Pancreatitis - EPI

Can you recommend any of your Tissue Salts for my German Shepherd who has EPI – Pancreatitis? I have him on raw pancreas 3 x per day with his meals and it has it under control although he is constantly hungry and thirsty. I know the hunger and thirst are a symptom but I cannot over-feed him. I am just worried that it will lead to diabetes and then he has to go on insulin. When taking your product must it also be an hour before or after eating?

Hi Michelle
Thanks for posting your question, I'm pretty hopeful that the salts can help.
The main one for the hepato-pancreatic system is Nat Sulph , and Schussler considered it the main salt to use concerning the sugar metabolism.
I usually recommend the Pure Synergy in conjunction (even though it also contains the Nat Sulph) as the other salts will provide support for the Nat Sulph function, and it's not a bad idea for him to at least initially have an extra tablet of that.
For any glandular issue, it's beneficial to use the Rescue Synergy as well; this provides salts that will help to stabilise his energy pattern and offer a maintenance function. Nat Mur is the primary salt for excessive thirst issues, and this is also in the Rescue, along with Calc Phos, Nat Phos and Mag Phos that have roles to play with facilitating digestion. I would think that this would be the main one helping to balance the excessive eating and drinking you describe.
As far as timing goes, you don't have to wait one hour before or after eating. The salts absorb instantly, and in general, I would say it's best on a clean mouth (so before meals) although there are many times I take mine after. If he's happy to eat them as is, you have first-prize. If not, if you have the time and patience, you can crush them and pop them into the mouth on the tongue or rubbed into the gums. With many pets, it's necessary to add to the food - I do this with my chickens, and it has been effective. The main thing is not to give it whole on the back of the tongue or wrapped up in a bit of food and swallowed, as you usually would give a tablet to a dog. You want the absorption to happen in the mouth.
All the best!

Hi Michelle

I'm posting your email query and my reply here because this is also relevant:

I am a little worried that the sugar alcohols could cause diarrhoea or upset his tummy because I know they can have a laxative effect. He was so hungry yesterday morning that he got hold of the dog food bag and dragged it out of the pantry and ate about 500g in one go. His stomach was bloated as he was also going crazy with the water. I am only giving him a few tablespoons of Vondis soft food at the moment and sips of water. We have been up all night massaging his tummy to release the bloating and gas. It has gone down, but I am nervous to give him the pills now. Do you think it will be ok?

Most people (and pets) don't report any of those issues with our salts, in spite of the sugar alcohol component. One needs to consume over 50g a day of sugar alcohols to cause that level of irritability, i.e. 100 tablets or more. Given that your dog is already sensitive to his food, I think that if you are starting gently, perhaps morning and evening, and giving him only one tablet of each to begin with, you will be fine. If you are overly anxious, start with one dose on the first day, and you can increase it as necessary after that.

I'm not sure if there are any carbohydrates in the dry food (which I assume was the bag he dragged around), but if so, these would be more likely to cause bloating than the tissue salts would. I'm also not sure if there are any grain ingredients in the Vondis soft food. A lot of dogs with all sorts of digestive and other issues respond very well to some raw food in the diet and a biologically appropriate dry food that contains only vegetables as carbs, and no grains such as maize, rice, wheat, oats etc. (such as Acana or Orijen for example).