should I have my dog tested for exocrine EPI - Page 1

My older German Shepard is showing what I think could be some signs of EPI and I have asked my vet to due the TLI test which he says is $110. However, I read on the internet that  exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in the GSD is typically presented in young adult dogs between 1 to 5 years of age. My dog is age 12 and has had  problems with intermittent diarrhea for 5 years...we have ruled out worms and for the past two years have had her on Canidae natural pet food (human grade) and now Natural Balance  grain free venison and sweet potato food to rule out food allergies but she still gets bad diarrhea on and off. She has had extensive treatment for months with metronidazolel which does help  but then the diarrhea comes back. We recently started giving her Prozyme and this seems to helps. She is losing weight , is hungry all the time, eats other dogs and cat poop any chance she can but not her own, has gut sounds, her coat seems dry, brittle and she has dandruff. ...and she has intermittent diarrhea and foul smelling "cow patty" feces. Do you think I should continue to push my vet to due the TLI test?
 

What you describe is certainly suggestive of some sort of pancreatic/gut dysfunction. There are a lot of things you might try first. I have a lot of experience with dogs who have the kinds of problems as you mention your dog has. Feel free to email me privately and I can ask you some specific questions and perhaps provide some things to try. 

Doing the test will give you more information, but it is likely to result in your trying some of the things I and others might suggest in any case. So I might try some things before I shelled out the cash. 

By the way, pancreas problems, just like other health issues, can surface at any age. They most commonly present in a dog over 3 years in my experience, but older dogs can begin to have trouble too as the pancreas looses the ability to consistently produce the correct kind and amount of enzymes necessary for digestion.

schwarzenberggsd@earthlink.net

we thought out bitch had EPI.

after many blood tests and visits to the vet we discovered it was not EPI but a vit B deficiency 1 shot of vit B for 4 weeks and she was fine not a problem since.  be very careful when TLI tests are being done as the can give false results if taken when the dog has the runs...

 

Sounds alot like EPI. I too have an EPI dog. We went through the rounds of all the conventional treatments until I went to a new vet and she did the TLI.  Unfortunately by the time that was done, my girl was down to 53 lbs...not good at all. To echo tigermouse, yep, $110 is a lot but these dogs lose ground very quickly and the faster you find out, the faster you can get her started on enzymes and find the diet that works for her. Also - take a look at the Yahoo users group for EPI dogs - nice people and great resources to use.

Best of luck. Let us know if we can help....

 Based on private communication between the original poster and myself I do not now think this is related to EPI or a pancreas problem. Such health issues exhibit very characteristic signs, none of which his dog has, except for occasional loose stool. Color is not right. The dog was treated in the past with medications that indicate an irritable bowel and/or bacterial infection. I gave him some ideas to try.

Whenever such conditions appear, it is absolutely imperative to rule out first a myriad of other generally simply solved problems, including parasites, fungal or bacterial infection. Otherwise, one just goes round and round in a viscous circle and it becomes increasingly difficult to figure out the real problem. There is certainly nothing wrong with doing TLI, but in my opinion, it should not be the first thing tried. I am convinced some dogs have transient problems which can even show up on TLI and then they get an incorrect diagnosis and nothing helps because the problem has not been correctly diagnosed.

Hi Cheryl.  Sorry to hear Molly's been diagnosed with EPI, but we've learned if you do the right things, it's really quite manageable.  Did you get a chance to look at  www.globalspan.net/epi.htm?  I think it answers almost all your questions.  It's set up in a really easy-to-understand way too. 

We're members of the K9-EPIGLOBAL Yahoo Group too.  (You can reach it via the link above.)  I highly recommend joining.  The advice is wonderful and everyone is so helpful!  We switched from Viokase-V powder to the Pancreatin 6X powder and never noticed any difference (except a HUGE cost savings).  We haven't had any problems with the enzymes, temperature-wise.  The link above explains how they should be stored and explains how long to soak enzymes to avoid problems. 

We're fighting SIBO too.  It's my understanding that Tylan is usually given twice a day, but maybe Molly's needs are different.

Good luck! 

P.S.  Please consider donating Molly's blood through your vet for the Texas A&M EPI research project.  They still need 41 purebred GSDs with EPI to donate.  Thanks!