High liver values

[buka163090]

Hi everyone! I have a 7 year old mini named Misha. He vomited a few times yesterday and we ended up going to the ER to make sure his pancreatic values were okay. I have dealt with pancreatitis before and I am extra cautious. HIs pancreas was fine but his liver values were off the charts. They gave him fluids and we took him home and today I went to our regular vet and the values were even higher. He is eating now and is acting much more like himself, maybe a little subdued. I am freaking out a bit over the potential issues. We are waiting to do a fasted blood draw wednesday morning along with a urine test to see what the actual values are.

I'm really worried because I lost my last schnauzer to liver disease but he was almost 12. My little guy just turned 7 and this came out of nowhere. Does anyone have experience with high liver values? Any thoughts?

[zeta1454]

Hello Robin and welcome to the Forum.

I am sorry to read about little Misha being unwell. I don’t have any experience of liver issues with our dogs but I have looked at some online veterinary resources which seem to show that there can be many reasons for high liver enzymes and not all are directly related to liver disease itself:

“…..an elevation in liver values doesn’t necessarily mean there is a serious problem with your dog’s liver. Your veterinarian will take into consideration your dog’s breed, age, medical history, as well as recent medications and additional lab results, to determine if there is a benign explanation for the lab results, if monitoring liver values for several months is appropriate, or if further diagnostics are warranted. Additional diagnostics might include x-rays, an abdominal ultrasound, more blood tests (bile acids, ammonia level), or liver biopsy. In any case, the liver has an amazing capacity to regenerate, so the presence of even significantly elevated liver values doesn’t necessarily mean a poor prognosis.“

The above quote is from this webpage:

https://www.mspca.org/angell_services/w ... er-values/

And there is this one also:

https://www.kingsdale.com/the-top-cause ... es-in-dogs

Once the vets have carried out tests to establish the cause of Misha’s high liver results it may be easier to look at ways to help support and heal the issue. It is so hard when you are waiting for results / tests and fearing the worst but try to stay positive. Misha is a young dog still and, if he has been fit and well until now this may not be as serious as it seems right now.

Do let us know on the Forum how things go with the tests - paws and fingers crossed for some good news.

[buka163090]

Thank you so much. It's awful waiting, but it's all we can do now. He is our whole world.