Eurobichons

Toby had his blood test today and I got the results this afternoon.

Hsi Total Bilirubin TBIL was high at 66 umol/l,normal level should be 0-15,making it a 340% higher but his urea was 6.7 umol/l, which is within th enormal range of 2.5- 9.64. The vet does not know if this is a bad reading. Toby will go back to the vets this friday and have a liver function test to and see if he has problems with his liver.

His Haematocrit HCT was 59.3%, which was slightly high, normal range is 37-55. His Haemoglobin HCB was a bit high at 19.300 g/dl, normal range is 12-18. His EOS was high at 1.600 x10 9/,normal range is 0.5 - 1.5. His Platelets PLT was high at 589 x 10 9., normal range is 175-500. His ALT was high at 138 IU, normal range is 10-100.

The main concern is his liver. But we do the test on friday to check out what is going on. He will not have the leg op if he has liver probs. Then it will be a case of pain management.

I don't know what has caused this, it could be a degenerative problem or something else. In 13 yrs we have never had this liver prob. He has been on Metacam for a while and I know that liver damage is a very rare side effect, but he has not got any symptoms of liver damage. No loss of appetite, not vomitting and no blood in vomit, etc. If anything he was more alive and wide eyed when the vet brought him out to me. Got kisses and everything and he was walking well, be it a bit stiff.

This has shell shocked me today. When I came to pay the bill my card pin number went from my head totally. Luckily I had another card that I could remember the number of. I wouldn't mind but the other card was one that I use normally, but my mind just went blank. Got it back now, that is my pin memory.

Speaking to the vet he wants to get to the bottom of why this result was so high.Like me he can't believe it as he has been the vet of toby for a long time and Toby does not show any normal side effects of problem with the live. He is just my normal healthy Toby. xxx

The causes of elevated ALT levels are as numerous and varied as the functions the liver performs elevated liver enzymes are not always indicative of poor liver function.http://www.homevet.com/petcare/documents/immunenutrition.pdf

Note that mistakes in the drawing or handling of blood can cause certain test results to be skewed. Hemolysis may cause falsely elevated CPK, AST, LDH, Total Protein, Phosphorus, Potassium, BUN, Bilirubin and Bile Acids, and falsely decreased GGT, Glucose and Alkaline Phosphatase. Not fasting a dog for at least 12 hours before a blood test can cause moderately elevated BUN, as well as Lipemia, which can result in inaccurate CBC and Biochemistry analyses. Certain drugs, particularly corticosteroids, can also skew test results. See Eliminating the Confusion in Test Results and Small Mammal Clinical Pathology: The Basics for more information. It is a good idea to get a copy of all test results and look for comments about hemolysis or lipemia if there are values outside the normal range. In general, whenever you suddenly have changes in blood work, particularly if they are unrelated to current symptoms, it can be a good idea to repeat the test to be sure that the results were accurate before proceeding with further tests or making changes to diet and medications.Excess calories in the form of carbohydrates can add to liver dysfunction and can cause fat deposits in the liver (fatty liver). Make sure only 10 percent of your dogs daily required calories come from carbs. Alkaline water can help liver function. Alkaline water has a ph range of 8 and 10 and this helps to neutralize the acidity in the stomach ... . Alkaline water helps to boost liver function. I have had a mongrel aged 13 with elevated test results yet showed no signs of liver disease ie no lethargy no vomiting, given the equivalent of denosyl which has no side effects etc and he lived until he was 16-17 years of age.I used Milk thistle vitamin e,burdock and celadine and it really did make a huge difference.
Diet can alter liver function and cleanse the liver use A liver cleansing diet should consist of home cooked food and raw food. Fruits, low fat white fish and vegetables are an essential part of a liver cleansing diet. The diet should consist of 25 percent fish and 75 percent vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, zucchini, string beans and squash

According to Dr. W. Jean Dodds, 2 cups of pollack or any low-fat white fish along with 6 cups of vegetables and potatoes will cleanse a dog's liver. The following vegetables are recommended: potatoes, sweet potatoes, zucchini, string beans, celery and summer squash. Mix 1/2 cup of each vegetable with 2 cups of pollack, cod or other low-fat white fish.
Milk Thistle
Adding milk thistle to a dog's diet can help cleanse the liver. Use the dog's weight as a percentage of a human dose to determine the correct dosage of milk thistle. For example, a 40 lb. dog would get 40 percent of a human dose, which is usually around 100 to 150 mg.

Also remember that dehydration can lead to falsely elevated blood results, because the values are expressed as units per volume. Typically, raised haemoglobin and Hct are associated with fluid depletion. Make sure Toby has plenty to drink before his next test!

Aw Sarah I am sure the next one will be fine. Keep us posted.

You must be gutted Sarah, hopefully the readings are not as bad as the vet has said. Is the test on Friday just for his Liver? If so would it be worth re-testing? I hope the news isnt as bad as you fear. Poor Toby. Hugs to you both xxx

BIG hugs to you Sarah and keeping all my fingers and toes crossed for a good result. I am here if you need me Thinking of you XXX

I hope everything goes well on Friday, i know how worried you have been.Fingers crossed for a good result xxx

Sorry to read that Sarah, I will keep my fingers crossed that all goes well for him and you on Friday. I hope you hear what you want to hear. Val xx

Thank you all. I appreciate it. The test on friday is for his liver function. They will take blood when he has fast over night and then will feed him his favourite food,which the vet wants as fatty as possible to test his liver function, so I have to bring in some fav food of his. For me and my mum we can't believe that he has liver damage, so we just work on making sure his leg isn't hurting him now he is not on the metacam. Toby is good in himself and doesn't seemto be behaving like there is something wrong, which is why I don't believe the test result. I will see how friday goes and what we have to do next. xxx

Hope it's nothing to worry about. Sending only good your way!

If his liver were not functioning correctly, wouldn't he be jaundiced too?

Will be thinking of you and Toby tomorrow Sarah, hope things go well!xxx

Well Toby went in this morning. Vet phoned at 12 as Toby wouldn't take any food from him to give him the next blood test after eating. So I took him home, he was fed at 1:45 and I have to take him back to the vets at 3:45 for the second blood test. Boy oh boy, my boy won't take food from strangers. We had no problme feeding him. What a tiring day, but Toby ran to me when I got him at the vets and gave me kisses, which was wonderful and he looked so alert from when I took him in this morning. Probably glad to see me and escape. Poor Tobe's he has to go back soon. Get the blood results in a week.

Thank you for all your support. xxxxx

loyal boy xxxxx

All blood tests done now. Just have the waiting to do until end of next week for results to come back. Vet told me not to worry, little chance of that. Just want to find out so we can get Toby back onto some leg medication. xxx

Thinking of you Sarah... Hugs to you both!