So important to scan Sheltie gallbladders

Sharon7

Sharon7

Moderator
The gallbladder mucocele topic has been raised here before, it is very prevalent in Shelties. When we met up with our breeder last August at a dog show she also passed on the recommendation from the ASSA to scan. I let her know we were aware, and had scanned Faith at age 7 and again at 10, with the all clear.

A couple of weeks ago it was Elijah's turn, he just had his 7th birthday. Well we were shocked when she found he has sludge in his gallbladder. A lot. Couldn't believe it. Took blood for labwork, which showed it is starting to affect his liver. There was no warning, other than he vomited once randomly in April, and then again late June two days before his vet visit.

I will post more under a separate thread for those interested in where this journey will take us (almost certainly surgery). But please, if your Sheltie has reached age 7, ask for a baseline ultrasound scan. It's about $200. It can be a sudden and deadly event if it ruptures.
 
I can't second this enough!! Three of mine have had gallbladder surgery...two, preventatively and one an emergency. Flurry is next up, now age 7, she gets scanned every three months and even on gallbladder meds has 50 percent sludge. Surgery is in her future too. I start scanning yearly at age 5. It's a horrible condition and can turn deadly very fast.
 
I am doing an u/s for Brodie this year; he is 5 going on 6 in November. Vet has 2 options - they can do just the gallbladder but way more than 200 or they have a tech come in who does a complete u/s for $600. I am a tad nervous about that route but is the one I will opt for.

I have read about sludge, but what does cause it? Is it just a 'normal' function of some? Are there supplements to use? Avoid?

Glad you caught Eli's!
 
Sandy in CT said:
I have read about sludge, but what does cause it? Is it just a 'normal' function of some? Are there supplements to use? Avoid?

Glad you caught Eli's!
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As far as I know, sludge is waste material that clutters up the gallbladder and doesn't pass through the bile duct. When the sludge becomes thick, it can form a mucocele, or small round piece of matter that can block the bile duct, causing the gallbladder to rupture which is worst case scenario and fatal. So it's not the sludge that's dangerous, it's the mucocele. But a lot of sludge can contribute to forming them.

I don't know any way to prevent them....some dogs just seem to get them. Five of mine have been prone to GM; one ultrasounds clear every year. No rhyme or reason why, they all eat the same thing. I suspect, and many vets as well, that there's a genetic component here, but I don't know of any research on that. The only medication given to treat the issue is Ursidiol, which all of mine have taken before surgery to prevent mucoceles, and also after surgery for life. Flurry, as well as Lacey, Checkers and Ruffles, all took Ursidiol prior to surgery in the hope of reducing the sludge, but that didn't work.

I do keep the dogs who've had gallbladders removed on lower fat foods to avoid overloading the liver, along with a good liver supplement -- the best one is Denamarin.

My vet also offers a less expensive "quick ultrasound" of just the gallbladder which is what we have done regularly. A full abdominal one is much more expensive and I only do that if there's a need for it, or if something else is wrong.
 
My understanding is that the mucus secreting cells in the gallbladder, whose job it is to protect it from the bile stored there, go into overdrive. The Internal Medicine vet I saw who did a very extensive repeat ultrasound (gallbladder, liver, spleen, kidneys, adrenal glands) sighed and said she wished they could figure out WHY Shelties have this issue. As Ann said, if the goo starts to solidify you're in trouble. Elijah's is still mobile with no solids or filaments clumping together.

The gallbladder when working correctly dumps all the bile into the small intestine when they've eaten, to help digest food, specifically, fats.
Ironically in people, this is the easiest surgery, usually laparoscopic. As an RN taking care of this post op patient was usually easy and straight-forward. Not so for dogs apparently. And I think part of that, is because even experienced surgeons just don't do it that often.

Elijah is still completely healthy other than a slight elevation in liver numbers. Best to do surgery NOW before there's an issue; that's when the risk goes way, way up.
 
Sharon7 said:
My understanding is that the mucus secreting cells in the gallbladder, whose job it is to protect it from the bile stored there, go into overdrive. The Internal Medicine vet I saw who did a very extensive repeat ultrasound (gallbladder, liver, spleen, kidneys, adrenal glands) sighed and said she wished they could figure out WHY Shelties have this issue. As Ann said, if the goo starts to solidify you're in trouble. Elijah's is still mobile with no solids or filaments clumping together.

The gallbladder when working correctly dumps all the bile into the small intestine when they've eaten, to help digest food, specifically, fats.
Ironically in people, this is the easiest surgery, usually laparoscopic. As an RN taking care of this post op patient was usually easy and straight-forward. Not so for dogs apparently. And I think part of that, is because even experienced surgeons just don't do it that often.

Elijah is still completely healthy other than a slight elevation in liver numbers. Best to do surgery NOW before there's an issue; that's when the risk goes way, way up.
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Explained so much better than me by a nurse! :yes: Thank you, Sharon!
 
Ann said:
My vet also offers a less expensive "quick ultrasound" of just the gallbladder which is what we have done regularly. A full abdominal one is much more expensive and I only do that if there's a need for it, or if something else is wrong.
Click to expand...

Your vet must have the U/S there on site? This is a mobile service that comes in - NOT cheap!

Scary thing that I've been reading about for years....
 
Both our girls had mucoceles. Unfortunately we were not aware of this when we had Hollie and by the time we discovered it she was already in liver failure. There was nothing we could do other then end her suffering.

Shelby’s was found when we had her at the ER for an unrelated issue. She had the beginnings of a small mucocele. She was 11 at the time and had other health issues so surgery was not an option. Our vet told us to expect 6month to a year. She lived another year and a half being treated with Ursodiol. She never had any symptoms and she passed from angiosarcoma that we did not know she had until the tumor ruptured. She did great on the Ursodiol and a low fat diet.
 
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