Jessie has pancreatitis; no more tests

I'm so glad Jessie is doing better! 

Are you using a fish-based diet? Lu is on a liver- and joint-friendly diet that is mostly fish. Depending on the fish used, you can really up the protein without adding a lot of fat or ash. I can't remember whether fish is okay for Jessie, though.

Fiber, both soluble and insoluble, is important for the next step - it's vital for intestine health. Jessie's colon health is her first defense now against attacks on her pancreas. Fiber helps with proper digestion of fats in multiple ways - but of course Monica knows all that. Probiotics help greatly too, by creating an environment unfriendly to bugs with the potential to cause inflammation. That is, of course, if you can find a brand she's not sensitive to. If probiotics are a bust, then prebiotics do the same thing, but require more time to establish the healthy flora.

I had a dog with a sensitive pancreas several years ago. It was a weakness in his line - a close relative passed away of pancreatic insufficiency. When my own dog was about seven months old, he had a near-death brush with pancreatitis.  He lived and did quite well on the low-fat, easy-to-digest diet I had him on (I think it was Cal Nat Senior or reduced fat or something). It was tough with his being a working dog, and growing, but my vet emphasized that it would be years, if ever, that he'd be able to eat normally.

About six or seven months later, I dropped him off at a trainer for some intensive training. I brought his food and gave him the instructions that he wasn't to get treats or other "tid bits" from the dinner table.

When I came back after a month (part of the deal was that you couldn't see your dog so he'd bond properly to the trainer - that's normal), Rick came out of his kennel and I was amazed at how he'd filled out and how shiny and healthy he looked.

When I commented on it, the trainer looked a bit uneasy and instead of responding, went back to where he kept the dog food. "I forgot to use your food after the first week here - here's the bag. [!!!!!] He seemed fine and was getting some muscle to him, so I just kept him on the food  we feed here."

At the time, it was one of the most high-powered dog foods you could buy - a 24/18 formula. It's funny how low that sounds now, but he'd been on a 14/8 formula before that. It was a really carby formula though and he really needed it with the workouts he was getting - so I imagine now that that played a part in it. Those dogs were bred to really go hard and fast, and do it on carby food. Rick had gained about nine pounds in one month, all of it rock-hard muscle. That had to be part of it, I believe.

After that, he never had a problem again - gradually we went from kibble to BARF, then Volhards (raw, fruit/veg, and grains), then kibble/raw combo. We never had a blip after that.

So, when I read that research is not really conclusive about the direct causes of pancreatitis, I believe it.

I love Bugsy's pictures too!  

brookcove

I love Bugsy's pictures too!

  The diet is fish based and includes a small amount of beef liver. It calls for bluefish but I can't find it around here so I substituted canned jack mackerel. It's very close to bluefish in all nutrients except for potassium and of course it has more sodium, but I'm supplementing the potassium and rinsing the fish well and not adding the table salt that's in the recipe. Salmon would work but she's allergic to it. She's getting about 20 milligrams more sodium than her daily requirement but that's much less than the cottage cheese and rice diet the vet recommended. This is a carb based diet; she's getting 21 cups of long grain white rice a week and only 16 ounces of fish and 2 ounces of liver. The goal is to provide most of the calories with carbs because protein and fat stimulate the pancreas to produce more enzymes. Thanks for the info about fiber; I don't know what kind of fiber the rice has, maybe some of both?  Her stools were formed but soft last week but are much firmer this week because I've been adding bone meal, along with other supplements to balance the diet. She lost a few pounds even though she didn't vomit or have diarrhea, but she's gaining them back. I've added acidophilus to her food for about a year and may start adding it again next week if she's still doing well. Her enzymes improved a few days after her "attack" ( we thought it was a UTI at first but it was the pain from her pancreas making her wet), then went up again a week later (she was still on her dry food but being fed smaller meals and restricted treats), and are better again after being on the cooked diet for a week. Some members of K9 Kitchen have had their dogs relapse during the first few months after an attack even though they were doing everything right, so she's staying on a special diet for awhile. It's likely she will be able to have more protein and fat again like your dog.

  More good news; Her amylase is still normal and the lipase, which was 3000 on Monday, is down to 800, only about 50 above normal. I have to shut the PC down because a storm is coming, but wanted to share the news.

Hi Janice!  I just saw this and I read thru every post!  I'm so glad that Jessie is OK and that you caught this early.  I think she's such a lucky girl to have such wonderful parents who care so much about her.  And, she must be loving her meals! 

Lori

jessies_mom

  More good news; Her amylase is still normal and the lipase, which was 3000 on Monday, is down to 800, only about 50 above normal. I have to shut the PC down because a storm is coming, but wanted to share the news.

That is absolutely awesome!!! 

Woo hoo! Since she can tolerate most fish, most likely you'll be able to edge that up gradually until the diet is in line with her protein needs. You might see later, once she's stable and out of danger, whether you can switch to a baked whitefish or cod - something you can find in bulk, easily. Lu's on tilapia because I have a good source for wild caught by the case.

I remember now that Rick did have a mild relapse about four weeks after his levels normalized. I wonder whether that's because the inflammatory agent (a bug, for instance) builds up again? After that I put Rick on Prozyme, knowing his family history - it really scared me. I wouldn't advise it for Jessie given all her various sensitivities. I think it worked for Rick because his problem was a deficiency in the pancreas itself.

Oooooooooh - have you checked Jessie for Lyme's? And other TBDs too. The tick-bornes can attack the pancreas - the bad thing is that if you don't catch it the bugs will keep hiding there and pop back up anytime the dog is stressed. That's just a wild and crazy thought. If you don't live where there's ticks, nevermind . . .  

brookcove

Oooooooooh - have you checked Jessie for Lyme's? And other TBDs too. The tick-bornes can attack the pancreas - the bad thing is that if you don't catch it the bugs will keep hiding there and pop back up anytime the dog is stressed. That's just a wild and crazy thought. If you don't live where there's ticks, nevermind .

  Wow, thanks Becca. I removed a tick from Jessie in November and another one a few weeks later, so that's something to consider. While we're not sure what caused this my vet thinks it was probably related to using Animax, which is an ointment, for infections in both ears and both of her rear feet, all at the same time. The steroid in Animax is very potent and studies have shown that it raises pancreatic and liver enzymes. That may have combined with the fat from the beef rib she had to cause this.

  Amanda, Callie, and Lori; thanks so much!!!

jessies_mom

More good news; Her amylase is still normal and the lipase, which was 3000 on Monday, is down to 800, only about 50 above normal.

Awesome news!!

and Bugsy is willing to do what he can to help Jessie feel better - if that means allowing his behind to be ogled so be it LOL

(I explained in a mindless chatter thread that because he is constantly on the move every picture is from behind him - I bet less than 10% of my pictures of him have his face in it!)

kpwlee

(I explained in a mindless chatter thread that because he is constantly on the move every picture is from behind him - I bet less than 10% of my pictures of him have his face in it!)

   He is a handsome boy; I love his white chest.

  There's been a change in plans. My vet said she's well enough to go back on her regular food so we're easing her onto the Rx diet she did so well on before. It's 21% protein and 13% fat. We're allowing 10 days to do this and I'm going to have her enzymes checked afterwards to make sure she can handle it. I've cancelled the consultation with Monica. After she's been on the RX diet for a month, I'm going to slowly add lean, cooked meat in increasing amounts for some extra protein; she used to get 3 ounces of fish, extra lean turkey, or extra lean beef with it a day. I haven't ruled out a cooked diet in the future, but I feel this is best for Jessie at the present time. She's never getting anymore beef ribs; they were the only treat she had with some fat on them.

 Just glad that she continues to improve!

Janice, that sounds like a really good plan.  It's what I would of done myself.  You know me, after so many changes and trials and second guessing myself I stick with what works for HER now. 

Tell Jessie we said hello and give her a hug from us!!

 Oh, geez, I just saw this. I'm so glad that Jessie is ok!! I hope that her diet comes together easily, with no further issues.

 Thanks everyone.

 Lori, this is how I feel too. She did great for a while on the cooked diet Sabine formulated but then she began having ear infections and chewing her feet, so I had to stop feeding it. She had the same problems on the lamb and rice kibble I tried after that. She had been doing so well on the Rx diet I was considering stopping her allergy shots; it was really a bad idea to rock the boat. By the way, she has a Chow friend that looks like Willow; a beautiful dog.

Jennie; I wish the same for you and Emma. Sensitive dogs are so tricky to figure out.