4 Month Old Kitten - Suspected Liver Shunt

althe

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Hi all,

We got our beloved Thea in Novevmber and she is now 4 mths old - ish. From the moment she moved in with us, I noticed that she drank an incredible amount of water for her size. We measured it to be roughly 500ml a day.

When I took her to get her jabs I mentioned it to the vet, who did a urine test, obviously it came back diluted as she is drining too much water so she was booked in for blood tests and a scan just before Christmas and they all came back clear also the scan look a bit odd around the liver spo they did an extra bile test for liver function which also came out clear. At this point they mentioned the possibility fo a liver shunt.

They did another urine test and again it was dilute so they ordered some equipment to do a resting amonia blood test. This test was completed yesterday and the amonia level came back high. On the low side of high, but high none the less. They now think the chance of a liver shunt is quite high and so she is being referred to the specialist clinic in Edinburgh so we are awaiting for a referral which should be next week.

Apart from the water drinking, she is a normal wee kitten, bounding around, causing trouble, eating well etc.

I was just wondering if anyone had any experience of a liver shunt or liver issues in general? Just worried about my wee one.
 

denice

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I have only heard of liver shunts in puppies but I am sure it happens in kittens also.  With puppies they sometimes try surgery but it isn't always successful, it actually depends on whether they can find it once they are in there.  That doesn't mean it's the same for kittens, maybe someone who has dealt with this in a kitten can be of more help.
 

cprcheetah

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Another possibility you may want to ask your vet about Diabetes Insipidus, I haven't heard of a liver shunt causing excess thirst or urination.  Here is some information about Liver Shunts: http://www.catlivershunt.com/ Your vet may or may not be familiar with the DI as it is pretty rare (My dad is a vet and in 40 years of practice has only seen 2-3 cases of it)  but it causes excess thirst and urination.  No it is NOT diabetes that needs the insulin injections rather it needs the hormone Desmopressin. It is essentially the inability to concentrate their urine.  I had a golden retriever who was diagnosed when she was about 5 months old, her symptoms were drinking gallons of water and peeing a ton, all her bloodwork came back normal.  I gave her twice daily injections of Desmopressin.  http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/12/24/diabetes-insipidus.aspx
 
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