Dog Liver Failure and Liver Disease Symptoms

1. Urinating and drinking more

2. Lethargy( drowsy, lazy, sluggish)

3. Poor or no appetite

4. Pale mucous membranes

5. Presence of jaundice (icterus) / yellow discolouration of mucous membranes and in severe cases of the skin.

What Causes Dog Liver Failure and Liver Disease?

As all animals and creatures mature their organs tend to work less and less efficiently due to the lifespan of organs coming to an end. As time passes organs will generally get worse until they fail to work at all resulting in death of 'old age'. This is the case with liver failure and is the cause of a long life of general wear and tear over the years; the only way to help dogs with this condition is to give them a diet that requires less work from the liver.

The most common cause of liver disease in dogs is liver tumours among others and this will cause the gradual deterioration of the liver making it unable to function thus leading to an uncomfortable end for the dog in which case most vets will opt for humanely putting the dog in question to rest.

What Your Vet May Say or Do

Your vet will usually look for signs of the symptoms noted at the top of this page and then proceed to take blood tests and possible urine test to try and distinguish this from other kidney failure conditions.

When these symptoms have been confirmed as liver failure or disease there is very little your vet can do to help the condition but slow down the progression by giving the dog in question a diet of special liver support foods until the condition deteriorates to an uncomfortable stage where the vet may look at humanely putting the dog to sleep.



Other Possible Conditions

Dog Urinating and Drinking More Than Usual
Acute (Sudden) Kidney Failure
Dog Addison's Disease / Adrenal Gland Disorder
Chronic (long term) Kidney Failure
Cushing's Disease - Adrenal Gland Disorders
Diabetes Mellitus (Sugar Diabetes)
Dog Diabetes Insipidus (Water Diabetes)
Dog Hyperparathyroidism (Overactive Parathyroid Glands)
Dog Tumor (Causing Elevated Blood Calcium Levels)