In November 2025, I got a text from a lady who got one of Merry & Bentley’s puppies last year. She brought the puppy to the vet, because she was going to have some retained puppy teeth pulled. The vet did a routine pre-surgery blood test and found out that the liver numbers weren’t normal. After further testing, an ultrasound, and, finally, a liver biopsy, it was confirmed in February that the puppy has something called Microvascular Dysplasia. Basically, it’s an abnormality with the veins that inhibits the growth of the liver. There wasn’t any indication that the puppy wasn’t healthy – it was just something that was discovered on the bloodwork. She doesn’t have a shunt, which can accompany MVD. Typically, a puppy with a shunt is more adversely affected and likely to show symptoms.
As a quick test to check for possible MVD, there’s something called a bile acids test. The test includes having blood drawn after an overnight fast (pre-prandial) followed by a blood draw 2 hours after eating a specific kind and amount of food (post-prandial). Typically, the pre-prandial level is quite low (0-15 normal). The post-prandial level should be under 30 (some sources say 25, some say 35).
We started by testing three of Bentley and Merry’s puppies from different litters. Two of the puppies tested great, one was just slightly higher than normal (31.7) on the post-prandial test. I was relieved, as the puppy with confirmed MVD tested at 47 pre-prandial and 117 post-prandial. I brought Merry and Bentley in. Merry was fine: 2.1, 14.8. Bentley’s results were great for his pre-prandial test: <1, but abnormally high for his post-prandial test: 73, so we’re assuming that he has MVD. The only way to know for sure is through a liver biopsy.
Most dogs with MVD are asymptomatic, and nothing special is needed. The dogs live perfectly healthy, normal lives. If a dog becomes symptomatic (seizures, vomiting, diarrhea, issues with urination – this would not be an occasional thing, but constantly due to toxins due to the liver not being able to filter those out as it should), a specific diet and liver-supporting supplements are usually what is recommended.
I have searched and searched for information on MVD. There’s actually not much info. out there. Apparently, the majority of Maltese dogs have MVD. Those breeders seem to be the only ones that are even aware of the condition and have their dogs tested for it regularly. It is so common in Maltese that breeders intentionally continue to breed asymptomatic dogs, as eliminating them from the gene pool would likely produce other health issues. According to the main researcher of MVD, she suspects that it’s common in many small dogs, not just Maltese.
Bentley is an energetic, healthy little guy. I talked with his breeder recently to see if she had any information on MVD. She has been breeding Bichons for a very long time (I’m pretty sure over 30 years), and she had never even heard of it. I hadn’t heard of it before, either, so I don’t think many breeders are even aware of it since it so rarely causes health issues in the dogs.
We have decided to retire Bentley from breeding. At this time, I’m not sure when or if we’ll be getting another male. Finding a nice Bichon male for breeding has proven difficult. Bentley was the 8th one we have had here in 12 years. Some, I never used, some I only had a couple of litters with. Bentley’s conformation and personality are amazing. Finding another one like him would be extremely difficult.