Vitamin K

[Sue]

Kramer is having small nose bleeds. Doctor isn't sure, but did some blood work which showed a delay in clotting. anyone have any experience with giving vitamin K to their dog?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Sue, this may not be related, but some dog foods (not those recommended in The Food Group) contain a synthetic form of vitamin K called sodium menadione bisulfite, (or "vitamin K3", which is not the same thing as vitamin K and can cause some issues. What is Kramer eating? 

I know that dogs who ingest rat poison or get bitten by certain reptiles are given vitamin K injections. That's my only experience with it. Kramer hasn't come into contact with anything like that, has he? 

Long term use of certain antibiotics can cause clotting issues, too. And there are genetic forms of coagulation deficiencies in dogs.

 But Von Willebrand's disease, a genetic disease which runs in Goldens and in Standard Poodles, can also cause delayed coagulation time, and nose bleeds are one of the symptoms. If Kramer were mine, I would talk to my vet about testing him for von Willebrand's. 

Some info: http://discoveryspace.upei.ca/cidd/disorder/von-willebrands-disease

I would definitely not give vitamin K supplements without a vet's approval. 

[Sue]

Thanks Karen for the info. No rat poison here. I am picking up his prescription today for vitamin K1 this is supposed to help with the clotting problem. Not sure about  what you meant about the dog food stuff. He has mostly eaten Fromm for the past 12 years, occasionally on Taste of the Wild, but not lately. I do realize that at his age anything can happen.

I will talk to the vet about the Von-willebrands disease also

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

If he's eating Fromm, it's a non-issue. I mentioned it because menadione can interfere with the body's normal vitamin K cycle, and it's in a lot of grocery store pet foods. 

Typically, Von willebrand's shows up between the ages of 3 and 5, but I do think it would be a good idea to mention it to the vet. 

[Nancy & Echo]

I wouldn't give vitamin K without a vet's approval either.

As Karen said, there are MANY different reasons why blood may not clot.  The coagulation cascade is Very Complex.  Even 30 years ago, it would take a wall sized chalk board to write out the known coagulation cascade, and they know more now.  Sometimes the problem is a genetic defect, sometimes it can be  an immune problem (such as when your immune system attacks platelets),  liver diseases, blood vessel  diseases, or some cancers.

If your vitamin K is a dietary supplement, then you can not be assured of the potency of the vitamin K.

Human vitamin K requires a prescription, and the cost per tablet (5mg) has increased from roughly $10/tablet in 2014 to roughly  $75-100/tablet in 2017.

Vitamin K will help reverse only SOME causes of excessive bleeding, not All of them.  So, you need to know the reason why the blood is not clotting.