What Food Can Your Dog Not Resist?

[Loving my Oldies]

I feel for you it's so difficult when they just won't eat.

Thinking of you and Danny

I think from now on that I just have to see all this as part and parcel of Life with Danny. He is elderly, has a medical condition and will have his good days and bad days ---- and I mustn't slip up on giving him his medication because I can't get out of bed :o .

He has had another 1/2 container of "slurry" and a few pieces of kibble which I'd put down for Jeune. (Bunter and Tamar were at the groomers.)

[Loving my Oldies]

It is extraordinary that it is only three days since I last posted - seems like ages.

Danny and I are still on a roller coaster. It isn't as crazy as it was and there is no doubt that he is somewhat better. He rarely throws up and on a couple of days in the past few, he has eaten what I would consider almost normal sized meals. I no longer shudder when I stroke his back and feel the ridge of his backbone.

The syringing of food didn't last long as he was finding it very stressful. The last time I tried, he saw the syringe and ran away .

The food that has been most successful is Natural Balance so thank goodness for Trinabean's recommendation in another topic as I would never have known about it. I've also had a bit of success with Eucanuba Intestinal Kibble - mentioning these for anyone who might be having similar difficulties.

He is now on a appetite stimulant (Periactine) but as this is a tablet, we are now back to why I started this thread in the first place . The only thing that gets a tablet down (even a small one) is peanut butter, but although he enjoys that, he always throws it up, so not much of the tablet can be getting through . This is given twice a days and he doesn't throw up the evening's tablet. I think mornings aren't good for him and I have started giving him his medications later.

The main thing, I think, and hope, is that we are no longer going backwards or even standing still. I am pretty sure we are making progress.

Thanks to Steve's input, I have started him on Aloe Vera as well.

Edited November 8, 2014 by Dame Danny's Darling

[Stressmagnet]

I'm so glad to hear something positive. This is hard to imagine and you must be so frantic. My thoughts are with you and thanks for the update.

[Loving my Oldies]

Thank you, Stressmagnet. I couldn't have done it without the help of my local vet. SASH vet has been verging on useless. She even sent me an email suggesting (more like implying) that I wasn't able to give Danny the care he required simply because I'd said that I felt that the number of times Danny had to be medicated each days was exhausting him (and me).

My vet rings every couple of days to check how we are doing and even rang me yesterday (Sunday) for an update. I asked him a question about Aloe Vera and, despite being pretty sure of his answer, he still took time to check the literature to be 100% sure. How terrific is that?

One of the best things is that the number of times for medications has been cut back, so we have only six lots of syringing of medications per day and one of them can be mixed up into the Aloe Vera .

Even typing all that makes me feel a bit hysterical, .

Edited November 9, 2014 by Dame Danny's Darling

[VizslaMomma]

Thank you, Stressmagnet. I couldn't have done it without the help of my local vet. SASH vet has been verging on useless. She even sent me an email suggesting (more like implying) that I wasn't able to give Danny the care he required simply because I'd said that I felt that the number of times Danny had to be medicated each days was exhausting him (and me).

My vet rings every couple of days to check how we are doing and even rang me yesterday (Sunday) for an update. I asked him a question about Aloe Vera and, despite being pretty sure of his answer, he still took time to check the literature to be 100% sure. How terrific is that?

One of the best things is that the number of times for medications has been cut back, so we have only six lots of syringing of medications per day and one of them can be mixed up into the Aloe Vera .

Even typing all that makes me feel a bit hysterical, .

It's not just terrific but also a boost for you as you try to look after Danny.

Great to have a caring professional having your back.

Paws crossed Danny continues to improve.

:D

[Loving my Oldies]

Frankly, VizslaMomma, Danny and I would have been up s**t creek had it not been for my local vet, Angus Martin at Hornsby.

[CavsRcute]

Frankly, VizslaMomma, Danny and I would have been up s**t creek had it not been for my local vet, Angus Martin at Hornsby.

You certainly cannot get any better vet than Angus :D :D

He is a caring, knowledgeable and empathetic man.

He was so kind to me over 8 years and when Lani passed away.

Glad that he has been with you on this long journey and that Danny is going OK.

[Loving my Oldies]

CavsRcute, I've forgotten which dog/s I had with me at the time, but I remember Angus and I both sitting on the floor in the consulting room a couple of years ago. I still laugh to myself about it.

I have just come back from being out shopping for a couple of hours and because Woolies is geting all their Christmas hams and whatnot in, they'd moved the cat mince that Danny has taken an intermittent liking to, so I bought a couple of packs of human grade mince.

Of course, I couldn't wait to see whether he would take to it, so cooked it all up (I cook all his mince now, very very lightly until just brown), gave the others a bit and put Danny's in front of him.

Well, he won't need a feed tonight!! :thumbsup: He ate and ate and ate. I was beginning to think I'd have to take the bowl away :laugh: , but he eventually stopped. He looks fine, too, not as though he has pains anywhere. Yee Ha !!! :cheer:

Edited November 10, 2014 by Dame Danny's Darling

[grumpette]

I am rapt that you and Danny are making progress.

There is nothing worse than the food battle, especially when you have to give medication with it. The fantastic feeling you get when they eat well is amazing. Better than winning money.

May you both continue to move forward and to have really good days together.

[VizslaMomma]

Yay!!!

[Loving my Oldies]

LOL Grumpette, I would not say no to winning some money. :laugh: :laugh: I'd hire a Nanny for Danny ....... .......

[tdierikx]

Specialists aren't usually known for their bedside manner... be that for human or animal patients...

I've always found that once you find a vet that can understand that your pet is also your best friend and devoted companion, they will tend to go that extra mile to make the processes relating to their care less traumatic for everyone.

T.

[Loving my Oldies]

Well after a while of thinking we were making small progress, we have had the huge vomits this morning. :cry:

Danny was very very tired and so I gave him his first medication while he was still half asleep. A little while later he appeared in the kitchen and I gave him his second. Tried to give him a pill in lite cream cheese, refused and then threw up.

I went into the bedroom to make the bed and found he'd been violently ill bringing up just about everything he'd eaten yesterday including pieces of undigested roo jerky. He loves roo jerky and I thought it would be okay being lean. Chewing on a piece can keep him occupied and happy for ages.

The vomit episode was obviously after I'd been up because it was all over my side of the bed. He hasn't been sick like this for a couple of weeks.

Back to the vet.

[persephone]

poor old fella

[Loving my Oldies]

I know Persephone. The other evening while I cleaned up in the kitchen I actually had to barricade him out. His need to stand as close to me as possible and is becoming a health hazzard for me :D . At all other times, I try to give him as much attention as possible.

I know people can be very quick to say "dementia", but simply from my own experience with lots of old dogs, I don't know that it is all that common. Most of the behavioural changes we see I think can be attributed to just old age. However, I sometime wonder about Danny. But then when I see him starting into space, I think, well, I do that, I walk into a room and find I've forgotten what I was going to do. So I think that Danny is just really feeling his years.

Mind you, you wouldn't think that when we go to bed and he start leaping around trying to hump Jeune - LOL.

I wish I knew how to load videos from my phone as I have a couple of goodies.

[JulesP]

I know Persephone. The other evening while I cleaned up in the kitchen I actually had to barricade him out. His need to stand as close to me as possible and is becoming a health hazzard for me :D . At all other times, I try to give him as much attention as possible.

I know people can be very quick to say "dementia", but simply from my own experience with lots of old dogs, I don't know that it is all that common. Most of the behavioural changes we see I think can be attributed to just old age. However, I sometime wonder about Danny. But then when I see him starting into space, I think, well, I do that, I walk into a room and find I've forgotten what I was going to do. So I think that Danny is just really feeling his years.

Mind you, you wouldn't think that when we go to bed and he start leaping around trying to hump Jeune - LOL.

I wish I knew how to load videos from my phone as I have a couple of goodies.

Has he had his liver checked? Bile readings? A lot of the stuff he is doing is so much like Amber. The food issue and just general weird stuff that was caused by the HE.

[Loving my Oldies]

I know he has had his lived checked, but I don't recall anything being said about bile. What is HE, JulesP?

[JulesP]

HE is Hepatic Encephalopathy. Basic it is a bunch of weird symptoms that occur when the liver doesn't do its job of removing toxins from the blood. Staring into space is a common symptom.

http://www.doglivershunt.com/hepatic-encephalopathy.html

[Loving my Oldies]

Thanks JulesP. I think I might have put to much emphasis on the staring into space . He doesn't quite do that, it was just my way of saying sometimes I think he is off in his own mind somewhere. For instance, he will stand on the top of the back steps and have a random barking session - although the other dogs do that too - and as the neighbour doogs chat back, it does encourage him. But I will ask my vet about it, because I know there were some confusing liver tests results.

I might ask them whether we should do some more tests.

[Loving my Oldies]

Because I had to fly up to Queensland (funeral) and back yesterday, I left Danny at the vets so he could be watched and given his medications.

Due to suggestions here and on FB, I left a list of questions and "maybes" for my vet, particularly about his liver as I recalled the tests from some weeks ago proved somewhat inconclusive.

One of the things I asked, JulesP, was whether it might be worthwhile redoing the tests.

I didn't get home until 10pm last night and he was back home with the others and happy as a pig in mud so I think he must have enjoyed the attention.

Edited November 23, 2014 by Dame Danny's Darling