Intestinal Lymphangiectasia: A Protein-Losing Enteropathy (PLE)

[specialklm]

My heart and prayers go out to you for Noelle's recovery and on losing Chance.
Yes, PLE is a strange disease and, from what I've read but luckily haven't yet experienced, is that Prednisone can keep PLE in check but can cause so many other problems.

JaJa was diagnosed 2 years ago (she's now 9 1/2 years) and is on prednisone for 2 days then off 1 day, then the cycle begins again. She has had UTI's and more recently, cystals in her urine. I crush 150 mg Vit C 2x/day and add it to her food.

her blood work last month showed a slightly lower albumin protein level- although still in normal range. Her vet now wants her to get blood work every month instead of every 2 months...

One thing that might be helping is I add Fortiflora (a probiotic) to her food each evening.

Please let me know if you want to discuss.
best,
Karen & JaJa

[jeanne braverma]

Originally Posted by specialklm

Hi Nikeann,
I have found that many, if not most, vets are such alarmists! One time I took Ja to an emergency hospital because she was not acting responsive after playing rough ball with a friend. the vet said he thought it might be a stroke & I should see a neurologist... well, it turned out she just strained her neck a bit & was better within a day.

I think vets are great and caring but I wish they wouldn't give us the worst case scenarios so often. When Ja's albumin count was so low, the 1st vet said it was immediately life threatening... Holly's vet doesn't have a crystal ball. Do you knw what her albumin count was... is? Ja's was so low but within a month on prednisone it was up to normal and continues to be. While I know that Ja is not "cured" but in a remission, Yorkies are very sensitive yet hardy and bounce back. I believe that a of of love, as with people, is powerful medicine.

Ja's personality has not changed. In fact, lately when we go for walks she wants to run. Holly's illness is new and until the meds kick in I think it's normal that she's lethargic. I was told that during the beginning of giving her prednisone I shouldn't take her out much because she would be more prone to not healing if she gets a cut etc. So, Holly might be telling you she needs to take it easy for awhile. Did Holly lose much weight before the diagnosis? Ja did, but is now at a good weight.

The vet tried to sell me on prescription food (Ja can only eat duck & potato food) but when I compared the ingredients of the prescip. food to what I've been giving her (Natural Balance Duck & Potato canned & dry) I felt the ingredients in Natural Balance were better... Ja constantly wants to eat...pee..eat etc. - it's tough on me but I love her so much that I will do anything for her. btw, a friend told me today about a product called "belly bands" - it's like a fancy diaper... I'm going to look into it.

Have you ever heard of the no-interest (if you follow the rules) credit card : Care Credit ( @ carecredit.com). Some vets accept it, & some do not. Basically, it allows you to spread the payments over 3 months interest free if the balance is paid on time. In the past year, Ja's vet bills have been about $5000-- 2 years before about $6000.

I hope Holly & JaJa ( and us) both come through this speedily& healthfully.
Don't give up on Holly's healing-- she's probably a fighter like Ja.

Thanks for your kind words. I do know what you're going through & it is scary.
best to you and Holly,
Karen & JaJa

I am so sorry for all your long trials in giving JaJa back the quality of life she deserves. I am happy she is still with you. My Vet said Holly will probably not be with me in two years even if she responds to treatment. This puts an ache in my heart you probably understand.

Has this illness changed JaJa's personality at all?
Holly sleeps a lot and sits in the sun. I have stopped taking her for walks
I think she misses it. Should I resume her normal routines?

I am on a fixed income, but, plan on cutting back on other things to see Holly through what sounds like a very expensive ordeal in recovering. I don't have dog insurance to cover some of it.

I am happy to have you to talk to about this...and appreciate you being here to let me know what Holly will be going through.

Hard part so far is she is always sooooo hungry and also pees like a Great Dane. The Vet is going to give me a list of what she can eat and it has to be strictly followed. Holly gets me up at night to go out to pee every 3 hours..yet there is pee puddles on the pee pads.

Give JaJa a hug from me.
She is so lucky to have you.


Nikeann07

help... my dog princess just diagnosed today with protein losing
enteropathy....in fact, right now she is at the dog hospital having a plasma
transfusion.
her only symptoms were she threw up every day for 3 days and
was not acting like her self ( acting a little depressed and very needy).
has your dog recovered? i am so scared.
princess is 9 years old
thank you for any info you can give me.

[LuvMySissy]

Originally Posted by jeanne braverma

help... my dog princess just diagnosed today with protein losing
enteropathy....in fact, right now she is at the dog hospital having a plasma
transfusion.
her only symptoms were she threw up every day for 3 days and
was not acting like her self ( acting a little depressed and very needy).
has your dog recovered? i am so scared.
princess is 9 years old
thank you for any info you can give me.

My 3 year old was diagnosed with early stage PLE last fall with no symptoms whatsoever. We ran a blood panel to check how things were going, lipase was very high and immune system markers were off, so we ran the SPEC cPL and found the PLE.

I did a nutrition consult with Susan Davis (Pet Health Pet Nutritionist Holistic Pet), she began on weekly B12 injections, several supplements and tweaked her diet a little. She is on The Honest Kitchen Embark for breakfast and THK Preference mixed with cooked white fish and salmon for dinner. Both are low fat and super easy to feed. She gets a daily Probiotic and Vitamineral Green (which is a green superfood) and she will get these for life. For the first three months she was also daily on BioLiv and Lypozyme. She is not on any other medications whatsoever.

After 4 months of this regime, we re-ran the SPEC cPL and her TLI level is now normal and other levels are normalizing. We are now 9 months into this regimen and for the past 2 months, Sissy is spunky and energetic and acting like she hasn't in more than 2 years!! She is playing with toys and interested in interacting with her sister and other yorkies.

I hope this helps.....

[ally173]

Originally Posted by LuvMySissy

My 3 year old was diagnosed with early stage PLE last fall with no symptoms whatsoever. We ran a blood panel to check how things were going, lipase was very high and immune system markers were off, so we ran the SPEC cPL and found the PLE.

I did a nutrition consult with Susan Davis (Pet Health Pet Nutritionist Holistic Pet), she began on weekly B12 injections, several supplements and tweaked her diet a little. She is on The Honest Kitchen Embark for breakfast and THK Preference mixed with cooked white fish and salmon for dinner. Both are low fat and super easy to feed. She gets a daily Probiotic and Vitamineral Green (which is a green superfood) and she will get these for life. For the first three months she was also daily on BioLiv and Lypozyme. She is not on any other medications whatsoever.

After 4 months of this regime, we re-ran the SPEC cPL and her TLI level is now normal and other levels are normalizing. We are now 9 months into this regimen and for the past 2 months, Sissy is spunky and energetic and acting like she hasn't in more than 2 years!! She is playing with toys and interested in interacting with her sister and other yorkies.

I hope this helps.....

my dog was recently admitted to the hospital for vomiting blood; the vet said she has gastritis; i am feeding her a bland diet now; however i am thinking of starting her on honest kitchen force formula; can you please let me know how much and how many times daily you feed your dog; and how do you give the supplements; do you add them to the food. thank you.

[LuvMySissy]

Originally Posted by ally173

my dog was recently admitted to the hospital for vomiting blood; the vet said she has gastritis; i am feeding her a bland diet now; however i am thinking of starting her on honest kitchen force formula; can you please let me know how much and how many times daily you feed your dog; and how do you give the supplements; do you add them to the food. thank you.

Yes, all the supplements get added right to the food. Anything in capsules can be opened up (that is what we do). My girls get fed twice each day, morning and early evening. My girls are both right around 5 lbs, so they get 1/4 cup of THK mixed with 1/4 cup of water.

If you are doing a bland diet because of gastritis, you may want to start with the Preference and add your own meat to it as it has less ingredients and no flax (which can be hard to digest for IBD issues). We use this formula for dinner and add cooked white fish & salmon to it (about 1 oz total). I would also highly recommend adding a daily probiotic.

Hope this helps.

[ally173]

Originally Posted by LuvMySissy

Yes, all the supplements get added right to the food. Anything in capsules can be opened up (that is what we do). My girls get fed twice each day, morning and early evening. My girls are both right around 5 lbs, so they get 1/4 cup of THK mixed with 1/4 cup of water.

If you are doing a bland diet because of gastritis, you may want to start with the Preference and add your own meat to it as it has less ingredients and no flax (which can be hard to digest for IBD issues). We use this formula for dinner and add cooked white fish & salmon to it (about 1 oz total). I would also highly recommend adding a daily probiotic.

Hope this helps.

thanks; that helps a lot; another quick question ; between the 2 meals ;do you give anything to hold their stomach for the middle of the day? thanks

[ally173]

Originally Posted by LuvMySissy

Yes, all the supplements get added right to the food. Anything in capsules can be opened up (that is what we do). My girls get fed twice each day, morning and early evening. My girls are both right around 5 lbs, so they get 1/4 cup of THK mixed with 1/4 cup of water.

If you are doing a bland diet because of gastritis, you may want to start with the Preference and add your own meat to it as it has less ingredients and no flax (which can be hard to digest for IBD issues). We use this formula for dinner and add cooked white fish & salmon to it (about 1 oz total). I would also highly recommend adding a daily probiotic.

Hope this helps.

sorry to ask so many questions; how do you cook the fish that you add to prefference. thanks

[LuvMySissy]

Originally Posted by ally173

thanks; that helps a lot; another quick question ; between the 2 meals ;do you give anything to hold their stomach for the middle of the day? thanks

I give occasional treats. I like the Cloud Star Farmstand Sweet Potato, Carrot and Apple slices. Each slice gets broken up into at least 8 pieces and it takes them a minute or so to eat a piece.

Originally Posted by ally173

sorry to ask so many questions; how do you cook the fish that you add to prefference. thanks

It gets steamed without anything added. I like the talapia and salmon by Marketplace at Target.

[robbiemoe]

Hi all,

I found this forum through googling this condition (which my dog has had for 2 years). I actually don't have a Yorkie - I have a Bernese Mountain Dog who at 3 years old is 130 lbs! Although our dogs may not be similar, this condition is. I wanted you all to know that we have been through the same thing as all of you (prednisone, checking protein levels constantly, etc) and have had our dog on prescription W/D food for 2 years. Our new vet recommended we try R/D, and I finally did some serious research on what we were feeding our dog and was shocked. For a dog that needs high levels of digestible fat, this food (and R/D for that matter) this food is TERRIBLE. As you can imagine, it isn't cheap feeding prescription food to a 130lb dog, and I am quite upset that we have been buying this and feeding our poor dog this for years.

To Annie's parent - I bought Wellness Core Reduced Fat today, and am really looking forward to transitioning Bear onto it. I am encouraged by your results, and am trying everything to save my baby! Is Annie still doing well? Hope so!

Originally Posted by eroar2

Annie has been off meds for the past three months. We got her blood checked a couple of days ago and we got back fantastic results! Since her last bloodwork her protein levels have risen significahntly and are now in the normal range. So basically we have been doing an excellent job maintaining her needs through her diet which is fantastic!

[eroar2]

Robbiemoe -

I am sorry to hear about your dog. When we first started with this disease, the vet put Annie on R/D. I wasn't too happy about it, but went with it for a bit and just switched after doing some research on the different foods.

We have thankfully and Amazingly have been off meds for about a year... (I can't believe its been that long) But Annie is still doing great and protein levels are fantastic and her personality is the same as it has always been!

We have been sticking with the same diet for the past year which is a little canned food or shredded chicken in the morning, egg white in the evening and then the Wellness Core Reduced Fat at night.

Let us know how it goes!

[robbiemoe]

eroar2-

thanks so much for the encouraging words - I will keep up with the new food, its only been 2 days of feeding and have already seen improvement, so I hope this keeps up!

btw, I'm totally jealous of little dog owners this time of year, if only I could find a halloween costume big enough for my guy!!

Will let you all know how it goes, and updates on anything that works for us.

[BanditSocks2]

As I was reading these posts I was wondering about PLE. Does the vomiting and diarreah come and go in bouts?

[robbiemoe]

It did with Bear....the first time he exhibited symptoms he had bad poops for at least 6 months as we tried to get him diagnosed. Once he was put on prednisone he did great almost immediately for about a year, and has recently flared up again. He vomits once and a while, but nothing consistent. I have also found that when he is sick his coat loses shine, and seems thinner than usual. Also, if you suspect that your dog has lymphangiectasia be sure to check their stomach to make sure that it doesnt feel really bloted (filled with fluid).

Let me know if you have anymore questions, unfortunately I know quite a bit about this condition!

[BanditSocks2]

Thank you! Bandit will have random bouts of dirreah and vomiting which can last for a day or two up to 5 days. When it is really severe we go to the vet and they do a fecal which always comes back negative, they give him sub q fluids, and a vomiting stopping shot. We feed him chicken and rice for a few days and then get him back on his kibble. I've been trying to track these bouts and was wondering if this is what it could potentially be. These bouts have never lasted any longer than a week and always get better, but I was wondering if this could be an early symptom. If so, I will def be discussing it with my vet when we get our puppy spayed on Wednesday. Good luck, and thanks for your help!

[ally173]

Originally Posted by BanditSocks2

Thank you! Bandit will have random bouts of dirreah and vomiting which can last for a day or two up to 5 days. When it is really severe we go to the vet and they do a fecal which always comes back negative, they give him sub q fluids, and a vomiting stopping shot. We feed him chicken and rice for a few days and then get him back on his kibble. I've been trying to track these bouts and was wondering if this is what it could potentially be. These bouts have never lasted any longer than a week and always get better, but I was wondering if this could be an early symptom. If so, I will def be discussing it with my vet when we get our puppy spayed on Wednesday. Good luck, and thanks for your help!

what type of food are you feeding him; it could be the kibble; because it's dry food and requires lots of water; sometimes they get dehydrated. when i stopped the kibble for my dog the vomiting stopped; now she's on the honest kitchen; which i can add water to and that way i know she's getting enough hydration. also i supplement with digestive enzymes and probiotic; good luck