Olivia - Cholangiohepatitis & Protein-Losing Nephropathy
 

For starters, my sweet Olivia could really use prayers.......
It has been a busy three weeks. On a Thursday morning Olivia did not eat her breakfast....then, in the afternoon, she did not want to eat again. I picked her up and she screamed. Now, Olivia can be a drama queen, but I just had a bad feeling about this and called the vet. They told her to bring her in....we suspected pancreatitis maybe in the early stages. Her labs were all WNL and her xray was fine. The only symptom she had was anorexia and she also had a very high temp of 103.6. They gave her fluids and metronidazole and told me to return in the morning if she was still the same. Sure enough...still had a temp and wanted nothing to do with food. Tenderness up high in her chest area. Took her in and while we were talking about what this could be, I decided to take her to the specialist .. not really thinking it was something really awful but it was a Friday and if your pup is a client of GCVS, they can be admitted any time of the day/night. I did not want to have a sick pup over the weekend and have to go to the EC. So...off to the specialist we went. The specialist was very concerned about her because while her albumin was WNL, it was on the low side. She suggested admission and a complete workup on Olivia. Wow....I was stunned. ... I knew she was not well, but honestly did not think it was something really serious. Serious it was....they found on ultrasound issues with her gall bladder and her liver and scared me to death when they started talking about a possible rupture of her gall bladder and surgery. I had NO idea that gall bladder surgery in dogs is very risky. As the specialist was talking about it, I found my stomach doing flip flops. Anyway....she suggested medical treatment and close observation and of course, repeat ultrasounds. Olivia was admitted to ICU on antibiotics and fluids. Three days later she was responding and there was some improvement on her ultrasound. They discharged her on two antibiotics, mirtazapine for her appetite and tramadol for pain. She ate like a bird for a week...I had to constantly offer her food and water. Went back for another ultrasound a week later and slight improvement. Her clinical signs now are much, much better. She is bright and alert and eating really well now, thank God. She is still on two antibiotics and will be for one more week. Her diagnosis: suspected cholangiohepatitis .. the only way to really know for sure is a liver biopsy but they did not want to do that on her.

As if that was not bad enough...they were worried about the protein loss and thinking it could be intestinal ( all I could think about was Cookie...and another one with lymphangectasia)....but for Olivia, they found that she had protein in her urine...so they did a urine protein/creatinine ratio and it was very high. So...now she is on Enalapril . She goes back on Wed this week to be checked out and possibly put on other meds for the PLN.

I guess the only thing I can say is that I thank God that I have access to such wonderful vets. Honestly, if you came to my home and saw Olivia, you would never guess that she is sick. I really did not think that it was going to be something like all of this. I am still somewhat shocked.

Seems I have now learned about yet a couple more illnesses thanks to my love for this breed. I swear they get the darndest things.

Anyway....prayers from all of the YT members always seem to help the pups and I will be so appreciative for prayers for my sweet Olivia.

Oh my! Sending prayers your way... hope she improves quickly.

Yep, quite a mess. thank you!

Prayers are going out to Olivia, and to you.

What an ordeal, and what a crazy way to expand your vast knowledge of illnesses. Olivia is so lucky to be in your care with your great vets, and I hope she continues to improve.

Hugs to you too, it is obvious that this has frazzled you.

What an eventful 3 weeks you and Olivia have had. Yes, you are truly blessed to have the wonderful vets that you obviously have.

Sending out prayers for Olivia's health and continued recovery!

I'm glad Olivia's appetite is improving and she is doing well on the medicine. My Daisy also has PLN and takes a similar medication (Benazepril) along with a microdose of aspirin. We've had good luck with this regimen so far. I hope the same for Olivia! We will pray for her!

Oh my goodness. You're right in that our little buggers sure do come up with the strangest things and put us through new learning curves (after complete panic).

You helped me so much coming off the ledge and learning about Spanky's PLE !! All my prayers go out to you and Olivia for speedy recovery. Keep us updated so we can all learn with you while giving our support.

Sandy

Prayers for Olivia, and for You!

Prayers are being said for Olivia. I pray that she continues to get better each day.

Sending prayers for Olivia!! So glad she has you for a Mom LJ...you are always on top of things when it comes to your babies and their health.

Poor little one. Sending prayers

Good for you LJ!!....quick on the uptake! While this is a shock to your system, you were on it like a duck on a junebug and that, as you well know, has prevented a whole rash of other cascading issues! Prayers going out for your precious Olivia, and yourself as well.

prayers for continued improvement with olivia! its a good thing you follow your gut instict!!

Thank you! :)

Thanks so much...yes, it is indeed a crazy way to learn. I would much prefer a book. :)

Thank you! Yes, I do thank God for the vets I have here.

Daisy's story does give me hope. I pray that Olivia will do as well as she has.

How is Spanky doing now? When all of this came down, I thought of you and was going to email you but got sidetracked.

Thank you. :)

Thank you. :)

Thank you. :) I think it is the nurse in me...I really have been fortunate to catch things early.

Thank you. :)

haha...I have not heard that one before....duck on a junebug...hahhaha...good one! Yes, I do believe I would have lost her had I waited any longer....she was so sick. I am still shocked at just how sick. And, the fact her labs were not God awful is still surprising. I imagine that would not have been for long.

Thanks! :)

Thank you. :)

Here is a picture of my sweet Olivia...this was taken in last August right after I cut all of her beautiful hair off. While she looked a tad bit sad in the picture, I think she is much happier with her short hair. :)

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AAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWW! What a precious little girl!!!! Look at that little sweet face.......so sad when the get sick....I am certain she will improve rapidly with the excellent medical care you have access to, along with your monitoring abilities! I have always been a proponent of crisis avoidance rather than crisis management...you beat this one to the draw!

Oh what a little doll baby. Are you keeping her in the short cut? I love that cut on all 4 of mine, and with our warm weather year around it is great for them and easy on all of us for grooming.

Your intuition and quick action in getting Olivia to the vet is such a valuable lesson to ALL dog owners. I hope lots of owners will learn from this how important it is, when the dog acts or looks different, get them to a vet asap.

I know you get frustrated when owners wait and watch, and come on YT for advice rather than seeing a vet. You continue to teach by example :thumbup:

She came from a very bad place (breeder bust...237 dogs) a few years ago and is incredibly shy around strangers. She has improved quite a bit...but it killed me to leave her there. The one specialist who was there when she was discharged told me the people in ICU were teasing him that morning when he was talking to her like a baby. He said that he told them he could not help it .. her face did it. haha She was SO excited when I picked her up. Doesn't it just kill you? You wonder what they think when you leave them.

Yes, I will probably leave her hair short ... it is so much work and she tolerated it but I do think it is much nicer for her now. Here is a before of her...really pretty hair, but who was it for really? Ya know? haha

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As for teaching by example...I really would rather not. hahaha... All I can say is that in the long run, I believe it is cheaper to go quickly rather than drag it out and wait. And, sometimes, dragging it out can kill them. Something I could not live with. But, yes, I do share my stories in the hope that they will help others. I also get some great feedback that helps me.

How scary what your experience (not a question but a statement). I hope she keeps improving. With a high cretinine was there a concern about kidney failure? Poor little girl, suffering through all of that stuff. You are a wonderful mommy.

Actually her BUN and Creatinine were normal. It was the urine protein/creatinine ratio that was elevated. She is not in renal failure...she does have kidney disease, but this is treatable and she may not have issues for some time. It is the glomerulus in the kidneys that are affected. Here is a link that explains it..it is one of the better ones I have found:

http://www.vimpva.com/articles/Prote...0in%20Dogs.pdf

I'll email so I don't hijack your thread... I've been meaning to write for a bit myself and can see why you've been sidetracked !!!

Sandy

You can email...but feel free to post here! It's all along the same line and is very informational! :)

Olivia is beautiful . I pray she is feeling better soon!!

Thank you. :)

Olivia has my prayers.