Beau- Still Not Good, Getting Worse, I Fear

[RobinM]

I don;t even know how long this has been going on at this point. Well over a month now, 2 vet visits, a change of food and things have never returned to "normal" but instead, I fear they are headed south again.

 

Mornings- he is just not eating and he will not make up the amount later at night. So he is not getting enough to eat and it shows on his very, very thin body.

 

Today, when we let him out, he stayed outside way too long which meant one thing only. He was eating grass. He must have stayed outside for at least 20 minutes grazing.

 

Now, I made him lean beef with rice and it's sitting between his legs on the bed and he is licking his privates instead. We are still giving him the prilesec and carafate as directed.

 

Back to work tomorrow and I am really having a lot of anxiety about leaving him without being able to feed him all day. I can not leave food out.

 

I am at a loss.

 

ETA- his tummy is gurgling for the 1st time in a week.

 

Was it the tripe? the 1/4 cup of PP sensitive stomach he got his paws on???? I'll never know.

Edited December 30, 2008 by RobinM

[Guest jettcricket]

Geez....how frustrating and upsetting. I wish I had an answer for you. Hoping things get better soon for you and your handsome Beau.

 

You all have been thru so much lately.....

[tamborine]

Robin, why don't you ask your vet for a couple of cans of A/D and see if he'll eat that? It's super-high calorie & nutrition, for animals with chronic illness/cancer, but they're not supposed to be able to resist it, from what I've heard. My cat Stinky was on it for a while when he was sick. It's almost like a paste or puree, and Beau would be able to lap it right up.

 

Maybe if he got started eating that, it would jump-start his appetite for other things. Don't forget to not feed within an hour each way of giving the carafate.

 

[RobinM]

Thanks Maryann- I just called my vet- they have emergency hours on Sunday morning- they don't have it but it can be special ordered. I need it now. I guess I could call around my most vets are not open on Sunday. ARGH.

 

 

[Guest SoulsMom]

Have you tried just the straight I/D diet for a week with nothing else? My guess is he's not eating because his tummy is unsettled. The I/D should settle his tummy back into a normal eating routine and then you can gradually start giving him other foods to determine what the triggers are.

[RobinM]

WE HAVE A WINNER! The vet that see them for acupunture is also open and HAS IT. Please GOD let this be the silver bullet. Off to get the AD.

 

Have you tried just the straight I/D diet for a week with nothing else? My guess is he's not eating because his tummy is unsettled. The I/D should settle his tummy back into a normal eating routine and then you can gradually start giving him other foods to determine what the triggers are.

 

Tried, HE HATES the ID

 

He just came in from morning walk, DH said grass in poops and his stomach is SO gurgly, it startled all of us, including poor Beau who walked straight from the front door upon getting back from his walk to the back door so he could go uot and resume eating grass.

We are going out for about an hour or 2 and I am so worried about him.

Edited December 28, 2008 by RobinM

[Guest jettcricket]

Robin...just a thought. When Cricket was originally diagnosed with osteo, she stopped eating. Like you I tried everything. I was pulling my hair out of my head with frustration and worry. I finally went out and bought an ear cleaner...you know. Those soft rubbery bulbus ear cleaners. I decided I had no choice but to force feed her. I bought stage 2 baby food, nuked it for about 10 seconds and used the ear cleaner to suck it up. It worked out great. It dispensed just enough baby food (the opening is small) so that she didn't choke.

 

It took a bit of patience and some wet paper towles, but at least she was getting some nutrition into her system. I also gave her Ensure that way. In time, thank God, she did start eating on her own again.

 

It might be worth a try....good luck.

Edited December 28, 2008 by jettcricket

[Rickiesmom]

Hope Beau likes the A/D and that it agrees with him.

[Batmom]

Don't let him eat grass -- muzzle with stool cup or tape over the end will stop most of it.

 

How fast is he losing?

 

Has he had an abdominal x-ray/ultrasound?

[Burpdog]

Are you feeding i/d kibble or canned?

 

 

[Guest SoulsMom]

WE HAVE A WINNER! The vet that see them for acupunture is also open and HAS IT. Please GOD let this be the silver bullet. Off to get the AD.

 

Have you tried just the straight I/D diet for a week with nothing else? My guess is he's not eating because his tummy is unsettled. The I/D should settle his tummy back into a normal eating routine and then you can gradually start giving him other foods to determine what the triggers are.

 

Tried, HE HATES the ID

 

That's really unfortunate From what I learned from my vet, for the I/D to work he needs to be fed that and nothing else. A day of fasting and then feeding nothing but the I/D for at least a week should normalize the system enough so that the appetite comes back. Soul wasn't much interested in the I/D at first either, because his tummy was so upset. But once everything worked it's way out of his system his appetite came back and the tummy issues were solved.

[tamborine]

Robin...just a thought. When Cricket was originally diagnosed with osteo, she stopped eating. Like you I tried everything. I was pulling my hair out of my head with frustration and worry. I finally went out and bought an ear cleaner...you know. Those soft rubbery bulbus ear cleaners. I decided I had no choice but to force feed her. I bought stage 2 baby food, nuked it for about 10 seconds and used the ear cleaner to suck it up. It worked out great. It dispensed just enough baby food (the opening is small) so that she didn't choke.

 

It took a bit of patience and some wet paper towles, but at least she was getting some nutrition into her system. I also gave her Ensure that way. In time, thank God, she did start eating on her own again.

 

It might be worth a try....good luck.

 

Good idea - you can use a bulb syringe, or a little regular syringe, too (they sell them at the drugstore - they're usually near the pill boxes, pill splitters, etc.) Or they might have something like them at the petstore for syringe-feeding.

 

The A/D can be syringe-fed, and the baby food is just the right consistency for that too. If you do it, try to aim toward the side pocket of the mouth, not straight down the throat. It's pretty messy & time-consuming (just for me to get enough into a cat took forever), but it does get the food into them, and they usually don't overtly fight it. Seems like once the food's in their mouths, they're glad to have it and swallow.

[Guest IrskasMom]

 

 

For Robin

[patricia]

Sending more prayers. I agree with Batmom...x-rays and ultrasound.

[tamborine]

He just came in from morning walk, DH said grass in poops

 

He's pooping, so that's a good sign that the GI tract isn't blocked, BUT:

 

I agree with Batmom...x-rays and ultrasound.

 

Just to cover all the bases, I'd probably go with the xray & ultrasound, too. I don't know if they do endoscopy/colonoscopy for dogs, but that would be done with a person. Maybe an option?

 

Have they tested for occult blood in the stool? If he's got a small bleed high up in the GI tract, it wouldn't necessarily change the color of the stool (black stool - high bleed; frank red blood in stool: low bleed)

[Guest SoulsMom]

They do scope dogs. That was the next step with Soul, but thankfully the I/D diet and flagyl got things under control.

[RobinM]

He won't touch the ID kibble mixed with the AD. Can't force feed him with a bulb either. He would get much too upset and we'd basically have to hold him down, force it which nothing good will come of that.

 

he will have to go back in tomorrow to the vet.

 

I feel like a top that is just spiining.

[Batmom]

For future reference, I would start with ID canned, not kibble, for a pup with digestive distress.

[Guest KyGrey]

I have no advice but just wanted to send and prayers.

 

Please let something work for him...

[tamborine]

He won't touch the ID kibble mixed with the AD. Can't force feed him with a bulb either. He would get much too upset and we'd basically have to hold him down, force it which nothing good will come of that.

 

he will have to go back in tomorrow to the vet.

 

I feel like a top that is just spiining.

 

Will he eat the A/d by itself? Maybe something about the ID kibble is turning him off to it. And I agree with Batmom re: I/D canned vs. kibble. The kibble I would think would be more for maintenance, once he's eating ok and not in acute distress.

[Guest greyscot]

I haven't read all the posts so I'm sorry if I'm off on the wrong track here. I gather Beau is having real trouble eating and has a very upset digestive system. When my non grey Shirley was ill (kidney disease) getting her to eat was h$$l but one thing she would always eat was a breakfast cereal called rice krispies. I'm in the UK but I'm sure you have the equivalent in the US. I was frightened to give her it with milk so I just mixed it with a little water then gradually introduced watered down milk. She also would eat macaroni cheese - like you I was at the desperate stage. Hope you find some answers soon.

[Guest LindsaySF]

Don't let him eat grass -- muzzle with stool cup or tape over the end will stop most of it.

 

How fast is he losing?

 

Has he had an abdominal x-ray/ultrasound?

Ditto this.

 

 

Will he eat 'people food' like pieces of cooked meat? Or maybe stinky canned cat food?

 

Has he been dewormed recently?

 

Teagan goes on the occasional hunger strike and I give him this: Enervite paste. Put it on his tongue or the roof of his mouth, he'll have to swallow it. It is supposed to stimulate appetite.

 

 

 

~Lindsay~

[Guest JillT]

Don't let him eat grass -- muzzle with stool cup or tape over the end will stop most of it.

 

How fast is he losing?

 

Has he had an abdominal x-ray/ultrasound?

 

One of my hounds has had HGE and other stomach problem on several occasions. One thing my vet told me, when I took her home from the e-vet, was absolutely, under no circumstances, should I let her eat grass. Since then, whenever she goes out in the yard, she wears a muzzle with stool cup, as Batmom suggests.

 

Also, re: I/D--I think the canned version is much better than the kibble, and my hound also ate it better. As others have said, I was told to give only I/D, nothing else (not even treats), for at least 10 days. The I/D canned is quite dry, so when I wanted to give her a treat, I just scooped out a spoonful of refrigerated I/D and gave it to her in place of a biscuit.

[RobinM]

THERE IS BLOOD IN THE POOP. Just did a walk with all 4 on this long grassy strip so that Polli could join us and when Beau pooped, it was a squirt of liquid and red/pink in color.

 

Called vet- there is no one there that I would bring him to. (low person on totem poll who I took my cat to once and she does not know GH)

 

My vet is there at 8 am. He spirits are good.

 

Does this sound like HGE??? If so, what should I do NOW until 8AM?

[Guest Winterwish]

Just as a cancelling out; was the poop diarrhea,or very constipated,small and hard(due to not really eating?

If it was hard,could be irritation from strain. If it was regular poop or diarrhea,it could be the start of HGE.