Beau

[greyhead]

It is a liquid and is made of slippery elm, licorice root and other natural herbs that are supposed to soothe, coat and help heal the mucous membranes of the GI tract.

 

Come to think of it, slippery elm has proven to be quite useful for humans. Can't speak to its utility in dogs.

 

I can speak to its utility in cats! It has been extremely useful in cats with Chronic Renal Failure, who all sooner or later lose their appetites big time. If you want a link to the feline CRF site on the Internet, let me know and I'll provide. A search in their archives under "slippery elm" would turn up scads of material.

 

 

[Guest taylorsmom]

We used slippery elm with great results when we were not sure if Ladd had IBD when we adopted him. It was recommended to us by a very well known holistic Vet who works in Kingston, NY and NYC. http://holvet.net/slippery_soup.html

However, this is truly a dire situation and wouldn't want it to somehow react with a med in his system which is already fragile. Dr. Yasson offers 1 free consult for potential clients. It might be worth calling her.

Kristyn

 

This is such great advice! And thank you Kristyn for the link, I really appreciate the recipe for "Slippery Soup"! Robin-- not that you aren't already seeing more vets than you would like, but perhaps a phone consult with this vet to determine if adding slippery elm to the current mix is a good idea or not would be helpful (especially if the consult is free!).

 

[VinnieAndRexsMom]

Beau raced at 63 and was never more than 64 or 65 with me. He always looked svelte, really good, not too thin. he just didn't gain like the others. I belive the IBD was lying dormant. Looking back, now I see how breakfast was not eaten the way the others did and his poop was always very soft. Enough so that I would have it tested once in a while.

 

At the weigh in at the time of surgery, he was 60 pounds, his face was sunken in and he looked thin. The vet had the tech recheck it three times since she was convinced he had lost more than 4 pounds.

Since the day I brought him in for surgery, he has lost considerably. NOW, he looks like a sick dog.

 

I will find out on Friday how much. he weighs. It will be a different scale, but it should be close.

That definately helps to know what I am seeing since I don't know Beau. I am hoping when he is weighed on Friday that it isn't much less than what he weighed the day of the procedure. I know you are worried. Hang in there

[Guest trevdog]

Sending more prayers.....

[Guest greyscot]

Poor baby to you and Beau.

[RobinM]

We used slippery elm with great results when we were not sure if Ladd had IBD when we adopted him. It was recommended to us by a very well known holistic Vet who works in Kingston, NY and NYC. http://holvet.net/slippery_soup.html

However, this is truly a dire situation and wouldn't want it to somehow react with a med in his system which is already fragile. Dr. Yasson offers 1 free consult for potential clients. It might be worth calling her.

Kristyn

 

This is such great advice! And thank you Kristyn for the link, I really appreciate the recipe for "Slippery Soup"! Robin-- not that you aren't already seeing more vets than you would like, but perhaps a phone consult with this vet to determine if adding slippery elm to the current mix is a good idea or not would be helpful (especially if the consult is free!).

 

thanks but I wouldn't add anything into his diet unless it is recommended by my vet and the specialist. he can only be on what he is already on.

 

[RobinM]

I know I have said this before but if the food your on is not helping after awhile. I would ask your vet about z/d ultra allergen free.

 

Is that fish and sweet potatoe human food? With our experiance with Conner he is completly forbidden to eat any type of people food. The vet even asked us to put some pumpkin in his food for some type of protein before we got a diagnosis and he was still sick.

 

I have to say that Conner just being on Z/D we saw improvement within days, and although it's boring stuff for him, it is keeping him alive, and somewhat well. We still have a few problems here and there when he gets a hold of something he does not like but overall he is living a much, much better life than before the Z/D.

 

What do you mean not food helping?

 

Beau is on human grade Tilapia poached. He is tolerating it well. Better poops AND he enjoys it. He is not getting any carbs as will not take any as of yet. I tried the sweet potato. We have the wellness whitefish and sweet potato but he is not really eating that at all.

As far as moving him to z/d or dd or another hydrolized, I just don't think Beau will go for it. What good is a good kibble if the dog refuses it.

 

He is an extremely picky eater, like his mother. The big difference is that with Polli if she doesn't like "A", we can offer "B" or "C". With Beau it's take it or leave it.

 

Everything has changed in Beau's world and none of it for the better.

 

[Guest koolaidnconner]

I mean if he continues diaherra. That was our biggest thing was finding something that Conner would be able to digest. If what your feeding him is working greyt!

 

I just was not sure if that food was human food. Fish, sweet potatoes, Whether it was a dog food with this stuff in it?

From our experiance with Conner any type of human food irritated him. But every case is also differant.

 

Hope Beau feels well soon.

 

I have a question for anyone who knows out there. I have spoke to lots of people about potatoes, any type of potatoe and a lot of people have told me that potatoe is NO good for any dog. So I guess my question is What are the pros and cons of that?

Edited January 29, 2009 by koolaidnconner

[Guest LindsaySF]

We are 7 days post surgery and Beau is thinner than ever before. I've attached a picture which doens't look so bad. Trust me on this, he looks totally emaciated. He's tiny and so narrow. Polli is so much heavier than her, it's so depressing.

 

The only thing he is eating consistantly is tilapia. On a good day he will put away close to 3.5 FULL fish which does have decent calories, but he is apparently not absorbing.

 

 

I have decided to take him into see a board certified internal medicine vet who specializes in gastro issues.

I'm going to differ from everyone else and say that I don't think he looks that thin in the picture. Really. He has a roached back so you will always see more spine on him than on another dog. You do see the outline of his ribs, but you don't see the entire rib on any of them, just a portion. I can't even see hip points. The area between his ribs and his hips looks pretty well filled out (in a starving dog this gets sunken in).

 

Is he at ideal weight? No. But I don't think he's starving to death. If he is eating the fish and his stool is firm, that is good. As quickly as they lose weight it sometimes takes a while for them to gain it back. But it WILL happen.

 

 

Remember, right now, any calories he is eating is going towards healing, not putting on weight.

Good point, I agree. Until he heals from the biopsy he won't be packing on the pounds.

 

 

I agree with your vet that he looks ok. But if you want to contact another vet for a second opinion, that is your choice. Don't feel like you are "cheating on" your vet, he/she will understand.

 

I hope Beau feels better soon.

 

 

 

 

~Lindsay~

 

 

[ahicks51]

I have a question for anyone who knows out there. I have spoke to lots of people about potatoes, any type of potatoe and a lot of people have told me that potatoe is NO good for any dog. So I guess my question is What are the pros and cons of that?

 

Potatoes are largely stach, a polymeric form of glucose- sugar. Really- you wouldn't feed sugar to your dog. If you saw it on a label of pet food, you'd best set it aside and keep shopping. Potatoes offer little nutrition other than raw calories, and present increased risks of problems that manifest in the form of dental and oral disease, diabetes, and possibly things like cancer due to insulin-like growth factor similarities.

[Guest IrskasMom]

 

 

I feel like a total " ninkampoop "( Idiot ) when I read all the Advice's . I have absolutly No Idea how to help or make

you feel better Robin. I know, if it were my Dog I would be devastated to , to say the least. All I can offer lots of

Hugs and Well wishes for Beau . You are in my Thoughts and Prayers .

[RobinM]

We are 7 days post surgery and Beau is thinner than ever before. I've attached a picture which doens't look so bad. Trust me on this, he looks totally emaciated. He's tiny and so narrow. Polli is so much heavier than her, it's so depressing.

 

The only thing he is eating consistantly is tilapia. On a good day he will put away close to 3.5 FULL fish which does have decent calories, but he is apparently not absorbing.

 

 

I have decided to take him into see a board certified internal medicine vet who specializes in gastro issues.

I'm going to differ from everyone else and say that I don't think he looks that thin in the picture. Really. He has a roached back so you will always see more spine on him than on another dog. You do see the outline of his ribs, but you don't see the entire rib on any of them, just a portion. I can't even see hip points. The area between his ribs and his hips looks pretty well filled out (in a starving dog this gets sunken in).

 

Is he at ideal weight? No. But I don't think he's starving to death. If he is eating the fish and his stool is firm, that is good. As quickly as they lose weight it sometimes takes a while for them to gain it back. But it WILL happen.

 

 

Remember, right now, any calories he is eating is going towards healing, not putting on weight.

Good point, I agree. Until he heals from the biopsy he won't be packing on the pounds.

 

 

I agree with your vet that he looks ok. But if you want to contact another vet for a second opinion, that is your choice. Don't feel like you are "cheating on" your vet, he/she will understand.

 

I hope Beau feels better soon.

 

 

 

 

~Lindsay~

 

His hip bones are very prominent. No matter how many pictures I took, he looks better in the picture than in real life.

 

My vet has not seen Beau since last Thursday so she doesn't know what he looks like now, but I am sure she can imagine.

 

I am THRILLED he loves the talapia. For his 2nd meal (he gets 4) he ate 1.5 pounds of tilapia. I just wish he were eating some carbs and more than that, I wish he were absorbing. That is the reason I want to see the Internal Medicine doc. And hopefully, she can refer me to a board certified nutrionalist. If not, I will be taking a ride to either Cornell or UPenn.

 

Thanks!

[duncan41]

Will be waiting to hear the results of your consult. Keeping everything crossed and still sending prayers and healing thoughts. In the meantime, Beau, please keep eating!

[Guest KRKWMU]

Hang in there.

[Chicocat]

I am THRILLED he loves the talapia. For his 2nd meal (he gets 4) he ate 1.5 pounds of tilapia. I just wish he were eating some carbs and more than that, I wish he were absorbing. That is the reason I want to see the Internal Medicine doc. And hopefully, she can refer me to a board certified nutrionalist. If not, I will be taking a ride to either Cornell or UPenn.

 

At this point, a positive step at a time is good. Thank goodness he likes the talapia and will eat that much of it. It's a pretty good sign too that his poops have firmed.

 

Darlin got really sick a couple of years ago after trying to (not) share a Rabbit with Survey. Whatever that bacteria triggered gave her terrible diarrhea and she was losing weight from not absorbing any nutrients. She was on several medications, including a couple that were to slow down the process in the intestines to allow time for the nutrients to be absorbed. It took a lot of time, and she will probably be on Viokase forever to help keep her absorption normal.

 

Beau's condition is much more difficult that Darlin's was, I'm sure, but I think once he is stabilized and some of the irritation is gone, there are lots of medications that can help long term if he needs them.

 

There is just nothing easy about seeing our sweet ones sick. It's frustrating and it hurts. Cutie was diagnosed with a form of Lupus, after a long frustrating search for a diagnosis, and every day I hope to find more improvement that can come in a single day. It's how we feel because we love them so much.

 

Every day I pray for your Beau to feel better and get this behind him.

 

 

 

 

[patricia]

Sending my many prayers for sweet Beau.

[Guest koolaidnconner]

Good Luck today! Hoping everything will go well! Hugs for you guys!

[Bevd]

Best wishes for todays visit. I hope you can get some answers to help your baby Beau