Questions For The "specialist"

[RobinM]

Beau has been having firm stool for the first time in months. He has been eating 4 times a day. He is taking in about 3.5 pounds of tilapia. So we know that is something he can tolerate. We ordered the 100% tilapia treats and he LOOOOOOVES them. He had been so depressed when everyone else was getting the treats he loved.

 

Somedays I can trick him into eating 1/2 cup of the wellness kibble by putting it into a bone made for stuffing. It's interesting he will go crazy for that, but turn his nose up at the kibbke if it's in a bowl/ plate, etc.

 

Today, however so far he has taken 3 bites of the tilapia and he is done. I will try again after his walk, but that is not the way things have been going...

 

Today we have the appointment with the specialist. I'm going, but not sure why. I know the diagnosis, we have a plan of action, he is repsonding, other than a nurtrional evaluation, I'm not sure what I should be getting out of this. She is not a Boarded nutrionalist, she is just a boarded IM.

 

 

 

Edited January 30, 2009 by RobinM

[Batmom]

The basic question is, "Given this dog's history, what would you do differently?"

 

If he were my dog, I would be interested specifically in pros/cons for different meds (such as budesonide vs. prednisone), monitoring protocol over the next several months, what signs we would look for that tell us our program is working / isn't working.

[RobinM]

Well, I can tell you one thing I think is not working. The kibble. He won't eat this morning and he is back to soft serve. That is the only different ingredient in his diet.

[Batmom]

Is there a reason you want him to eat kibble?

[RobinM]

Carbs. Nutrients. I am open to suggestions.

[Batmom]

Carbs aren't particularly useful for anything. IMHO they aren't harmful, and they're cheaper than proteins. But in general, you'll get more calories and nutrients from protein sources, and more calories from fats.

 

Kibble does have some nice features. Being dried, it's concentrated. So you get a lot of calories in a small package. You also get the accepted appropriate nutritional content (vitamin/mineral mix). And it's certainly convenient.

 

For a dog with sensitivities, tho, I really don't like kibble. Way too many ingredients. Makes it impossible to figure out what the dog might be sensitive to.

 

A week or so ago, I fed my sensitive dog a single kibble meal (@ 45% of daily calories). We had switched back to kibble once before and our problem didn't recur for a couple months. This time, pretty much instant problem, for the next 24 hours. Whoa. And after a year of working on this, I still can't tell you what it is in kibble that causes the problem. There are just too many things in there. It would take several dogs' lifetimes to test them all.

[Guest Greensleeves]

I'm going, but not sure why. I know the diagnosis, we have a plan of action, he is repsonding, other than a nurtrional evaluation, I'm not sure what I should be getting out of this.

 

A new set of eyes can't hurt--someone who is unfamiliar with Beau may see things that his doctors and family who know him well just *don't.* They might have information and options that have never been proffered to you before. We knew Nelly's diagnosis was kidney disease and the prognosis was death, but her specialists were ENORMOUSLY helpful with coming up with new ideas for supplements to help her, tweaks to the medicines, appetite stimulants, advice regarding feeding--everything. There may be more you can do; it's worth finding that out.

 

(Personal human history anecdote: I have an auto-immune disease that was diagnosed with *one glance* from a specialist--in another field, even!. [They did tests to confirm, of course!] I'd been going to my own doctor for so long, she couldn't see the subtle, visible symptoms. But a doctor who didn't know me, who'd never met me before, took one look at me and knew. Obviously, you *have* a diagnosis already so you're not looking for that, but there can be real and enormous value in having a whole new set of eyes look over the data--or the patient.)

[AngelWhispers]

Carbs aren't particularly useful for anything. IMHO they aren't harmful, and they're cheaper than proteins. But in general, you'll get more calories and nutrients from protein sources, and more calories from fats.

 

Kibble does have some nice features. Being dried, it's concentrated. So you get a lot of calories in a small package. You also get the accepted appropriate nutritional content (vitamin/mineral mix). And it's certainly convenient.

 

For a dog with sensitivities, tho, I really don't like kibble. Way too many ingredients. Makes it impossible to figure out what the dog might be sensitive to.

 

A week or so ago, I fed my sensitive dog a single kibble meal (@ 45% of daily calories). We had switched back to kibble once before and our problem didn't recur for a couple months. This time, pretty much instant problem, for the next 24 hours. Whoa. And after a year of working on this, I still can't tell you what it is in kibble that causes the problem. There are just too many things in there. It would take several dogs' lifetimes to test them all.

 

I agree with everything Jey said. Fields is my IBD dog and he also tends to get bacterial overgrowth, and colitis, and tylan powder is a staple product in my house. If the fish is working for Beau I wouldn't change anything and would ask the specialist about supplements to make sure he's getting everything he needs in the way of nutrition. The one thing about IBD dogs or ones who get colitis, bacterial overgrowth...you find what works and you may have to stay with that for the rest of his life. It's tempting to try food changes...I know, I tried with Fields and it wasn't pretty...but it comes down to, you can't keep changing foods, especially for the next couple months while his body is healing.

 

Fields was 6 years old, weighed 71 lbs(close to his racing weight) when he became ill and went down to 59lbs. I was sure I would lose him because he was a walking skeleton. It took almost 3 months before he started looking like a normal grey and almost another 2 months to get to a healthy weight. He's almost 9 now and weighs 73lbs, and is healthy as long as I don't try to change his diet. Even getting the wrong treat gives him soft serve within 24 hours. DH found that out the hard way when he accidently gave Fields a treat that goes to the other dogs.

 

Hang in there Robin, Beau will get better but it'll take time.

[carronstar]

A new set of eyes to look at Beau's problem. She is going to be looking him over extra thoroughly because he is a new patient for her and she has never seen him. She will have slightly, or completely, different questions. She may have an instant answer/idea because she has seen this once before and found the solution. That one time is all you need. She is going to help you win this battle. You are going to win. Beau is going to gain weight and get healthy again. It is going to take some time but you and Beau are going to win this.

[Guest ss556]

Robin, I agree with all of the above - a new set of eyes on Beau. It certainly cannot hurt and it's certainly worth it. Good luck.

[Remolacha]

I don't have anything new to add, the others have covered it well! But, I want to reinforce what they've said about IBD dogs. Fletcher's IBD is pretty mild, as I've said, maybe because I caught it when he was young (2 yrs old), but you HAVE to stick to what works. Once Beau is stable, you can try adding things, but only one at a time, and I would never give anything like kibble with so many ingredients. Until he's stable and gained his weight back, I wouldn't experiment at all. I know it's hard, but simple, simple, simple is the way to go!