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07-22-2008, 12:27 PM | #1 |
YT Addict Join Date: May 2008 Location: Virginia Beach, VA
Posts: 438
| Liver shunt What is involved when testing for liver shunt? What do they have to do to the furbaby? How old must they be to have it done? Why is this done? My friend has a tiny shih tzu and it was suggested by her vet due to her dog's small size. Pam |
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07-22-2008, 12:39 PM | #2 |
And Rylee Finnegan Donating Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Metro Detroit, MI
Posts: 17,928
| The first step is a bile acid test. A blood test is done after fasting for 12 hours (fasting for that long is no longer considered necessary but most vets still follow this protocol), the dog is fed and another blood draw is done 2 hours later. The dog should be 6 months or more if possible and no meds (including heartworm, flea and vaccines) should be given for about a week or 2 before because they can skew the results. A high protein diet can also make the numbers go up. Normal is about 10 or less pre meal and 15 or less post meal depending on the lab. If the dog is having symptoms, the test should be done even if the dog is not yet 6 months.
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07-22-2008, 12:44 PM | #3 |
Donating YT 10K Club Member | Here's detailed information on liver shunt Liver Shunt Research A bile acid test is given to determine liver function. This test does NOT diagnosis liver shunt...it solely indicates how the liver is functioning. Blood is drawn from the dog's jugular vein. The levels are read...pre fasting and post fasting. It's generally considered best to be given around 6 months of age. The cost of testing in our area is about 85 dollars. If you read liver shunt/mvd threads...the majority of these dogs are very small. Btw, was this the shihzu you posted about last week or so?
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07-22-2008, 02:00 PM | #4 | |
YT Addict Join Date: May 2008 Location: Virginia Beach, VA
Posts: 438
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07-22-2008, 04:39 PM | #5 |
Donating YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: North Carolina
Posts: 8,317
| Shih Tsus are one of the breeds prone to liver shunts. Dr. Center recommends that affected breeds have a bile acids test before even going to their new home with four months being ideal. 2: The best approach to avoid "over diagnosis" is to test bile acids in young dogs of highly affected breeds (at 4 mths of age) while they are clinically healthy and before they are adopted into pet homes. Highly affected breeds include: Yorkshire Terrier, Cairn Terrier, Maltese, Tibetan Spaniels as well as many other "terrier" type breeds (Miniature Schnauzer, Lhasa Apso, Shih Tzu, Dachshund, Bichon Frise, Pekingese, Toy and Miniature Poodles, and Havanese and others). Proactive assessment of serum bile acids will limit the awkward circumstance imposed when an MVD dog, with minor health issues, is suddenly recognized to have abnormal bile acids by a pet owner's veterinarian. This circumstance can lead to unnecessary diagnostic confusion and unwarranted invasive tests such as liver biopsy and portovenography. How old dogs should be at he time of initial testing has not been established. Typically, abnormal bile acids DO NOT normalize as a dog ages ..... " (all emphasis added by Dr. Center) |
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