One sick dog.....Bacca, my boy!

[bi-blacks]

Originally Posted by Lynnel

I am so sorry for your loss, but I have to ask did your fur any have sludge in his gall bladder? My max was 2.5 when I rescued him and he has slight sludge in his bladder and pancreatitus, were there any warnings before his horrible attack, and did he suffer? I am afraid every day because my guy has never charged his demenor thought all his issues, so I am so afraid I won't know if anything else is wrong.

Our Shelby had his first attack of pancreatitis a year before his passing. He was quite ill, some vomiting but mostly diarrhea and loss of appetite. An abdominal ultra sound didn't show anything abnormal so he was put on meds (sorry I don't remember what they were) and he recovered but was never really the same. He had blood work done 6 months later and all seemed okay. Approximately 6 months after the test he became seriously ill, but there were no warning signs. As for being in pain I assume he was but Shelties are such a stoic breed that it was hard to tell how much pain he endured. I still cry thinking about it all. Ultra sound showed ruptured gallbladder. We were told that there was a complicated surgery but it carried no guarantees for recovery. After all he'd been through we decided we couldn't put him through anything more and he crossed the rainbow bridge. They told us most likely he had gallbladder mucocele which is uncommon but it occurs mostly in shelties. It can be genetic, or as a result of Cushings, hypothyroidism (which Shelby had),and steroid use. There has been a study done on gallbladder mucocele and the results and current updates are available on the ASSA website under health issues. I don't know if this is of any help to you but if you do read the study it does say that some sludge is normal. What happened to our Shelby was rare and doesn't necessarily relate to other pups with pancreatitis.