Hello, I was wondering if anyone's had any issue with their dogs liver?? Our dog was due to be neutered in December but the pre op blood test showed that his ALT enzymes were 9 times higher than they should have been. After being on Hepaticare (liver tablets) the enzymes came down to 5 times higher than the normal level but they are not coming down anymore? He has had numerous blood tests and everything else seems fine.. bit of an odd one! Was just wondering if anyone had experienced anything like this?
I`m sorry that I cant offer any advice , what a conundrum for you ! . Can your Vet offer any advice as to why his levels are not dropping further ? I would definitely suggest you have a good chat with him/her , and maybe offer a low fat/low salt diet as a compliment ?
I'm sorry to hear that. It is worrying. As @kateincornwall asked, what did your vet say? How is your dog otherwise? Does he seem healthy or sick? I know I'm going to be labelled as the Anti-Bravecto Girl (so be it), but have you by any chance given your dog any anti-flea/tick oral chews in the past year? People whose dogs have been sick after taking these oral chews and have had blood tests have seen elevated liver enzymes.
I would worry about a raised ALT - in human medicine, it would indicate liver CELL damage, maybe by an acute Hepatitis. Sometimes drugs can cause this too ( not sure about the Bravecto, but epilepsy drugs and steroids can cause it for sure), or a viral infection, or sometimes an obstruction of the bile salts (but normally other tests would be up too). Sometimes liver tests can be up due to heart problems or diabetes which don't seem immediately related to the liver. I think in dogs, abnormal blood flow to the liver can cause it as well. It's good that the repeat test was not so high, but I would still worry and want a clear answer from my vet. If the level is still more than 3 times the upper level (or so says a vet article I was reading!) then an ultrasound would be the next step. Sometimes a liver biopsy may be needed too. Its good the vet is using time to see if things settle, they often do, and if your dog is well in himself, eating and pooping fine, full of energy etc then that is reassuring. You definitely should keep up a dialogue with your vet though and make sure things settle. Hope things all revert to normal soon. jac
Thanks so much for all of your responses. Oscar has already had an 4 blood tests, a urine test, x-ray and 2 ultrasounds but they cannot see anything wrong with any of the results. I think they have tested for; Leptospira (even though this is almost unheard of in my area) Vitamin Levels in the pancreas to make sure he is absorbing the vitamins in his food (vet has him on Hills advanced fitness) Hepatitus- she says he has a touch of this They also checked that the bile duct was not blocked. They have tested for a few more things too but I cant fully remember but they have checked a lot of things and everything seems totally normal. He is still his normal outrageous self, eating well (he is getting fed a lot but we are struggling to see any weight gain- he is back on 3 feeds a day 150g each meal- I know this is a lot but he burn a lot of energy). We have been referred to a specialist in Edinburgh as the Vet has said she has no idea what is causing this as all of the tests they have done have showed that he is ok apart from the high ALT levels they are now sitting around 500. We are going back to get a blood test on Friday to check the levels haven't come down again - if they haven't we will be going to our appointment on Monday. The vet has said that the ultrasound specialist down there will be able to see any tiny change in the shades and they may possibly do a biopsy (we really don't want to have to do this but we need to know what the issue is as he is only 1yr 4months)- they were a bit skeptical about doing a biopsy up here as its invasive and I believe the anesthetic can upset the liver and if its already not right there may be added complications. With regards to the Bravecto- yes we have given him this once or twice before - we have held off giving him this since we found out about his liver. Just really strange that these results are all normal and he is his normal self- I just wandered if anyone else had experienced this. Mel
I'm sure this is totally unhelpful but my Ella had a slightly elevated level after she'd ingested a toxic plant.
Hi Emily, The vet originally thought he had ate something toxic but she said that would have cleared the system and the enzymes level would have dropped by now
Did your vet not consider Bravecto toxic? Several people whose dogs got sick after taking Bravecto have been told their dog appeared to have eaten something toxic. In these cases the owners could assure that the dog had not eaten anything other than their food and the Bravecto. Is it possible to take a biopsy without an aesthetic? My boy needed a prostate biopsy which they did without a sedative (it was the original plan) - they said he was quite happy and chilled to lie on his back having tummy tickles (I wasn't there). But perhaps a younger dog might not be so willing to lie still! Best of luck and all my good wishes for a much improved liver test result.
Were these dogs physically sick? I did mention that I hadn't given him the bravecto this time round when he was due it because of his liver issue I didn't want to risk anything else upsetting it. So she was aware but never said anything about there being previous cases of dogs being ill off it. He was given advocate but he was still getting ticks (he loves venturing through the long grasses) so they suggested bravecto.
Yes, the dogs that were tested were very sick indeed. Sadly some died. I was hesitant to mention the latter as I don't know your dog, I'm not a vet, and I don't know what's causing your dog's elevated liver enzymes, so I don't want my comments to cause you any undue anxiety. But the number of reported adverse reactions after taking Bravecto is rising and I wish there better studies done to prove safety. To date, the studies are not satisfactory and the number of reported adverse reactions are rising.
Oscar is still completely full off life :S this has been ongoing since 28th December. We have the specialist on Monday so here's hoping we get an answer. They will see on his file that he has had Bravecto in September and I will be sure to ask if they think this could have been related.
Very new here but I would really like to hear how Oscar is doing. We are having a very similar issue. On Friday something was wrong with Chucker (10 YO Black Lab). He acted like he was having trouble swallowing. He acted like he wanted to eat but couldn't. He was a little shaky, but I have had two dogs with seizures and this was not that. Took him to the vet, and he drew blood. An hour after getting home, he was eating. Chasing squirrels. Begging for treats. Chasing the cat (good boy!!!). Vet called the next day and said his liver enzymes were way off the chart. Vet talked about doing an ultrasound. I am struggling with that because (as I told my vet), If there is something horribly wrong that I can't do anything to fix, I will enjoy the time with the dog much more if I don't know. He's 10 years old. I have him for as long as he gives me. Vet said chances are very low that there will be something wrong that you can see in an Ultrasound AND you could treat to significantly extend the dog's life AND in one month it will progress to the point that you can't treat. It is Tuesday now and Chucker is as happy as could be so we are going to wait a month and recheck. If the tests were related to his symptoms on Friday, he seems to be over it so hopefully the labs will come back better. Please let me know how Oscar is doing!
