Sick Foster

[Guest zombrie]

Can anyone give us advice on our new foster dog? He is 10 years old and was in a home for 7 years and was neglected in his home. He was returned to us a few days ago in horrible condition (extremely emaciated, very long nails, diarrhea...). So we took him home yesterday and we are having some issues. He has not eaten at all. He is definitely much happier here than he was at the kennel and he gets along great with the other dogs. But we just cannot get him to eat. His blood work shows a lot of protein so the vet is suspicious that he has a food allergy. The vet recommended we feed him Natural Fish and Sweet Potato, dry and a little bit of wet. We are also trying to give him Pet Tabs but he won't eat them. He gets two 500 mg Flagl twice a day. We have offered him slices of banana, pieces of carrots and canned pumpkin (100% pure, no spices). Has anybody else had an issue similar to this? I would appreciate any advice that you can give us.

[Guest KennelMom]

How are his teeth? Have you tried spiking his food w/real meat?

[Burpdog]

It would be helpful if you posted the blood test results.

 

Have you tried EVO? Have you tried stomach meds? How much flagyl is he on?

[Guest zombrie]

His teeth look great, the vet said his blood work all looked normal except for the high amount of protein. And as I said in my post, he gets two 500 mg twice a day of Flagl. I'm wondering if it's just going to take a little bit for his appetite to come back..? He did eat a little bit of his wet food today so I'm happy that he at least ate that. So I'm going to offer some more wet food a little later for lunch.

 

I wish I could give him something more interesting for him to eat but the vet doesn't want him to eat any beef or poultry. What if we bought him fish? Would that be OK?

 

You mentioned stomach meds...like what could we try? His diarrhea is awful...it's like water and the poor guy is so weak and unsteady.

[Batmom]

I would probably talk to the vet again. Could be he needs to be wormed before anything will stick in him.

 

Most dogs get along well with Flagyl but it can upset a few. I would try giving one regular-strength Pepcid (10mg famotidine is the generic), wait 30-40 minutes, feed, then give Flagyl.

 

Hugs and best luck to you and poor pupper.

[Guest TeddysMom]

Is he drinking? Just watch him for dehydration and you can offer pedialyte or mix half and half with water if he is drinking water. Good luck and hopefully he will begin to get better and start eating. There are some past posts that get their dogs to eat by feeding fish but I can't remember how they cooked it.

 

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/238540-josie-is-very-sick-and-we-dont-know-what-to-do-at-this-point/page__st__40__p__4201182__hl__Whitefish__fromsearch__1entry4201182

 

Here is the thread about the fish.

[TheFullHouse]

Could be the stress of the move. Sometimes just the new environment throws them off for a few days.

[Guest zombrie]

Stress could very well be a lot of the problem even though he appears to be very confident and happy here, it's still change.

He is drinking - A LOT. But when I pinch the back of his neck the skin stays raised so we're going to take him to the vet, he may need some IV fluids because of all the diarrhea.

I was cooking some lunch for myself and he was very interested in what I as eating and was crying and wagging his tail furiously. So I offered him some of his food but wouldn't eat it. So my mom went to the store and bought him fish. We cooked it up and he ate it and loved it (I didn't give him all of it, just to make sure it would sit well in his tummy).

He burps a lot so maybe Pepcid is a good idea

[Guest Lovey_Hounds]

I add fish all i did was cook it up with a touch of olive oil or baked it. i also added some sweet potaoto with it for some more substance, and they loved it. i used halibut or basa or any white fish with no bones on the fillets.

 

good luck with your old guy and i hope he gets better soon.

[Batmom]

For the time being, if what you're eating is reasonably healthful and not bad for dogs (no onions, raisins, chocolate, macadamia nuts; not too fatty), if he expresses interest, you might try putting a spoonful or two of your meal on some kibble and seeing if he'll eat. Time enough to work on begging behaviors, etc. when he's plump and healthy.

 

If his teeth are bad, could also be that kibble hurts his mouth. You can get it really mooshy by soaking overnight in the fridge with a bunch of water, then warm gently in the microwave before serving.

[Guest zombrie]

For the time being, if what you're eating is reasonably healthful and not bad for dogs (no onions, raisins, chocolate, macadamia nuts; not too fatty), if he expresses interest, you might try putting a spoonful or two of your meal on some kibble and seeing if he'll eat. Time enough to work on begging behaviors, etc. when he's plump and healthy.

 

If his teeth are bad, could also be that kibble hurts his mouth. You can get it really mooshy by soaking overnight in the fridge with a bunch of water, then warm gently in the microwave before serving.

 

I would've given him some of my food but it was a cheese sandwich and we don't know what he's allergic to yet so we're just following a strict diet the vet told us to do. His teeth are in good shape, I'm kind of starting to guess he wasn't fed dog food, only scraps. He shows no interest in his kibble or wet food, but goes nuts when we're cooking and eating

 

I add fish all i did was cook it up with a touch of olive oil or baked it. i also added some sweet potaoto with it for some more substance, and they loved it. i used halibut or basa or any white fish with no bones on the fillets.

 

good luck with your old guy and i hope he gets better soon.

Thanks!

[joejoesmom]

My foster also has food allergies. The only food that works for him is Natural Balance Venison and Potato. Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream (a fish diet) causes him to react. Just wanted to mention that it is possible for a dog to be allergic to anything, including fish.

 

Assuming he can eat fish without a reaction, I would add real fish to his diet. I would bake some inexpensive fish and keep it in the fridge. Then add some water to his dry food, mix in a good amount of fish and heat it in the microwave enough to get it warm. The warmth helps bring out the aroma (or to me, a stinky odor). As you know, with dogs stinkier is better. Hopefully this will encourage him to eat.

 

If you know anyone who hunts, venison liver and the lesser cuts are also tasty to dogs and are usually non-allergenic. Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes are also typically safe.

 

The diarrhea could be caused partly or in full by a reaction to the food. It is good that you are taking him to get fluids.

 

Good luck

[Guest zombrie]

Well, we had a MAJOR downfall a few hours ago. Ace was sleeping on the couch, got off, did a biiig stretch and then his body just lost control - I thought he was having a seizure. It looked like his stomach sank all the way into his spine and was just shaking, panting and grunting in pain. We took him to the vet and they gave him some fluids and a pain killer. His heart rate was over 200. As of right now his breathing is a bit better but his heart is still racing. The director of the kennel wants us to bring him to their vet tomorrow morning

Please keep Ace in your thoughts and prayers

[Batmom]

Poor bug. Sending lots and lots of prayers.

[Ragsysmum]

Very best wishes for Ace. Hope he makes a speedy and complete recovery and enjoys a happy and healthy life for a long time to come.

[Guest PhillyPups]

Prayers for Ace.

[5blackgreys]

Lots of white light going out to Ace. I certainly hope he can enjoy his senior years with people who will spoil him rotten.

[Guest mountain4greys]

Just seeing this. Prayers for Ace today. I hope the news is good.

[MandysMom]

Sending prayers for Ace

[Guest zombrie]

We took him to a different vet today. Ace has fluid in his lungs and has an infection in his stomach (and thankfully to our surprise, no sign of tumors). The vet put him on some medications and a steroid. I'm praying these will work, and quickly. According to the vet, he's had these issues for a very long time . This guy is quite a fighter, he's not ready to go yet.

[Batmom]

Come on, buddy. Hang in there and let the meds work.

[Burpdog]

Sending lots of prayers.

[Guest mountain4greys]

Continuing prayers. Keep fighting this boy, let the meds work.

[Guest MyBoys]

Keep fighting Ace, you can't give up now because the best is yet to come, because it is your time now to have a REAL family to love you. Hang in there buddy we are all praying and pulling for you.

[EllenEveBaz]

Thinking healing thoughts for sweet Ace.