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Should my senior dog with low thyroid & Cushing's take meds?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Male | neutered | 12 years and 10 months old | 17.3 lbs

I just found out that my 17.3 pound multi-poo had a .7 result on the thyroid test and the vet wants to put him on meds. I don'[t want to do this because he's 13 years old, and also because he has Cushing's. I know the "normal" range is .8 to 3.4, so I'm not too concerned at this point. Please help. Thanks.

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on April 6th, 2017

Interpretation of thyroid test results should always be made with the whole picture in mind - this means taking into account whether Ollie has any symptoms of hypothyroidism, and also keeping in mind his other health issues which can sometimes affect thyroid results. Cushing's disease, along with other chronic health issues, can often cause artificially low results on a TT4 screening test, which is the thyroid test that most veterinarians do in-clinic. So for me personally, in this situation, I would make the decision about whether to recommend medication based on whether Ollie is showing any signs of a thyroid problem. Symptoms of hypothyroidism may include decreased appetite, weight gain, skin issues or poor haircoat, and decreased energy levels. If he's not showing any of these signs, it would be reasonable to decide not to start any treatment at this time. If you want to get a better idea of whether Ollie is truly hypothyroid, your vet can send a blood sample to a reference lab for a full thyroid panel - this can often help sort out whether there is an actual problem or not, in cases where it isn't clear.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Lauren Jones VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on April 6th, 2017

    An accurate diagnose of hypothyroidism with other concurrent diseases can be difficult to make. Dogs rarely develop hyperthyroidism, so I would bet that your vet misspoke or it was a misunderstanding. A T4 (I assume this was the test performed) level of 0.7 is consistent with hypothyroidism, but could also could be a T4 hormone suppression from concurrent endocrine diseases, like his Cushing's disease. In order to reach an accurate diagnosis in this case, consider talking to your vet about checking his TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) because this hormone is not directly impacted by other endocrine issues. I wouldn't count warts as a skin issue associated with Cushing's disease or hypothyroidism, as a papillomavirus is a more likely culprit. I hope this helps to answer some of your questions!

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