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Scooby's BUN slightly elevated

1780 Views 13 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  lovesophie
As many of you remember Scooby was a really sick boy back in 2007 which left him with cronic renal failure. Well I am happy to say that hasn't progressed in any way and he has fully recovered from the Fanconi Syndrome but his BUN is 74. All other CBC numbers are normal, even his creatinine has gone back to normal range. I am baffled as to why his BUN is elevated and would appreciate some input from anyone who might have an idea why.
I have put him on Marin to try that as I have read that liver can also be responsible for elevated BUN, not sure though if this is accurate, must ask the vet next time I am there. He is acting normally in every way, eating well, very active and happy. One thing though that I have noticed is his poop is occasionally a little loose but not all the time and I do think there has been some improvement since introducing the Marin.
Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you.

Janet and the boys.
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I don't have any advice or ideas but I do know that our sweet Scooby is a walking miracle and I just know he is a.o.k.! :thumbsup:

I'm not sure what Marin is but I do know milk thistle is highly recommended to support the liver.

Is he scheduled for a recheck?

Give him some extra snuggles for me!!!
Janet - There is a very good appendix in Wendy Volhard's book, The Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog, that explains bloodwork and urinalysis results. She says elevated BUN is kidney related whereas low BUN is liver related. If you would like a copy of the anaylsis please send me your email address via PM and I will email you a copy when I get home tonight. If anyone else wants it feel free to send me your email address and I will send it to you tonight, too.
I don't have any advice or ideas but I do know that our sweet Scooby is a walking miracle and I just know he is a.o.k.! :thumbsup:

I'm not sure what Marin is but I do know milk thistle is highly recommended to support the liver.

Is he scheduled for a recheck?

Give him some extra snuggles for me!!!
Hi Crystal, Marin is milk thistle, I put him on it a month ago just to see if it would do some good. I know there are some here who use Marin, that's where I got the name from, it's highly recommended by those who use it so we will see how he goes.
Yes he sure is a walking miracle, we thought we were going to lose him back then when he was so desparately ill but he is a fighter and he doesn't want to leave his daddy that's for sure. I don't think that's going to happen any time soon, as the vet said he will probably outlive the little one, not sure what that meant but just think she was saying he is doing really well considering.
He had bloodwork done in March, and his BUN had gone from 57 to 74 but then the vet said it's common in small breeds to have higher than normal reading for some reason, so I am just hoping it's that and nothing to worry about, but I would rather it not creep up any further that's for sure so I will be keeping an eye on it.
dont have any advice , but i will be be praying for scooby and hoping everything remains ok .
I would recheck it on a fasted sample in a month before doing any worrying.
I'm glad he's improved so much.. that's wonderful!
I don't have any advice but I am happy to hear that is is doing so well.
nice update that all went normal with precious Scooby. I have no advice with the BUN but hope that he will continue to be ok

hugs
Kat
I would recheck it on a fasted sample in a month before doing any worrying.
Thanks for your advice, it's always appreciated.
The last CBC we did was a fasting one but yes we will be doing another later, I just hate poor Scooby going through all these needle sticks in his neck, poor little boy must be so tired of them even though I know it's the only way to know what's going on. Over the last few years he has had so many and he never complains, it's me who feels it the most.
:( Poor guy, I hope his numbers go back down!
Janet, I don't have any advice, but I am keeping Scooby in my prayers. Hugs,

Linda
I'd not worry all that much since the creatine is normal...I agree about having a fasting test done the next time. I could be wrong but have understood that the 'concern' is when both bun AND creatinine are off.
When Sophie was on a raw diet, I had blood work done on her, and her BUN levels were "within normal limits", but levels were on the high end of "normal". Her creatinine levels were perfectly fine. My vet said that since she was on a high protein diet, elevated BUN levels were to be expected.

Since Scooby has had issues with his kidney(s) in the past, is he on a low protein diet? If I understood my vet correctly, he said an elevated creatinine level is more indicative of poor kidney function, since the glomeruli are damaged. An elevated BUN level can be due to poor blood flow to the kidneys, which I'm guessing can eventually lead to glomeruli damage, but since Scooby isn't showing any symptoms, I doubt there's poor blood flow to begin with. I believe dehydration can also increase BUN levels?

I think having blood work done again is a good idea, just for peace of mind. Good luck to you and Scooby!
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