Please help my dog with his liver issues.
May 29, 2011 4:16 PM Subscribe
I need advice on the topic of dog liver issues and nutrition for this kind of disease. YANMV , yes. Description of symptoms and test results as well as background follows.
My dog is a Pomeranian, around 8, adopted 5 years ago. He has a pretty sensitive stomach and has had issue in the past in 2007. Since then he has been on the Purina Beneful dry food which has not yielded too many issues and generally solid stool.
The vet said he had collapsed trachea and put him on Theophylline.
They also found he has hypothyroid and put him on Soloxine.
Two weeks ago he refused to eat, his stomach was making growling noises, and generally did not seem well. I took him to the vet and they gave him a wet food prescription diet for gastrointestinal health and fortiflora. They also did some tests that he was supposed to do anyway. The test results came back and they showed one of the liver enzymes was really high. The vet then put him on the liver Dr Hill dry food diet and also gave him Denamarin.
We also took him off the theophylline but kept him on the soloxine.
I slowly switched him to the liver diet, mixing it with the wet food previously prescribed. He started getting urine incontinence the day after I started giving him the denamarin and the liver diet. He does seem to be drinking more water. But in terms of food, his stool was getting better and he was eating the mix of dry liver diet and wet food I was giving him, and taking the denamarin.
That was on Tuesday. On Friday I took him in for ultrasounds and urine tests. The ultrasound checked the liver , where they didn't find any growth but couldn't do a biopsy because it was not clear enough. They said they saw a bit of grit in his kidneys and bladder which *might* explain the incontinence. But after Friday again he's not really eating much of his liver diet, and he doesn't want to take the denamarin even in a pill pocket and covered with cottage cheese. Let me mention that at the vet they gave him some wet food dr Hill liver diet. the first stool after the vet was nice and firm, but after that he pooped soft stool in the house twice.
Yesterday I handfed him some of the kibbles and he ate them but then puked them. Since then he's eaten a bit this morning, when I mixed it with cottage cheese, but refuses to take the Denamarin. He's also a bit more sleepy and sluggish than usual.
I know there are a lot of variables here, but maybe someone has been through similar stuff and can recommend diet and/or supplements and general care. I'm still waiting on the pure urine sample to see if he has UTI.
Sorry for the long post!
My dog is a Pomeranian, around 8, adopted 5 years ago. He has a pretty sensitive stomach and has had issue in the past in 2007. Since then he has been on the Purina Beneful dry food which has not yielded too many issues and generally solid stool.
The vet said he had collapsed trachea and put him on Theophylline.
They also found he has hypothyroid and put him on Soloxine.
Two weeks ago he refused to eat, his stomach was making growling noises, and generally did not seem well. I took him to the vet and they gave him a wet food prescription diet for gastrointestinal health and fortiflora. They also did some tests that he was supposed to do anyway. The test results came back and they showed one of the liver enzymes was really high. The vet then put him on the liver Dr Hill dry food diet and also gave him Denamarin.
We also took him off the theophylline but kept him on the soloxine.
I slowly switched him to the liver diet, mixing it with the wet food previously prescribed. He started getting urine incontinence the day after I started giving him the denamarin and the liver diet. He does seem to be drinking more water. But in terms of food, his stool was getting better and he was eating the mix of dry liver diet and wet food I was giving him, and taking the denamarin.
That was on Tuesday. On Friday I took him in for ultrasounds and urine tests. The ultrasound checked the liver , where they didn't find any growth but couldn't do a biopsy because it was not clear enough. They said they saw a bit of grit in his kidneys and bladder which *might* explain the incontinence. But after Friday again he's not really eating much of his liver diet, and he doesn't want to take the denamarin even in a pill pocket and covered with cottage cheese. Let me mention that at the vet they gave him some wet food dr Hill liver diet. the first stool after the vet was nice and firm, but after that he pooped soft stool in the house twice.
Yesterday I handfed him some of the kibbles and he ate them but then puked them. Since then he's eaten a bit this morning, when I mixed it with cottage cheese, but refuses to take the Denamarin. He's also a bit more sleepy and sluggish than usual.
I know there are a lot of variables here, but maybe someone has been through similar stuff and can recommend diet and/or supplements and general care. I'm still waiting on the pure urine sample to see if he has UTI.
Sorry for the long post!
Seconding the suggestion to see an internist if you haven't already, or a second one for another opinion.
We're currently going through a different but similar issue with our 9 year old lab. Quick summary points: Purina Beneful (just an odd similarity), yearly physical showed high liver ALP numbers and led to a Cushing's Disease test that comes back positive. We also start Rimadyl for arthritis daily rather than as needed. Start Lysodren to treat the Cushings. At the tests a couple weeks later the dog's ALT Liver numbers are high. Start Denamarin and antibiotics and quit the Rimadyl. Another ten days and the ALT numbers are higher yet, too high to measure with the office's equipment. Dog is completely lethargic and vomiting. Add another antibiotic to the mix and scheduled an internist and ultrasound appointment. Ultrasound showed no lumps or masses and the internist expected an environmental toxin and took us off the Lysodren immediately. We have another week before we go back for another test but the dog is acting SO much better that I'm convinced that we're on the right path. I'll be heart broken if the ALT numbers aren't better.
I think our dog has just gotten tired of taking the pills in general. It's gotten much more difficult over the last couple weeks to get her to take the Denamarin. The antibiotics were near impossible toward the end of the prescription.
My point is that it looks like we were poisoning her with the Lysodren even though several vets thought the Lysodren was unlikely to be insulting her liver. If your dog's liver numbers weren't that bad before the medicine started I would look there first. Maybe there is an alternate treatment that you can try for a while...
Good luck. I hope you are able to determine what the issue is and can see some improvement soon.
posted by Barnsie at 6:16 PM on May 29, 2011
We're currently going through a different but similar issue with our 9 year old lab. Quick summary points: Purina Beneful (just an odd similarity), yearly physical showed high liver ALP numbers and led to a Cushing's Disease test that comes back positive. We also start Rimadyl for arthritis daily rather than as needed. Start Lysodren to treat the Cushings. At the tests a couple weeks later the dog's ALT Liver numbers are high. Start Denamarin and antibiotics and quit the Rimadyl. Another ten days and the ALT numbers are higher yet, too high to measure with the office's equipment. Dog is completely lethargic and vomiting. Add another antibiotic to the mix and scheduled an internist and ultrasound appointment. Ultrasound showed no lumps or masses and the internist expected an environmental toxin and took us off the Lysodren immediately. We have another week before we go back for another test but the dog is acting SO much better that I'm convinced that we're on the right path. I'll be heart broken if the ALT numbers aren't better.
I think our dog has just gotten tired of taking the pills in general. It's gotten much more difficult over the last couple weeks to get her to take the Denamarin. The antibiotics were near impossible toward the end of the prescription.
My point is that it looks like we were poisoning her with the Lysodren even though several vets thought the Lysodren was unlikely to be insulting her liver. If your dog's liver numbers weren't that bad before the medicine started I would look there first. Maybe there is an alternate treatment that you can try for a while...
Good luck. I hope you are able to determine what the issue is and can see some improvement soon.
posted by Barnsie at 6:16 PM on May 29, 2011
Response by poster: I haven't had him on any antibiotics or Lysodren. The theophylline was definitely not helping.
Thing is, he was acting way better before he went in for the ultrasound. It could be stress, he has a very sensitive stomach too.
posted by spacefire at 6:45 PM on May 29, 2011
Thing is, he was acting way better before he went in for the ultrasound. It could be stress, he has a very sensitive stomach too.
posted by spacefire at 6:45 PM on May 29, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by TheBones at 4:41 PM on May 29, 2011