For the correct diagnosis of a sick dog, veterinarians often draw blood. For the pet owner, these values are a closed book.
In this article you will find out exactly what is meant when your veterinarian speaks of elevated liver values and what you can do yourself.
In a nutshell: What does a liver value table say?
Understanding your dog’s liver values is not easy for a layperson at first.
They reflect the amount of certain enzymes in the blood that indicate diseases. An increase can indicate liver disease, but can also occur as a side effect of medication or as a result of another disease.
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Liver Values Table
Your dog’s normal liver values should be in the following ranges:
healthy valueAlkaline phosphatase (AP) < 128 U/lAST < 162 U/lALT < 118 U/lgamma-GT < 11 U/lGLDH < 10.5 U/l Bilirubin total < 5.1 µmol/l
Explanation:
U/l = Units per liter (units per liter)
μmol/l = micromoles per liter
Importance of liver values
The values stand for various enzymes, of which so-called aminotransferases are particularly important for the liver.
Alkaline phosphatase (AP)
The alkaline phosphatase, abbreviated AP, play a role in the phosphate metabolism.
An increase indicates inflammation, diseased gallbladder, a hormonal imbalance or diabetes. But Cushing’s syndrome also triggers an increased AP.
Drugs from the field of corticosteroids also increase the AP value. They are prescribed temporarily for joint pain and allergies.
AST: aspartate aminotransferase
Aspartate aminotransase, AST for short, used to be known as GOT (glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase).
The enzyme is important for the breakdown of amino acids and is mainly found in skeletal muscles, heart muscles and the liver.
An increase in the value is therefore not necessarily due to the liver, but is often a sign of muscle diseases. Therefore, an increased AST must always be considered in conjunction with other values.
ALT: alanine aminotransferase
Alanine aminotransferase, ALT for short, can also be found as glutamate-pyruvate-trasnaminase (GPT).
The enzyme is particularly important for the liver’s sugar utilization and the urea cycle. An increased value is therefore always a sign of a problem in the liver and even a slight increase indicates damage to the liver cells.
gamma-GT: gamma-glutamyl transferase
Gamma-glutamyl transferase, gGT or gamma-GT for short, is an enzyme group that is important in diagnostics as a biomarker for the liver. Elevating it always indicates a serious liver or bile duct disease.
Typically, an increase in gGT occurs with an increase in ALT.
GLDH: glutamate dehydrogenase
Glutamate dehydrogenase or GLDH is an enzyme involved in nitrogen metabolism. It only becomes diagnostically visible in the blood when liver cells have been completely destroyed.
Therefore, it usually occurs in connection with a significant increase in gGT, AST or ALT and indicates an acute liver disease such as poisoning or liver cancer.
bilirubin
Bilirubin is produced when red blood cells are broken down. It acts as a yellow dye that turns bile and urine yellow. If the excretion is blocked, the mucous membranes in the dog can turn yellowish.
What do elevated liver values mean in dogs?
Elevated liver values are difficult to interpret for laypeople. They can occur as a result of short-term influences such as minor illnesses or as a side effect of medication.
However, the more values are outside the norm, the more likely it is that there is acute and possibly serious cell damage in the liver.
What are the symptoms of poor liver values?
The liver is primarily responsible for metabolism. A diseased liver therefore affects the dog in various ways and usually manifests itself in problems with the food:
- loss of appetite
- weight loss
- Vomit
- Diarrhea
- strong thirst
Fever and lethargy are also typical symptoms of liver disease.
Very serious symptoms are:
- yellow discolored mucous membranes
- disturbed blood clotting
- Accumulation of fluid in the abdomen
- muscle twitching, cramps
- strong-smelling, light-colored feces
Where coming from bad liver values in the dog?
Causes of poor liver values are usually diseases such as
- Liver fibrosis (scarring of liver tissue)
- hepatitis
- liver tumor
- poisoning
- Obesity-related fatty liver
But some medications also temporarily increase certain liver values. After stopping, they usually go back to normal on their own.
Some breeds are also genetically particularly susceptible to liver disease. These include, for example, retrievers, Dobermans and Great Danes.
What should you feed if you have poor liver values?
If your vet has found your dog has poor liver function tests, you should schedule feedings. Under no circumstances should you start a liver diet yourself or change the food.
The right food for poor liver values depends on the cause of the liver disease. It is usually low in protein, complex carbohydrate molecules, high in fat and low in copper.
In the case of bile stasis, fatty liver or pancreatic disease, however, the opposite applies to the fat content.
The goals of such a feed change are always:
- maintain normal weight
- normalize metabolism
- Support regeneration of the liver
- supply electrolytes
Reading tip: Would you like to learn more about the liver diet in dogs and how to lower liver values? Then you should definitely read our article on the topic «Liver diet dogs: reduce liver values in dogs»!
Explainer video
Conclusion
Correctly interpreting liver value tables is difficult for the layperson. Nevertheless, you should be able to understand a change in the values in order to prevent serious illnesses and to be able to provide your dog with the best possible care.
The professionals at Dr. Sam. You can quickly and easily book an online consultation with an experienced vet almost around the clock.