Dog with High Liver Enzyme Levels

Question:

Dear Dr. Smith,

My 13 yr old spayed Boston Terrier has had a physical. Everything is fine, except on her blood test it showed her ALKP was 361. I guess normally it should be between 200-215? Everything else checked fine. She does not have Cushings and acts fine. Is there any supplement I can give her to help her. She has always had this. She does have some arthritis in her legs and I give her Glucosamine. Her Dr. does not want to put her on any antiflammitory because of her high ALKP. She weighs 15 lbs. Thank you for you're help!
Sincerely   Cynthia R.

Response:

Hello Cynthia,

Thank you for your inquiry to Holistic Pet Info. Increased liver enzyme values respond very well to supplementing with Milk Thistle. A few supplements that I recommend are Immunity and Liver Support and LiverAid by Pet Alive or Hepagen-C by Thorne, they all contain ingredients to detoxify and help regenerate the liver. Have your veterinarian recheck the liver values in a few months to evaluate the improvement.

Concerning the arthritis, I suggest a supplement with more components than just glucosamine. Glucosamine works well alone, but much more synergistically with complimenting supplements. Supplements including Boswellia, Green Lipped Mussel and MSM in combination all help rebuild damaged cartilage, protect against cellular damage and reduce inflammation. I suggest offering Arthrisoothe Gold by NaturVet or Arthroplex by Thorne that contain many of these ingredients that should help improve the arthritis. Best of luck.
Sincerely,
Colleen Smith DVM, CVA