[Diane S]

Hi, I hope someone can help out our 1 1/2 year old Havanese. From 6 months of age from routine blood work we noticed elevated ALT levels. Over the past year it has predominantly been between 600-800. All other tests are normal. Ultrasound was normal. He acts like a very healthy and energetic dog and has a great appetite. He currently eats Stella and chewys raw beef (beef suggested by vet) and only eats liver treats as snacks. We have tried milk thistle and aventi but it only seemed to work for couple weeks then ALT went up again. We tried antibiotics but no results so we don’t think it’s an infection but rather some type of inflammation. Can anyone help to give ideas or suggestions what else we can do to lower our dog’s ALT. He is a very happy boy, right now, and we want to keep it like that for a very long time!!

[Susan]

Hi
Stop feeding the Stella & Chewy raw..
Find a free range human grade raw company or make your own raw diet with human grade raw meats/green veggies.
Sounds like the raw meat might be high in Toxins, Heavy Metals & Contaminates. Toxins can cause elevated ALT levels??
This was happening with my boy 2yrs ago when he ate a certain USA kibble he kept having elevated ALT levels..Then this USA pet food company was all over the internet being sued for their kibble being very HIGH IN TOXINS.
As soon as I changed his diet to a different brand his elevated ALT levels went back to normal.
My dogs Nutritionist who formulated my dog raw diet said to only use human grade meats I eat, she would NOT let me feed any of these Pre-made raw pet foods.
It’s worth a try changing diet & see what happens, also your dog needs to be on a large breed puppy diet till 2yrs old so his growing bones don’t grow too quickly & cause joint problems later on, if you have the money find a Nutritionist to balance him a raw diet made from Human grade ingredients + blended green veggies so diet is not too high in calcium and phosphorus & hopefully toxin free…
https://todaysveterinarynurse.com/articles/giant-expectations-nutrition-for-the-large-breed-puppy/

[Chipy]

Hi Diane,

Sorry to hear you are going through this with your beloved Havanese boy and I hope to provide you with some information that might be helpful.

Dr. Dobias has written an article about liver disease in which he discusses elevated enzymes and his protocol. He has seen excellent results from the bi-annual liver cleanse protocol, both proactively and for dogs dealing with existing liver issues and enzyme elevation.

Treating & Preventing Liver Disease Naturally:
https://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/11014997-treating-and-preventing-liver-disease-naturally

LiverTune is an herbal supplement recommended for high liver enzymes and liver conditions:
LiverTune®

It’s great that you feed him raw food, but please be careful with liver treats. Dehydrated treats can be harmless in small amounts but toxic when it is frequently given – like dehydrated liver treats.

The reasons why liver treats, especially the dehydrated ones, put our dogs in danger of hypervitaminosis A are that they are greatly reduced in volume during dehydration, and they contain ten times or more vitamin A than the raw liver or cooked liver.

Liver treat toxicity in dogs:
https://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/liver-treat-toxicity-in-dogs

12 things you must know about dog treats:
https://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/11014081-12-things-you-must-know-about-dog-treats

I hope this helps. Wishing you and your pup all the best in happiness and good health 🙂
Chipy

[Patricia A]

Hi..Diane has your vet ruled out what possibly is causing these high ALT”s from puppyhood? Glad to hear ultrasound is normal . Below are some common causes of the high ALT levels. ALT is an enzyme that may be released with any source of damage to the liver. Blunt trauma, anaphylactic reaction, systemic illness such as thyroid disorders, and other problems that have nothing to do with the liver can cause an elevation of ALT in the blood. Just because ALT is elevated doesn’t mean the liver is failing, however. This result is interpreted in conjunction with clinical signs and other bloodwork and imaging changes.
Increased ALT

Common Causes
• Inflammatory
o Infectious causes
 Bacterial cholangiohepatitis
 Leptospirosis
 Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP)  Histoplasmosis
 Infectious canine hepatitis
o Noninfectious causes

 Chronic hepatitis
 Cirrhosis
 Pancreatitis
• Toxic
o NSAIDS
o Phenobarbital
o Corticosteroids
o Methimazole/carbimazole
• Liver hypoxia or hypoperfusion o Anemia
o Congestive heart failure
o Shock
• Metabolic disorders
o Hyperthyroidism (cats)
o Hepatic lipidosis (cats)
o Cushing’s disease
o Diabetes mellitus/diabetic ketoacidosis
• Neoplasia
• Trauma
Generated by VetConnect® PLUS: Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) Page 1 of 3

Uncommon Causes
• Portosystemic shunts (usually mild elevations if any)
• Toxic
o Mushroom
o Sago palm
o Aflatoxin
o Ragwort (horses) o Xylitol
o Tetracycyline
o Idiosyncratic drug reactions
• Inherited
o Copper storage disease (certain dog breeds, but particularly severe in Bedlington Terriers)
o Lysosomal storage disorders
• Severe skeletal myopathy, usually mild to moderate increases
• Nutritional hepatopathies
• Gastroenteritis
Related Findings
• Inflammatory
o Increased AST, ALP, GGT, total bilirubin
o Decreased albumin, cholesterol, glucose, BUN in severe cases
o Increased bile acids and ammonia
o Positive titers or PCR for leptospirosis, feline coronavirus (FIP), histoplasmosis o Positive bacterial or fungal culture of liver/bile
o Histopathology/cytology findings consistent with inflammatory hepatic diseases o Increased Spec cPL® or Spec fPL® with pancreatitis
• Metabolic
o Hyperthyroidism
 Increased T4, free T4, free T4 by equilibrium dialysis
o Hepatic Lipidosis
 Increased ALP
 GGT usually normal unless concurrent inflammatory disease is present  Enlarged liver on radiographs, hyperechoic liver on ultrasound
 Cytology/histopathology consistent with hepatic lipidosis
o Cushing’s Disease
 Increased ALP
 Decreased urine specific gravity
 Stress leukogram: increased neutrophils and monocytes, decreased lymphocytes and/or eosinophils  Adrenal function tests consistent with Cushing’s disease
o Diabetes Mellitus
 Increased serum glucose and glucosuria  Increased fructosamine
 Ketonuria (in severe cases)
• Neoplasia
o Enlarged/irregular liver on radiographs and/or ultrasound o Cytology/histopathology findings consistent with neoplasia

• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by Patricia A.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by Patricia A.

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