Tuesday my dog Jake was throwing up & refused to eat (he has never missed a meal), so I took him to the Dr. on Wed. In short, he has been diagnosed with severe liver disease. They had him on an IV for a few hours Wed, then I took him back both Thur and Fri to be on the IV from 7:30am to 6:30pm. This was hopefully to flush his system of the toxins. However, his blood tests were actually worse which led the Dr. to believe that his liver has nearly if not completely shutdown. Looking back I cannot see one sign of this happening until Tue. I'm in shock. The Dr. says there is nothing more to be done. She believes the nausea will return without the meds and that he will become so sick and miserable that euthanasia will be best. The best I'm hoping for right now is to keep him comfortable and home until he passes, spirit willing. I was wondering if you could advise me on any herbs that might make this time easier for my Jake. At this time, he is still active though subdued. He wants to be outside with the others, barks at the mailman with the others, drinks water. He has eaten small quantities of chicken 1/8 cup at a time, but he seems to be wanting that less as time goes by. He refuses the chicken completely if I mix it with very much barley or oatmeal. I've been reading about Milk Thistle and it's effect on the liver (though it is probably to late for any healing) and started giving him some last night. Nature's Way Standardized 80% silymarin - 50 to 75% of the dose of an adult (as stated on various sites on the internet). He is an Australian Shepherd, 76#, 9 years old. It is difficult to sift though all the information on the internet in so short a time to find the valid information that I'm seeking. Herbs that may 1) stimulate his appetite, 2) help him from being nauseas, and anything else that you may know that will help us at this time. Thank you very much from both Jake and myself for any advice that you can give.
Shelley
