phall Posted December 7, 2009 Author Share Posted December 7, 2009 An update on Chick - she had her ultrasound and fine needle aspiration today. Chick has a mass about the size of a golf ball in her chest. The mass isn't solid, but is fluid. We don't know yet what the fluid is. The samples of it went out tonight and we should get the results back in a few days (outside chance of maybe tomorrow). Hopefully that will tell us if it's cancer or not. On another topic, Chick is so very thin right now. Because of her megaesophagus (caused by the mass) she's eating very soft food - canned food mixed with water and cottage cheese. She gets small portions of this 4 times a day. She's gaining back a little weight, but not too much. I think I need to add something high in calories but low in fat (because she has a tendency toward pancreatitis) and it has to be soft and mushy. Any suggestions? Thanks. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riverbosun Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 Pat thanks for the update. There use to be a recipe for weight gaining meatballs but I never really paid attention. Hopefully someone here can help or a search on the nutrition forum. Quote Barbara Majestic and Ranger "If you want to hear the patter of little feet I'll put shoes on my dogs." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 (edited) Glad Chick's gained a little weight. All paws crossed here for the test results. In the past, Diane Burpdog has suggested adding some pasta to the food as an easily digested source of calories. You could cook it up nice and mushy, maybe in some low-fat broth? Here's one of the recipes for weight-gaining "satin balls". There are variations, but most of them are even more fatty, with cream cheese and/or peanut butter. 5 pounds ground meat 5 cups Total whole grain cereal 5 cups oats (slow cooking type) 2½ cups raw wheat germ ¾ cup oil ¾ cup molasses 6 egg yolks 5 packets gelatin 2 ½ tablespoons Solid Gold Seameal supplement Mix up, form balls, freeze, feed as treats or food supplement. Mix all ingredients together thoroughly like you would a meatloaf. Roll into balls no larger than 1 inch diameter. Divide into at least 6 separate containers or bags. Freeze. Thaw as needed for feeding. Edited December 8, 2009 by EllenEveBaz Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 I'm sorry to hear about Chick's mass. Will be waiting and praying with you for the report. My angel Batman had a mass that constricted his esophagus where it entered his stomach. His was unfortunately cancerous. His last 6 months, he ate and maintained his weight on things like: - cooked ground beef, pureed in the blender. If the beef was very fatty, I mixed it with chicken, also pureed. - spaghettios! which slid right down and which he loved - scrambled eggs, not too hard, smooshed up well with a fork - non-chunky canned foods such as tripett and EVO original; add some water and moosh well - a dollop of ice cream at most meals Beef supplies a lot of calories. My cheap osterizer complained a little sometimes but got through it all. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TwinklenRea Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 I hope all turns out well for Chick. My thoughts are with you both! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhead Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Our thoughts and prayers are with you and Chick. Please keep us posted. Quote Mary with Jumper Jack (2/17/11) and angels Shane (PA's Busta Rime, 12/10/02 - 10/14/16) and Spencer (Dutch Laser, 11/25/00 - 3/29/13). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mcsheltie Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Sending prayers for Chick. Also, be careful with eggs. They can throw a dog into pancreatitis. Found this out the hard way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eaglflyt Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 We're praying for Chick and you, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phall Posted December 8, 2009 Author Share Posted December 8, 2009 Thanks to all of you for your good thoughts and prayers, and for the suggestions to help Chick gain some weight. It helps a lot. I'll keep you posted. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MorganKonaAlex Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 I think I need to add something high in calories but low in fat (because she has a tendency toward pancreatitis) and it has to be soft and mushy. Any suggestions? What about Dyne? I have some you can have. It's a liquid about the consistency of syrup and is vanilla flavored. 150 calories per ounce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phall Posted December 8, 2009 Author Share Posted December 8, 2009 Hi Kris, I haven't heard of Dyne - the calorie count sounds good. Do you get at the grocery store? And do you know if the fat content is low? Thanks for your help - I appreciate it. Pat I think I need to add something high in calories but low in fat (because she has a tendency toward pancreatitis) and it has to be soft and mushy. Any suggestions? What about Dyne? I have some you can have. It's a liquid about the consistency of syrup and is vanilla flavored. 150 calories per ounce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MorganKonaAlex Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 It's made by Trophy. Here's a link that has the breakdown. Unfortunately, it looks high in fat. Dyne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saffron Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Our thoughts are with Pat and Chick, and we are hoping for a good outcome. Chick is such a sweetie. I have not been here recently, so sorry, but Pat and I have the same conscientious vet and have emailed each other about Chick's situation. Low fat and high calorie is a hard mix. I'm just adding in summary form what I've already said to Pat, and I hope might be useful info for others. Blenders are fantastic for pulverising all sorts of meaty stuff into an edible paste. This is useful if you ever need to syringe feed a sick dog. We have used skinless chicken, low fat hamburger, beef heart and kidneys. These are poached in water and all visible fat skimmed. We then pulverize the meat to a paste in a blender. Adding cooked pasta to the paste mix seems to make the meaty things more workable and palatable and probably adds a few calories too. Yes, whole eggs can cause pancreatitis. But if you have a egg loving dog that you want to cram with low fat calories scrambled egg whites are definitely an option. Separating out the yolks is a pain, but egg whites and low fat *Egg-Beaters* are available in your local supermarket in carton form in the dairy section. We add some stinky stuff like cottage cheese, parmesan cheese sprinkles, and fish to help it go down the dog. Experience says -- the stinkier the better. Commercial supplements like Nutri-cal are also available, but check the ingredients for your pups specific needs. Hope this helps. Quote GillianCaesar (Black Caesarfire) and Olly (Oregon) the Galgo Still missing: Nell (spaniel mix) 1982-1997, Boudicca (JRT) 1986- 2004, and the greys P's Catwalk 2001-2008, Murphy Peabody (we failed fostering) 1998-2010 and Pilgrim (Blazing Leia) 2003-2016, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mcsheltie Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 It's made by Trophy. Here's a link that has the breakdown. Unfortunately, it looks high in fat. Dyne It is high in fat. This will also throw an animal into pancreatitis. Once again... learned this the hard way. Had a girl we were trying to put weight on. No medical issues. She stepped on a piece of glass and her foot got infected. We were gone out of town a few days after she was at the vet's. Our sitter was staying at the house. The antibiotics bothered her stomach, she quit eating. So my sitter upped the Dyne just a little to make up for not eating. She had a bad attack of pancreatitis and we came close to loosing her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SoulsMom Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 Pat, just wondering how Chick is doing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phall Posted December 16, 2009 Author Share Posted December 16, 2009 Thanks for checking in, Amber. Chick is doing okay. She does have cancer - either lymphoma or thymoma. She is scheduled for an additional ultrasound and biopsy on Friday to try to determine which cancer it is. We have made the decision not to have surgery because of the location of the tumor in her chest. So after determining which cancer it is, we will work out a plan to keep her as comfortable as we can for as long as we can. She is doing very well with her feeding schedule of 4 meals a day of mushy food. She hasn't regurgitated or vomited in over two weeks. She's on Cisapride for motility of the food and it seems to be helping her. I'll keep you posted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SoulsMom Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 Oh Pat I'm so sorry to hear about the cancer But good news about the eating, Keep up the good work Chick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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