Murphy is a lovely 5 year old Labrador who was very unwell recently. He came to see one of our vets when he was off colour and not eating as usual. When we examined him he was jaundiced, which means he looked yellow rather than pink when we looked in his mouth and in his eyes.

This can be due to several underlying problems, but suggests an issue with the liver or an abnormal breakdown of red blood cells. An issue with the liver can happen because the liver is not functioning very well, or with a blockage of the bile ducts that come from the liver.

We admitted Murphy for further investigations. Initially we took some blood and started him on some supportive fluids into his vein as he was very subdued and looking nauseous. The next day a specialist came in to scan Murphy’s abdomen. This helped us to rule some possible causes in and out.

Murphy’s results and scan suggested he had acute hepatitis, which meant he had sudden onset liver inflammation and potentially injury. In dogs, this can be due to viruses and infection but can also be in response to toxins. It is not always possible to know which of these is most likely.

We then needed to give Murphy’s liver time to recover. This involved supportive care with fluids and lots of TLC as well as supplements to help with liver function and a specific diet. Unfortunately in some cases the liver is unable to recover from the initial injury or insult. Thankfully in Murphy’s case he soon started eating small amounts of food and looked much brighter.

Murphy had to stay in the hospital on fluids for the next few days but was soon well enough to go home. He has had to come back and visit for some follow up blood tests but has been doing really well since.