My senior dog has liver failure, lumps, and breathing issues. Options?

Question

My dog has liver failure we tried multiple rounds of antibiotics and steroids. And a liver treatment called denamin (if spelled correctly). Is there any other options I can try? Shes 12, can never seem to get comfortable and the past month her eating habits has declined. She also has multiple lumps 2 main ones being 1 in her neck and 1 in front of her chest. Her breathing is heavy and fast pace majority of the time. Also unsteady at times, with arthritis and she has also very brittle nails. Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Female | spayed | 94 lbs

Jenna Beyer, DVM, MBA, cVMA · Accepted Answer

Getting down to the cause of the liver failure is important for treatment. I would be concerned about the lumps and irregular breathing pattern. Chest x-rays would be helpful to determine if there is an abnormality with the heart or lungs or enlarged lymph nodes within the chest. The lumps could indicate cancer, either primary or secondary to another location. The liver is a common site of cancer or metastatic cancer. I would recommend talking to your vet about a liver biopsy or biopsying the masses to determine if they are cancerous. Antibiotics and steroids can help with infections of the liver or an inflamed liver, but if there was poor response then these are unlikely the causes of the elevated liver values. Denamarin is a supplement that contains antioxidants to protect the liver; it does not treat liver failure.

My senior dog has liver failure, lumps, and breathing issues. Options?

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