Banzai losing weight

[Kathleen]

Hey guys, I have a problem for the ODO hive, any thoughts or ideas appreciated.
Banzai has been losing weight. He is 25 at the shoulder and currently weighs 38 pounds! This is a thin breed obviously (Silken windhound) but he could easily be 50 pounds and not be over weight. He is also losing hair by the handfuls with a bald spot starting at his outer hip.
This all started in November. I have been feeding Honest Kitchen limited ingredient turkey with add ins like ground turkey rice and sweet potatoes with some vegetables. Banzai has a sensitive stomach and can’t handle a lot of fat so too much raw or performance foods aren’t really an option.
a couple weeks ago I switched to my perfect pet hunters turkey and salmon with freeze dried raw add ins. So far not seeing a big improvement on the scale but he is tolerating it well.
His energy level is good and he had a good appetite.
I took him in to the vet yesterday and they did bloodwork and a thyroid panel.
Sighthounds have naturally low thyroid so it’s a little tricky. Also while the hair loss would be a sign of low thyroid certainly he should be gaining not losing weight. Banzai is five years old.

[connie]

Yeah, thyroid comes to mind immediately, but maybe hyperthyroid.

Is this breed similar to Shelties, where they are 'naturally low' but should be supplemented if they aren't at 50% or more of the normal range?

[Kathleen]

No it’s normal for them to be below normal. as far as thyroid goes. I’m pretty confused about the whole thing but from what I have read other then an autoimmune thyroid problem hypothyroid is pretty rare in sighthounds. I guess they often get misdiagnosed, or used to.

[connie]

What an oddity! Okay, so if his reading is in the high end of the normal range, he actually could be hyperthyroid?!

And just to cover the obvious: has he got any kind of intestinal parasites? Don't know if that would explain the hair loss, but Rowley has gotten roundworms and turned into a walking skeleton overnight -- these dogs who have no body fat, I just can't relate.

[Kathleen]

He is on regular heartworm preventative so that “should” take care of the real nasty parasites, I guess we will to a screening though depending on what we see in the bloodwork.
I forgot to mention that he is on Zantac for his digestive issues. He has bilious vomiting syndrome, which hasn’t been a problem since he started the antacids.
I have heard though that it can leach minerals or nutrients from the body. I’m pretty puzzled about the whole thing.

[whiteboxerboy]

Gringo is a lot like Banzai in the doesn’t tolerate fats well category. He also suddenly stopped tolerating chicken so I switched him to a fish based kibble that is super low fat. He was doing great with the new food except he was needing more carbs/calories.

Connie suggested I add pasta to his meals and it’s helping. I’m actually addingboiked lean ground beef with the pasta. He still needs to gain more weight but he’s not acting like he’s starving all the time anymore.

I’m no help at all with the hair loss. I hope you can get this sorted out quickly. Good luck.

[whiteboxerboy]

Gringo is a lot like Banzai in the doesn’t tolerate fats well category. He also suddenly stopped tolerating chicken so I switched him to a fish based kibble that is super low fat. He was doing great with the new food except he was needing more carbs/calories.

Connie suggested I add pasta to his meals and it’s helping. I’m actually adding boiled lean ground beef with the pasta. He still needs to gain more weight but he’s not acting like he’s starving all the time anymore.

I’m no help at all with the hair loss. I hope you can get this sorted out quickly. Good luck.

[emmas_mom]

Kathleen, a related thyroid condition which can cause weight loss (or weight gain) and hair loss is Cushings disease. I once fostered a dog with Cushings and keeping weight on her was quite the challenge (though she did have the pronounced little potbelly often characteristic of Cushings - potbelly but ribs sticking out all over. I hope the bloodwork gives you some answers.

[Kathleen]

The bloodwork came back pretty much perfect. No parasites either.
The plan is to increase his food for a few weeks to see if that helps. If not we go looking for cancer, ultra sounds that sort of thing.
What I am feeding right now is my perfect pet Hunters, which is turkey salmon and potato. Three bricks a day which is the suggested feeding for a 60 pound dog, plus one and a half cups of answers turkey raw food and about a half a cup of goat milk.
I haven’t figured out the total Callie’s yet but it’s a heck of a lot of food. He is tolerating it very well. I do a weigh in on Monday so fingers crossed we see an improvement.
The hair loss isn’t better but I’m not sure how long that will take to show improvement.

[maxs_mommy]

Well shit. With those symptoms but none of the other symptoms I might think Cushing's/addison's (I'd be more on the addison's end of the guess) after thyroid. How's his thirst and energy and liver numbers? Is it a sudden weight loss or had he been slowly losing over time? My other thought might be cancer but that's a big "might" but cancer is calorie intensive.

[Kathleen]

No excessive drinking or urinating. He has a good appetite and energy levels are normal. He’s a hound so they pretty much sleep all the time unless they are chasing something. We have a morning off leash run every day and he is energetic as ever. Liver and kidney values were great as was the newer test to detect future kidney problems. (Yay)
I would say the hair loss started in November maybe December before I started noticing the weight loss. I thought the hair loss was normal blowing coat but it never stopped. I have to say his hair condition in general is great. Very shiny and healthy looking. No dry skin and his nails are in great shape.

[Kathleen]

We had a little vomiting episode Monday. Really a bummer but seems to have cleared up on it’s own. He still gained a pound last week so I’m counting that as a win.
He is still shedding like crazy but I did find a seasonal hair loss condition that kind of fits.
Even though we live in California I walk the dogs super early so they can run off leash and Banzai never just lays in the sun like the other dogs, so I’m adding melatonin and making a point to get him out more mid day.

[Kathleen]

Banzai is up to 42 pounds! Still shedding more then I think he should but over all looking so much better. He really has a great appetite. The food he is getting primarily has potato. It’s a fresh remade food. I’m starting to wonder if the additional carbs are helping with his appetite. I know carbs make me hungrier.

[JudyL]

Great news! Glad he's gaining on the new food and is hungry too.

[emmas_mom]

Good news for sure. And I agree about the carbs thing - when I eat lots of carbs, my 'full enough' switch malfunctions. And the weight packs on.