Elevated Liver Levels

Hi All.

I have just received my 6 year old (in-tact) male labrador's blood results and his liver related levels are elevated: ALT 231; Amylase 944; RBC 8.5; Hemoglobin 206 and Hematocrit 0.58.

What advice can you give on the best course of action please? I would first like to try a new food (diet) as he did go on to a new food several moths ago and gained 7llbs as it's high in protein, etc, and also accompany it with SAMe. Then, following a few weeks (how many I am unsure) get another test done to see if the levels have dropped. This just seems worth a try to me before jumping right in with biopsies, etc. But, I could be wrong. Please help with advice.

He is showing no signs of jaundice, loss of appetite, lethargy, vomiting, etc.

Thank you! :thumbs up

PS. Also, what is the best type of food I should buy that will give him the best nutrients and help his liver? And the best SAMe too?

Welcome ManitaD :).

Sorry to inform you but, we can't answer any questions unless you fulfill your obligation as stated in the unwritten rules :p...would you kindly share a pic of your pooch :D ?

Along with the results, did your vet give you reference ranges (sometimes laboratories have differing ranges)?

We also recently discovered that our girl, Penny, has liver issues. Nothing alarming yet but we have started her on a home-cooked liver support diet and supplements, SAMe (we use Natural Factors brand) and milk thistle. We're supposed to re-test in several weeks to see if there have been any changes. Here's a site that will provide you with some interesting information and additional useful links: http://www.monicasegal.com/health/liver.php .

I have Scotties, a breed known to have wonky liver enzyme levels. There is a very good liver support supplement called Denamarin that I used in one of my dogs who was suffering from hepatitis. It contains both milk thistle and SAM-e. My dog had two levels in the 1,800 to 2,000 range. Six weeks on the supplement dropped the levels to 1,000 and 1,200. She was very ill from other health problems so I don't have long-term results, sadly.

I have also used Denosyl with success as well. My first Scottie had an Alkaline Phosphatase level in the 700-900 range most of his life. My vet would have him take the supplement and then retest in 6 weeks and again at 6 months, just to monitor.

Links to the products mentioned:
http://www.drugs.com/vet/denamarin.html
http://www.drugs.com/vet/denosyl.html

If you are not seeing any signs of liver problems and the dog has a good appetite, I don't think you would be wrong to try supplements and diet change and retest in 6 weeks. Both my family vet and my critically ill dog's internal medicine vet used the 6 week guideline to see if the supplements were working. Good luck. And please keep us updated on his condition.

Was it a routine blood test on a dog who appears perfectly healthy, or were you investigating some concern about him?