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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Why is protein bad for AIHA?
| I have read that protein and liver is good for dogs with anemia, but why is it not good for AIHA? Laurie |
| Laurie CA |
| I have not heard about protein not being good for dogs with AIHA???? Can you elaborate what you heard and from where? As far as liver, because the anemia in AIHA is not caused by an iron deficiency, it will not treat the anemia. Of course, it doesn't mean it's not a good food for you dog - occasionally (can be too rich for some dogs). I feed Sierra buffalo liver from time to time, because she likes it and I think it's a good source of protein (I should mention I feed a home prepared diet). |
| Ronda So Cal |
| I had a 2nd opinion ahwile back and had talked about adding liver and she said a resunding no, said it makes the liver work harder, my vet was okay with it. Ronda can you educate me? You said AIHA is not iron deficient. Then why is Pet tinic supplemented to help build red blood cells. I am confused. In anemia you have low red blood cells right? and in AIHA the red blood cells are killing each other so again a lack of. Then why wouldnt iron help? Iron helps rejuvinate red blood cells Thanks Laurie |
| Laurie CA |
| Iron deficienct anemia is due to insufficient iron. Mammals needs iron to make hemoglobin, the substance in red blood cells that enables them to carry oxygen. So, in a dog with a reduced number of red blood cells, perhaps supplementing the with pet-tinic (which also contains several B vitamins, including B-12, in addition to iron) may, and I stress the may part, help the dog feel better, perhaps acheiving a slight increase in the oxygen carrying capabilities of the red blood cells which are circulating. In addition, there is a B-12 deficient anemia, which is mostly an absorbtion issue (from my limited understanding of it and it can be a result of celiac disease - an inability to process gluten (wheat) which irritates the digestive system creating the absorption problem). B-12 is necessary for the creation of red blood cells I'd have to do more research to find out. In any case, imo, it is not a sufficient enough to counteract the overriding issue of red blood cell destruction even if, due to other factors (poor diet, malabsoption, etc) exacerabate the problem. Would it hurt, probably not, would it help, maybe a little, will it address the real problem - no. Of course, this is just my opinion, I'm not a vet. |
| Ronda So |
| Jean Dodds "liver cleansing diet " is a mixtre of cooked vegetables, sweet potatoes and a mild white fish for the protein portion. The anemia is one portion of the problem in AIHA, but the elevated liver enzymes from the high doses of prednisone is the problem they are trying to correct with the fish as protein, and the suggestion of no liver etc. |
| RonB San Mateo |
| Laurie, There are many many causes of anemia. Autoimmune hemolysis is just one type of anemia. Blood loss, sudden and in a large quantity, is a certain cause of anemia as it quickly reduces the number of red blood cells. Slower internal losses like parasites in the dog's intestine or ulcers can cause a slower but substantial loss of blood over time. Other direct causes include ingestion of things that can damage blood cells like rat poison, zinc from coins or other heavy metals like lead, onions (eaten by dogs), and some medications. This is not an exhaustive list. Another more troublesome cause of anemia is cancer in a variety of forms, for instance tumors attached directly to internal organs or cancers like leukemia. This is why I am always asking people to make sure their vet has ruled out this as a cause. Dogs are prone to cancers like hemangiosarcomas and this causes anemia as a symptom. I know someone who just lost their dog this week to this. They did not know if it was a tick disease but finally an ultrasound showed the tell tail signs of growths on the spleen. Certain types of anemia can be an inherited defect as in Thalassemia or sickle cell. There is an odd type of genetic defect in a certain breed of dog that causes fluctuating anemia. Certain defects of bone marrow can cause either production defects or can cause total cessation of red blood cell production (and even white cell or platelets). My father has a very rare form of anemia called MDS Myelodysplastic syndrome that is not quite leukemia, more like pre-leukemia. There are types of aplasia that can cause the cessation of red blood cell production in the marrow. Monthly blood loss, esp in young woman, can bring about the type of anemia that you associate with "iron poor blood." I think we all learned that from Geritol ads! Dietary deficiencies are another area where it can indirectly contribute to poor production of blood. Low iron stores is a good example of this, but it is more complicated sometimes than just adding it to the diet. Vit C and A actually assist in the uptake and storage of iron. B12 is very important in the production of blood. This particular vitamin can only be assimilated into the body by a complex process that occurs at the cellular level in the small intestine wall. If this is faulty, B12 is not absorbed and available to the body. This can occur because of inflammatory disease of the small intestine (malabsorption) or inherited defects in the process. The type of anemia that many of our dogs struggle with on this list is called either autoimmune or immune mediated. This, too, is very complex. Rather than the red blood cells attacking each other, it generally is white blood cells, and in particular T-lymphocytes, that are alerted to destroy red blood cells, white blood cells, or in particularly unlucky dogs, platelets. These t-cells are part of our immune system and they provide a very important function to us. Anything foreign introduced to our body is immediately investigated to see if it is "self." If it is not "self" the body begins an assault process that manufactures wbc's to attack the foreign proteins of the invader. They find these invaders by things that are hooked to the outside of the cell that signal what they are. The problem is that sometimes the T-cells can find what they think are the same little hooks on the blood cells and mistakenly assume that the red blood cells are foreign too. Tick diseases are infamous for causing this kind of reaction because they can hide in the blood cells, changing the signals they send to the immune system. In the end, the result is the same, the T-cells cause the red blood cell to destruct. When we give these meds like prednisone or cyclosporin, we are trying to suppress the T-cells so they will stop the destruction. And maybe after a while they will not see the RBC's as "not self" anymore. No matter what the cause of anemia, good nutrition is appropriate. But giving more of any particular nutrient is best done only after tests have been done to show a direct deficiency in the diet or some kind of malabsorption problem. Pet Tinic is a good supplement, it has no more than the daily amounts required of the nutrients and dosage is dependent on the weight of the dog. High quality protein is always good for most dogs, unless their is a specific dietary restriction like allergy to a particular protein. Dogs are carnivores (or omnivores as some would want to say) and they are designed to do well with meat diets. The don't do well with grains like wheat, soy or corn and don't need them. They need a certain amount of fat in their diet as well. Patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
This thread was discussed between 12/07/2008 and 16/07/2008
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