In life, there are many people who keep pet dogs. Pet owners hope that their dogs are "white and fat". They have also fed a lot of dog food and various snacks, but the dogs still cannot get fat and even become thinner! In this case, be careful of insufficient exocrine exocrine of the dog.
There is a very inconspicuous small organ deep in the upper abdomen of our body - the pancreas. Although the pancreas is small, it is one of the important organs in the human body. The pancreas is divided into two parts: exocrine gland and endocrine gland. The exocrine gland can produce and secrete essential enzymes required to digest food, such as:
amylase, used to digest carbohydrates, such as sugar and starch in grains, fruits and vegetables, etc.
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lipase, used to digest fat;
trypsin and protease, used to digest protein.
The lack of pancreatic exocrine is, as the name suggests, that the inability to secrete these digestive enzymes. Once these digestive enzymes are missing, they will be misabsorbed, and undigested foods will cause bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine, which will affect intestinal function. The cause of this disease that occurs is usually secondary to diseases such as pancreatic acrocne and chronic pancreatitis, but it may also be related to genetic inheritance. It is not related to age, and there will be individual differences in the severity of symptoms (including German Shepherds and Coolere are high-prone dog breeds).
Visual differences between sick dogs and healthy dogs
Common symptoms
Insufficient pancreatic exocrine deficiency will not only make the body lose its weight to the point where it is difficult to control, but also cause a major change in personality. Even docile dogs will be irritable, restless, nervous, and even aggressive behaviors, which need to be taken seriously.
· The abdomen often makes noises;
· The gastrointestinal flatulence becomes more frequent;
· The appetite is strong, but it is getting thinner;
· Intermittent diarrhea and vomiting (partial);
· The number of bowel movements increases to once every 1-2 hours;
· The occurrence of abnormal eating, such as swallowing one's own feces;
· The feces are greasy and unformed, mostly yellow/gray sludge-like (even mixed with undigested food); In addition to the above, some dogs may not have any symptoms in the early stage. This is because the dog's body has a huge digestive capacity reserve, and the above symptoms will only occur after 90% of the secretory cells are destroyed. That is to say, if the dog has these symptoms, it is likely that it is already a more serious stage.
How to diagnose?
The most accurate method for detecting insufficient pancreatic exocrine is currently the serum trypsin-like immune response detection (TLI). You must be on an empty stomach for at least 12 hours before doing the test. In addition, it is recommended to test the vitamin B12 and folic acid content at the same time to eliminate the possibility of excessive growth of bacteria in the residual food in the small intestine.
The detection value of normal serum trypsin-like immune response is between 5.7 and 45.2 µg/L. If the value is less than 2.5, it can be basically diagnosed as pancreatic exocrine deficiency. If the value is between 2.6 and 5.7, there may be a tendency for pancreatic acinar cells to be destroyed, and it needs to be tested again in the short term.
Treatment methods
Thankfully, although the dogs suffer from insufficient pancreatic exocrine, it is not difficult to treat. However, some dogs with this disease need to take medication for life and adjust their diet, which is also a protracted battle for parents.
· Supplementation of pancreatic enzyme
Supplementation of pancreatic enzyme is the main method to treat pancreatic exocrine deficiency. Tryptic enzyme powder is usually recommended, followed by pancreatic enzyme capsules, and finally coated tablets (need to be crushed and taken). Today, the first two are mainly recommended.
The dose of pancreatic enzyme powder is:
1 cups of dry food (250ml) + 1 teaspoon pancreatic enzyme powder
1 cups of wet food (250ml) + 3/4 teaspoon pancreatic enzyme powder
Not every dog comes according to this dose. Make corresponding adjustments based on the weight of its own dog. Remind everyone to add 1/4 cup of warm liquid food (such as water, broth, etc.) for each cup of food. Do not overcool or overheat, as it will destroy the activity of pancreatic enzyme. Then let it stand for 20 minutes to soften the food, so that the pancreatic enzyme powder can be distributed better in the food, and avoid oral ulcers caused by the corrosiveness of pancreatic enzyme powder as much as possible.
Tripase Capsules:
Put apart the capsules and mix them into the food without leaving them to stand. Take 1 pill for each meal for 3-5 days. If the feces have not changed, add half a capsule to each meal.
Note: If domestic pharmacies are for sale, it is recommended to purchase brands marked with Germany's Abbot Labs and Belgium's Solvay.
· Improving the diet is not difficult. It is mainly because when you first adjust your diet, you need to increase your appetite to 150%. Do not limit your fat intake (unless there are other diseases that require limiting your fat intake), which will help them recover. It should be noted that some sick dogs suffering from this disease are more interested in grain-free foods (fiber content is at least less than 4%). Of course, some like high-protein and low-carbohydrate foods, but they must avoid high-fiber foods. This type of food is not easy to digest and will increase the amount of feces.
Feeding method:
· Use the form of eating less and more meals. It is recommended to feed 3-4 meals a day, leaving 2 hours in between for digestion;
· If gastric acid reflux occurs, you can try to add 1 teaspoon can of pure pumpkin to the meal, or add elm powder (elm capsules can also be used, but elm powder is more effective), or cimetidine. At the same time, you need to check whether B12 has decreased.
·If you experience itching in your skin, you can try adding essential fatty acids. It is recommended to give 180 mg every 10 pounds per day, or 1/2 teaspoon coconut oil the next day (original).
· Antibiotic therapy
Antibiotic therapy is used when a sick dog suffers from insufficient pancreatic exocrine and also suffers from intestinal disorders of enterogenic bacteria (that is, the food residue mentioned above has bacteria grown in the small intestine), and requires a lifelong minimum dose of antibiotics.
The current antibiotics with better effects are tylomectin, with a dosage of 25 mg/kg, twice a day, and take it for 7 to 10 days first. If the symptoms improve, continue to take it for 4 to 6 weeks. If there is no significant improvement, it can be replaced with metronidazole. Some dogs have greater side effects after taking metronidazole. (Or in some cases use amoxicillin for pets)
If symptoms recur after discontinuing antibiotics, such as yellow soft stool, bloating, intestinal rumbling, acid reflux, vitamin B12 deficiency, take another course of treatment.
· Vitamin B12
Supplementation In diseased dogs with insufficient pancreatic exocrine, at least 82% of diseased dogs are deficient in vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 equal to or below normal value are considered as deficiency.
Supplementary methods are available in oral or injection, and both applications use the same dosage. The recommended general dose is 1 mg/ml, i.e. 1000μg/ml. If you choose oral, do not use B12 complex vitamins or B12 complex, because this amount is absolutely not enough, and it will hurt the dog. The conservative serum dose regimen is one dose per week for six weeks, then one dose per two weeks for six weeks, and then once a month, during which vitamin B12 content should be checked.
Dogs of different weights take/inject vitamin B12 as follows:
5 kg or more, 250 µg (0.25 ml)/time
5-15 kg, 400 µg (0.4 ml)/time
15-30 kg, 800 µg (0.8 ml)/time
30-45 kg, 1200 µg (1.2 ml)/time
45 kg or more, 1500 µg (1.5 ml)/time
Note: For some dogs, especially smaller breeds, it is sometimes difficult to maintain B12 levels even if they are injected weekly.
Warm tips
In 2012, Clemson University in the United States conducted statistics on 509 dogs diagnosed with EPI after TLI tests, of which 200 German shepherds accounted for, and there were 28 German shepherds cross-breed dogs, and the remaining 55% were other breeds of dogs.