Low Fat Food Ideas For A Dog With Pancreatitis

[Guest Shermanator]

Miss Travel was diagnosed with pancreatitis. We are supplementing her kibble with chicken and rice, but I need ling term food ideas so this doesn't happen again. I want to supplement her kibble with a little wet foos to entice her to eat, since she's not a big eater to begin with. What I really need are treats. She loooooves puperoni, but they are too high in fat for her right now. She's also decided she isn't into the normal biscuits we give her anymore, so I am looking for treat ideas. Thanks!

[PrairieProf]

Beth has been on I/D kibble and canned since a pancreatitis scare years ago and loves it and does great. I put a quarter can on her kibble every meal as a topper.

She loves low fat cottage cheese too.

Many commercial baked dog treats are low fat, just read the nutritional analysis. I try to stick with stuff under 6% fat if I'm going to feed it frequently. Also banana, applesauce, low fat yogurt, rice cakes, canned pumpkin, etc. etc.

Edited November 23, 2014 by PrairieProf

[Guest Shermanator]

What is I/D stand for? Thanks!

[JohnF]

Try Royal Canin Gastro-Intestinal low fat veterinary diet.

 

Their vet recipies are always palateable. Peggy thinks their non-low fat GI diet is one opf her favourite things.

[PrairieProf]

I/D is Hill's Prescription I/D. You have to get it through your vet. It is very expensive but works very well for GI issues -- my dog doesn't HAVE to be on it but it has been a much better food for her than anything else so we stick with it. It is pretty commonly recommended for post-pancreatitis dogs. There is also an extra lowfat version of I/D but we don't use that.

 

The Royal Canin mentioned above is another brand version of the same idea. Purina also makes a line of prescription diets, I think EN may be their gastrointestinal one. Your vet will probably carry one line or the other, so if you want to try that option it makes sense to go with what your vet stocks (and endorses for your dog). You should definitely be talking with your vet about dietary recommendations.

Edited November 23, 2014 by PrairieProf

[Hubcitypam]

As far as treats - try freeze dried liver. It doesn't look that yummy but they love it and it is low fat.

 

when Poodle almost died from pancreatitis and then became diabetic I flat out told my vet that I was not feeding Any Hill's cellulose laden overpriced food. They used to list the cellulose on several of their products as peanut hulls but changed that about 5 years ago. Cellulose is plant fiber and can be sawdust, peanut hulls or even cotton in the broad sense.

 

I know people swear up and down by Hills and it is scientifically formulated, but I just can't wrap my mind about how by-product meal as the only meat source is a by product and third or fifth on the list behind a bunch of filler can really be all that great.

 

i/D dry - corn, rice, egg, chicken by product meal, corn gluten meal, cellulose - 13.9% fat.

w/D dry - corn, cellulose, corn gluten meal, chicken liver flavor, chicken by product meal. 8.7% fat.

i/D wet - 8.5% fat

Natural Balance Reduced Calorie Ultra Dry - chicken, chicken meal, potato fiber, rice bran, tomato pomice. 8% fat

Natural Balance Reduced Calorie canned - chicken broth, chicken, salmon, chicken liver, brown rice. 4% fat.

[Guest Houston1219]

I make all natural plant-based treats she might enjoy! Cheaper than competitors as well! Dehydrated sweet potatoes (as well as squash) are sweet yet savory,and they are quite fun for them to chew. Feel free to PM me for details!

 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/naturalhound?ref=hdr_shop_menu

[RedHead]

Unless it is chronic, most dogs with pancreatitis can return to their normal diet (assuming it was not too high in fat to begin with) once they recover. Of course, you will always want to be aware of fats, but really low fat diets can cause some issues in the long run as well. I had a dog with chronic pancreatitis in the past who I started on a homemade diet after kibble wasn't working. Some of the stuff I used was rice and chicken (chicken and turkey are both low in fat if you remove the skin), as well as whitefish and low fat dairy like cottage cheese and yogurt. You can also try mashing up sweet potato or other starchy foods if your dog will eat them.

 

Coconut oil is a great fat supplement for pancreatitis because it is one of the few fats that does not require the pancreas to secrete enzymes for digestion. Some of the prescription diets use it as a fat source.

 

Here is a great article:

http://dogaware.com/articles/wdjpancreatitis.html

Edited November 24, 2014 by RedHead

[Burpdog]

Kibble: Solid Gold holistique Blendz is the lowest fat content made in a kibble that I have found (6%). Shadow did well on it for months.

 

Canned is very low fat so you can choose most any brand/kind and mix it in.

 

Treats: apple chips, pitted dates, rice cakes and Burpdog biscuits

 

I've been keeping Huston's fat content down to 12% and lower and so far, he's doing well. There are many foods that are at 10% and 12% fat and are good kibbles: Organix weight management is 10%, Solid Gold Hundenflocken is 10%, Solid Gold Mmellenia is 12%, BilJac kibble reduced fat 10%

 

Jodie was put on a homemade diet and did very well. I agree with Redhead, if it's not chronic, you can go back to a diet reasonable in fat. Some of the kibbles are way too high at 16%+ in fat.

[ilmg]

My 8-year-old was hospitalized with 2 serious bouts of pancreatitis this summer, possibly triggered after receiving her first (and last) long-acting steroid injection for recurring GI inflammation. We just drove from MA to Florida and she is now fighting another serious bout, maybe due to stress of travel and change. Also, her immunity is very compromised from chronic carbon monoxide poisoning (see note below).

 

Diet:

She's been on Natural Balance Rabbit and Potato kibble & canned (after not doing well on ID, she did better on Royal Canine Rabbit--much healthier BMs). She's in a lot of pain and avoiding her food, especially kibble. Local Vet suggested I cook this for her instead, and she did eat it this a.m. -- yummy, I like it too!

 

Add to 1 carton of low-sodium chicken broth (4 cups):

• 3 large sweet potatoes cut into cubes (skin on), bag of frozen peas, and bag of frozen cut green beans.
• Boil then mash. Add/mix 1 can pumpkin.
• Boil 1 chicken breast, cut into cubes.
• Add chicken breast cubes to 1 cup of mixture. Feed 3x/day. Advised to add vitamins after she's improved.

 

Has your dog had adverse reactions to Tramadol, Metoclopramide, Cisapride and other meds prescribed for pancreatitis? Helpful history & tips appreciated!

 

Medications:

Soloxine .08 mg, 2x/day (cardiac/lethargy). Previously did okay on 1 1/2 Tramadol 50 mg tabs every 6-8 hours. However, since starting her late yesterday on 100 mg. Tramadol every 6 hours, along with Metoclopramide 10 mg., she becomes agitated, pants, and zooms around, tossing her animals and biting things--even trots throughout a short walk--behavior never displayed when healthy. She also started Cisapride this a.m. This reaction lasts 2+ hours. She previously ran around crying for 8 hours after taking Buprenorphine for pain but not Tramadol--maybe 100 mg is too much? Or maybe it's the Metoclopramide?

 

Note:

Compromised immunity due to 4+ months of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning caused by a leak in my vented natural gas fireplace. Leak went undetected until a neurologist told me to check my home environment after learning that both my dog and I had been ill for months. Still recovering with lingering effects and setbacks, we are very grateful and lucky to be alive.

Lessons learned: CO sensors are programmed to only last 5-7 years, depending on when your alarm was made. My 6-year-old First Alert hardwired talking CO/Smoke detector's last recorded CO reading was 77 ppm but never alarmed. First Alert said that detectors made before 2011 have sensors that only last 5 years. Those made 2011 and later are good for 7 years. Although low levels of CO can make you very ill, most alarms don't go off until 70 ppm.

Please do: Even when batteries are replaced annually and detector alarms okay when "tested" the sensors may be bad. Tell everyone to look up the lifespan of their specific brand/model, learn what the "end of life" alert is (ex: # of beeps) and check the date noted on the back of their CO detector. If 5 to 7 years has passed, replace all detectors at the same time. While more expensive, consider getting a low level CO detector.

Smoke detectors need to be replaced every 10 years.

[krissn333]

Sutra had chronic pancreatitis but had an acute bout where he was very sick. Once I got him eating again (mashed potatoes mixed with vanilla Ensure, syringe-fed for a little while, then later added cottage cheese, plain oatmeal, turkey baby food once he would eat on his own) , the first kibble I put him on was Solid Gold Wolf King. Their Holistique Blendz is a good food too, but, the protein content in the Holistique Blendz is lower than the Wolf King. The Wolf King is low in fat without being low in protein. He needed the protein to gain his muscle back (he was skin and bones when I got him).

[CharlieRhea]

I'm with Hubcitypam

Natural Balance is a decent food and not filled with fillers as Science Diet is.

i fed the sweet potato venison formula for allergies but added canned. Canned will at least up the protein in the Natural Balance. It was sold out last year? So hopefully it is still a good food.