Has anyone heard of A congenital Portosystemic Liver Shunt in gsd? Our new 11 wk old pup was diagnosed last week with this.

I'm very sorry that your pup has this problem. My Dobie had this hereditary condition, which made him terribly ill. He was diagnosed at 5 months and we had the shunt repaired surgically immediately upon diagnosis. His physical recovery was very dramatic and he became a large, beautiful dog. He was, however, never a really bright dog when grown. According to literature I have read, depending on the bile acid levels in the blood stream, there is a very serious possibilty of brain damage. Maxie's levels were incredibly high when diagnosed and this was obviously the cause of his being sweet but dumb. Also this problem can be linked to a compromised immune system and that is another serious problem. I hope that I haven't snatched away your hopes and as I have said, there are different levels of blood contaminants in different cases. Good luck, I know that just getting the diagnosis takes a long time and is a frustrating disorder to diagnose.

There is quite a bit of information on the web. If you cannot find it let me know and I'll help all I can.