Michelle, I am so sorry. I hope the additional tests will give you some definitive answers, so you can get this turned around. She must be feeling pretty poorly to turn down the food.

I am praying for you and Lacy. Keep us posted. Darla

So far she's Bern diagnosed with hepatic lipididis and diffuse small intestinal disease, but we don't know the cause. She's had her diet changed, is on tylosin and several supplements and getting vitamin B injections once a week. She's still having episodes of not eating and being sick though.

She did just eat a pretty good amount. So today she has eaten 2/3 of what she should be eating. She seems to be feeling a little better right now. Her slsymptons just kindof come and go

Gosh...I thought Lacy was doing better. I hope and will pray that she improves. Wasn't she always a healthy little girl up until all this happened? Poor baby. Get well wishes to you, Lacy. Lots of kisses from us!

Yes she had always been really healthy. Had only had a uti and an eye infection before. And she does have luxating patellas and flea allergies in the summer. But other than that she was always healthy until last fall when she started these episodes of getting sick. I just want her to stay healthy and I'm worried it could progress to something more serious

Michelle i am so sorry Lacy is not feeling 100% yet!! :(:( poor baby girl and poor you!!! :(:(

we have gone through similar issues with Avie.. her liver was ok and her pancreas was ok! after a couple tests and a 2nd opinion with Dr. Jean Dodds.. we are pretty sure that it is a digestion intolerance.. (IBD maybe)
we knew that she couldn't handle protein that was too high in fat%.. so we had been feeding venison..which was good.. but the raw was still too much for her!
we are actually feeding her a limited ingredient diet of venison and sweet potato (so far so good, :hands:)
she is also on Tylosin..
we have her on DDS Plus probiotics!
we are starting her on the Bioliv (just to be safe) & the colostrum capsules, as well!

i hope Lacy feels better VERY SOON!! and that you get it all worked out... hugs!! xox. :hug: :hug:

I'm sorry Avie has been sick. They've mentioned IBD with lacy too but the only way to get an exact diagnosis is a biopsy. I just hate to put her through that again and of course bills are really adding up. It's just so frustrating. I guess we will do the bloodwork and cortisol test and then go from there

I am praying for your sweet baby. It is such a worry when they are sick. Hugs to you...I hope you get answers soon and can get her back to feeling good and enjoying life.

yep!! i agree!!! i don't want to do the biposy!
but since her other tests have come back ok! (& she seems to be doing good, so far with the diet!) we will seee! ;)

i HOPE that you get it all squared away soon!! :hands: will be keeping you guys in our prayers and will check back for updates!!! :hug:

What is Lacy's recipe?
What's the fat source and how much of it do you use?

This is the daily amount

1.5oz salmon
1.5oz white fish
1 cup potato (I used white but last night I made a new batch with sweet)
1/3 cup steamed pureed veggies (green beans mostly - used some carrots last time too)

In morning she gets 1/2 pump eicosaderm (1000mg fish oil)
In evening she gets 1/4tsp olive oil

Wow, that is quite low in fat (which is obviously good right now).:confused:
I find it kind of odd that she is still having off days with a recipe change and Tylan.

If the intestinal problem is causing this, has your vet mentioned prednisolone? Of course this isn't going to do her liver issue any favors.:rolleyes::(

Isn't all fat pulled in hyperlipidosis cases sometims? And then medium chain triglycerides are added in and then regular fat? Maybe I'm thinking of something else.

You can always play with the fiber amount. Ellie's vet just eliminated veggies from E's diet and prefers sweet potatoes for the fiber. She was getting mixed veggies before (like green beans and carrots) but evidently she likes doing it this way with gi issues.

Poor girl. :(

I don't know. It is strange. It is low in fat and all the vets have said the omega 3s will be good fats for her condition. The only thing I can think of if it's the food is that maybe she's allergic to something but most dogs aren't allergic to those ingredients. The camylobacter and clostridium should be killed off by the tylan, but those bacteria would moreso cause diarrhea and her problem is more anorexia and vomitting.

They haven't mentioned prednisone yet. I hope she won't need that because it can cause other health issues in the future. I've really been wondering about the Addisons disease... I know it's probably doubtful and hopefully not the case but a lot of symptoms could make sense

Yeah, an allergy to those ingredients in highly unlikely.
An intolerance to something in the recipe is possible.
I think that sweet potatoes will be good but have my doubts that it will fix the problem.

It seems like she really needs a biopsy but I wouldn't go there too fast either.
We are at the same spot with Ellie.

The omega 3s should be good.
How about Metronidazole? Tried that yet?

Prednisone is terrible stuff. :(

How are her sodium and potassium?

Michelle.. i have been told that sometimes WHITE potato, will trigger dogs with IBD type issues.. sometimes it is too much for them! (we have Avie on the sweet potato, like i mentioned before) SO, maybe this will help her some.... :idontknow

:hands:

I have an ongoing problem with my 2 year old Yorkie, Emma. She was tested at Tufts University and she does have a shunt. We need to contact the surgeon to find out what to do next. Shunts, as I understand, are genetic so I am not sure what you mean by an "acquired" shunt.

That said, I would suggest you skip the ultrasound which many here on this forum have noted is unreliable. My vet insisted that I have it done because it was not invasive. Emma's ultrasound showed that she didn't have a shunt. The tech at Tufts was supposedly excellent. However, I was worried because her BAT tests (multiple tests) remained in the 500 range!

The next step was to have a scintigraphy test where she was injected with a radiated dye so if she had a shunt it would absolutely be located. Emma had to be kept overnight at Tufts to make sure the radiation was flushed from her system before we could bring her home. The test showed that she definately has a shunt which contradicted the ultrasound test result.

So, again, if I would definitely advise that you save the money spent on the ultrasound ( my cost was about $383) since the test wasn't/ and usually isn't accurate. The scintigraphy was almost an additional $700. But now I know my poor little one has a shunt.

The good news is that since her first incidents in December with the vommiting of bile and loose stools, she is no longer showing any clinical signs of having a shunt. She is as energertic as ever. She does tale 1ML of Metronidozole every day with breakfast which now is Eukanuba's/Iams low residue kibble. I do add a bit of fresh boiled chicken tender pieces and, at times, some fresh raw baby carrots pieces to her food.

However, the reality is that she does have a shunt. As soon as I contact the surgeon I will let this forum know whether or not surgery is the only option availble. I am concerned about having the surgery because I have read that there are complications such as seizures/ blindness. But, then again, I also have read that the shunt surgery can be successful.

Take care. I hope Lacy feels better soon. I would go right for the scintigraphy test as you most likely will have to have it anyway.

DAB

We haven't tried any medications yet other than the tylan. Her potassium and sodium were normal on the last two blood panels. I read that with primary Addisons electrolytes will be off but not usually with secondary or atypical.

She ate the new batch with sweet potatos well earlier. She still doesn't act like her normal self though. But maybe the sweet potatos will help.

:(

i hope so!!! :hands:

Wonder if you should try decreasing her veggie portion - sometimes that's irritating; plus the greens alkalize the system, so maybe it's a little off balance? Is her tummy noisy? Poor Lacy :(.

No it hasn't been making any noises. Ill probably email susan Davis again after we get these next results back

I made a mistake with the cost of the ultrasound and the scintigraphy tests. The ultrasound at Tufts was $519 while the scintigraphy was $549.76 although I was initially quoted $683. The reason for the discount was that I was told Emma didn't have a shunt when she had the ultrasound. Because that shunt diagnosis was missed, I received a lower price for the scintigraphy. Please note that since December, between trips and tests at my vet and then at Tufts I have spent about $2500 just to get the correct diagnosis.

DAB

Thanks. Lacy doesn't have a shunt though

she ate all her dinner. She's eaten better today than she has the last 5 days. I guess she liked the sweet potato change today

:thumbup: Great news! Lady has trouble with too many veggies and does much better with sweet potato for fiber.

I hope Lacy continues to feel better. :getwellso

Michele - I hope the sweet potato makes a difference for Lacy and she'll be feeling better now.

Did Susan suggest putting her on colostrum to help boost her immune system? I think it really helped with Sissy, but obviously her issues were a little different than Lacy's. Sending hugs and well wishes to you both.....

Yes she did mention possibly starting that in the future

I absolutely swear by Transfer Factor. A member on another forum recommended it to me 2.5 years ago to help with Lady's chronic uti's that are so common in diabetics. I have to admit I was pretty skeptical, but the results have been amazing!

Not only has Lady not had one uti since, her insulin requirement went to half within a matter of weeks. She was regulated on 3.5 units seven years ago and now only gets 1.5 units. Her allergies are better, arthritis is better - basically I consider it to be Lady's fountain of youth. ;)

Transfer Factors And The Immune Response in Humans and Animals

I hope Lacy is feeing much better by now. Get well wishes to darling Lacy!

Lacy has eaten well the past two days and today. Maybe the sweet potatos will make a difference. I just don't know.

We got most of her tests back. Her CBC and blood chem panel were good and her vet didn't seem to be concerned although I did just email her to ask a couple questions. Her bilirubin was high and cholesterol were low. It said blood sample was +1 lipemic and I'm not sure what that means but it said it can cause bilirubin to be falsely elevated. Her neutrophils were a little low, lymphocytes a little high and eosinophils a little high .

Her cobalamine and folate were back in normal range but they should be because she's been gettin injections. Her thyroid and cortisol were normal. And she is now negative for campylobacter. The only thing I haven't gotten back is the results on the clostridium bacteria.