3 year old Husky...desperately needing help

[jennstrete]

I apologize if I am wrong for posting here. But i am researching for my baby Byron because no one seems to know whats going on with him and I found this site based on my google results so I am hoping someone here can help..
I have a 3 year old Husky Shepard Mix boy named Byron. We adopted him from a shelter 2 years ago May. I have been very good at getting him his wellness checks and active. On Wed October 8, 2014 he went in for his 6 month wellness check. Nothing wrong just the normal routine, as well as getting his teeth cleaned. But they took blood and called me and stated his Liver Enzyme level was VERY high, and was there anything he may have been exposed to, like Tylenol or Motrin or rat poison. Which he hasn't been. I said no and unfortunately I felt stupid because I didn't understand Liver counts with blood. She explained they look for up to 100. And Byron s was 3000. She said he is an enigma because he is fit, healthy, no yellowing of skin, no vomiting or diarrhea, and active as ever. There are no "unhealthy signs" of Byron. Except the Blood test. We did Xrays right then, and it came back as normal as we can see. I do have an Ultra Sound guided biopsy for tomorrow (Tuesday Oct 14.) I made that appt. b.c the VET suggested to put hm on Amoxicillin and have him on IV fluids to flush him out all day wed, Thursday and Fri. Then take a break over the weekend and test him again first thing Mon morning to see if the amoxicillin worked along with the flushing of his system. Well i took him in this morning, thinking it was a Fluke...not so much. Instead the Liver Enzyme Level was Higher. Today it was at 5146. They again said its so odd. He has no signs at all which is not helping because there is no direction or sign of where to start helping him. I am hoping someone can help me. I get a lot of I don't know and we cant say for sure. Hes my baby and I love him and I feel like I'm not doing enough. However the only thing I feel about Byron with an issue is he seems to crave salt. If I or my husband or children are sweaty...from a walk or playing in the backyard...he goes to each of us one by one and tries to lick our hands and calves. If we let him do this because at first we thought it was a little funny in an odd way (he has a personality) he would go on for 10 min at-least. I found this odd but the Vet said he just has a weird habit. I know this was long, but I will appreciate anything anyone can provide to me.

Thank you
Jenn Strete

[jennstrete]

I am copying his blood work here just to show:
ALB = 2.7 g/dL
ALKP 2000 U/L HI *** (23 - 212) 5146
ALT results invalid 3907
AMYL = 835 U/L (500 - 1500)
Ca = 10.3 mg/dL (7.9 - 12.0)
CHOL = 265 mg/dL (110 - 320)
CREA = 1.0 mg/dL (0.5 - 1.8)
GLU = 97 mg/dL (74 - 143)
PHOS = 5.4 mg/dL (2.5-6.8)
TBIL = 0.2 mg'dL (0.0 - 09)
TP = 7.0 g'dL (5.2 - 8.2)
BUN = 18 mg/d: (7-27)
GLOB = 4.2 g/dL (0.5 - 4.5)

[labblab]

Dear Jenn, we absolutely welcome you, and are so sorry that Byron is experiencing this problem! I am very glad you've posted because we will all put our heads together and try to help any way we can.

It will help us a lot if you can possibly get a copy of Byron's lab results and post the exact numbers that are abnormal, along with the reference range for what is normally expected. You only need to post those lab results that are either too high or too low.

Has your vet suggested Cushing's as a possibility? It is very common for dogs suspected of having Cushing's to show elevations in liver enzymes, sometimes in the absence of any other outward symptoms. Sometimes those numbers, especially the ALKP, can be very, very high. But if Cushing's is the cause, it seems unlikely to me that Byron's numbers would go so much higher just over the weekend. So that does leave me scratching my head a bit, too. But on the other hand, if his liver was seriously compromised by a primary liver disease, I'd think he'd be acting outwardly ill and you would be seeing some other symptoms. Normally I would think you'd have the time to perform a few other diagnostics first, but given the circumstances and this very dramatic increase, perhaps the best thing is indeed to have the biopsy performed.

Do you know whether your vet has had a lot of experience with this type of biopsy? That's the only thought I have right now -- I'm wondering whether you might want to first consult with a specialist prior to advancing to the biopsy. But I am hoping some of our other members will also have a chance to add their thoughts about this today.

For what it is worth, my jaw dropped a bit when I read the part about Byron licking your skin, apparently in search of salt. I had totally forgotten about it, but prior to diagnosis and treatment, my own Cushpup (a Lab) did the exact same thing. We could not leave an inch of skin exposed on our arms or legs without him coming over to try to lick it incessantly. He did that for years -- until he was diagnosed with Cushing's and we started treatment. Once his cortisol was lowered, he never tried to lick us ever again. It was a very weird thing! I have never heard anybody else mention that, and it probably is just an odd coincidence. But what you wrote really jogged my memory!

Anyway, welcome to you and Byron and I'll keep my fingers crossed that you are able to gain some helpful information as to what may be going on with him.

[jennstrete]

Blood/Lab Results
ALB = 2.7 g/dL
ALKP 2000 U/L HI *** (23 - 212) 5146
ALT results invalid 3907
AMYL = 835 U/L (500 - 1500)
Ca = 10.3 mg/dL (7.9 - 12.0)
CHOL = 265 mg/dL (110 - 320)
CREA = 1.0 mg/dL (0.5 - 1.8)
GLU = 97 mg/dL (74 - 143)
PHOS = 5.4 mg/dL (2.5-6.8)
TBIL = 0.2 mg'dL (0.0 - 09)
TP = 7.0 g'dL (5.2 - 8.2)
BUN = 18 mg/d: (7-27)
GLOB = 4.2 g/dL (0.5 - 4.5)

[labblab]

I am copying his blood work here just to show:
ALB = 2.7 g/dL
ALKP 2000 U/L HI *** (23 - 212) 5146
ALT results invalid 3907
AMYL = 835 U/L (500 - 1500)
Ca = 10.3 mg/dL (7.9 - 12.0)
CHOL = 265 mg/dL (110 - 320)
CREA = 1.0 mg/dL (0.5 - 1.8)
GLU = 97 mg/dL (74 - 143)
PHOS = 5.4 mg/dL (2.5-6.8)
TBIL = 0.2 mg'dL (0.0 - 09)
TP = 7.0 g'dL (5.2 - 8.2)
BUN = 18 mg/d: (7-27)
GLOB = 4.2 g/dL (0.5 - 4.5)
Thanks so much for posting these numbers. I see the ALT is listed as "invalid" with a level of 3907. Did your vet explain what that means? If 3907 is the true result, that would indeed be hugely high.

As far as the ALKP, 2000 is actually not that unusually high for a dog with Cushing's. But to leap up above 5000 just over the weekend is perplexing....

[Squirt's Mom]

What are you feeding? What about treats? Has anything changed lately in his environment, indoors or out? Any new plants or plants blooming just now? Any mulch in your yard or where he can have access? Are you or anyone in your family taking medications now (your sweat could contain some of the residues)?

[jennstrete]

Feeding has been the same Beneful Playful Life.
I buy Dentleys Munchy Strips. And some rawhide's every now and then.
the whole environment has changed. We moved from Colorado Springs CO to Huntsville Alabama In July. However the whole yard in CO was in mulch. The yard here is brand new sod. No chemicals have been put down and no plants in his backyard...just grass. My oldest son has been taking Adderall for 2 years now, since about the time we Adopted Byron. However, Byron has Hip dysplasia since before we had adopted him. Since moving From CO to AL he has been more active and playful and energetic. Not as much cold hurting his back end.

[jennstrete]

As far as the Invalid results go, the Vet explained that his level was TOO high for the machine to count so they had to delude it and formulate the number,
As far as cushings go, they said he is NOT a candidate for Cushings because he has a great coat of fur.

[Dixie'sMom]

I can't offer any other opinions, but wanted to chime in about the licking. My dog, Dixie does the same thing and before starting Cushing's treatment was almost fanatical about "giving me a bath". Especially if I was sweaty. She would lick any exposed area and also the insides of my shoes where my feet had sweated for long periods of time. I thought it was just a behavioral quirk on her part, but it sounds like it was a symptom. I hope you can get some answers soon for your sweet boy. I'll be following along to see how things go.

[labblab]

I think the extremely high ALT level is more of a Cushing's rule-out than is Byron's coat. We are used to seeing significant elevation in ALKP levels and mild/moderate elevation in ALT levels. But an ALT level as high as Byron's, accompanied by the upwardly spiraling ALKP, is not typical of Cushing's and does seem to signal a problem that is liver-specific.

I know you are several hours away from Auburn, but the vet school there is very highly respected. In the event your local vet remains stumped as far as what is going on, you may want to consider taking Byron to their outpatient clinic where he can be evaluated further by the specialists there.


Marianne

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi Jenn,

Welcome to you and Byron from me as well!

Is or was Byron on any medication? Was Rimadyl (carprofen) given to Byron?

Has the vet mentioned having a bile acid test performed to see how the liver is functioning?

I recommend having an ultrasound done to see if there are any anomalies present in the organs.

Hugs, Lori

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

I would probably opt to go to a specialist in this case, as the possiblities are many and you want to get the right diagnosis, and tests to figure this out.

This is a site I found while looking up high liver enzymes that you might like to read:

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2014/04/09/pet-liver-blood-test.aspx

It goes over the different tests involving the liver are and what they mean, the values on the blood work I mean.

Sharlene and molly muffin

[jas77450]

Hi and welcome! My yorkie also licked until started on trilostane. I too thought it was a quarry habit but seems there may be more to it.
I agree on a specialist checking Byron out. Please keep us posted and hope you get some answers.