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Originally Posted by Brodies Mommy  Has anyone had a liver shunt surgery done that can explain to me the process and time tables?
Brodie's vet has recommended a holistic diet of pasta/rice with cottage cheese/hard boiled egg to be eaten with potassium-chlorate. They think since the stones are Brodie's only symptom if we are able to control those no surgery would be necessary. I am, however, concerned about the lifespan of my little dog and how sick he could be down the road. Yes, getting rid of his stones would be fantastic, but if we don't close the shunt (if he has one) then wouldn't this lead to a shorter life or more issues?? I've read a LOT about it and it seems the survival rate of surgery is high and about 85% of dogs post surgery can lead an almost normal life! Is that the same prognosis you guys have seen?
Anyone that has had a shunt surgery if you could reach out to me and explain what you and your dog went through pre, post and during surgery I'd greatly appreciate it. |
The procedures used, the success rate of each procedure, and the timeline of it all being done differs greatly from hospitals/clinics, and the vets experience in performing the individual procedures.
Just to let you know, I am a retired vet tech of 20 years, my own dog has LS and is on medications while awaiting further testing and surgery to control her symptoms, and as I stated before in quite a few of my posts to this thread, the most experienced vets, with the highest success rate for ameroid constrictor LS surgery (considered best and safest procedure)
in the world, is the University of Tennessee. All the info you ask is contained on their website, I do not have the time to retype it or copy it here. Each hospital performing LS surgery of whatever type should have their statistics listed on their websites. I have done this research, and given you this information. It is your choice at this point in time, to read what I have posted and learn from it, or just ignore me completely. I do not have the time to keep repeating myself.
Your pup's BAT results are very high, from all the results I've ever seen, way higher than my dog's results. If you do not take care of this problem in a timely fashion, you will be putting your pup at risk of permanent liver damage, Hepatic Encephalopathy, possible seizures, and death. In short, if he has a shunt, which his BAT results indicate he does, his blood is being routed around his liver, and the toxins from the food he eats are not being removed from his blood. His blood is basically poison to him. You need to get him on meds to assist his liver and keep it as healthy as possible, until the time you decide to have surgery done to repair (close off ) the shunt.
I wish you luck, and my prayers to you and Brodie for a successful resolution to your dilema.