Often the result of over eating, Pancreatitis needs prompt attention
Dietary indiscretion. That is such a great phrase. It covers a broad array of situations. Eating too much in the way of chips and salsa watching football games. Eating too much at Wurstfest. Full-on indulgence during the holiday feasting season. For your dog it can be the beginning of some serious health issues.
One of the results of dietary indiscretion can be the ingestion of a foreign object. Dogs can choose to eat a remarkable array of non-food items. Sometimes there are underlying health issues that can cause a dog to eat non food items. Other times no one can figure out why a dog choose to eat something odd. Everything from yellow plastic ducks to several dozen socks to rocks, dogs have eaten them all. The once the items become lodged in the digestive system surgery is the only way they are coming out.
A dog or cat that has a foreign body in it's intestinal tract may show a variety of symptoms ranging from mild to severe. They may act just a little unwell or they may have bouts of vomiting and are painful and lethargic.
Another name for dietary indiscretion is garbage gut. The name comes from the fact that dogs often derive great joy from getting into the garbage and eating their fill of such tidbits as bacon grease, chicken skin or other fatty meats. This kind indulgence can lead to a condition called pancreatitis.
Pancreatitis is a complex chain of events that can be triggered by by a variety of causes but it is generally started off by, as we said, dietary indiscretion. The overload of nutrients triggers the pancreas to secrete an overload of enzymes and some of the enzymes start to break down the pancreas instead of the food. When this happens the dog feels quite sick, vomits, has abdominal pain and is often dehydrated.
There are other factors in pancreatitis including breed (miniature schnauzers, several spaniels, shelties, toy poodles and yorkies), obesity, age and diabetes can all predispose a dog to pancreatitis. When a dog with any of these risk factors becomes ill, pancreatitis is something that should be considered. There is a lab test that measures an enzyme from the pancreas. If that measurement is high, pancreatitis is a strong possibility.
With prompt, appropriate care dogs can make a full recovery from an attack of pancreatitis. If your dog engages in dietary indiscretion a call or text us to schedule an appointment as soon as you can. Timely attention can make all the difference with both foreign body ingestions and pancreatitis.