My dog has chronic diarrhea, losing weight. Vets suggest euthanasia. What to do?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Remi. In the bloodwork that was run, did it include GI specific testing such as cobalamin, folate, PLI and TLI levels. These are values that will give information such as the location of GI disease (small intestine vs pancreas) and treatment options. I typically do this planel in conjunction with an abdominal ultrasound. This information with the ultrasound can give insight into conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, food sensitivities or as you mentioned cancer. The anti-inflammatory properties of the antibiotic she was on could help even with a tumor in GI tract, but there are so many other causes of diarrhea that would respond as well. I think it is worth pursuing further bloodwork and the ultrasound. If you can get a diagnosis, then a treatment plan can be developed. I hope this information helps!

I recommend to call your veterinarian. When pets don't respond to treatment as expected, it can mean that the real cause of illness has not been identified. The veterinarian may try a different medication or recommend further diagnostics such as a fecal culture, parasite testing or ultrasound. Mia may also need additional testing of the liver such as a bile acids or endocrine testing. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

I am so sorry to hear that your pet has so many major issues that are debilitating and causing her to have a poor quality of life. I do think that if her condition cannot be improved with medications then it is someting you should discuss with your veterinarian. Humane euthansia, although it is probably not something you want to consider, should be considered if Sophie is not able to helped with medical management. However, there are pain medications that can be tried to see if they make a difference. You can discuss with your vet about trying Tramadol and/or Gabapentin to help with pain management. Probiotics can also be tried to help with her diarrhea, as well as a high fiber diet such as Royal Canin Gasrointestinal High Fiber (Rx). It sounds like she may have cancer involving her nervous system, which is why she can't maintain her mobitliy well. Poor girl. I hope that you can come to terms with her condition and maybe there is more you can try with her. Best wishes with Sophie. We are also available for a private consultation if you need to discuss more about Sophie's condition and futher care recommendations. Take care.

With a normal stool sample and blood panel, the next steps are experimenting with diet - specifically a hypoallergenic prescription diet (such as Royal Canin Ultamino, which is definitely the most expensive option, but also the one that seems to work best in diagnosing food allergies. It takes eating ONLY the prescription food for about a month to see if it helps, and then if it does help you can certainly experiment with less expensive foods. If you she would having signs of food allergy you'd need to do a full 3 months, but for intestinal issues, you should see a response in just a couple weeks) OR a high fiber/easily digestible diet (such as Hills Fiber Response EN). Some dogs need continual probiotics to keep normal stool. Treating any underlying anxiety (if present) can also help. Finally, a gut biopsy, which is much more invasive and costly can be done. Since she isn't yet spayed, I would consider doing a gut biopsy when/if she is spayed because that would be minimal additional expense or trauma for her while she's already have an abdominal surgery. I hope that helps! Wishing you the best with this difficult issue - It can take a long long time to get to the bottom of things

I'm sorry to hear Max is suffering from lymphangiectasia. This can be a very debilitating condition. Currently is diarrhea his only symptom or is he vomiting and losing weight? Has your vet started him on other medicines along with the diet change? If you feel that Max's quality of life has deteriorated, and with your vet's help you've exhausted all the common therapies, then euthanasia may be a valid decision. I would urge you to consider having a consultation with an internal medicine specialist if you haven't done so already, just to ensure you have tried all possible treatments before making that final decision. I am so sorry you are going through this.

Poor guy. He could have a number of things going on here that can cause chronic diarrhea and weight loss including: malabsorption, inflammatory bowel disease, an endocrine disorder, or even neoplasia (intestinal lymphoma) has to be considered. I would suggest starting with an abdominal ultrasound to evaluate the intestinal lining for any masses or abnormalities. I would also consider getting him on a hypoallergenic prescription diet such as Royal Canin hypoallergenic hp or Hill's Z/D. Many pets also respond to chronic antibiotics (Tylosin powder) to help manage their chronic colitis issues. Here is more information on Tylosin used for Chronic colitis in dogs. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Kia. Her problem sounds very frustrating. I would recommend baseline bloodwork as well as a specific gastrointestinal panel that tests cobalamin, folate, TLI and PLI. She will also likely need an abdominal ultrasound. This is looking for signs of chronic GI disease such as pancreatitis, pancreatic insufficiency, inflammatory bowel disease or a protein losing disease called lymphangestasia. Lastly, I would consider a diet trial with a prescription hydrolyzed diet to rule out a food allergy. The work up can be costly, but you will avoid some many vet visits in the future if her problem is diagnosed and well managed. I hope this information helps!