Greytlady94
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Posts posted by Greytlady94
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One of my babies is SUPER skinny. When I got her I was told that no one could get her to gain weight no matter what. Her thyroid is fine, and she's not at all hyper. She's in great health, but she's PAINFULLY skinny. TO me in the human world this would indicate an allergy or food sensitivity. I've been cooking her eggs, yams, rice and giving her toast to push things in the right direction. Her bowel movements are still on the soft side, but no longer runny (thanks to TOTW!)
I feel so badly-you can see her whole spine, all her ribs and her hip bones. My other grey is thin, but sturdy. She just looks so...frail. The vet isn't concerned so I'm guessing it's not an emergency, but does anyone have additional tips?
(She was in a home before she came to me and apparently they spent a lot of time trying to fatten her up, but to no avail. I do not know what they tried, however-just that this is a long standing issue for my gal.)
Have you considered raw feeding?
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The Earthborn probably has higher protein and calories then the Purina One, other then that I would break down, side by side, each of the foods you are talking about and compare ingredients side by side and the guaranteed analysis side by side also. You may have to set up a spread sheet to do it, but that is the best way to compare foods.
On the flip side, how is Tonto doing with the food he is on? If he is doing well, an eager eater, good stool, then there might be something to the old saying "if it's not broken don't fix it".
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Check his teeth and mouth really well. How old is he?
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I misspoke before, he is on 1.5 cups twice a day and last night and today I lowered it a bit to 1 cup at feedings and stepped up the yogurt add-in... still no relief! Can I expect the usual food-switching side-effects when going from one protein to the next within the same brand?
I have no experience with beef, turkey or lamb based foods other than the very brief stint on Avoderm Lamb/Rice. I put him on a fish protein and kept him there mainly because his skin/coat were so bad when I got him I thought the extra oils would do him some good. Any other issues with non-fish proteins that I should know about?
I'm half tempted to go back to the Blue Buffalo Wilderness but for the fact his breath was so unbelievably bad while on it and that I've read they have had some quality control issues. I'm really at a loss for where to go next in terms of different brands.
For treats he gets Blue Buffalo Health Bars, I know they contain oatmeal but I've had hard time finding a grain-free treat that didn't cause loose stool, they all seem quite rich, especially when eaten on top of rich kibble.
Have you tried completely stopping all treats, chews etc. while on this food?
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For chewing 12" bully sticks from bestbullysticks.com and I get them jerky from them also.
For biscuits they really like Mother Hubbard's peanut butter biscuits. I get them at Petco.
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Lisa, I'd really check pancreatic function before I fed fat balls. This is just something I've gotten very spooked about after my experience with Beth -- if a grey has a low-grade pancreatitis fat balls are are just the thing to push them over the edge into an acute incident.
I agree, pancreatitis is not only very painful it can kill quickly.
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If at all possible have your vet contact Dr. Couto or his associates at the Greyhound Health and Wellness Program, Ohio State University.
Edited to add- click on the first link, it does work. So does the second. IPad's spell correction got in the way and I failed to notice.
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That is just hilarious! I've never seen a picture quite like that one.
Oh, sorry I don't know anything about the dog food. Looking at the nutritional info I was surprised to see that fish was not the first ingredient.
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I don't give my dogs anything when they are "heated up". I would wait until Red is completely cooled down before giving treats or food of any kind.
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I can only tell you what has worked for Teddy, my 11 1/2 greyhound. Teddy has had 3 bad bouts of pancreatitis.
After starting Teddy on Fresh Pet Select he has not been sick again. He has been on it for about a year.
FPS is sold in a cooler in the pet food aisle of larger grocery stores. It is not cheap but for a little bitty dog it shouldn't be too bad.
I can certainly understand anyone who has a dog with pancreatitis being afraid to try something else. The bouts are awful and can be deadly.
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Exocrine Pancreatic insufficiency was the diagnosis for my Renie and your description Of Ben made me think of her. Are you anywhere near a vet school?
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You might try getting some hotdogs and slicing them thin and then microwaving to dehydrate.
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The only bones I will give my dogs are raw. I feel baked bones are too hard for their teeth.
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I would be really, really careful with anything that is fatty. Pancreatitis can kill quickly. With old dogs who don't have an appetite, after making sure there is not a medical or mouth problem I have found home cooking works the best. The two seniors I have now are on Fresh Pet Select and doing well, so I'm not home cooking with these two. Something you could try is Dyne which can be found at most feed stores. It is a high calorie supplement but not fatty. See here
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The only thing that is guaranteed to work is pick it up as soon as it drops. I would never use a muzzle with or without a stool guard if the dog(s) are home alone, especially if you have a doggy door. Don't know if you do or not, just sayin'.....
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I doubt it will do anything to help clean teeth but they do usually love it. For teeth raw turkey necks, raw beef ribs and dried bully sticks seem to work best for my dogs.
I feed bully sticks. Our local Wal Mart has quit selling the turkey necks darn it.
I take slabs of beef ribs and give each dog four or five for their evening meal. Works great for teeth.
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I doubt it will do anything to help clean teeth but they do usually love it. For teeth raw turkey necks, raw beef ribs and dried bully sticks seem to work best for my dogs.
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Fresh Factors and Joint Health here also.
What is making you worried about her eyes? I was giving Carl Ocuvite for his eyes when we didn't know what was going on with them. The real vet ophthalmologist thought it was a good idea. You could always give her lutein instead of Ocuvite. I was getting my Ocuvite at Costco for a great price, plus it goes on sale from time to time there.
One of her eyes has a slighly opaque blue tinge in one of the corners , that w as never there before. I did a search in the medical forum on cataracts and started reading some of the threads. Seems like many here have had to deal with it and for the most part things seem to go okay and no one seems to g et surgery for the condition,,,but one person asked in a thread to the person worrying about it "are you sure they are cataracts and not that slight blue tinge that some of them get when they are older?". That makes me curious as to what is this blue tinge he/she was talking about.
I would have the vet take a look. Pannus is not uncommon in greyhounds.
What is making you worried about her eyes? I was giving Carl Ocuvite for his eyes when we didn't know what was going on with them. The real vet ophthalmologist thought it was a good idea. You could always give her lutein instead of Ocuvite. I was getting my Ocuvite at Costco for a great price, plus it goes on sale from time to time there.
One of her eyes has a slighly opaque blue tinge in one of the corners , that w as never there before. I did a search in the medical forum on cataracts and started reading some of the threads. Seems like many here have had to deal with it and for the most part things seem to go okay and no one seems to g et surgery for the condition,,,but one person asked in a thread to the person worrying about it "are you sure they are cataracts and not that slight blue tinge that some of them get when they are older?". That makes me curious as to what is this blue tinge he/she was talking about.
I would have the vet take a look. Pannus is not uncommon in greyhounds.
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Honestly I would have some imaging done-- radiograghs and an abdominal ultrasound. A barium swallow might be of benefit here too.
I agree.
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OP are you talking about the off white stuff? If so it really has no nutritional value at all that I know of.
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Two or three evenings a week my two get raw. For Lucy, the one with not good mouth, it's one rib and a turkey neck. For Teddy, who has a better mouth it's four or five good sized and meaty beef ribs. Having said that, I need to tell you I don't feed kibble, so that probably makes a difference since kibble really sticks to teeth.
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You aren't paranoid. "Distributed by" is another no-no for me.
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She donated $25,000.00 to GPA National. I hope that doesn't mean they will start recommending her dog food. The skeptical part of me thinks that is why she donated the $$$$$. Some years ago it was Canidae, now Rachel Ray. At least Canidae was a decent kibble.
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Losing 3 1/2 pounds on a dog 50.5 dog is quite a bit. If this were my dog I would talk to her vet about the possibility of worms that are just not being detected. Also what the vet feels about giving Panacur "just because".
I would also do some dog food research and increase the calories that she is being given. Adding calories should help her pick up the weight she has lost.
Anyone Had A Doggie That They Couldn't Fatten Up?
in Food and dietary discussion
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Good!