Okay All Those In The Know

[TheFullHouse]

Gee's been really sick, not eating, big D and poor thing lost a toe nail and is in pain. She went to the vet this morning and on top of all that she has some bad teeth so she's having a dental w/extractions on Tuesday. The vet said to feed her mild things like chicken and rice until her GI tract is healed a bit so here's my question. Gee is allergic to grains, what can I put in the chicken besides rice that will be good for her gut?

 

I need to get something in her stomach because she's on an antibiotic and tramadol for pain because of her toe and the vet said the antibiotic could be adding to her stomach problems so she needs food in her stomach when she takes them.

 

Oh also, how do you prepare it? I've never had to do that before either.

[Guest KennelMom]

You might want to try quinoa. It's *technically* a grain, but you can soak it before cooking and really mitgate a lot of the issues that people typically have with grains.

 

Otherwise, I'd just switch her to a traditional raw diet - meat and bones. Add in some veggies if you like. If you can't grind the bones, you can always boil an whole chicken carcass until the bones basically become mush.

[FiveRoooooers]

I'm sorry to read this In place of rice, you can try quinoa which is a complete protein and loaded with tons of essential amino acids. Rinse it first, then add 1/4 c grain to 1/2 c water (you can increase amounts from there); bring to boil, lower heat and simmer. It cooks quickly, ~15', with occasional stirring. Good luck with your baby.

[Meandmy]

What about potatoes? Cooked and mashed potatoes can be very soothing.

[Batmom]

If she can have beef, you could give her *partly* drained, cooked ground beef to add some calories to the chicken. Also eggs. I've never had much luck feeding any quantity of potatoes.

[TheFullHouse]

Can you buy quinoa anywhere or do you have to go someplace special like Whole Foods or a health food store?

[FiveRoooooers]

More and more of the bigger grocery stores are now carrying pre-packaged quinoa. Our Stop&Shop, PriceRite, and Big Y's all have it ... it may be in the "natural food" section or in the rice aisle. Definitely a Whole Foods and/or health food store will have it. I've not fed my pups the red variety, only the "regular" color (I don't know what to call it ... pasta-y looking yellow-ish). We all love it.

[DaisyDoodle]

My pups love sweet potatoes and carrots.

[TheFullHouse]

More and more of the bigger grocery stores are now carrying pre-packaged quinoa. Our Stop&Shop, PriceRite, and Big Y's all have it ... it may be in the "natural food" section or in the rice aisle. Definitely a Whole Foods and/or health food store will have it. I've not fed my pups the red variety, only the "regular" color (I don't know what to call it ... pasta-y looking yellow-ish). We all love it.

 

 

Thank you so much.

[FiveRoooooers]

You bet. If you go the quinoa route let us know if it's paws up or down approved.

[3DogNite]

I found a big bag of Quinoa at my cost-co!

you could ask about gluten free things at your health food store too.

good luck!

[kamsmom]

When I was feeding Ivy I was using the no yolks egg noodles. Can she eat those?

[TheFullHouse]

When I was feeding Ivy I was using the no yolks egg noodles. Can she eat those?

 

 

I'm not sure. She's on a grain free food because she has severe allergies and once I switched her to grain free, she stopped her itching and chewing so I'm not sure what is "technically" a grain. I do know that during this time she hasn't been eating I was giving her her pills in a little bread and peanut butter and she's back to itching. I need to get something into her stomach to be able to give her her meds.

 

The vet did say that it may also be a case of the food I've been giving her TOTW Prairie Formula may be to rich for her at her age so I'm also going to have to look at their other formula's and pick one that her stomach may handle better.

 

Geez, eating problems can be a pain.

[kamsmom]

Ivy goes nuts for the turkey hot dogs. It's the best way for her to get her meds without me having to pill her. The turkey dogs are "spongey" enough to stuff a pill in the middle of it and then she just swallows the peice whole.

 

Maybe just some bananas and yogurt mushed together and frozen. I hope you find something that will work for Gee

 

 

 

 

Have you tried the grain free food from Costco?

[Hubcitypam]

Our Kroger has Quinoa in the Health foodish aisle -- but they want an arm and a leg for it --they want $7.99 for a box of the red that is $2.99 at Sprouts.

 

I'm with Beth about maybe trying pasta. What I do for chicken and rice (or pasta) is boil the chicken until done, remove it and then measure out enough of the water to cook my rice or pasta. Then cook that while the chicken cools so you can cut it in pieces and/or debone it.

[FiveRoooooers]

When I was feeding Ivy I was using the no yolks egg noodles. Can she eat those?

 

 

I'm not sure. She's on a grain free food because she has severe allergies and once I switched her to grain free, she stopped her itching and chewing so I'm not sure what is "technically" a grain. I do know that during this time she hasn't been eating I was giving her her pills in a little bread and peanut butter and she's back to itching. I need to get something into her stomach to be able to give her her meds.

 

The vet did say that it may also be a case of the food I've been giving her TOTW Prairie Formula may be to rich for her at her age so I'm also going to have to look at their other formula's and pick one that her stomach may handle better.

 

Geez, eating problems can be a pain.

 

Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest. Quinoa was of great nutritional importance in pre-Columbian Andean civilizations, being secondary only to the potato, and was followed in importance by maize. In contemporary times, this crop has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high (12%–18%). Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source among plant foods.^[5] It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Because of all these characteristics, quinoa is being considered a possible crop in NASA's Controlled Ecological Life Support System for long-duration manned spaceflights.^[5]

 

[Batmom]

If the bread is making her itch, that suggests wheat as the culprit, which is also in pasta. Could be something else but IIRC wheat is one of the more common canine allergens.

[Hubcitypam]

Oops totally missed the grain free part as I was power skimming ...sorry Judy.

[TheFullHouse]

Oh, we have a Kroger here, I'll try there for the Quinola. I don't mind paying the price. It won't be a permanent change for her but it will get us through this and her healing from getting some teeth out next Tuesday.

[HopeForHounds]

My guys love quinoa. I had never heard of it until our cook started using it at the day care. High protein, lots and lots of good benefits so........ we all eat it. That or frozen peas is what I use to get Jake to eat so he can have his meds.

 

Hugs and good thoughts for Gee.

[Guest Ola]

If you're doing a grain-free food I'd probably go with the carb source that is in there - they always have a carb, it's just not a grain (often one of the potatoes).

 

For pilling, I'm a big fan of hummus. You'd have to check the ingredients but normally it's chickpeas, a little garlic and tahini. You can make your own in a food processor too I think but hopefully store-bought would be ok. It's the only thing that works for my mixed breed because she spots pills in everything. Hummus is pretty sticky so she just keeps licking and swallows the pill too 99% of the time. She has seasonal allergies so right now is getting 10 pills/day.

[PrairieProf]

Mine is on TOTW and the few times I've fed her a bland diet (my vet doesn't recommend it despite people here being so focused on it, so I'm always torn) I've just used mashed potatoes -- with boiled ground beef. Potato and sweet potato are the main carbs in TOTW after all.

[Guest mcsheltie]

I always feed meat only as a bland diet. No grain, veggies or bones. I have found ground beef to work the best for GHs. Veggies add more fiber and are hard to digest. Not a good thing when a bland diet is needed.

 

Whether you want to go raw or cooked depends on the problem the dog is having. If you think their immune system is compromised going with cooked to start out with is the safest way to go. Cooked can be best also because fat can exacerbate diarrhea. So if you cook the meat you can run it under hot water and get rid of more fat.

 

It is easier on the gut to add calcium citrate or carbonate to the meat, than feed bones. But this is not needed if it is short term.

 

I would give a probiotic, about four hours after the antibiotic was given.

[TheFullHouse]

Thanks Heather & Jan for the suggestion of quinoa, Gee absolutely loved it. I mixed it with some chicken and chicken broth and she ate like a champ! It's the first time in a week she has actually looked excited and happy to even try and eat. Beth, the turkey hot dog trick worked! She got her meds on a full stomach!

 

Thanks everyone!

[FiveRoooooers]