Hge Again

[Guest ChancesMom]

Over the weekend Chance has not been himself. Just kinda laying around and then yesterday he did not eat anything and drank very little. I even fixed him a peanut butter sandwich last night that he only sniffed and walked away. At his normal self, he would not have been able to eat it fast enough. Last night my DGD took him for his walk and when she got home she said it was so loose that she wasn't able to pick it up. During the night last night he was waking me up every 1/2 hour to 1 hour to go out and all he was doing was eating grass. I should probably add in here that just a few months ago (I think it was April) he had HGE and ended up staying all night at the vets and getting IV antibiotics and IV fluids. Well, this morning when I took him for his walk he had diarrhea and it was all blood so I immediately came home and got an appointment. It is HGE again so they did a CBC and ended up just giving him some fluids under the skin and started him on meds and I was able to bring him home. If he doesn't improve by tomorrow or the next day at the latest I will take him in for IV fluids.

 

The Problem: He will always have to stay on the Special Low Residue food (no problem because he has been on it since April (you can only buy it at the Vets office)) and he can still have boiled chicken and white rice. She is strongly urging me to get him back to the point that all he has is just the dry food with maybe some of the special diet canned food mixed in with it. She also said NO MORE TREATS. He can have green beans (which he will not touch) and baby carrots out of a can which he does like. I just can not imagine never giving him treats again. I asked about the ones made at pet bakery's and she said "no, because we don't know what is in them".

 

What do you that have hounds with sensitive stomachs do. I know a lot of you feed raw but I just cannot do that. Any suggestions welcome. I am sorry this is so long. Thanks for reading.

 

 

[Charla]

OK, dumb question . What is HGE?

 

OK, looked it up ... wow, I feel for the poor guy, I have liveed through Gasterointeritis myself and have helped care for human patients with the hemorrhagic kind. Sorry I can't be of any help.

Edited July 1, 2008 by Charla

[Jackandgrey]

Oh poor Chance! I think you can make cookies/treats from that food. They probably also sell them but would be very expensive along with the food. Feel better Chancey

[Guest JillT]

Both of my hounds have had a couple bouts of HGE, and my vet also strongly recommended keeping them permanently on Hills I/D or Eukanuba Low Residue, with no treats of any kind. While I did feed the canned I/D for a week or so each time after they came home from the vet, I did not want to keep them on those foods. The canned is not so awful, but I didn't like the ingredients of the dry kibble, and I just felt like I should be able to find something better quality/less expensive that would work. What I think was a likely trigger for the HGE in my hounds was: 1) food that was too high in fat; 2) frequently changing the type of canned food I used as a mix-in with kibble (I thought variety would be nice, but it didn't work for them); 3) offering a variety of treats. Neither of my hounds has had HGE for nearly two years now. I am currently feeding Welllness Core, with Canidae Lamb/Rice canned as a mix-in. For treats, they get Wellness Apple/Yogurt/Banana treats. As long as I feed a lower fat kibble (not more than 12%-14%) and am consistent with their food/treats, they are fine. I have found several kibbles that work, and I can give them a few other treats (they love fresh bananas!), as long as it's not too much and not too often. I hope Chance is feeling better soon, and good luck finding a diet that works for you and him.

[CaliforniaGreys]

Chance, your girl Misty is determined to find a treat you can eat. We WILL investigate. Misty, with the hurt foots....sends her luv for ebber and ebber for all of her deyz. Feel better handsome!!

[Guest mandm]

You can bake canned food in a low slow oven to dehydrate them. Cut both ends off the can, push it out intact, then slice like freezer cookies and bake. I'm not sure if the canned Low Residue is solid enough to do this. I guess you could spoon it onto a baking pan like drop cookies. But its the same food currently fed. No change so not really a treat, except the texture is different.

 

I think Low Residue is chicken based. Is that correct? If so, what could be upsetting about feeding cooked chicken pieces? Skinless breast, because it is low fat, poached, cut into treat sized chunks and kept in the fridge.

[nyGreys]

Oh, poor sweet boy.

[Guest greyt2love]

Poor Chance ! Feel better soon, sweetie. I hope mommy can find at least one kind of treat you can have!

 

Miss Deb

 

 

Chance, my fren, get yur tummy in shape, ya hear !!!

 

Rex, worried fer you

[MarcR]

No advice or suggestions, just wishes to

 

The Joisey Girls

[Guest ss556]

Hoping that Chance will feel better soon.

[MerlinsMum]

Poor Chance. I'm sure there must be some kind of treat that won't irritate his stomach. There are LOTS of really good, wholesome alternatives out there these days.

 

Sending lots of scritches to Chance and to you!

 

Feel better soon sweetie

[Guest ChancesMom]

Thanks to all for the well wishes. He did eat about a cup of the dry food last night with just a little chicken broth on it (ok per the Vet). This morning he has eaten a little and his pooh was still very soft but only one small spot of blood which is good. He is still laying around but got excited to go on his walk this am. I am going to call the vet today and get them to order some of the canned food (meant to do it yesterday while there) and see if he will eat that mixed with the dry so I can get him on the dog food with out any enhancements. I know that a lot of people feed only dog food but that just seems so boring but if that is what it takes to keep him healthy then that is what I will do. It's not that he had a lot. Usually just chicken and white rice but I did give him tuna on occasion and ground beef as well but not very often. Again thanks to all.

[Guest GiJenn51]

Poor Chance

 

I can't wait to see him in a couple of weeks!

 

Has the vet looked in to why Chance has gotten HGE? He never had any problems in the kennel at all. Maybe figuring out why would be a good idea for her.

[Guest wmlcml6]

Donna, if I can help in any way, please let me know.

 

As Jenn mentioned, Chance never had tummy issues at the racing kennel. His diet was Purina Hi Pro kibble, at least 1 pound of raw beef, cooked elbow macaroni, peanut oil and other additives (sometimes brown sugar, yogurt, buttermilk, spinach, peaches, mackeral, and any other vitamin Bill thought they needed that day). I agree that finding the cause of his tummy problems is key to fixing him.

 

I wonder if it would be helpful to introduce some kind of probiotic ingredient into Chance's diet. Yogurt, buttermilk or brewer's yeast would be less expensive than probiotic suppliments. It increases the good flora in his digestive system, which are greatly reduced following worming, medication, antibiotics, etc.

 

Please give Chance a big hug for me.

Edited July 1, 2008 by wmlcml6

[Batmom]

He has been wormed a couple times, right?

 

Has he been prescribed, and does he respond to, metronidazole (flagyl)? Sometimes this med is used for months to calm inflammation of unknown cause. Cheap, easy, and most dogs tolerate it with no side effects at all.

 

Re boring: If he's a good eater, don't worry about that. Anything NOT in a dog's bowl, including a single kibble, qualifies as a treat. You can get dehydrated all-meat, no-additive strips or chunks for treats you can keep in your pocket. Zema ate totally unseasoned beef, peas, sweet potatoes, eggshell, and white potato for MONTHS and LOVED every bite. Who knew a dog would drool for a salt-free, fat-free potato chip? But she did.

 

Hugs and best luck with your boy.

[Guest ChancesMom]

He has been wormed a couple times, right?

 

Has he been prescribed, and does he respond to, metronidazole (flagyl)? Sometimes this med is used for months to calm inflammation of unknown cause. Cheap, easy, and most dogs tolerate it with no side effects at all.

 

Re boring: If he's a good eater, don't worry about that. Anything NOT in a dog's bowl, including a single kibble, qualifies as a treat. You can get dehydrated all-meat, no-additive strips or chunks for treats you can keep in your pocket. Zema ate totally unseasoned beef, peas, sweet potatoes, eggshell, and white potato for MONTHS and LOVED every bite. Who knew a dog would drool for a salt-free, fat-free potato chip? But she did.

 

Hugs and best luck with your boy.

 

Thanks for the hugs. He is on Flagyl now along with a gooey med in a tube that is used to coat his stomach. He does like baby carrots out of a can as well as sweet potatoes. He is very funny about anything raw and hard. He would use to eat apples but the last time I tried that he just spit it out. He did the same thing with raw baby carrots. He can be very finicky at times and then he'll eat something that I would never have thought he would eat.

 

I will ask the vet about some of the things you mentioned.

[Guest i_heart_greys]

My broodie has been suffering from bouts of HGE. In fact, I think Chance and Mel were going through it at the same time a few moths ago. She was wormed and wormed again, but they couldn't find the reason for all the blood.

 

We had all the hounds on Nutro kibble with chicken or something else mixed in. After the HGE, we had her on rice and chicken until the blood cleared up. As soon as she started on Nutro again, the blood came back. After a LOT of trial and error, I put her on a grain-free diet (Timberwolf Ocean Fish or Solid Gold Bark @ the Moon) and she has been 100% fine since! No more bloody poopies!!! A milk bone would send her into HGE HELL, so we knew it was diet-related. I replaced all the treats with grain-free or rice-based cookies (Wellness sweet potato cookies or the peanut ones they love). My other two love them just as much.

 

So sorry to hear about Chance! I hope you can find a solution.

amy

 

 

[grey14me]

since he can have chicken, why not boil up a whole chicken and cut it into bite size chunks and stick in a tupperware, to give him as treats?

[ShantisMom]

Can you do chicken meatballs as a treat? I made some for Shanti, another VERY sensitive stomach girl. Just ground chicken, egg and bread. She loved them!

[Guest GiJenn51]

How is Chance doing???

[Guest KyGrey]

Donna, I hope Chance starts feeling better soon. Have you asked Burpdog on here about the treats that she makes and sells? She can tell you exactly what is in them and that she started the company due to a dog who couldn't have regular treats anymore.

 

I didn't realize that he's a pupper that came from Cathie and Bill. I'm looking forward to meeting you and Chance when he starts feeling better.

[Guest paulamariez]

Poor sweet Chance! I will keep his tender heart in my prayers for a quick healing and recovery. Tiger, Bueller and Domino are sending him some get well doggie kisses too!

[GreyPoopon]

Before she was three, I almost lost Minnie to HGE. She stabilized after the first bout, then had 2-3 more in the course of a month. We finally scoped her and found she had IBD related (in part) to food allergies. She was eating exactly what she had for years, but it wasn't working for her any more.

 

She ended up on an extremely restricted diet: a new kibble with novel ingredients. Period.

 

As Batmom said, there are lots of options for treats. It turns out that kibble from one's pocket is much tastier than the stuff in the bowl. Eventually, I started to make potato chips (no additives, just slices dried in the oven), which was OK because her kibble included potato. I didn't try to get the meat (venison), but if it had been beef or something, I could have dried some plain strips. It is also possible to soften the kibble in water, reform it into more treat-like shapes, perhaps add some garlic powder to make it more interesting, and bake it again.

 

ETA: I just realized that this thread is several days old. I hope Chance is feeling better now.

Edited July 5, 2008 by GreyPoopon