What does a dog’s 12-item biochemistry panel check?
Expert Answer
A dog’s 12-item biochemistry panel includes: GLU (blood glucose), CREA (creatinine), UREA (blood urea nitrogen), BUN/CREA (urea-creatinine ratio), PHOS (phosphorus), CA (calcium), TP (total protein), ALB (albumin), GLOB (globulin), ALB/GLOB (albumin-globulin ratio), ALT (alanine aminotransferase), and ALKP (alkaline phosphatase). Biochemistry is a way to understand a pet’s health, mainly done by drawing blood. By checking the dog’s blood, you can learn its exact health indices.
My vet ran the 12-item biochem on my old dog and it's basically a snapshot of organs, glucose, kidney values like CREA and BUN, liver enzymes ALT and ALKP, calcium, phosphorus, and proteins. It told us his kidneys were slipping before symptoms showed. I'd do it as baseline for seniors or when something's off, because catching a trend early beats reacting to crisis. Ask the vet to explain each value, it's your dog's internal report card.