Canine Liver Disease: Causes and Symptoms

By Ruthie Bently

Canine liver disease is the fifth leading cause of death for dogs, and it’s estimated that three percent of all diseases veterinarians see are connected to the liver.

Canine liver disease has many causes, such as physiological, physical and chemical. It can be called “prior” or “after” liver disease. An example of “prior” liver disease would be a cancer; an example of “after” liver disease is a blocked bile duct.

The liver is the second largest organ in a dog’s body (after the skin) and is the workhorse of their body. It’s a specialized manufacturing and pollution control center, and is what makes the body function properly. The liver processes food eaten, manufactures the necessary building blocks, detoxifies and recycles the blood, and gets rid of the waste created. Since the liver is connected so intricately to the biochemistry of an organism, it can make diagnosing canine liver disease difficult. Liver disease can affect many body functions and in turn the liver can be affected by many other organs and systems of the body.

If not too far advanced, the symptoms and disease may sometimes be reversed due to the liver’s ability to completely regenerate. However, the disease must be managed properly to allow this to happen. A dog’s liver can be damaged up to 80% and still function normally due to its reserve capacity; because of this capability, the disease may be too far advanced and untreatable by the time it’s diagnosed. The largest challenge facing veterinarians diagnosing canine liver disease is that the symptoms are not predictable and may not be specific. Due to the paradoxical attributes of the liver, diagnosing and treating the disease can be exceedingly difficult.

Canine liver disease has a myriad of causes, and what follows is only a partial list. Any number of traumas to a dog may result in liver disease: a hernia to the diaphragm, being hit by a car, a bruise or heatstroke. A diet that’s too high in fats can affect the liver; females are more prone to this than males. A dog with chronic infections (i.e. tooth problems) can contract liver disease. Fungal and bacterial infections can cause liver disease, as can parasites like heartworms and roundworms.

Certain drugs can cause side effects that result in liver disease, including acetaminophen, anabolic steroids, antibiotics, anesthetics, ASA, chemotherapy drugs, cortisone, corticosteroids, glucocorticoids, certain parasiticides given over extended periods, phenylbutazone and Phenobarbital.

Contact with toxins from pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, bleach, household cleaners and paint chips that may contain lead can all cause liver disease. Your dog could contract hepatitis, which is an inflammation of the liver. Cancer can overwhelm a dog’s system or metastasize directly to the liver itself and lead to issues.

Certain dog breeds are hereditarily prone to copper storage disease (a.k.a. canine copper hepatotoxicosis), a form of liver disease. An exaggerated amount of copper accumulates in their liver and if left untreated can be fatal. There’s also a chance of these breeds developing cirrhosis or chronic hepatitis.

There are numerous symptoms for canine liver disease. Jaundice is the most recognizable; a tint from yellow to orange will appear. It is most easily seen in the sclera (white) of the eye, but is also visible in the gums and skin of an affected dog. You may see more frequent urination which may also be tinged between lemon yellow and bright orange. Your dog may be thirstier or have an unquenchable thirst. Their abdomen may look distended and be uncomfortable to the touch. They may have a lack of appetite, chronic weight loss, recurring gastrointestinal issues or bloody vomiting. Their feces may be yellow or orange, a paler color than normal, or they may have bloody diarrhea with the above characteristics. You may observe strange behavior, circling, lethargy, no interest in playing or walks, or accelerating depression.

If your dog is diagnosed with canine liver disease, you should remove any toxic agents that could be involved. This includes any drugs that may harm the liver further.  If your dog is on medications with sodium or potassium, your vet may change or decrease those medications to eliminate the intake and retention of those minerals. If your dog is on Phenobarbital for seizure management, your vet may change their medication to decrease damage it may cause. Your vet may suggest distilled water to lessen the effect of minerals in the water. They may also put your dog on a special diet or prescribe a diuretic to control water retention. Your vet may suggest rest and confinement which will allow the body to focus needed resources on the healing process. If caught early and the liver isn’t too compromised the condition is reversible. Being alert to symptoms of canine liver disease, a responsible pet owner can save their dog’s life.

Read more articles by Ruthie Bently

Causes of Vomiting in Dogs

by Lorie Huston, DVM  

There are many different diseases and disease processes that can cause vomiting in dogs.

Vomiting is only a symptom, not a disease in itself. 

If your dog is vomiting, especially if he is vomiting persistently or severely, finding the proper treatment relies on finding the cause of the vomiting.

Gastrointestinal Causes of Vomiting in Dogs

There are many diseases that affect that gastrointestinal (GI) tract that can cause your dog to vomit. These diseases range from mild and self-limiting in their nature to life-threatening. They may be accompanied by other symptoms such as diarrhea, lack of appetite, dehydration and more depending on the individual disease and severity of the illness.

Commonly encountered causes of GI vomiting include:

• dietary indiscretion (also sometimes known as “garbage can enteritis”)


• food intolerance/food allergies


• parasites (roundworms, hookworms, Giardia, coccidia, etc.)


• viral infections (canine parvovirus, coronavirus, canine distemper, etc.)


• bacterial infections (Salmonella, E. coli, etc.)


• foreign bodies


• intestinal obstruction


• intussusception (telescoping of the intestines which causes a functional obstruction)


• tumors/growths in the GI tract

Non-GI Causes of Canine Vomiting

While it is easy to always assume that vomiting is caused by gastrointestinal disease, this is not always the case. Systemic diseases can also cause vomiting, often as a result of toxins which build up in the blood stream.

There is a relatively long list of systemic diseases that can potentially cause vomiting. While there is not room here to list each and every one, these are some of the most common:

• kidney disease/kidney failure


• liver disease/liver failure


• pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas)


• pyometra (infection of the uterus)


• diabetes mellitus


• Addison’s disease (a disease of the adrenal gland)


• toxins/poisons

Diagnosing Vomiting in Dogs

In cases of mild vomiting, absolute diagnosis may not be necessary as the disease may be self-limiting. In these cases, fasting for a few hours followed by feeding a bland diet may be all that is necessary for recovery.

However, if vomiting is severe and frequent or accompanied by other serious symptoms, pursuing an accurate diagnosis will be necessary. If there is doubt about how serious your dog’s symptoms are, pursuing diagnosis immediately, rather than attempting the fasting/bland diet approach, may be advisable.

The basic diagnostic approach for vomiting is likely to include one or more of the following:

• fecal examination, checking for parasites and ova (eggs) of parasites


• a Giardia Elisa test on the feces


• a basic blood screen consisting of a complete blood count and blood chemistry profile, including blood electrolyte measurement


• abdominal radiographs (x-rays) and/or and abdominal ultrasound

Additional testing may or may not be necessary, depending on the results of these tests.

***

Lorie Huston, DVM is an experienced veterinarian with over 20 years in practice caring for dogs and cats. 

She is an expert in pet health and pet care as well as being a talented free-lance author and blogger. 

In addition to numerous articles and posts both online and off, you can also find Lorie at her blog Pet Health Care Gazette. She is a co-host at the popular Animal Cafe and also works as a blogging/social media consultant and an SEO strategist. 

Her social media blog is Social Savvy Pets.

Articles by Dr. Huston:
Lyme Is Lame (Pun Intended)
The Ticking Bomb
Don’t Let Heartworm Become A Heartbreak!
Summer Perils: Blue-green Algae
Your Dog And Leptospirosis
Canine Parvovirus
Canine Distemper Virus
Why Is My Dog So Itchy? Top 5 Causes Of Itching In Dogs 
Vaccination Concerns and Potential Side Effects 
Natural Flea Control for Dogs 
Vomiting in Dogs: Is He Actually Vomiting? 

Related articles:
What’s In The Urine? (Part I)
What’s In The Urine? (Part II: Urinalysis)
Excessive Drinking
Bad Odor
Excessive Panting
Bad Breath (Halitosis)
Where There Is Smoke, There Is Fire: A Symptom Is Your Friend!
When Is It An Emergency?

Causes of Canine Addison"s Disease - Addisons in Dogs

Canine Addison’s disease causes aren’t exactly known but there are several suspects, including a faulty immune system, vaccinations, and tumors:

• 
  Faulty Immune System. Many practitioners believe that most cases of primary canine Addison’s Disease are because of the immune system attacking the adrenal glands and destroying it. The reasons for why the immune system attacks the tissue are mostly unknown. However, the inherited immune disorder granulomatous disease can be a cause of Addisons.

• 
  Genetics: According to this research article, Addison’s occurs between 1.5% and 9% of domestic dogs, depending on breed. Some breeds, like Bearded collies and Standard poodles, have a high susceptibility to canine Addison’s (you can find a full list in this article of breeds more likely to have Addison’s). The Canine Genetic Analysis Project (CGAP) at the University of California found that out of 1470 Bearded Collies tested in the program (as of 2005), 92 had Addison’s disease, suggesting a high heritability and the possibility of a single recessive gene responsible for Addison’s disease. The team is still gathering data (as of 2009) for many breeds.

• 
  Cancer: Cancer of the pituitary gland, adrenal lymphoma, or cancer that has spread to the adrenal glands from somewhere else (i.e. the lung or non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma) can cause Addison’s disease.

• 
  Drugs: Addison’s disease can occur because of drugs that block corticosteroid (one of the adrenal hormones) synthesis in the body. One such drug is Ketoconazole–used in dogs and cats to treat fungal infections. An overdose of mitotane (a drug used to treat cancer of the adrenal glands) can also cause Addison’s disease.
  

• 
  Inflammation/trauma: any kind of damage to the adrenal gland can cause Addison’s disease. It could be from something as simple as an infection or something as major as a car accident.

Secondary Addison’s disease

is caused by pituitary gland problems, and like primary Addison’s can be caused by many different factors including inflammation, trauma and tumors.

Dog Anemia – Symptoms, Causes, Treatments | Anemic Dog Cure

Dog anemia is a condition in which the red blood cells count in the blood drops below the normal amount. Usually, anemia in dogs is not a disease, but a symptom of another condition that the dog may be suffering from. Since dogs are largely fed on a non-vegetarian diet, it is rare for a dog to suffer from anemia due to deficiency in its diet.

Anemia simply means that the red blood cells are perishing faster than they are being reproduced. In dogs, it means that the source of the red blood cells has been affected due to some disease. Since red blood cells are manufactured in the bone marrow, the vet will first check for ailments that may affect the bone marrow of the dog.

Anemia could also be caused in a dog when the dog bleeds due to an injury and proper care is not given to the wound. Sometimes, ulcers in the gastrointestinal tract or hookworms and heartworms could result in internal bleeding, which could cause the dog to suffer from anemia.

Here are some of the common causes of anemia in dogs:

• The primary reason for anemia is blood loss. Injuries and trauma are most commonly associated with blood loss. In dogs, blood loss may also be caused due to parasitic infestation or diseases in which the blood loses its ability to clot.


• There are some typical diseases that cause the breakdown of red blood cells in the body. Such autoimmune diseases or cancerous diseases deplete the number of red blood cells in the body, causing anemia.


• Some autoimmune diseases also prevent the body from synthesizing red blood cells. In some cases, these diseases also destroy the red blood cells in the body.

If your dog is suffering from anemia, it will be listless and appear fatigued. The energy levels will be low, the dog’s appetite will reduce drastically, the gums will become pale, and the dog will pant more than usual. A packed cell volume test is given to the dog in order to ascertain the number of red blood cells in a given volume. This can help identify whether the red blood cell count of the dog is normal or not.
Generally, dogs suffer from anemia when the packed cell volume is less than 35%. A bone marrow biopsy may also be done in order to confirm the tests and to identify the cause of anemia.

Dog Anemia Treatemnt
Dog anemia treatment is preventative in nature. Certain foods and nutrients like beef liver, kelp powder, green vegetables, nutritional yeast and Vitamin Cprovide necessary nutrients that help prevent the onset of anemia.