portosystemic shunt

[MauiGirl]

Originally Posted by LillyBug

I met with the vet today to talk about Lilly's abnormal BAT's. I got a copy of her lab results and her ALT was 119, AST 75, BUN 20, BAT fasting 33.7 and Post 68.4. I was kinda let down by my vet today. I talked with him about repeating the labs and it was decided to repeat in 3-4 months. He prescribed lactulose and was going to check with his "company" to recommend a low protein food for Lilly. I already changed her to the natural balance with chicken. So I guess the next step is to treat medically and wait to repeat the levels.

I just posted these results and a reply over on your original thread http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/sic...ml#post2354995 hope that's ok. It was getting confusing here with several different dogs being discussed, not remembering previous results/symptoms, etc.

Hope that's ok. I'm following all the liver threads with great interest. Good luck.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by LillyBug

My first reaction as I was listening to him, was, "I am going to see someone else for a second opinion". I definately thought it was odd that he had to check with his company on which food to recommend, you would think he would know. Lilly has no symptoms at all. Initially when her pre surgery liver enzymes were high he gave me Denosyl for 30 days which I have continued to give to her. At first he was going to recheck in a year- which I was like, NO WAY. He diagnosed her with portosystemic shunt. I even mentioned that I had been doing research which says >100 is more likely for a shunt, he really didn't seem to listen to me. Lilly's pre surgical liver enzymes were high however when they performed the BAT they fell in normal range. I just feel like he didn't even listen to me and didn't explain. I am so confused now on what to do.

There is absolutely positively no way that she can be diagnosed with the test results you have this far if that helps you any.

And, if her really does think it is a shunt and that is his diagnosis, he should have sent you to an internist immediately so they could talk to you about correcting it. I think she needs more testing or a repeat BAT at the least.

Please get a second opinion...

And on the food, if he uses Science Diet like most vets do, it is the L/D that would be used. The canned is best. If he uses Royal Canin, it is the LS Hepatic (they put it right in the title) 14 that should be used (very palatable but some Yorkies get itchy on RC).

[LillyBug]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

There is absolutely positively no way that she can be diagnosed with the test results you have this far if that helps you any.

And, if her really does think it is a shunt and that is his diagnosis, he should have sent you to an internist immediately so they could talk to you about correcting it. I think she needs more testing or a repeat BAT at the least.

Please get a second opinion...

And on the food, if he uses Science Diet like most vets do, it is the L/D that would be used. The canned is best. If he uses Royal Canin, it is the LS Hepatic (they put it right in the title) 14 that should be used (very palatable but some Yorkies get itchy on RC).

He did say that he could make a referral but it was like he kept stressing, "depends on how aggressive and extensive you want to go". It was almost like he was recommending not to. I want to do what is neccessary for her. My husband even said, the money doesn't matter it is what she needs.

I think I will get a second opinion. Thanks alot for your input

[Sharlee]

It sure seems like a lot of our babies have these same issues. I read where Yorkies are 36x more likely to have LS and MVD than other breeds are...wow! It also seems like vets are rather un-decided about how to treat them. If it weren't for YT and what I've learned here, I would be totally confused by now. As it is, I'm just scared to death for my puppy. Her Protein C results should be back by the middle of next week so I'm trying not to panic until I know something for sure. By the way, about the food issue..Peaches is 5 months old and weighs 5.8 lbs. My first vet said to feed her 1/2 c of the Hills LD per day?? When I looked at the feeding chart it said for growth, feed 5/8 of a 13 oz can per day. Isn't a 5 month old puppy still in the growth stage? She was starving on 2 meals of 1/4 c each!! Also, any treat ideas for liver compromised puppies who love all the "junk food" type treats out there? I had been giving her Wellness Beef Jerky but I don't want to give her any kind of meat treats now. She won't eat sweet potatoes, broccoli, apples or any of the other nutritious treats I see recommended here. And if she doesn't get her treat she will just keep kissing you until she does!!

[bellasmomok]

Originally Posted by Sharlee

Also, any treat ideas for liver compromised puppies who love all the "junk food" type treats out there? I had been giving her Wellness Beef Jerky but I don't want to give her any kind of meat treats now. She won't eat sweet potatoes, broccoli, apples or any of the other nutritious treats I see recommended here. And if she doesn't get her treat she will just keep kissing you until she does!!

LOL!! She really knows how to twist your arm doesn't she!!

I don't really know since I haven't had that problem....Bella likes just about everything I give her--fruits, veggies, etc...

Plain (or even a few of the fruit ones) Non-Fat Yogurt and Friendship Low Sodium cottage cheese seem to be good treats for liver dogs. Both have protein, but since your baby is only 5 mo. old, I can't imagine using a bit of either as a treat would make any difference! (Is she symptomatic at all...I can't remember reading if she was or not? That would make a difference on protein amount, but its a GOOD protein so you'd just have to see how it affects her I guess IF she does have symptoms.

I have given Bella cereal before, and she LOVES that! Maybe yours would like the CRRRUNCH of that more. Try to go with Kashi or another organic kind that has just a few ingredients (for example, Chex has way too many ingredients to know if it would be ok or not, but Kashi has maybe 5 or 10 ingredients....much easier to sort through). My bet is she'll like the cereal! Other than that, there is a thread about treat recipes (Leo's Cookies and Peanut Butter Rounds I think were ones I thought would probably be okay for Bella--7 mo. old) so you can do a search for that. You'd have to bake those, of course, but I don't mind so maybe you don't?!

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by Sharlee

It sure seems like a lot of our babies have these same issues. I read where Yorkies are 36x more likely to have LS and MVD than other breeds are...wow! It also seems like vets are rather un-decided about how to treat them. If it weren't for YT and what I've learned here, I would be totally confused by now. As it is, I'm just scared to death for my puppy. Her Protein C results should be back by the middle of next week so I'm trying not to panic until I know something for sure. By the way, about the food issue..Peaches is 5 months old and weighs 5.8 lbs. My first vet said to feed her 1/2 c of the Hills LD per day?? When I looked at the feeding chart it said for growth, feed 5/8 of a 13 oz can per day. Isn't a 5 month old puppy still in the growth stage? She was starving on 2 meals of 1/4 c each!! Also, any treat ideas for liver compromised puppies who love all the "junk food" type treats out there? I had been giving her Wellness Beef Jerky but I don't want to give her any kind of meat treats now. She won't eat sweet potatoes, broccoli, apples or any of the other nutritious treats I see recommended here. And if she doesn't get her treat she will just keep kissing you until she does!!

A five month old pup is still growing.
For liver compromised dogs, it is optimal to feed them 4-6 times a day in small amounts so they aren't overloaded with protein at one time.

[Sharlee]

Thank you, I'll try the cereal and maybe she'll think it's junk food because of the crunch! I'm not a baker but if I thought she'd like the cookies, I'd sure give it a try. Amazing what I'll do for her that I wouldn't do for anyone else!! My DH would probably arm wrestle her for the peanut butter rounds, though!

[Yorkieluv]

Originally Posted by Sharlee

It sure seems like a lot of our babies have these same issues. I read where Yorkies are 36x more likely to have LS and MVD than other breeds are...wow! It also seems like vets are rather un-decided about how to treat them. If it weren't for YT and what I've learned here, I would be totally confused by now. As it is, I'm just scared to death for my puppy. Her Protein C results should be back by the middle of next week so I'm trying not to panic until I know something for sure. By the way, about the food issue..Peaches is 5 months old and weighs 5.8 lbs. My first vet said to feed her 1/2 c of the Hills LD per day?? When I looked at the feeding chart it said for growth, feed 5/8 of a 13 oz can per day. Isn't a 5 month old puppy still in the growth stage? She was starving on 2 meals of 1/4 c each!! Also, any treat ideas for liver compromised puppies who love all the "junk food" type treats out there? I had been giving her Wellness Beef Jerky but I don't want to give her any kind of meat treats now. She won't eat sweet potatoes, broccoli, apples or any of the other nutritious treats I see recommended here. And if she doesn't get her treat she will just keep kissing you until she does!!

Smaller, more frequent meals are recommended for liver compromised dogs to help lighten the load on the liver. Have you tried dehydrated sweet potatoes for treats? That might be an option for you...