Question Details
Weight Loss In A Dog
by jenmercier - November 16, 2024    View Case Report
Missy is a 10 yo FS Yorkie mix. I diagnosed and started treating her for Cushing's disease 1 year ago. At that time she weighed 20 pounds and was grossly obese. Her only other concern was arthritis pain.
She has responded well to Vetoryl with good cortisol levels over the past year. I diagnosed hypothyroidism a few months ago and started her on levothyroxine. She has responded great to this too with a dark haircoat regrowing all over and her skin health is improving. She is feeling great. Very energetic. Normal thirst and great appetite. No vomiting and normal stool.
She has been eating Dr. Harvey's Canine health with cooked protein for several months now. Loves it. The owner was not measuring the protein correctly and was feeding her too little but that, I think, as best I can determine has been corrected for at least a month now.
Despite feeling great, eating great, and being well managed for Cushing's and hypothyroidism, she is melting away. She is now 7.7pounds.

I have not evaluated her tongue and pulse yet but will see her this coming week. Her main PE issue is dry and thin skin but that is slowly improving with her thyroid supplement.

In August she had low thyroid, mildly elevated ALT 244 and ALP 434, high platelets 694, cholesterol was normal, BUN 14, Cr 0.6

She has plenty of signs of Liver Blood deficiency and some Blood stagnation/stasis but also her substance is vanishing. Yin deficiency signs are not obvious to me though. Am I seeing Yiin deficiency without false Heat here?

I think I need to use Yi Guan jian?

She is having an ultrasound next week but I need to start something with her or she will disappear!

Thanks,
jen
Replies
by naturevet
November 26, 2024
Hi Jen,

If the dog is otherwise thriving, then the most expedient method I have found for real-food-fed dogs to gain some weight back is to make about 10% of their diets cooked grains of some type. Oats or barley are examples.

It's important as well to rule out inappetance and loose stools as a cause of the weight loss. If stool volume and consistency is normal, and if appetite is excellent, then Yin deficiency becomes the top differential. Yi Guan Jian would be a good first thing to try.

Shao Yang disharmony can occur with Yin deficiency, and complicate things. The high platelet count can indicate Shao Yang disharmony. If the pulse is surprisingly strong, then consider adding XCHT to your protocoll.

Hopefully this helps you out!

Steve
by jenmercier
November 27, 2024
Thank you so much. She did have her ultrasound and a maldigestion profile:
AUS findings:
- Pancreatitis, appears mild sonographically. (I would say asymptomatic for this)
- Regional small intestinal prominent wall layering including regions with preferential muscularis and submucosal thickening and subtle echogenic mucosa. Chronic enteropathy is most likely (inflammatory bowel disease, malabsorption/maldigestion, food allergy/intolerance).
- Bilateral chronic interstitial nephritis.
- Vacuolar hepatopathy consistent with the reported endocrine disease.
- Bilateral adrenomegaly consistent with the reported hyperadrenocorticism.

maldigestion profile showed normal cobalamin and low folate indicating diffuse small bowel disease.

I will evaluate her tongue and pulse next week hopefully. Do the ultrasound findings change your thinking in any way? Her only symptom of GI disease is weight loss.
Jen
by naturevet
November 27, 2024
Hi again,

XCHT is an excellent IBD herb so I would expect it to help, along with the YGJ. A keynote for the latter is borborygmi. Perhaps some of the muscle thickness is actually contracture, in which case I would expect YGJ to help also

S
by jenmercier
February 1, 2025
Unfortunately, Missy began having seizures and likely a stroke and was euthanized before we had a chance to start her on the Yi Guan Jian.
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