Anyone know anything about EPI in dogs?

sionnaic

I've just been told by my vet that she's pretty sure my little rescue dog is suffering from EPI (Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency)
This is basically (thank you WikiPedia!) "the inability to properly digest food due to a lack of digestive enzymes made by the pancreas".

He's a mongrel but she's always reckoned he's a sheepdog GSD cross and that, coupled with the results of a fecal analysis test, is what's prompted the diagnosis, though she's going to do a blood test to confirm it and see how severe it is. (It's a quite common hereditary condition in GSDs apparently)

Anyway I was just wondering if anyone else has/had a dog with this and what their experiences are/were?

anniehoo

sionnaic wrote: »

with the results of a fecal analysis test, is what's prompted the diagnosis, though she's going to do a blood test to confirm it and see how severe it is.

The faecal test that wouldve been performed was probably a Faecal Elastase. The pancreas secretes this digestive enzyme and the level in your dogs faeces reflects pancreatic function. Basically its produced by little glands called acinar glands and if these start to wither so too does elastase concentration. This leads to a dogs inability to digest its food properly, which leads to weight loss and fatty stools. The blood test to confirm is TLI (Trypsin Like Immunoreactivity). Trypsin is basically another digestive enzyme but is more specific for EPI.

If its definitely EPI, it is manageable and you will probably be put on enzyme replacement therapy (normally pig pancreas enzyme). Raw beef pancreas can also be supplemented. It'll take awhile for this to be regulated unfortunately as the symptoms of EPI arent really seen until >80% of the acinar gland has gone.

sionnaic

yes I've been reading about it online. He's had the symptoms (frequent intermittant loose stools, frequent defacating, flatulence, always hungry, cophragia) since we rescued him at 4 months old (he's 11 months now) which is worrying. Our old vet said it was nothing to worry about :mad: but we recently changed vets and she ordered the faecal test straight away.

When we got him in April he was underweight with a dull coat and we just assumed it was because he'd been a stray before we got him. He's really improved in the last few months, especially in the last couple of months since he's been eating the "Robbies" and "Luath" food since July, and he's now got a nice shiny coat, lots of energy and he is a healthy weight. But, even though it wasn't as severe or as frequent on "Robbies", the intermittent diarrhoea persisted, which is what had us worried.

Anyway I feel so bad we didn't pick up on it before now my poor baby! He's had problems with fear aggression too and I've read that EPI can aggrevate behavioural problems due to vitamin deficencies.

He's definitely improved in the last few weeks on this front and has become calmer but thinking about it that could be due to any combination of him getting that bit older, his hormones settling down from being neutered in August, the training and socialisation we've been doing, his new DAP collar and/or the course of probiotics he's on! The probiotics have definitely had an effect as his digestion has improved, though he's not 100%, and he's not gulping his food anymore, takes him ages to eat now as he picks delicately at it! :rolleyes:

Anyway sorry about the ramble...he's not exactly at death's door or anything, I suppose I'm just a bit shocked as I wasn't expecting anything like this to be wrong with him.

I was just wondering about other people's experiences with dogs suffering from EPI?