Why is liver functioning so important for my pet?

The liver is the second largest organ in the body and is often seen as the most important one. In traditional Chinese medicine, for example, a healthy liver is seen as the most critical element in the body’s ability to fight disease and function optimally.

Amongst other important functions, the liver is responsible for eliminating and detoxifying the poisons that enter the blood stream. It also produces bile which is essential in the breakdown of fats and is the organ which stores Vitamin A, D, E and K.

Environmental pollution, processed and unhealthy foods, prescription drugs, frequent vaccinations and sedentary lifestyles all contribute to sluggish and diseased livers. The result? Pets with depressed immune systems, constant fatigue, obesity, sluggish livers and digestive systems, allergies, respiratory ailments, unhealthy skin and many other health problems.

A sluggish or diseased liver can seriously compromise your pet’s health and increase the chances of systemic illness.

How do I know if my pet has a problem liver?

Symptoms of a problem liver can be vague especially in the early stages of liver disease.

A liver shunt is a blood vessel that carries blood around the liver instead of carrying blood through the liver. A liver shunt problem is mostly congenital. A dog may also acquire multiple small shunts from a severe liver disease, such as cirrhosis. There are basically two kinds of liver shunt conditions that are possible – congenital liver shunt and acquired liver shunt.

Congenital Liver Shunts

The liver function is not needed in the fetus. The mother’s liver performs functions like filtering, production of proteins and storage of sugar for the unborn baby. There is a large shunt in mammalian fetuses that carries blood from the fetal liver to the heart. This shunt (duct) usually closes once the baby’s liver becomes operational before or after birth. In rare cases this shunt does not close leading to what is known as a congenital ‘intra hepatic’ shunt. In certain cases, a blood vessel outside the liver grows abnormally and remains open while the fetal shunt closes. This condition is known as congenital ‘extra-hepatic’ shunt.

Acquired Liver Shunts

Severe and chronic liver disease in dogs can lead to the formation of numerous small shunts. Hepatic cirrhosis is one of the main reasons behind acquired liver shunts in dogs.

Certain factors make it is very difficult to diagnose liver disease in dogs .

* Symptoms of liver disease in dogs are difficult to pin point as they are subtle and vague and often mimic those relating to other diseases.
* Liver cells can continue to perform their dedicated functions despite the liver mass being affected.
* The liver has a great reserve capacity.
* The liver can be affected by other diseases as it supports and is supported by many other organs and systems in the body.

All these factors can lead to frustration for a veterinarian to diagnose whether the liver is affected and to what extent. One of the tools that the specialist will use is to get a complete chemistry profile of a blood sample. Although, clinical pathological tests and enzymology play a crucial role in arriving at correct diagnoses, it seldom indicates any deviation from a healthy condition of the liver. Enzymology is a branch of biochemistry that deals with the chemical nature and biological activity of enzymes.

Another factor that complicates diagnosis of liver disease is that the levels of even enzymes that are specific to liver can be disturbed by secondary hepatic disease also.

The large size of the liver stands testimony to the multifunctional roles that it plays in the health of a dog. Its importance can be gauged from the fact that 25% of the blood pumped out with each heartbeat goes into the liver alone.

Another significant aspect of the liver lies in the fact that it stores its capacity for emergencies and uses only a small amount of its potential at any given time. This inherent property actually works against your pet as the symptoms of liver disease in dogs remain hidden for a long time. The liver has an advantage that is matched by very few organs in the body. Liver cells can regenerate themselves allowing a disease struck liver to resume normal functions in many cases.

The liver is also involved in practically all that goes on in the body. It is involved in growth, supply of nutrients, providing energy and filtering toxins. It also aids other organs in their functions. Understanding liver disease in dogs is a complex process. The causes behind liver malfunction, however, can be tabulated for easy understanding.

The liver in cats and dogs is more susceptible to liver disease. Its large size indicates its criticality to overall health. It is the industrial powerhouse of the body. From filtering toxins to providing energy to supplying nutrients, it is involved in practically all the biochemical processes that go on in the body.

As and when toxins increase, the liver is called upon to perform beyond its normal capacity, which may lead to liver failure. Initially liver disease manifests as mild symptoms like:

* Vomiting
* Anorexia ( refusal to eat)
* Weight loss.
* Pale gray and soft feces.
* Weakness and lethargy.

The symptoms of liver disease in dogs are almost similar to those of feline liver disease . This similarity exists even in the causes like excess of toxin intake and secondary infections caused due to disease in other organs. However, feline infectious peritonitis, leukemia virus, and feline immunodeficiency virus are few of the cat specific causes.

Left untreated, toxins may build up and the disease progresses and presents the following symptoms that may point to liver failure.

* Jaundice
* Seizures.
* Circling
* Fluid retention and a distended stomach.

While inefficient or over active immune systems can cause diseases, other diseases can also compromise the immune system’s ability to combat diseases. Many times a certain drug used during the course of a treatment negatively affects the immune system, which in turn can be a cause behind the occurrence of another condition.

A dog’s body is capable of fighting minor diseases on its own. Frequent occurrences of skin disorders, allergies, respiratory and eye disorders and other general problems are sure signs of dysfunction of the immune system in pets. It is important to be on guard rather than letting the situation go out of hand. Maintaining the health of the immune system of your pet will not only restrict frequent occurrences of disease but also help in improving chances of survival in the event of a serious disease.

Antioxidants are one of the proven supplements that help in fighting disease. Antioxidants also limit cell damage and thus provide support to the immune system when disease occurs. Vitamins are a group of organic substances that are essential in small quantities to normal metabolism. Vitamin C and E are specific antioxidants that are normally used as supplements to counter the oxidizing chemicals originating during cell damage. Vitamin C also plays a key role in enhancing the T-cell production for an increased resistance to bacterial and viral infection and allergies. Vitamin E, on the other hand prevents oxidation of Vitamin A, red blood cells and unsaturated fatty acids.

Liver disease in dogs is a more common occurrence than feline liver disease. Liver has always been a mysterious organ, which performs more functions in maintaining life than any other organ in the body. Its large size with the capacity to continue work even when it is affected by disease makes it difficult to diagnose a liver disease. In addition, given the right support, liver cells can regenerate and bounce back to normal functioning.

One of the major functions of liver is to metabolize fats, carbohydrates and proteins. If the liver does not function properly, the nutrients cannot be metabolized effectively and harmful by-products cannot be broken down. This can greatly affect the detoxification process. For example:

* The bacteria in large intestines produce toxic ammonia while breaking down proteins for absorption in the blood stream.
* When the liver is unable to provide essential nutrients to the body, cells break down body tissue to cover up the loss. Ammonia is also produced during this process.
* Liver disease leads to an inability to detoxify toxins and they enter the blood and circulate throughout the body.
* In severe conditions contaminated blood reaches the brain and causes hepatic encephalopathy leading to fits, seizures, excess salivation and head pressing.

More and more dog owners are becoming aware of heartworms and the severe damage they can cause to their pets.

Although this world-wide parasite was first reported over a century ago, until recently it was only well known in warmer climates in areas such as Florida and other warm southern locations.

Due to increased travel of pets and better diagnostic techniques, heartworms are now being diagnosed in almost every corner of the nation.

How The Enemy Works

Since the parasite resides within the circulatory system, the serious consequences should be obvious. The adult heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis (which literally means evil thread) belongs to a group of parasitic worms called filariae. A well-known relative, Wuchereria bancroft, causes elephantiasis in humans.

D. immitis commonly lives in the right side of the heart and the blood vessel leading to the lungs (pulmonary artery). Dogs seem to be the preferred host, however, this worm has been found in many other carnivores, including the cat.

Some human infections have been reported, mainly from the southern coast of the United States. Mammals, such as the muskrat and otter, have also been found to harbor D. immitis.

Out of the numerous liver functions, filtering of blood is perhaps one of the most important and crucial to the health of your dog. After the food has been digested in the intestines it is absorbed into the portal blood stream and carried to the liver. The liver works upon it to:

* Store some of the food for energy.
* Filter bacteria, chemicals, toxins and nutritional byproducts.
* Produce proteins and other substances necessary for life.

A liver shunt is a condition where the portal blood vessel, instead of carrying blood through the liver, carries it around it. In dogs with a liver shunt the unfiltered blood is carried into the body and toxins accumulate in the blood stream and kidneys, a condition that ultimately causes serious problems.

There are reasonable indications that suggest that liver shunt is a congenital liver disease in dogs and mostly the young puppy dies within weeks after birth. Some dogs do survive for years before some of the symptoms of liver disease in dogs like seizures, abnormal behaviors and serious illnesses become noticeable. In certain cases, however, liver shunt is acquired later in life due to insult to the organ due to a disease or injury.

The immune system in a cat’s body has a committed task. It is a complex interconnected system of white blood cells, antibodies and other substances that are released to combat infections and eliminate foreign proteins. On recognition of a foreign invasion, the system releases antibodies which chemically bind with antigens to destroy them.

The important part of the immune system is that it is supposed to recognize foreign substances and respond immediately to destroy them. Unfortunately it does not happen like this always. Certain disorders cause the controlling mechanism of the immune system to fail and it produces antibodies that attack the body’s own tissues. These are known as autoantibodies. The resultant disease is known as an autoimmune disease. Even though it is known that an autoimmune disease is caused by production of these autoantibodies, the underlying causes are complicated and not thoroughly understood.

Symptoms of autoimmune diseases vary depending upon the organ or system that has been affected. In certain cases multiple organs and body systems are affected. Autoimmune diseases occur in both cats and dogs, producing relatively similar symptoms.