Oakley-emergency surgery

[tanza]

How is baby boy doing? Hope that things are going well and that he is healing well… positive thoughts that all is well!

[Chealsie508]

Thanks everyone. Buddy's Pal: I say all the time that he chose me and that while I didn't necessarily get the dog I wanted ( in the beginning) I got the dog I needed. He taught me to live life again after my relationship ended..I waited three years/seasons and all the while expected a red and white girl and I got a black and white boy
Wouldn't trade him for a million bucks, not that I believe anyone who take him much less pay

We are one week out from surgery, today was the first day unsupervised and he is doing much better. He's passed the safety zone for anything surgically to go wrong, and at the point where the "outside" stitches can't be reopened. Another few days of medications (were down to 3 pills + 1 syringe a day which is great–>no more 6ams)..he has been home since Saturday night and has pooped 8 times successfully..which is great considering the vet thought he'd go three or four days without going at all!
Just switched to regular Fromms kibble from boiled hamburger and rice..can't wait to be able to plump him up..poor baby is down to a measily 19 lbs from his 23.5 average; I'm afraid people will think I'm starving or mistreating him!

Appetites great, he is resting his belly and seems to know he needs to spend more time healing, I'm very proud of him

P.S. thanks for the mini marshmallow suggestion: works great for the larger pills I can't hide in his food!

[QuizBasenji]

Hooray! So pleased for you both!

[krunzer]

Great news to hear!

[DebraDownSouth]

Glad things are progressing!

[Chealsie508]

Any ideas on what to feed him to get him to gain back the almost 5lba he lost?? We're finally back on his kibble from his boiled bland diet..he currently gets Fromms kibble but I'm trying to think of ways to add or substitute to help him out…thinking of adding a little broth to the meal, giving tuna occasionally..I've tried veggies but he's picky
I'll try cooked sweet potatoes, steamed green beans but those were a past fail...I'm thinking of cooking a variety of meat/poultry to add to the kibble, bison, chicken..I could try fish but I gather it's not his favorite..but the actual "bulking up" part is harder to grasp...I feel like I'm just diversifying his meals and not adding good weight potential.. Is it more beneficial to gaining weight if I give him the meat/poultry raw? Or is it better and safer (to his recovery) if I cook it?

[eeeefarm]

Vegetables are good for him but won't add weight. You want calorie dense meals. I wouldn't worry about putting the weight back on quickly, but one way would be to just add another feeding (rather than feeding more at each meal), if you are/were happy with the food you currently use.

[krunzer]

….I know donuts always make me gain weight!!......lol.

[Chealsie508]

Haha..if I start giving him donuts then I'm sure one or two will slip onto my plate! Lol

Perhaps munchkins!

[krunzer]

@Chealsie508:

Haha..if I start giving him donuts then I'm sure one or two will slip onto my plate! Lol

Perhaps munchkins!

I had to google munchkins….they are the American equivalent of TimBits! Too funny. Maybe you could feed him three times a day? Not munchkins, but another meal of kibble.

[Chealsie508]

Lol- when I wrote munchkins I realized you were from Canada and was pretty sure I should have clarified!!! Lol, too funny!

For those who don't know, munchkins are mini donuts, in a ball form…it's like a mini indulgment of the larger more unhealthy version

[Chealsie508]

And yes, I think I'll add an egg to breakfast and some chicken or fish to dinner but also give a "lunch"..I'm sure he is looking forward to all the extras and is likely hoping it will take a long time before he gains the weight!! For him the longer the better, for me..I can't stab seeing his ribs and spine and how tiny his tucked middle looks..poor muffin..

[Chealsie508]

Talk about having shot nerves! Yesterday I had to stay home because Oakley started vomiting at 2 am and continued til about 2:30 in the afternoon. Went to the vet at 3:30 because I was worried about this having something to do with his surgery..turns out it kinda did. Oakley hasn't had regular stools since I switched him from his bland diet to his regular food so finally on Monday I realized his system just wasn't going to reset; I called the vet to see if I could start back at square one with the bland diet of boiled chicken and rice..plan was to do that and give a little yogurt to give him back some good probiotics/bacteria and if his stool returned to normal then continue for a week then very very slowly (5days slow) transition back to his food and see if he could handle it..unfortunately we only got two meals of chicken and rice before the throwing up commenced; turns out his tummy is still uber sensitive and the switch again made him sick. They gave him two shots, one for nausea and the other for coating his stomach. He hasn't thrown up since and today I'm at work hoping for the best when I return; he was starving yesterday and I was only able to give him ONE TBSP last night around 10, he looked real pissed off at me, can't blame him as I'm still trying to get him to gain back all the weight he lost (he got down to 19.5 lbs and is currently at 20.4- he's normally 24)

I think I'm getting gray hairs from all of this..lol

Moral of the story: always have wine and whiskey on hand!

[tanza]

Have you asked about add this to his food - FortiFlora, I get it on Amazon.com

http://www.purinaveterinarydiets.com/Product/FortiFloraCanineNutritionalSupplements.aspx

[ownedbyspencer]

I've been wondering about Oakley and was hoping you would update us. Poor little guy. I'm sorry he's still having issues. It's sad when they get thin like that. And, yes, they will turn you gray in no time. And drive you to drink, too!

The vet gave me FortiFlora for Spencer. He wouldn't touch food with it sprinkled on it, but the vet said most dogs don't mind the taste. I've heard good things about it.

Pls keep us posted on Oakley's progress.

[Chealsie508]

I totally forgot about FortiFlora, I'll call up my vet and see if I get the green light to add it. I hoped he would be able to work himself out but his system is just not adjusting…I can tell he eats his food and it will be a shame if I have to switch because he can no longer handle the Fromms post surgery...I so badly want this over for him; he's had a tough month and I cannot wait to be able to shovel food at him without worry...

[tanza]

My guys have no problem eating the FortiFlora, but I don't just sprinkle it on the top of the food, mix it in with the kibble, little water, and a little wet food…..

[stash]

Seems that Basenji have sensitive stomachs to start with, when starting Kaiser on raw every new meat I introduced seemed to upset him for a day or two then he was fine, after he had goat tripe and that totally upset him out the back end it took a good two days to settle his stomach again so no goat tripe for him. Had to starve him for 24 hours to help his stomach reset and that was so sad so really feel for you and Oakley as mums worry about their kids eating enough and find it really hard withholding food. Sounds like it will be very slow and easy with his tummy until it wants to get back to normal, hang in there you can spoil him with yummies when he's tip top again.

[Buddys Pal]

This recipe is for a dog needing to gain weight (I keep it handy so I can copy/paste) it may be better than munchkins!!!!!

SATIN BALLS
#10 of cheap hamburger meat
1 lg box of Total cereal (1 lb box in USA)
1 lg box of oatmeal (uncooked) (the 32 ounce in USA)
1 jar of wheat germ 10 eggs
1 1/4 c. veg oil
1 1/4 c. unflavored molasses
10 sm pks of unflavored gelatin
pinch of salt and garlic (may not….)
mix all ingredients together well, much like a meatloaf... put into
separate freezer bags and freeze, thawing out as needed. I mixed it in
with kibble. Make "meat"
balls (golf ball sized) and mix with food as well. So sorry to hear of the backslide for his tummy! Yes, the grey hairs abound! I am dealing with grass allergies (i think) but will switch foods again.............scratching and gooey eyes. Vet appointment very soon! and wine bottles!

[Chealsie508]

Anyone have any good suggestions on a high quality lower/ less rich dry dog food?? Since the surgery oakleys had diarrhea and after many bouts of Flagyl we had to stop the fromms altogether ( sad for me bc I like it a lot)…and he is on the ID diet. I have noticed that while he is gaining weighty and his stools are firm he is itchy, shakes his head/ears all the time and is getting flaky and dry skin. I know the point of the ID diet is to be less allergenic/reactive but I swear he is having a reaction to it. I tried after a month and a half to add just ten or twenty tiny nibbles of fromms into his ID and he immediately had soft stool the next time

I think the avg protein is 24%, I'm not sure if the protein is the issue or if its overall just too rich.. Either way, I really want him to get off of the ID since I'm so sure his allergy symptoms are related. Any advice would be greatly appreciated and looked into! I like the idea of orijen but I know the protein content is higher so I'm not sure if that'll be a bad idea or if its worth a shot bc it's not fromms??

Help please?!