Chinese Imperial

TweetyNJ · 02-09-2007, 02:24 PM

I took my puppy to get spayed and the vet told me her blood level was high for her liver. What could be wrong?

QueenMerry · 02-09-2007, 06:10 PM

Did your vet specify which liver enzyme was elevated? There are a few. Vets will always do bloodwork before any type of surgery to check things in order to reduce the risk that the animal will have trouble with anaesthesia.

Did they still do the surgery or are they making you wait? Did the vet tell you anything else?

TweetyNJ · 02-09-2007, 08:48 PM

No, the vet didn't tell me which one was high. They are waiting one week and they will redo the blood test.
How many levels are there for the liver or what are they called?

QueenMerry · 02-09-2007, 10:29 PM

I'm thinking that if they want to re-check in a week, they probably just ran a standard pre-surgical blood panel (without a full liver panel...normally the pre-surgical full liver panel is done for older dogs). If I had to guess, I'd say it's likely that your dog had an elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) level. It's likely nothing serious or they wouldn't have you waiting a week.

Did you keep your dog from eating 12 hours before having the bloodwork? Sometimes high protein food and not fasting properly can cause the BUN reading to be high.

In a typical liver panel, they normally check quite a bit more. That normally includes:

ALP (Alkaline Phosphatase)
ALB (Albumin)
GGT (Gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase)
SGPT (Serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase
TP (Total Protein)
CHOL (Cholesterol)
GLOB (Globulin)
TBILI (Total Bilirubin)

I've got a senior dog who has blood taken all too often so I have lots of experience with the typical liver panel, complete blood count tests, and a host of other blood tests.

I wouldn't panic just yet. It sounds like you and your vet are doing the right thing.

TweetyNJ · 02-09-2007, 11:19 PM

Yeah, it was the ALB or ALP. My puppy is only 6 months old. She did not eat or drink anything after midnight last night. I just pray everything is ok.
I did get her from a breeder. We did spend alot on her. The vet did say don't worry but that is easy for her to say. We do have two other dogs, so I really don't need something to happen with her.

QueenMerry · 02-09-2007, 11:36 PM

I know! It's always scary! Has your dog been drinking water normally? Elevation of ALP or ALB can sometimes indicate dehydration.

My old girl had a bout of Giardia in November, complete with scary bloody diarrhea and vomiting. When they ran her blood that day, everything was out of whack and both her ALP and ALB were elevated. They hydrated her with IV fluids and those values went back to normal. I've gotten to learn about all this stuff the hard and terrifying way!

I'd say that if your dog has been acting like a normal puppy, you probably have nothing to worry about (but you will anyway).

It may also be benefical to contact your breeder just to get their take on it.

Hang in there and keep us posted.