In dogs and cats the result is inadequate concentrations of all the pancreatic enzymes and of bicarbonate in the intestine lumen.
Treatment
Treatment involves the use of replacement pancreatic enzymes given orally. Suitable products are available in powder or crushed non-enteric-coated tablets. Enteric-coated tablets are not usually recommended because dissolution of the coating by alkaline pH in the intestine is unreliable. Because some enzyme is denatured by acid in the stomach, premixing the enzyme supplement with the food and left for about three quarters of an hour at room temperature is sometimes recommended.
H2 - receptor inhibitors (e.g. cimetidine) are useful because they reduce gastric acid secretion, and so less pancreatic enzyme is denatured during passage through the stomach.
If bacterial overgrowth is present oral antibiotics (e.g. neobiotic) may be indicated.
With enzyme replacement and cimetidine (300mg), or (if appropriate) 300mg neomycin, faecal fat concentrations can be returned to normal.(Strombeck
and Guilford - Small Animal Gastroenterology 2e Wolfe) Other authors
recommend different doses eg 300mg cimetidine / 20 kg body weight (Murdoch DB in
Canine Medicine and Therapeutics - Blackwell Scientific Publications 3e 1991)
The following dietary management is recommended:
- Feed a highly digestible, palatable, complete ration. Avoid home made rations.
- The ideal profile is a diet that is : low in fat content, contains medium-chained fatty acids, avoid excess carbohydrate, low fibre.
- Feed multiple small meals (at least 3 times daily)
Updated October 2013