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my 3year old shizshu has been diagnosed with pancreas trouble he has lost a tremedous amount of weight he is drinking water but not eating willingly I have to feed him manually I have been advised to give him chicken fish and turkey pasta and rice and tinned food called ID it is nearly 3 weeks since he was diagnosed he is quite a lot brighter than he was enjoys his walks but his eating is causing me great concern this evening he stole 2 mini 'gravy bone biscuits and ate those in no time Can you advise please
Optional Information: Type of Animal: Shiz shu Gender: Male Age: 3 Name of Animal: Bobby Already Tried: feeding him manually with tinned ID food he won't eat willingly intavenous feeding at the vets great deal of weight loss fed him with a syringe chicken broth wont touch turkey,chicken or fish he stole 2 'gravy bone' biscuits from my other dogs bowl this evening and ate them in no time -
Hello, I'm sorry to hear about your fellow Bobby and I'd like to help.
The problem with diets for patients with pancreatitis is that they tend to be fairly bland and thus many dogs don't enjoy them.
I am very glad to hear that his attitude and activity level have returned to normal, those are excellent signs.
And the fact that he ate with relish the biscuits meant for your other pup tells me his appetite is good, it may just not be good for things that don't have much taste.
Is he still losing weight? If not and he has stabilized, even if he's still not where he was before he was sick, then I am much less concerned.
Now it's a matter of getting him interested in eating what is good for him. You can try mixing in sweet potatoes, squash, oatmeal, mashed white potatoes, pumpkin, green beans, zucchini and carrots. Pasta and white rice are also fine but I see that you've tried these and he's been less than excited about them. These all add flavor and calories, but not fat, so are safe. You can also try feeding him a different prescription diet called Purina Veterinary Diets OM. This is a high fiber food that some dogs prefer the taste of compared to Hills i/d. Perhaps he is missing crunchies and if that's the case offer him dry i/d or Purina Veterinary Diets OM.
You can also take canned i/d dog food, smash it together in a tight ball, roll it out and cut out shapes and bake it at 225F to 250F for 10 to 15 minutes to make "dog biscuits".
Let me know if you have further questions.
Experience: 19 years of experience treating cats, dogs, guinea pigs, hamsters, rats, mice, and iguanas
Thank you for this advice he is quite keen on mashed up potatoe so will try to introduce him to some of the foods you have mentioned his weight has stabilised at 6.4kg when he was taken ill he was 7.8kg Many thanks once again
You are very welcome. I am pleased to hear his weight loss has stabilized.
I know it's frustrating to see him not eating but the fact that his weight has stabilized means that you are doing a great job getting calories in. Maybe with a few mashed potatoes we can get him back to where he needs to be. He is lucky to have you. Best of luck with him.