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Liver Shunt !?!?!?!? Calvin went in to get neutered and the vet called me to tell me that he couldn't do it b/c his enzyme levels were high and his protein levels were low and that he might have a liver shunt and he had to do further blood work. I am waiting to get the results of the second round of blood work but when I picked him up from the vet he said that he is pretty sure that he has one because his protein levels were so low and he hasnt even gained a pound since he was last there at the end of May. I am so upset and confused. My husband called the breeder and she said that not one of her litters has ever had a shunt and that she feels terrible. He is such a sweet little boy and I feel so bad. I am worried about him having to have surgery. |
I'm so sorry. :( Low protein doesn't necessarily mean a shunt. There are still other possibilities. The next results will tell you a lot. It sounds like you have a very good vet. :) |
Thank you I do. It also helps that my cousin is a vet tech there as well. I know I am jumping the gun but I am so worried over my little guy. They told us that he will be between 7 and 8 lbs and he is just over 5. Our little girl is almost 5lbs and she is three months younger. We got her from the same breeder...different litter. They have the same father but different mothers. He also said that he hasnt lost many of his baby teeth and that his adult teeth should be mostly in by now. He said that a liver shunt could hinder growth, etc. |
Im am sorry to hear this :( Hopefully it will not be a liver shunt.. you will know more once you recieve the results. Until then I am praying that this is something minor. |
Is your vet doing a bile acids test? That is the next diagnostic step. Try not to panic until you get the results. http://www.ytca.org/health_biletestproced.doc-1.pdf |
Yes, thats what we are waiting on now... |
Sending prayers and wishes for good test results and a healthy baby. Hang in there. |
Thank you. |
My vet just called and the bile acid test came back at 253...he is setting up for an ultrasound tomorrow...it looks like he will definitely need the surgery :(...i am beside myself right now... |
I'm so sorry that you and Calvin are going through this. |
I am so sorry to hear this. My puppy had to go through tests a couple of months ago as our vet thought she may have a liver shunt. It came back negative. Hope everything goes ok. |
Nope, not definitely. :) Just probably. :( There is still a slight chance that it is MVD (microvascular dysplasia) aka small shunting throughout the liver that is inoperable but manageable. Also, ultrasound is good to look at the size of the liver and the bladder (bladder stones can come with liver problems), but it is very difficult to see a shunt this way, so some would consider it a waste of money. They are about 60-80% accurate if a very experienced specialist does them. |
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Did you know that ultrasounds can be only 60% accurate for diagnosing liver shunts, especially in small dogs? You can waste a lot of time and money on the wrong diagnostics with a general vet who is not that experienced with liver shunts. I would ask for a referral to a specialist at this point as they will redo any test anyway. Are you close to Red Bank? They have excellent vets there. Red Bank Veterinary Hospital |
He did say that sometimes they are hard to find on an ultrasound but that the specialist he uses is very good and can find almost anything...i am concerned that b/c he is so small can he survive the surgery? Also the vet told me that in NJ it is a law that since it is genetic that the breeder is responsible for up to twice what you paid for the dog...does anyone know if that is true? It would help. We are going to do whatever it takes to make sure he is okay. |
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Get yourself off to a specialist. And I suspect your general vet is good, and will say you do need a specialist. |
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