 Get a Good Vet for Scruffy
Sue (Scruffy's Mom) -
I'm sorry to hear that Scruffy is suffering and you are scared. When my Jock first got sick, I heard many of the same potential diagnoses from my family vet. However, he knew that he didn't have the expertise to treat something so specialized, so he referred me to an internal medicine specialist who really focuses on intestinal problems, often in small dogs. She was able to diagnose in minutes what our family vet could only speculate about. I think the key to my Yorkie's successful management of his disease (lymphangectasia) has been high-quality specialized vet care and a good partnership between the specialist, our family vet and us.
Scruffy's case sound similar to Jock's. Jock never seemed sick until all of a sudden. After months of treating his disease successfully however, I realize that he was likely sick for a very long time (a year or more) with such subtle symptoms that I thought they were just a part of small dog's picky stomach or getting a bit older (he's 4).
He was diagnosed with lymphangectasia, which I understand to be the most common cause of low albumin. He's on a vegetarian diet with prescription dog food. He gets no treats except carrots, peas and green beans. He takes prednisone and azathioprine (both steroids) and is slowly being weaned off the pred. He gets his albumin level checked once a month. It was amazing to see how quickly he rebounded after the treatment started and he became like a puppy again. But we have to be vigilant. He ate 3 pieces of our other dog's kibble and it set him back for about a month, with low albumin, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.
Good luck. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
Karen |