Canine Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency

EPI

(Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency)

What is EPI?

Exocrine pancriatic insufficiency is where the pancreas does not produce the enzymes needed to absorb nutrience and digest food. It is incurable but can be maintained with medication and dietary changes and there is no reason your dog cannot go on to live a normal life with the correct treatment. The pancreas sits under the stomach and actually has two parts to it that are seemingly mixed together as one, The first part known as the endocrine pancreas which deals with the making of insulin and glucagon which deal with blood sugar. The second part is known as the exocrine pancreas, and it's this part which causes EPI. The exocrine pancreas produces the digestive enzymes which is needed to absorb the nutrience and digest there food, with a dog with epi this does not happen meaning they will starve to death if the problem is not diagnosed or treated.

What causes EPI?

Epi can be either passed down genetically through your dogs blood line or can be due to pancreatic acinar atrophy or chronic pancreatic. Either way it cannot be cured.

Symptoms of epi.

Symptoms of epi can include -

• Diarrhea.

• Steatorrhoea, which is excessive amounts of fat in your dogs faeces.

• Dry and brittle fur.

• Increase in gut sounds.

• Weight loss.

• increase in flatulence and glass

• increase in appetite

• weak lethargic behavior

• dry flanky skin

Can all dogs get EPI?

Any dog can get epi but it is most common in German shepherds and rough collies. showing a rough raceo of 80% German shepherds and 20% rough collies between the two breeds.

What are the effects of EPI?

The most obvious physical effect of epi is weight loss as the body cannot digest and absorbed there food causing diarrhea so fat and nutrient needed to put on weight is not being processed. weight can be gained by dietry changes and medication.

What can I do to reduce the effects of EPI? (medication and dietary)

The primary treatment of EPI is supplementing each meal with pancreatic enzymes.. As dogs with epi should Avoid starch fibre and Fat contents. Fibre should be avoided as it eases digestion. Feeding little and often is the best way to feed your dog. The best of the diets that have been tried and tested is -

Raw pig or beef pancreas liquidated has been the of the most successful diets used on dogs with epi as the enzymes in the pig or beef pancreas does the job there pancreas is not. Pig pancrease is the best though as it is the closest to the dogs as they are both herbivores. To buy in bulk is easyer and cheaper and it can be frozen. It is not necessary to mix it with other foods either. Cooking the pancrease is believed to kill the enzymes so it must be raw. In the evening weigh out the appropriate amount of frozen pancreas for the next day and leave it to thaw overnight. In the morning thoroughly liquidise the thawed pancreas in a blender to about the consistency of a milk shake.

Medication should be added to food as it helps with anything they are lacking, they are addatives to supplement the enzymes missing. one of the forms of treatment can be Lypex contains amylase/lypase/protease supplement. It is better than some of the powder formulas as it is not effected by acid digestion. With the powder formulas to compensate for the destruction the acid does to the powder The quantity of treatment goes up and is given in very high quantities and concentrations. This can have various side effects such as -

• Erosion of the mucus membranes of the oesophagus and mouth.

• Irritation to the skin of the animal and owner.

In all epi is a terrible disease and if you own a dog with epi you will realise it is not cheap, however as a dog owner it is your responsibility to care for you pet. Yes epi is incurable but you are able to maintain the disease and provide your dog with a healthy normal life.

Sibling Rivalry

Sibling Rivalry can occur when two dogs compete for dominance, where the two are so equally match neither one can dominate the other without a fight occurring, if neither one will passively submit the fight for dominance will escalate.
Sibling rivalry occurs around the time of the dogs sexual maturity (the equivalent to our teenage years). As the urge to dominate grows stronger the fights become worse and more frequent the damage may worsen every time as the want to be alpha (pack leader or however you like to label it) intensifies. A wild pair of dogs would fight for dominance over the pack until one submits or is severely injured.
Joanna and myself always discourage people from getting two dogs from the same litter to avoid the possibility of sibling rivalry. If you are experiencing the problems associated with sibling rivalry the issues can be resolved with professional help.
I am not saying do not have more than one dog. I am however saying before you acquire your second dog make sure the dog you already have is trained and behaves exactly how you want it to. If it does not you will only be doubling your problems by introducing a second dog to the household.
When buying a dog or another dog ask yourself are they the right breed for me? What dogs will be compatible? Will these dogs work with my life style? When choosing a dog or any number of dogs, think, best of all seek professional advice. If done correctly a pack of dogs is a joy if done incorrectly a pack of dogs can be a nightmare that can turn into a blood bath.

Marley & Me

When Marley and me came out Jo said to me "book mark in the diary for six months and we will be FLOODED with labs" best thing was she was right but its hit us quicker than we realised. We have a full puppy class of lab pups already. Maybe due to coincidence who knows. Yet i find myself guilty of the same thing watch the film Beethoven, Marley and me and homeward bound saying to myself "ohh how cute I WANT ONE" so i do understand how people fall in love with certain breeds due to the brilliant acting done by the dog in the film. every time i watch beethoven i fall in love with the St Bernard all over again, yet as iv been told numerouse amounts of time by Jo "if we got EVERY breed of dog you loved we would have to buy battersea" maybe its true? But thats just me and i know what breeds would be suitible for me and my lifestyle. I may be a sucker for puppy dog eyes but i care about the dogs and for the dogs sake i would never get a dog which did not suit my lifestyle. I believe that all potential dog owners should take into considefration if the dogbreed is right for them and their family e, if you love the breed yet it is not suitible DO NOT GET IT if you care! Personaly Joanna and myself discourage people to stay away from working lines UNLESS he or she is going to work. Hence the lable WORKING LINE. Any way i have already preached on this subject once before. Back to Marley and Me all i can say is heart breaking. What a brilliant film, the best thing was they show the bad side of having a dog just as much as the good unlike most dog films sugar coating what ownership is REALLY like, the mess, the possible distruction, the howling at two in the morning and of course the heart ache that goes along with the loss of your dog because unfortunatly our four legged friends do not have the same longevity of life as us.

Puppy class.

Yesterday was the first puppy class. We arrived on the field and waited to show up. Of corse we had to ignore the pups even though i just wanted to give them all a good sqeez (very cute!) i took Bramwel as Debbie was having a rest, he was such a good boy and really started to pick up on every thing even though he just wanted to play for the first 20 mints!! It was amazing to watch all the puppies lern and pick up on the simple teqneques and mentally and physically its so good for them. What a great day!

BE PREPARED!

Today was a lesson i only need to learn once. BE PREPARED! I showed up at work today prepared for theory.. plans had changed. We were on the field and me being ditsy had worn a light weight hoody and the most un water proof pumps possible... inevitably it rained and it was muddy... VERY. soaked through and freezing! YET today has been the best day for me on the field and i enjoyed it so much. We had a new puppy in today.. a blank canvas, learning lead training. Of course for the first few minutes i was just a big toy, powering on ignoring any negative behavior it soon turned to follow my leader (of which i wanted) as time went by the better it got. The most rewarding feeling when things start to click!! Despite the weather and my lack of brain cells today was a really good day... JO YOU WHERE RIGHT! BE PREPARED! haha.

work work work

No this isn't a moan as i am bit of a geek and love writing essays and so on. Today iv had my work cut out for me trying to find a Staffordshire bull terrier puppy for maximum of 150 pound in Kent.. harder than i first thought!! So far iv found one litter.... YET i cant get hold of the breeders. Along side that iv been putting together an essay on pregnant bitches and what goes with it, as well as going over old essays. I find the more essays i do the easier it gets, maybe a mixture of learning more so it becomes easier to put my knowledge into the essays and general practice formating and structuring makes my essays better.. maybe Jo would disagree? haha. Back to finding a puppy i never realized how crucial it could be to choose a good litter, puppy and breeder. the reason there are so many problems with people and there dog because no one takes into consideration what is a suitable dog for them and there family instead people choose what they think to be the cutest breed or prettiest. some people and certain breeds are just not compatible. If you have a lazy owner that doesn't want to take the dog out much and sit and relax all day DO NOT get a working breed dog, such as a border collie! Not only is it just all wrong it isn't fair on the dog. The higher the drive in a dog the more time and work they need. Behavior problems come from this. Yet if you wouldn't want to exercise to much relax at home get something like a toy thats drive is lower! Think of the dog too. People are far to into the image rather than compatibility. Even though every dog is different and have individual personality's breeds are in category as to what type of drive they have.

The emotional side

Before my apprenticeship Jo came to my home and we were taught the way a dog SHOULD be treated in your home and as your pet. The shock!! There where snots and tears (from me obviously) and so much was put into perspective. I have now learned emotionally a dog is so different from a human and actually excepting that was so difficult. Things we believed our dog to want and need is far from what they ACTUALLY need to be a balanced happy healthy dog. Human psychology does not work! On many different occasions i fount myself frustrated and upset yet once you realize that to be fare to your dog treat them like one!! If you have a dog you truly love of course you feel bad for creating these problems (nearly all behavioral problems have steamed from the owner) it is upsetting to know you've made them unbalanced. When you come to meet Jo you will soon realize no matter how much you get upset IT DOESN'T MATTER... every one makes mistakes, take the problems fix them with the training guidelines and learn from it... No dog is ever too old!!