new blog--importance of bile acid..read my story - YorkieTalk.com Forums

yorkielovs2chat · 05-01-2008, 10:49 AM

Hello everyone! Well, after much heartache over the following year, I've decided to post a blog/diary on dogster about my dog. I was hesitant doing this but I truly want to help others and hope that my story will encourage people to bile acid test even the healthiest looking yorkie.
Here it is:
Sparks (Suzie's Sparkle Star)'s Dogster Diary

celstu1 · 05-01-2008, 11:00 AM

Heartbreaking story, but Its so wonderful to hear how loving and patient and strong you are for yourself and for Sparks! You are such a great yorkie mom! (((HUGS)))

yorkielovs2chat · 05-01-2008, 11:08 AM

Thank you so much. It hasn't been easy. It is hard to let go of the anger. Some days are better than others. But I have found that letting go of anger and looking at the good things: he appears healthy and happy and I so love him and am so lucky to have such a great dog. He really is the best dog. And I hope I can help others by sharing my story. Help them to know the importance of bile acid testing and knowing the early signs of bladder stones...like peeing accidents in the house. And to encourage them and let them know that if your dog has LS, it is not a death sentence.
Actually the Ls has been easy to deal with (lucky for me). It is the bladder that has had me up MANY nights and frequent and expensive trips to the vet.

tdavis · 05-01-2008, 12:01 PM

I know how you feel, my pup Bobo also has a liver shunt, which we found out about 4 weeks after we brought him home, he became sick and luckily was diagnosed pretty quick. He had surgery and is now doing well. Thanks for putting the word out there. Tammy

Patti · 05-01-2008, 01:55 PM

I know what you are going thru. My 3 year old Cali was diagnosed with MVD internal shunt at 8 months after over 7000.00 in vet bills, thankfully it was very mild, but she continues to be less healthy than my others. I have a 7 month old that I am going to have BAT just to make sure especially after reading your blog. Thanks and praying for continued health of your baby.

Potter · 05-01-2008, 03:37 PM

I know I probably sound stupid but how do you test bile acid? Is it from blood test?

What about pancreatitis? Is it from blood test too?

yorkielovs2chat · 05-01-2008, 03:41 PM

I can't believe how many people are out there and some don't even know it. Cornell shared with me that some dogs are coming in with congenital shunts at much later ages! And so many from well known show breeders.

I was VERY angry at first. I saved and spent all this money so as to save money and did my research on breeders and who would ahve thought? And you always beat yourself up for not doing the bile acid testing...but I truly thought only backyard breeders or a dog would show signs. I have met MANY dogs who run agility and only caught it by fluke! Appeared so healthy.

Then to know. I have to watch EVERYTHING with him. Everywhere we go watching to make sure no one sneaks him p rotein and especially meat. I can't really leave him with anyone because he is so much work: homeprepared food, supplements, and diapers and if he wakes up in the nght with an infection, it is a lot of work which I don't mind but I can't put that on someone else. So I have had to totally re-arrange my life and I am young...but it is what it is and I wouldn't trade him for anything. I just hope breeders will encourage people to bile acid test and be honest about what is in their lines whether it be LS, stones, knee problems...whatever. At least people know what to look for as far as signs and symptoms so they can catch it early. I had no idea what a bladder infection looked like. There are strange behaviors associated with bladder issues early on that are subtle but if you know about them, you can catch it right away. Why would I think a 1 1/2 year old dog would ahve such a problem?

So I hope the word spreads and that my story helps people and that these health issues come out into the open. Some LS owners are scared to talk abecause they have been threatened!!!

Ladymom · 05-01-2008, 04:12 PM

Thank you for posting your story. I hope it will inspire more people to insist that their puppy have a bile acids test done before bringing their puppy home as Dr. Center suggests:

I know I've posted this a million times, but here it is again. This is from page 22 of Dr. Center's handout from her seminars:

2: The best approach to avoid "over diagnosis" is to test bile acids in young dogs of highly affected breeds (at 4 mths of age) while they are clinically healthy and before they are adopted into pet homes. Highly affected breeds include: Yorkshire Terrier, Cairn Terrier, Maltese, Tibetan Spaniels as well as many other "terrier" type breeds (Miniature Schnauzer, Lhasa Apso, Shih Tzu, Dachshund, Bichon Frise, Pekingese, Toy and Miniature Poodles, and Havanese and others). Proactive assessment of serum bile acids will limit the awkward circumstance imposed when an MVD dog, with minor health issues, is suddenly recognized to have abnormal bile acids by a pet owner's veterinarian. This circumstance can lead to unnecessary diagnostic confusion and unwarranted invasive tests such as liver biopsy and portovenography. How old dogs should be at he time of initial testing has not been established.

Too many breeders are still reluctant to do this simple, inexpensive test. 12 hour fasting is no longer required so there really isn't any excuse for not getting it done now.

Yorkieluv · 05-01-2008, 07:36 PM

Thank you for sharing your blog with us!! I'm so sorrry about everything that you have been through with Sparks. I, too, have a liver compromised dog and have been through a lot with him.
As far as the bladder goes, there's a supplement called Azodyl/Vetoquinol that has shown to help the urea cycle which may be beneficial for your baby. Maybe you could ask your vet if this would be a good thing for your Sparks.
Good luck, and thanks again for your post!

MyFairLacy · 05-01-2008, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ladymom

Too many breeders are still reluctant to do this simple, inexpensive test. 12 hour fasting is no longer required so there really isn't any excuse for not getting it done now.

You are so very right. I feel like it's just an excuse when I hear breeders say their vet still requires fasting or won't do it until they are older, etc. etc. We wouldn't accept our vet treating our pets with outdated medicine, anaesthesia, or surgical procedures so why do breeders accept outdating BAT procedures from their vet? It's very easy for a vet to contact Dr. Center at Cornell and speak to her about Bile Acid Testing and current protocol. Excuses just don't work with me, and other pet owners need to educate themselves and not take excuses either.

thankyou to the OP for posting your story. I shared the link with a few people today. It is so so important for yorkies to be BAT. Until we find that genetic marker for LS, a BAT is the best non-invasive test we have now.

yorkielovs2chat · 05-02-2008, 04:16 AM

To the person who suggested the bladder formula, thank you. I will look into that. We haven't had anymore stones but because of the constant leaking, we keep getting infectiosn which is hard on him and hard on my pocket book. They think his bladder stretched out during when he was ill with the stones. My vet has done wonders for us though. He wasnt' sleeping through the night and was showing strange behaviors and her alternative ways have completely fixed all of that. She thinks that it was all bladder related and not liver.

PLEASE pass my link around. There are others out there who need to bile acid test but they think they don't have to. I want to try and end some suffering and prevent at least some things.

I looked at my surgeon like he was crazy...LS...MY dog??? No way. The dog has more energy and is strong and healthy...I mean...no way. And I was told that his line was perfectly healthy with NO problems.

If I had known about bile acid testing ALL dogs (show and non-show), I maybe could have prevented what we are going through now. If I had known that his relatives had bladder issues, I could have kept an eye out for that and caught it right away.

yorkielovs2chat · 05-02-2008, 04:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patti

I know what you are going thru. My 3 year old Cali was diagnosed with MVD internal shunt at 8 months after over 7000.00 in vet bills, thankfully it was very mild, but she continues to be less healthy than my others. I have a 7 month old that I am going to have BAT just to make sure especially after reading your blog. Thanks and praying for continued health of your baby.

Thank you for sharing. I cant' believe how many of us are out there!!

yorkielovs2chat · 05-02-2008, 04:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdavis

I know how you feel, my pup Bobo also has a liver shunt, which we found out about 4 weeks after we brought him home, he became sick and luckily was diagnosed pretty quick. He had surgery and is now doing well. Thanks for putting the word out there. Tammy

That is so awesome that you got to have the surgery!!!! Ours ended up being inoperable. :-( But Cornell said (and another vet) that many of the inoperable ones are the bigger dogs with lack of symptoms.

bchgirl · 05-02-2008, 05:31 AM

Thanks for sharing your story and many people benefit from reading it.

Sparks has a wonderful caring mommy. I hope he continues to do well.

yorkielovs2chat · 05-02-2008, 05:39 AM

Thank you again and I want to reiterate in my story to please support good breeders. It is so hard being a breeder and especially a good one. Those who openly speak of what is in their lines--that takes a lot of guts. And having to retire a whole bunch of dogs because of a problem--again takes a lot of guts and heartache. Honesty is key but sometimes being honest is not easy so I applaud all of you ethical and honest breeders out there who try and prevent as much as you can even at your own expense. Thank you. Some breeders only retire dogs because of bad bites or show reasons and some breeders are so picky that they will retire dogs if even the smallest health problems creep up and that is a tough thing to do.

05-01-2008, 10:49 AM	#1
yorkielovs2chat Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: ME Posts: 61	new blog--importance of bile acid..read my story Hello everyone! Well, after much heartache over the following year, I've decided to post a blog/diary on dogster about my dog. I was hesitant doing this but I truly want to help others and hope that my story will encourage people to bile acid test even the healthiest looking yorkie. Here it is: Sparks (Suzie's Sparkle Star)'s Dogster Diary

05-01-2008, 11:00 AM	#2
celstu1 Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Hudson Posts: 3,753	Heartbreaking story, but Its so wonderful to hear how loving and patient and strong you are for yourself and for Sparks! You are such a great yorkie mom! (((HUGS))) __________________ Mommy to Dexter & Fletcher Gentlemen's Club!!!

05-01-2008, 11:08 AM	#3
yorkielovs2chat Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: ME Posts: 61	Thank you so much. It hasn't been easy. It is hard to let go of the anger. Some days are better than others. But I have found that letting go of anger and looking at the good things: he appears healthy and happy and I so love him and am so lucky to have such a great dog. He really is the best dog. And I hope I can help others by sharing my story. Help them to know the importance of bile acid testing and knowing the early signs of bladder stones...like peeing accidents in the house. And to encourage them and let them know that if your dog has LS, it is not a death sentence. Actually the Ls has been easy to deal with (lucky for me). It is the bladder that has had me up MANY nights and frequent and expensive trips to the vet. Last edited by yorkielovs2chat; 05-01-2008 at 11:09 AM.

05-01-2008, 12:01 PM	#4
tdavis Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: florida Posts: 102	Bile acid testing I know how you feel, my pup Bobo also has a liver shunt, which we found out about 4 weeks after we brought him home, he became sick and luckily was diagnosed pretty quick. He had surgery and is now doing well. Thanks for putting the word out there. Tammy

05-01-2008, 01:55 PM	#5
Patti Donating YT 10000 Club Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Illinois Posts: 17,948	I know what you are going thru. My 3 year old Cali was diagnosed with MVD internal shunt at 8 months after over 7000.00 in vet bills, thankfully it was very mild, but she continues to be less healthy than my others. I have a 7 month old that I am going to have BAT just to make sure especially after reading your blog. Thanks and praying for continued health of your baby. __________________ Cali Pixie Roxie : Maya's Mom RIP my sweet Dixie girl 1/17/08 http://callipuppyscastle.bravehost.com/index.html

05-01-2008, 03:37 PM	#6
Potter YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Canada Posts: 1,731	I know I probably sound stupid but how do you test bile acid? Is it from blood test? What about pancreatitis? Is it from blood test too? __________________ http://www.dogster.com/pet_page.php?j=t&i=410379 "No matter how little money and how few possesions you own, having a dog makes you rich." Last edited by Potter; 05-01-2008 at 03:40 PM.

05-01-2008, 03:41 PM	#7
yorkielovs2chat Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: ME Posts: 61	I can't believe how many people are out there and some don't even know it. Cornell shared with me that some dogs are coming in with congenital shunts at much later ages! And so many from well known show breeders. I was VERY angry at first. I saved and spent all this money so as to save money and did my research on breeders and who would ahve thought? And you always beat yourself up for not doing the bile acid testing...but I truly thought only backyard breeders or a dog would show signs. I have met MANY dogs who run agility and only caught it by fluke! Appeared so healthy. Then to know. I have to watch EVERYTHING with him. Everywhere we go watching to make sure no one sneaks him p rotein and especially meat. I can't really leave him with anyone because he is so much work: homeprepared food, supplements, and diapers and if he wakes up in the nght with an infection, it is a lot of work which I don't mind but I can't put that on someone else. So I have had to totally re-arrange my life and I am young...but it is what it is and I wouldn't trade him for anything. I just hope breeders will encourage people to bile acid test and be honest about what is in their lines whether it be LS, stones, knee problems...whatever. At least people know what to look for as far as signs and symptoms so they can catch it early. I had no idea what a bladder infection looked like. There are strange behaviors associated with bladder issues early on that are subtle but if you know about them, you can catch it right away. Why would I think a 1 1/2 year old dog would ahve such a problem? So I hope the word spreads and that my story helps people and that these health issues come out into the open. Some LS owners are scared to talk abecause they have been threatened!!!

05-01-2008, 04:12 PM	#8
Ladymom Donating YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: North Carolina Posts: 2,412	Thank you for posting your story. I hope it will inspire more people to insist that their puppy have a bile acids test done before bringing their puppy home as Dr. Center suggests: I know I've posted this a million times, but here it is again. This is from page 22 of Dr. Center's handout from her seminars: 2: The best approach to avoid "over diagnosis" is to test bile acids in young dogs of highly affected breeds (at 4 mths of age) while they are clinically healthy and before they are adopted into pet homes. Highly affected breeds include: Yorkshire Terrier, Cairn Terrier, Maltese, Tibetan Spaniels as well as many other "terrier" type breeds (Miniature Schnauzer, Lhasa Apso, Shih Tzu, Dachshund, Bichon Frise, Pekingese, Toy and Miniature Poodles, and Havanese and others). Proactive assessment of serum bile acids will limit the awkward circumstance imposed when an MVD dog, with minor health issues, is suddenly recognized to have abnormal bile acids by a pet owner's veterinarian. This circumstance can lead to unnecessary diagnostic confusion and unwarranted invasive tests such as liver biopsy and portovenography. How old dogs should be at he time of initial testing has not been established. Too many breeders are still reluctant to do this simple, inexpensive test. 12 hour fasting is no longer required so there really isn't any excuse for not getting it done now. __________________ http://www.myladysdogbows.com/ High Quality Handmade Bows for the Pampered Pooch

05-01-2008, 07:36 PM	#9
Yorkieluv Donating YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 6,745	Thank you for sharing your blog with us!! I'm so sorrry about everything that you have been through with Sparks. I, too, have a liver compromised dog and have been through a lot with him. As far as the bladder goes, there's a supplement called Azodyl/Vetoquinol that has shown to help the urea cycle which may be beneficial for your baby. Maybe you could ask your vet if this would be a good thing for your Sparks. Good luck, and thanks again for your post! __________________ Miko 's his Mommy

05-02-2008, 04:16 AM	#11
yorkielovs2chat Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: ME Posts: 61	thanks! To the person who suggested the bladder formula, thank you. I will look into that. We haven't had anymore stones but because of the constant leaking, we keep getting infectiosn which is hard on him and hard on my pocket book. They think his bladder stretched out during when he was ill with the stones. My vet has done wonders for us though. He wasnt' sleeping through the night and was showing strange behaviors and her alternative ways have completely fixed all of that. She thinks that it was all bladder related and not liver. PLEASE pass my link around. There are others out there who need to bile acid test but they think they don't have to. I want to try and end some suffering and prevent at least some things. I looked at my surgeon like he was crazy...LS...MY dog??? No way. The dog has more energy and is strong and healthy...I mean...no way. And I was told that his line was perfectly healthy with NO problems. If I had known about bile acid testing ALL dogs (show and non-show), I maybe could have prevented what we are going through now. If I had known that his relatives had bladder issues, I could have kept an eye out for that and caught it right away.

05-02-2008, 05:31 AM	#14
bchgirl Donating YT 9000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: at da beach Posts: 9,622	Thanks for sharing your story and many people benefit from reading it. Sparks has a wonderful caring mommy. I hope he continues to do well. __________________ Deb, Ramsey, Reese, Reggie & Trace who watches over us Ramsey 's Bailey

05-02-2008, 05:39 AM	#15
yorkielovs2chat Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: ME Posts: 61	Thank you good breeders Thank you again and I want to reiterate in my story to please support good breeders. It is so hard being a breeder and especially a good one. Those who openly speak of what is in their lines--that takes a lot of guts. And having to retire a whole bunch of dogs because of a problem--again takes a lot of guts and heartache. Honesty is key but sometimes being honest is not easy so I applaud all of you ethical and honest breeders out there who try and prevent as much as you can even at your own expense. Thank you. Some breeders only retire dogs because of bad bites or show reasons and some breeders are so picky that they will retire dogs if even the smallest health problems creep up and that is a tough thing to do.