My wee dog has been poorly off and on for a couple of months. He had a bout of sickness with diarrhoea and vomiting with a temp. He was given antibiotics and seemed to improve. He was still quite dull but had moments where he was acting his normal self. He seemed to have a painful tummy even after he recovered and about a month after his initial sickness had a very bad case of the tummy rumbles with bad wind and again painful tummy. He was not keen of eating but would eat under pressure from the other dogs.
He had routine bloods all normal.
Last week his painful tummy returned and he was quite dull and very needy...his symptoms were not specific but there was a niggling feeling something was not quite right. Off to the vets again and she said his belly was very painful and booked him in for scans and an intestinal blood profile.

Scans were normal. The bloods came back today and the the Lipase,Amylase and Cholesterol were off the chart as was another one but I've forgotten what it was. His Lipase normal range was 0-200 and his was 1353. His Amylase normal range was 0-1200 his was over 2400...

Vet says pancreatitis....now most of what I've been reading hasn't been very good news for my wee man. Says  it could turn chronic and could cause damage and make him more prone to diabetes etc.
My dog is athletic no where near obese, eats Arden Grange food and doesn't get a lot of human treats...he is allowed to lick the odd yoghurt pot and the odd dinner plate...but nothing I would consider a large amount of fat.
He has had tummy problems since puppyhood with parvo and the bloat...but it has been 5 years or more with nothing apart from the odd bad tummy (which now makes me wonder if he was showing vague symptoms earlier and I just put it down to gastroenteritis).

He has been ordered Science Plan D/D diet but at work when a dog is offered this food they usually refuse it.

I would like to know how serious this really is. I didn't speak directly to the vet but the girl who did says he was very serious and even put on his chart he is likely to now have recurrent bouts of this.

I am quite worried for him...and a bit upset because he is my Heart Dog..:-( I have other dogs...but this wee man is The one dog in a lifetime (if you know what I mean) so I want to make sure he gets the best chance to prevent or lessen the attacks..I am reluctant to ask the vets as they often try to sell you food or medicine that may not yet be necessary.

Thanks...sorry this is so long..
J 

What pancreatic enzymes is he on?

When one of mine collapsed with this, she was in hospital on a drip for a week, not allowed to eat or drink.  So that her pancreas was totally rested.  Although I know people on CD that don't think you need the enzymes permanently, veterinary research proved otherwise.  It can be an excruciatingly painful disease.

My girl stayed on medication for the rest of her life, but I had her for years because I was so strict.  She never, ever had treats, and was not allowed fat of any kind.  She was fed Hill's ID tinned, and I used to buy a small bag of dry just so she could have a biscuit when the others had a treat.

After several years, although she still had the dry as a treat, I changed her over to tinned Chappie.  The stricter you are, the longer you will keep your dog.  :-)

My dog had it last summer. He was very I'll indeed - 4 days and nights on a drip. Even when he came home it was a vicious circle as although hungry (hadn't eaten for 7 days) he wouldn't touch any food, just went to his bowl and sniffed. The vet thought it was because he was feeling very queasy so just couldn't face food and that eventually he associated his bowl with feeling ill. Anyway, he then had medication to stop him feeling sick and I hand fed him on the sofa as he was just too tired and weak to be bothered. He had blood tests every two weeks for some time until all his levels were normal. I remember having to tighten his collar as the weight fell off him - it was an awful time. He is now fed a combination of tinned Chappie, dry Royal Canin Gastro Int (from vets) and dry Chappie for treats. We have shopped around, there are a few low fat snacks for dogs now, you just need to check the fat content. We didn't ever find out the cause. It came from nowhere - vet said he could have just picked up something with a massive fat content out on his walk somewhere that completely tipped the balance. However, he was just over a bad skin reaction to something and the other vet had put him on a very high dose of steroid (before he'd had a tablet a day for it but this time she'd put him on 3 a day for 3 days then two a day etc). Personally I think this was the cause but of course the vet can't say that to me.

He is not on any enzymes at the moment. We only got his tests back yesterday and I was only told a low fat diet which has been ordered. it is Science Plan D/D.
People at work are telling me it could be a one off but what I am reading is telling me a different story so I am a bit worried for him. He is a very good dog and isn't greedy in anyway.
I had posted on here under another name when he was a puppy and had parvo and the vet says this could be a complication from that since he was so very sick.
Not sure what to look for as once he recovered from his bout of diarrhoea his other symptoms were very vague and I was starting to think I was seeing something that wasn't there.
He was still playing,eating etc....but in between he was dull,look so very sad and was very needy. He was also acting in way that were not normal....and this seems like such a silly thing....but he was actually tolerating puppies. He isn't bad to pups but he won't entertain their silliness. He was letting a pup pull at his ears and jump on him....THAT is one reason I know he wasn't well...and when I said that to the vet she looked at me like I was a bit stupid..lol...
I got him from a rehoming centre as a foster dog when he had parvo so he is still fostered for tummy trouble so no worries about vets fees or anything....

I just hope its like my friends say and a one off mild episode and thats that...but the vet wrote on his record that it WOULD be a recurring thing...and he was so sore I feel sorry for him and now worried I could miss the signs.

If he has another attack should I ask the vets for pain meds?
Cheers
J

Please try not to worry - I know it's hard though. I truly believed I'd lost my boy last summer, he was so very ill. At one time the vet said to me that he wasn't ready to give up on him - which I think shows how poorly he was. I can't remember all the medication he was on afterwards, one was to help his liver function as that had been affected too - it really was that serious. He hadn't been ill before (the odd upset tummy over the years) but this was completely different. I knew straight away it was bad, overnight he withdrew from my husband and I and would sit in a corner or behind the sofa - he just wanted to be on his own. Anyway, I think you really need to speak to your vet about your concerns. Yes, perhaps they'll try to sell you some food but they won't sell you anything to make your dog ill. Get his diet sorted and get him well - then you might have the confidence to play around with his diet on your own. At the moment getting him well and strong are the priority. There is every chance this could be a one off episode. Fingers crossed my boy has been fine (this happened early July), took a few weeks get him physically back to normal and his last blood test was early October. Good luck, hope your boy bounces back soon.

>If he has another attack should I ask the vets for pain meds?<br />

I think pain meds would be just masking things.  If the vet actually diagnosed pancreatitis, I am confused as to why he is not on Pancreatic enzymes.  I have never known a dog with this that had no medication for it.

I remember so clearly, my vet telling me that he had a gut feeling about continued use of the enzymes, and put my girl on them permanently.  He actually put her on a drip before he had the results back, as he just "knew" what it would be!

Working with vets from the "old school" I discussed this disease with as many as would discuss it with me!

One very old vet (who did not keep up on small animal research) said that rather than have a dog on a drip for so long, in the old days, they would PTS!

Another vet told me that they didn't stay on medication.  The same vet came to me several months later, telling me that my vet couldn't have possibly known that dogs needed to stay on enzymes, but he had just read the latest veterinary research, recommending that staying on enzymes, and correct diet, was the way to go, to prevent a re-occurrence.  I had my girl on them for 7 years, until I lost her shortly before her 17th birthday. 

I have known 2 people with dogs that were given the outer fat laden pieces of chicken, with the chicken skin, only to collapse with this excrutiatingly painful disease. 

The only meds he is on at the moment is oxytet. The vet put him on these while they waited for the test results...and once those came in said just to finish the course. He seems to be doing better at the moment.
Not sure about the enzymes. Will have to maybe make an appointment and asks some questions see what is the way forward with the wee man.

Cheers
J

Oxytet is an antibiotic, so definitely finish the course. It's possible that pancreatitis can be controlled by diet (once the inflammation has calmed) without the need for medication so please don't panic.