# Bentley has an elevated ALT too.



## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Bentley went for his consult and blood work prior to his neuter next week. I got a call today that his ALT was elevated (213). I searched the threads and after reading them I am not going to panic. They will talk to my vet and decide if we will go ahead with his neuter as scheduled or hold off until they are repeated. No other lab abnormalities whatsoever. He will be 6 months old 6/22 and weighs a whopping 10 lbs 6 oz, no vomiting, appears healthy, happy, full of vim and vinegar and and an overall delightful rambuncious little boy...so at this point I will just cross my fingers and hope for the best.


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Sharlene, I am so sorry you have to go through this too. Dugan's numbers were almost the same at Bentley's. Don't stress too much. Talk to your vet and see what they say. There are so many things it could be other than a liver issue.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Karen, I read your thread and it helped tremendously to keep me in a non-panic state.


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## Kathy (Nov 9, 2006)

Evye's Mom said:


> Karen, I read your thread and it helped tremendously to keep me in a non-panic state.


Good advise, don't panic. If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck and sounds like a duck, then it should be a duck!!! Meaning, if everything else seems normal, I am sure he will be fine.

Hang in there,


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Sharlene, so sorry you have to go through this. 213 is elevated but nothing shocking to keep you from sleeping at night. Make sure you avoid any and all red meat foods/treats. I would get it retested in no earlier than a month. Let's hope it improves. From my understanding, some healthy Havs have isolated elevated ALTs w/o any effects. His baseline ALT may just be a little higher than your average dog.


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## mellowbo (Aug 12, 2007)

Smart lady! It's not that high and some Hav's tend to do this. I'm sure he's just fine! Having said that, you are wise to be watching it.
Carole


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## Lynn (Jan 2, 2007)

Sharlene,

I think it is a good thing to find out early if your havanese has high ALT and adjusting the diet seems to work with a liver supplement.

I am just trying to get Casper's diet figured out, he has high ALT also...but last reading was 149 which was alot better than the first of 347.

There is so much information posted on the forum here it has been a big help to me, although I still have a hard time understand some of it.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

maryam187 said:


> From my understanding, some healthy Havs have isolated elevated ALTs w/o any effects. His baseline ALT may just be a little higher than your average dog.


I am going to make sure I tell them that about it not being to uncommon for Havs to have an above-normal baseline ALT. This was not Bentley's usual vet I spoke with. This vet said they would probably go ahead with the neuter as planned but would let me know for sure once she spoke with my vet.

Any thoughts whether to proceed with his neuter as scheduled.


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Sharlene,
They did Dugan's bloodwork the same day as his neuter and didn't tell me about the high level until after they did the neuter. The vet who did the neuter said he didn't think it was high enough to put off the neutering, but my usual vet wouldn't come out and say she wouldn't have done it, but I got that feeling. They had to pull 3 teeth that they didn't pull at the neuter and she did not want to put him back under until we got his levels under control. I think it depends on your vet and what you are comfortable with. You may want to do the Bile Acid Test and see what that brings.


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## marjrc (Jan 13, 2007)

Sharlene, this is very interesting. Another Hav with a high-ish ALT level. I agree with everyone about not worrying. Since Bentley is fine everywhere else, it could just be that his level is 'normal' for him. Keep on eye on it and you'll know when or if it's time to do anything else.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

I am wondering if his diarrhea is/was anyway correlated...although that has improved tremendously. He certainly is thriving...he weighs 10 lb/6 oz and he is a week shy of 6 months old.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

His diarrhea may VERY well have been related to the increased ALT. Isolated increase in ALT can also be due to GI problems, i.e. inflammation. If they do neuter him now, keep in mind, that it's very likely that his ALT will rise post-op, which is natural. In that case, I would wait 2-3 months and retest his ALT after neutering.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Thank you Maryam.

I just talked with my vet and he said he felt with no other abnormal labs or clinical abnormalites, he thought it would be okay to go ahead with the neuter. But he will support whatever the vet doing the surgery decides. I am so much worried about the surgery as much as I am the Metecam for pain control with it being an anti-inflammatory. I hope they give him an opiate pain med instead.


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## Chasza (Dec 10, 2008)

You might want to look into Tramadol for pain relief. It is not an opiate - but acts like one and is a very strong non-narcotic. My understanding is that it is fairly safe. Honestly, I don't think I even used pain meds when my male was neutered -so you might not need any (but be prepared just in case - I didn't have anything on hand for my girl and she hurt really bad. I still feel bad about that night for her). I would make sure that the vet does not give Rimadyl thru the I.V. I wouldn't use Rimadyl this way nor would I use it in pill form. Thing is, you need to make sure what pain meds they will give thru the I.V. as this is something easily forgotten to ask about.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Good point !! I know they do use Metecam IV...so I put that on my list.


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

I am sorry to hear about Bentley. I do not have anything to add...Just Hugs. My vets office does not do these blood test before they neuter so Jasper has never been tested. Cash was when he was so sick last year. But they have a wait and see approach to testing. I am not sure how I feel about it. I know they would do the tests if I asked. but maybe it is best not to know??? I don't know.


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## Lynn (Jan 2, 2007)

Sharlene,

Casper was neutered with his ALT at 347 and the vet said they would do a different procedure to bring them out of the surgery and gave him a different pain medication.

I wish I could tell you more about it...but Iam no good at medical stuff but maybe you could ask your vet about it.

I also thought Casper did not recover as well after the surgery, he was a little over 2 yrs old and it took a few days and I was worried about him.


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

Awwwwww Sharlene! I don't understand the lab levels yet, so it is an education for me...what can you do to change the diet to change the lab values?


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

*OKAY, now I will panic*

Bentley went in for his nueter this morning and thank God for completeness sake, the vet decided to repeat his LFTs. His ALT has elevated from 213 to 260 and has decided he would rather hold off on the surgery. Instead he is going to do the bile acid study today. He talked about 2 possibilities he would want to rule out, one being the liver shunt and the other microvascular dysplasia.

Be thinking of us please. My poor little guy.


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Don't panic yet. Dugan's ALT was right around there the first two times he was tested. Wait and see what the Bile Acid test says before you panic. It could be a reaction from vaccinations, an infection, or almost anything. You may want to try to change his diet some when he comes home. I really think that helped us. I will be thinking of you and Bentley.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Thanks Karen. I keep telling myself everything else that goes along with the scenario is normal. What type of diet did they put Dugan on?


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

With Dugan, I just cut back on the protein content of his diet. I switched him to a lower protein food (around 20%). I had switched to Newman's Own, but he started itching, so I just switched to Fromms. We always used chicken for treats and mixed it with his food. I cut back on the chicken and started mixing sweet potatoes with his food instead of the chicken. I can't say for sure that this is what fixed things, but after a month or two, his levels were normal.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Thank you Karen. Now we have to wait a few days for the results of the BAT. Hopefully Saturday, if not I have to wait until Monday. Grrrrr !!!

I should have asked what they fed him for the postprandial testing. His breath smells like peanut butter and Evye keeps following him around licking him.


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## marjrc (Jan 13, 2007)

Sharlene, they may have fed him a slightly fatty meal to see how the liver will react. I am very close to my vets' so I would get Ricky tested, then home to eat his regular meal, then back two hours later. 

Any results today? His ALT is still relatively low, in my opinion. Nothing alarming at all and I'd be very surprised they'd think it was a shunt. With no other symptoms whatsoever, it's frustrating, but also reassuring.


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## Scooter's Family (May 23, 2008)

Let us know if they call you with results today.
:hug:


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## DanielBMe (Nov 25, 2007)

Personally I wouldn't worry about the higher ALT level. As indicated in a different thread Bogart last year had a high level. I believe it was close to 220. I decided to not do any tests and simply monitor him. He seemed perfecly fine, lots of energy and good appetite. I didn't change his diet whatsoever. A year later on his most recent test, his levels were all normal. I suspect the reason was that I didn't fast him before the bloodwork, he ate a meal about 2hrs prior. So this time I made him fast from 6pm the night before. So personallly I wouldn't worry unless you are seeing signs of problems.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

His fasting ALT was 260, up from is nonfasting of 218. His BAT came back abnormal. Premeal 10.6 and post 48. I wish it were normal but still not so terribly alarming. I feel like this vet (not Bentley's regular vet but the one doing the neuter) really tried to educate himself on Hav's and their elevated ALTs after the initial blood work. He self admittedly said he has had very few Hav's in his practice but he at least took the time to research. He feels confident that no reason not to go through with the neuter and other than acknowledging this and monitoring, he should live and lead a normal life. Bent will be neutered Monday and I feel assured he is fine.


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## Scooter's Family (May 23, 2008)

I don't know anything about the levels but I'm so happy to hear the vet isn't too concerned!!! He'll be done with the neutering before you know it and on the road to recovery.

Hang in there Sharlene! :hug:


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Sharlene, those BAT numbers sound pretty good to me. With Dugan, they told me that if it were a liver shunt, they would expect to see numbers over 100. Dugan was right around Bentley's numbers, and now his ALT is normal. It sounds like his ALT may just be high. I would suggest checking his diet and lowering the protein if you are feeding a higher protein food. That may help get the numbers to normal. I am relieved to hear that his numbers are pretty good. I will keep Bentley in my thoughts on Monday. I am sure he will do just fine with his neuter.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Please don't quote me on this because they give you so much information that you have to absorb but I THOUGHT he said he has seen liver shunts even with totally normal LFTs before and why he wanted to go ahead with the BAT. He said before hand that clinically he certainly did not fit the criteria. So now we know for sure, he does not. I thought that peace of mind was well worth the $ cost of the test. He said the same that with a shunt, that you would expect to see the postmeal in the 100's.


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Sharlene, I meant to say that Dugan was right around the same BAT numbers as Bentley. It sounds like you did all the right things. Peace of mind is well worth it!


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## marjrc (Jan 13, 2007)

Good to know, Sharlene! Ricky's after BAT was 98, then 99 a few months later. I was told the max acceptable level is 55, so 48 is good.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

How often do others have the BAT repeated?

And the little guy came through his neuter and tooth extraction just fine. He was SOOO happy to see us. He was full of it but he quickly fizzled and sleeping like a baby.


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## Scooter's Family (May 23, 2008)

Happy to hear he's home and resting, what a relief to have this behind you.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Thanks Ann, felt like we were having practice runs for his surgery. Today was the day it happened. Yes and so glad it's behind us.


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

So glad to hear he is doing well. 

With Dugan, I have not redone the BAT. I just redid the bloodwork to get the ALT numbers again.


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## ashi's mom (Oct 27, 2008)

We just had Ashi's blood work done and her ALT was at 118. The vet told us that was a little elevated but not a reason to be alarmed. He asked about the protein in her food (Orijen 44%) which he stated was very high. Our bulldog eats the same thing but his came back normal. So we have switched her to Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream (25% protein). Will have her blood work re-checked in September.
He says he sees elevations in maltese and yorkies.


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