vomiting again

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by Hannah3183

Mayme is now on her way back to my vet here in Nashville. The BAT was run by a vet in my parents home town this weekend. The vet here is concerned with her urinalysis results and wants to re-do her pancreas bloodwork. (It wasn't the ammonium birate) If she vomits this week, she'll go back in for a liver biopsy and ultrasound.

Are you confident with your vet?

I ask because ultrasounds are only about 60-80% accurate and an experienced person needs to do them. Unless bladder stones are a concern, it could be a waste of money. Usually Protein C tests and scintographies are recommended. Liver biopsies are very invasive and may not be necessary. If your pup was getting spayed, it might be okay to biopsy because they are already in there. Some specialists wouldn't agree with opening her up just to diagnose MVD.

My Yorkie had a liver biopsy during her spay.
She had an ultrasound that diagnosed pancreatitis but not liver problems.
Her post bile acids went up to 106.
We still have no answers but no real symptoms either.
So, please make sure that you don't let any vet push you into something without making sure it is necessary. A specialist would probably be a good choice.

[Yorkieluv]

Originally Posted by Hannah3183

The vet got her bile acid test results back today and called a specialist to get their opinion. The specialist said that yes, her liver enzymes were high and that something is definately going on, but they aren't high enough yet to be classified as liver shunt.(Thank God!) He said that she could have ate something that flared up her pancreas and caused pancreatitis...which raised her liver enzymes.

The vet had given her anti-vomitting medicine last week, which she is supposed to stay on until I can slowly reduce it down to nothing over the course of this week. If she vomits, then she has to go back in for more testing. Regardless, she goes back for a repeat bile acid test in a month to see if her liver enzymes have returned to normal. The specialist said that she could be just now developing the shunt, but that I've caught it so early it should be treatable with medicine and a new diet.

So for right now, i'm still just watching and waiting.Cross your fingers that I just have a sneaky muncher on my hands!

Also - the vet found bromide in her urinalysis which caused him to think she had the shunt. ?? My mom told me that part, which she could be not getting the name right, etc. Anyone heard anything about that?

Extrahepatic shunts don't just develop...They are typically congenital in yorkies and are there from the time they are born. The only reason she would develop shunting would be if she got into something severely toxic and acquired shunts...

Prayers for your baby!!
I think if the BAT comes back high again, I would ask for a Protein C test or biopsy only if she is already going in for something else like a spay.

[Hannah3183]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Are you confident with your vet?

I ask because ultrasounds are only about 60-80% accurate and an experienced person needs to do them. Unless bladder stones are a concern, it could be a waste of money. Usually Protein C tests and scintographies are recommended. Liver biopsies are very invasive and may not be necessary. If your pup was getting spayed, it might be okay to biopsy because they are already in there. Some specialists wouldn't agree with opening her up just to diagnose MVD.

My Yorkie had a liver biopsy during her spay.
She had an ultrasound that diagnosed pancreatitis but not liver problems.
Her post bile acids went up to 106.
We still have no answers but no real symptoms either.
So, please make sure that you don't let any vet push you into something without making sure it is necessary. A specialist would probably be a good choice.

She was spayed quite awhile back. I won't let her vet here open her up....i'd talk to the vet who did her BAT and let him recommend a specialist. What's a protein C test?
I'm so new to all of this....so bare with me!

[Ellie May]

Hopefully someone knows exactly what a Protein C test is because I do not.
I've read about them and know numbers in one range mean normal or MVD and numbers in another could mean liver shunt. It is a blood test sent to Cornell. That is about all I know right now.

[Hannah3183]

How is your yorkie doing? Is she on medicine for her pancreatitis/ high liver enzymes?

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by Hannah3183

How is your yorkie doing? Is she on medicine for her pancreatitis/ high liver enzymes?

Her ALT was slightly elevated but has since went down.
She is on Denosyl for her mystery liver problem.
Just low-moderate fat food for her pancreatitis.
It isn't recurring.

[Hannah3183]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Hopefully someone knows exactly what a Protein C test is because I do not.
I've read about them and know numbers in one range mean normal or MVD and numbers in another could mean liver shunt. It is a blood test sent to Cornell. That is about all I know right now.

The Protein C Activity Assay, which is a human protein test that was modified by researchers at Cornell over the past three years for use on animals, is one of several tests Cornell veterinarians have been using to detect liver damage in poisoned dogs. The tests are accurate and the results are available within 24 hours. The Protein C Activity Assay test indicates levels of protein C produced by the liver, as an indicator of normal liver function.

(My best friend is a bio/chem grad student...and emailed me this...)

[Hannah3183]

Her bloodwork on her pancreas came back excellent. So, we're kinda back to square one. My vet wants her back on metro for a week, in case she has a bad infection that just didn't go away with the other dose that she took. She's also staying on the anti-vomiting 3x a day for the next week instead of reducing it like I was originally told. The vet is going to re-test her liver enzymes in a week, and if they still aren't down then they are going to do an ultrasound.

[prettypuppypink]

Metro is so harmful to some. Mine had a toxic reaction to it and had seizures. We had him in neurology at Red Bank Animal Hospital in Tinton Falls, NJ, for 10 days in intensive care. His local vet diagnosed him as having epilepsy and had him on phenobarb. It was the metro. He had every test done there. Cats are more prone to a toxic reation to it then dogs. He was on low doze for colitis. I thought we'd lose him. I ask to be referred to this diagnostic animal hospital after reading about it on here. I will prayer for your Yorkie.
Jessica

[Breezeaway]

My Tadders did the same thing, after many many tests, meds etc. Went thru the whole thinkits his kidneys, liver then decided it as Pancreatitis. His bloodwork came back good on his pancreas also but that is still what it was. Put him on lowfat dogfood only, no people food and he has made an amazing recovery. We had one slipup when he got a hold of a rawhide bone one night and chewed on it for just a few minutes before I caught him, but it was enough that he had another vomiting attack the next morning.
The difference in him since he went on the lowfat has really changed him.

[Hannah3183]

Originally Posted by Breezeaway

My Tadders did the same thing, after many many tests, meds etc. Went thru the whole thinkits his kidneys, liver then decided it as Pancreatitis. His bloodwork came back good on his pancreas also but that is still what it was. Put him on lowfat dogfood only, no people food and he has made an amazing recovery. We had one slipup when he got a hold of a rawhide bone one night and chewed on it for just a few minutes before I caught him, but it was enough that he had another vomiting attack the next morning.
The difference in him since he went on the lowfat has really changed him.

She got a hold of a leaf last night and this morning she vomitted. It looked like it had leaf particles in it, so I don't think im rushing her back into the vet. They said I could give her boiled chicken as a treat along with her Hills ID food. Think that's ok?

[Sempai-mj]

Boiled chicken should be fine, keep the little one well hydrated as well.
Good luck!

[Hannah3183]

It seems that Mayme is only having troubles in the middle of the night now. She woke up at 12:30am and kinda coughed a little. I guess that's what you'd call it, because she didn't quite dry heave, but it was enough to make her hop out of my bed and act like she was going to spit something up. She was a little restless after that...and then woke back up at 4:30am with a tiny cough-like thing.

During the day, she acts completely normal...is still full of energy, and eats just fine. I thought if she coughs again tonight, that I'll call the vet tomorrow to go ahead and schedule a specialist to come in and do an ultrasound. Granted, she isn't vomitting, but I am still concerned. Any thoughts on the cough? Is this just her body's way of healing itself of the bug she might have had? No idea here....

[Hannah3183]

I just called the vet to find out her bile acid results bc it's just been killing me to know how high they were. The nurse said it would take the vet awhile to get back to me but that the vet told her it was around 48. I'm guessing thats the Post number.

How high is that? I read somewhere that less than 15-20 was the normal range? How high is the number in dogs with liver shunts?

Thanks for all the help!

[Hannah3183]

Mayme went back to the vet for a full CBC and what my vet called a "snap" bile acid test. My receipt just says bile acids resting...

The CBC came back fine, with still slightly elevated BAT results. (around 48 again). The vet said she could do an ultrasound, but thought that we should just use the rest of her meds and see how she does without any. I'm still going to keep Mayme on the Hills ID food.
Is there anything else you all would do? Our her results anything to worry about since that seems to be the only thing wrong with her that they can find?

I'm unsure as to what to do at this point since Mayme acts perfectly normal, just with elevated bile acids.