Lizzy needs some rays.
Lizzy had an ultrasound & xrays, yesterday. To diagnose her distended belly, constant panting, chronic rapid breathing, inability to relax, stressed, etc.
Overall, she's in great condition, except... They found a 1" tumor on her adrenal gland, which is most likely over-stimulating her adrenal gland.
Yikes! The vet suspects this might be Cushings disease, and this tumor would certainly cause it. They don't know if the tumor is growing, or not.
The 2nd adrenal gland has atrophied, which seems normal, given that the other one is over-producing, so the normal one remains inactive.
No wonder Lizzy is always on overdrive, and always starving for food. She's high on adrenaline and stress hormones.
She doesn't drink nor pee abnormally, but does exhibit some of the other Cushings symptoms.
So what to do next? Vet suggested many options, starting with urine tests & then blood tests for Cushings. He didn't jump to the surgical removal option,
cuz they don't know if it's cancerous or not. A non-cancerous tumor (an "incidentaloma") can stay there for years, so then he'd just treat the symptoms.
A cancerous tumor can spread, if it hasn't already. So scary.
Riddle me this: how does one possibly capture urine from a dog who pees outdoors?
As for treatment vs. surgery, I'm leaning towards: get that thing OUTTA her.
I'm hoping that would treat the cause, not the symptoms. (Why does Rocky Horror come to mind?)