Saying Hi and Thank you

[Romie]

Hello everyone. My profile picture is Nebula. We got her from a breeder in June 2017. She had had 2 litters but was then diagnosed with EPI so she would have been alone at the breeder from that point on so we were lucky enough to have an opening in our hearts since we had just lost our 10 year old GSD. We live on Long Island but also have a home in the Poconos so she's got room to roam. Recently we added another GSD. Nebi had started to lose weight after going from 57 to 70 pounds. Her poop was watery. Nothing was working. We changed dog food. Added pumpkin...chicken....rice...increased Tylan....increased enzymes. My vet isn't too experienced with this so I have been reading your posts and the info I learned here I took to him. I asked him to run the blood test and check the B12 and today he called with the news that it was SIBO and a low B12. She will be starting antibiotics and hopefully we can get her back up to 70 pounds. (She's down to 60). Thank you all for sharing and educating us.

[jilbert57]

Welcome! Is your dog on a grain free diet? EPI dogs need a grain free, 3.5% or under fiber diet . The gras ins encourage SID. Glad you had a test done. What are you doing for low B12? The number needs to be over 600.

[Jean]

hi and welcome from the UK

what is your daily routine with Nebula ? food, enzymes, etc

did the vet give you the results from Nebi's tests ?

if you can, feed a few times a day to help put the weight back on, what antibiotics are you giving, and what b12 ?

[Olesia711]

Glad to be of help.

Effectively managing EPI is all about finding the right balance of the recommended protocol of the 4 aspects of EPI :

• Enzymes
  Diet
  B12
  Getting SID under good control

Amazingly all it takes it one thing to be a little out of sync and our poor dogs start to have issues.... but just as amazing is how well they respond when everything is in the right balance for them.

Please keep us posted as we are very interested in Nebula's progress

[Madelon]

Hi and welcome to our EPI family. Did you have the TLI test run? If so, what were the results? What antibiotic is your dog currently on? Don't worry - whether it's a case of SID (formerly called SIBO) or EPI, we are here to help.

[Romie]

I'm back again. Nebi was on Baytril after the SID diagnosis. It worked a few days but we are back to loose stools even after a food change to hydrolized food. I'm going to ask my vet for B12 as her level was low but I was wondering if you could tell me the difference between pancrePlus and EnzymeDiane. Will I need a prescription for Enzyme Diane? It sounds like a lot of dogs have shown improvement with it.

[Miss Maddie Moo]

Hello

Please ask your vet for a course of B12 for at leat 6 weeks shots and also think about buying the b12 from wonderlabs:
https://www.wonderlabs.com/itemleft.php?itemnum=K9688
The B12 capsules are the ones we recommend as we see great results from them and i used to give Maddie one a day but to start with i would try 2 and i gave them for life and her B12 never dropped.
Enzymes please look at enzyme Diane a tried and tested product for many years and used by our US and Canadian members good on the purse.
If you get a flare up we suggest that you don,t use rice but opt for something like a mashed sweet potato...sometimes rice make the sibo symptoms worse.
Thank you for rescuing an EPI dog not sure what the breeders may have done with her,

[Romie]

Thank you again. She is currently on Royal Canin Hydrolized food. Looks like today her baytril is kicking in. I will ask about the B12vand I have been thinking about the Enzyme Diane with an increase in strength. I will discuss that with him. I have switched from rice to sweet potatoes which she seems to love but to be honest she'll eat anything.

[Barb]

Hello and welcome to our EPI family. Thank you so much for adopting Nebula. It sounds like she was just waiting for you. Did you say you adopted another German Shepherd also? Does only one have EPI? Can you give us the results of her cTLI test?

Many of us have been using enzyme Diane's enzymes for years with excellent results. She has an excellent product, is a member here, and is so nice to work with. Plus she has saved us lots of $$ Kolby has been taking her enzymes for almost 9 years since he was one.

EPI seems overwhelming at first, but as others have said, once you balance Enzymes, Food, Antibiotics, and B12, it is very manageable and treatment will become part of your routine.

Please let us know how she does and ask any questions you have.

Barb

[jilbert57]

You do not need a prescription for Dianes enzymes. You can just order them.