Recently, some dog owners have come to ask me, can dogs also get pancreatitis? What are the main symptoms of pancreatitis, why do dogs get pancreatitis, and how to prevent and treat it? Let’s talk about this topic today.

Symptoms of pancreatitis

The main common symptoms of pancreatitis in dogs are: Appetite Lack of energy, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain (downward dog crawling), etc. In severe cases, symptoms such as bile duct obstruction and shock may occur.

Diagnosis of pancreatitis

Symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea in dogs do not necessarily indicate pancreatitis, so it can generally be diagnosed through palpation, pancreatitis test board, abdominal B-ultrasound, etc. To confirm the diagnosis, the most accurate test currently is the cPL pancreatitis test panel. As shown in the picture below, the blue one on the left is called the reference point. The right side is detected.

The dots in Figure B are lighter than those in Figure A, which means that pancreatitis has not yet occurred.

If the color of picture B is darker than that of picture A, it means that pancreatitis has occurred.

How the pancreas works

Let’s first take a look at the location of the pancreas. The pancreas is connected to the duodenum. After the dog eats food, it is still called when it enters the stomach. After the food comes out of the stomach, it passes through the duodenum and becomes chyme.

When chyme passes through the duodenum, the pancreas secretes pancreatic enzymes to break it down; without the supplement of pancreatic enzymes, the intestines cannot break down chyme. The green part in the picture below is the pancreas.

Under normal circumstances, after a dog eats food, the food enters the duodenum from the stomach. The food at this time has been converted into chyme. When the chyme passes through the duodenum, it is excreted by the pancreas. Pancreatic enzymes secrete preliminary decomposition of food. If pancreatic enzymes are not supplemented, chyme will not be decomposed.

Factors inducing pancreatitis

※Abnormal feeding (overeating, sudden changes in food) is the main reason.

※Obesity (can cause chronic pancreatitis, which is more troublesome than acute pancreatitis).

※Vomiting (frequent vomiting can induce pancreatitis).

Primary pancreatitis is mostly caused by improper diet. Once the food a dog eats suddenly changes, especially high-fat food, the amount of chyme suddenly increases, causing the pancreas to overload, desperately secreting pancreatic enzymes and eventually decomposing the pancreas itself, leading to disease.

The role of pancreatin

The main role of pancreatin is to help digestion. Trypsin can convert protein into peptone, and pancreatic amylase can convert starch into dextrin and sugar. Pancreatic lipase breaks down fat into glycerol and fatty acids. Digest starch, protein and fat in intestinal juice, thereby promoting digestion and increasing appetite.

How to treat and repair pancreatitis?

⊙In hospital infusion, the drip rate should be slow to effectively replenish electrolytes and then reduce inflammation.

⊙Before the pancreas recovers completely, add digestive enzymes such as pancreatin to the food to share the function of the pancreas (break down chyme) in advance. Do not overload the pancreas and allow it to slowly repair itself.

Many parents think that if they are optimistic, then there will be no problem. In fact, many people make two mistakes. The first mistake is to allow the pancreas to supersede before the pancreas has fully recovered to its peak state (only partially recovered). Overload operation, such as eating high-fat and other foods; the second mistake is to stop the medicine too early or too fast, stopping the pancreatic enzymes.

So the detoxification of pancreatic enzymes requires a process. To put it simply, if you continue to supplement pancreatic enzymes for about 15-20 days without any symptoms, you will start to reduce it by half, and there will be no symptoms for another 15 days. Symptoms will be reduced by half again, and symptoms will be reduced by half again after 15 days without symptoms. This way of taking off the medicine will ensure that you can return to your peak state.