Milk Thistle for liver disease in dogs?

[Barb04]

Has anyone tried Milk Thistle as a supplement to help dogs with liver disease? I've been reading a lot about this and want to try to see if it will help CJ.

 

[bubbatd]

((( Hugs ))) sweetie .... I hope you get an answer !

 

[doberkim]

in terms of hepatic support -things i would look into:

denosyl/SAMe
marin/silybin (which is milk thistle).

marin and denosyl are brand names from nutramax, and marin at least also contains zinc and Vit E (an antioxidant) which is also hepato-supportive.

there are also other general liver supplements (hepato-support, etc) that are available.

i dont recall, what exactly does your dog have? some supplements are more appropriate than others.

 

[weylyn]

Yes, milk thistle has been shown to be very helpful for dogs with liver problems. I have two or three articles about it, if you'd like to read them.

One of my dogs is being looked into for liver problems (we're going in Saturday for more tests). He's on milk thistle, an antibitoic, SAMe and a mild digestive enzyme.

Doberkim is right, though, some supplements are better than others depending on the exact problem.

What are you feeding CJ?

 

[Barb04]

The vet said she has chronic liver disease. He gave us Denosyl and which just ordered the Marin to also give her. She's on an antibiotic for 10 days also.

We feed her Canidae dog food but she doesn't eat it very often now. We are trying to feed her whatever she will eat - usually chicken.

Weylen, I hope you get good news at the vet. Please let me know how you make out.

 

[weylyn]

There are many home made diets that can benefit/help the liver. Here are two:

http://www.dogaware.com/specific.html#liver
http://b-naturals.com/Apr2004.php

My vet recommended that I keep my boy on a "liver friendly" diet until we figure out what's going on. I follow B Natural's diet plan, although I do not cook his food. He still eats raw, but he's getting oatmeal along with eggs and yogurt.

I'll be sending CJ healing thoughts and many prayers. Hang in there.

 

[Barb04]

Thank you so much for the sites. I'll be looking at them next.

 

[Martine]

Hi Barb, Misha doesn't have any problems with her liver, but I give her milk thistle before and after I give her any meds (like Heart Guard for instance) to try and help her liver process all the poisons. I did a lot of reading before I started using it which suggested it helps the liver.

Give CJ a hug from me!

 

[Barb04]

Thanks, CJ appreciates your hug. So far she's been on supplements for 5 days and has been doing well. She's been perky and eating her special chicken meals. I'm loving her every day she's with me.

 

[labdoglover]

Natural remedies are as effective as anything your vet will recommend.
Try www.supernaturaldog.com/
Great Native remedies there.
I bought some liver and UTI stuff there that worked excellently.

 

[Barb04]

Thanks labdoglover. So far CJ is doing well with the milk thistle and other liver supplement. She actually gained a 1/2 pound which is good.