However, if that is the case, then it is early on in the game...
 
That's an outrageous price for an internist. My first consult was an hour long for $250. On diagnosis, my vet suggested I go see an IM vet, but I decided no to cause I was going to CSU, where the IM vet's really know acromegaly. The one my vet originally consulted said we didn't need high dose tests done until 10 units. Never got there. I saw a different IM vet later.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
That's an outrageous price for an internist
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Yes and that is my hesitancy. I cannot see wasting $500 for tests that might or might not be needed. I will call them again and see what it is they can actually do. SRT is not financially guaranteed, but I can promise if I have anything to do with it (and obviously I do) that we WILL be seeking SRT by this summer at the latest. I think I would like the ultra-sound, simply because I really would like to see what is going on inside his belly. However, other than the pot and the higher BGs, he has no outwardly symptoms. His hunger and thirst are no insatiable and, in fact, he seeks no water other than what he gets in his food. His pot belly decreases tremendously when he fully empties his bladder. Does the absence of symptoms have a direct correlation to severity or progression of acromegaly... Well, that I do not know and I cannot see how it would. However, it does seem as if it could have at least a partial causal relationship.....

When money is such a factor, it might be more beneficial to focus on nutrition, lab values, and saving money. I also am seeking Cabergoline until SRT can come through. I am thinking that Pig would be the first acromegalic case for this IM as well. For me, I would like a bit more experience for $500.... Saving my funds for those who have some... I think that is the better route at this point.
 
Given the financial situation, I probably would not see the internist. While the internist may have experience with Acro, you have this forum for advice. Other patients may need that external help. I certainly wouldn't see the internist if they do not have Acro experience.

While you have "caught" the symptoms, the pituitary tumor will not be responding to the insulin. In your situation, I would pursue a vet that could get Cabergoline started. Heck, if none are local in OK, then you could perhaps try to find a remote vet to prescribe it. Or maybe a drive to the big city.

Pig needs to get out of those 300's soon. I hope the move to 20 units or 21 units will do it.
 
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