my little yorkie "max" was diagnosed with liver shunt when he was 4 months old. we went straight for the surgery after his bile acids came back elevated. it has now been almost 5 months since surgery and you would never know anything was wrong with him!! he is still on a low protein diet and lactulose medicine. it was very scary to go through but i would do it all over again if i had to. my breeder sounds just like yours! let me know if you have any specific questions about liver shunt. here are some good websites with liver shunt info:
www.livershunt.com www.tsfannymaelivershunt.com
please keep us updated on the surgery!!!