 Hang in There Dirk's Mom
Dirk's Mom - I'm so sorry to hear about your pup. Hang in there. It's difficult but there are so many impressive vets out there to help with difficult medical problems.
When my Jock had the same problems (really low albumin), the vet (a specialist in internal medicine - not a general vet, which I think is really important), immediately suspected lymphangectasia. She did a scope where she put a tube down his throat with a little camera on the end (he was under anesthetic) and took a small sample of his intestine out for visual inspection as well as lab tests. The visual confirmed the lymphangectasia and the lab tests ruled out IBD.
Jock was not underweight either. In fact, b/c his intestines could not process the protein, he was losing intestinal fluid into his abdomen. So in reality he really was losing weight (major muscle mass) but I could not tell b/c it was being masked by the bloating from the fluid. Once he started treatment and the fluid went away, he was the skinniest little thing. I felt so badly for him, since I hadn't been able to tell.
I would strongly suggest if at all possible where you live that you get Dirk to a vet that specializes (i.e., is Board certified) in internal medicine rather than a regular general vet. It may make the difference between a quick and correct diagnosis and a bunch of guessing and unnecessary tets. Our family vet suggested all kinds of things - cancer, liver problems, IBD - but referred us to a specialist. We went there the same day and the vet honed in quickly on the diagnosis and started treating him the same day.
Jock has done really well with the treatment, but there have been some ups and downs. But all in all he is so much better and he's like a puppy again (he's 4).
Good luck. Let me know if I can answer specific questions.
Karen |