Food experts I really need your help

[lostshowfan86]

It seems indeed Zackie does have Pancreatitis and its not going anywhere.

The medicines just make him weaker and weaker.

He is having flair ups about every 6-8 weeks.

I'm scared out of my mind. I don't know what the odds are.

He gets real shaky now from time to time and literally has passed out on me 2times. When he gets shaky I get him to eat a few pieces of kibble (but I have to force him to do so at that point)

Anyways its time to think outside the box. IF the meds are just making him weaker maybe diet can help with the issue as well.

We currently feed California Naturals Low Fat Chicken and Rice. If I have to start making him homemade meals I will.

I asked about Probiotic enzymes and I never got any real answers (the vets office) Other than it probably won't do anything but you can try it.

So I need help I'm going into this blind.

I need to come up with a good diet for a dog with Pancreatitis something safe yet good for him.

Something that will help him.

Where do I start?

I've been doing some reading online but I'm still kind of lost

 

[Kathy29]

Start here: Pancreatitis | B-Naturals.Com Newsletter

and here: Onibasu.com :: [K9Nutrition] Re: Nutritional Support for Canine Pancreatitis?

I've never dealt with pancreatitis before, but I have used some of Lew's (b-naturals) guidelines when it came to feeding dogs with health issues and they have always worked for me.

If you home-cook, you do need to make sure that you're balancing the meals with calcium and Zackie gets a multivitamin supplement.

 

[corgipower]

He gets real shaky now from time to time and literally has passed out on me 2times. When he gets shaky I get him to eat a few pieces of kibble (but I have to force him to do so at that point)

That's not a symptom of pancreatitis.

But it could be a symptom of diabetes, and if the pancreas isn't functioning properly, they can have difficulty producing insulin.

 

[AnitaF]

Natural pet care

I found this site the other day about animal complementary and alternative medicine. Maybe you can find something on there to help.

 

[lostshowfan86]

Thank you

 

[grab01]

Also, in regards to the shakiness, if he's a small guy and isn't eating well, his blood sugar could be low.

Could you try a low fat canned food? My poodle mix didn't have pancreatitis according to bloodwork, but she goes through phases of symptoms exactly like it. She did well for the longest time on a bland canned food. She couldn't even have treats for the longest time. She's just now to the point where she can have the dry version of her food, and is still doing well.

 

[lostshowfan86]

Also, in regards to the shakiness, if he's a small guy and isn't eating well, his blood sugar could be low.

Could you try a low fat canned food? My poodle mix didn't have pancreatitis according to bloodwork, but she goes through phases of symptoms exactly like it. She did well for the longest time on a bland canned food. She couldn't even have treats for the longest time. She's just now to the point where she can have the dry version of her food, and is still doing well.

I'm weary of soft canned food. My dad had to put his maltese on it and within 1 year her teeth decayed so much that they started falling out and the rest had to be pulled. (she has some sort of anemia)

My poodle already has bad teeth (thank you bad breeding) and he is so young.

We do however wet his kibble to soften it.

 

[grab01]

I give plenty of chewies, so don't have any dental issues with the dogs. She had gross teeth when I adopted her, though, from 10 years of her owner feeding who knows what.

 

[ihartgonzo]

I'm weary of soft canned food. My dad had to put his maltese on it and within 1 year her teeth decayed so much that they started falling out and the rest had to be pulled. (she has some sort of anemia)

My poodle already has bad teeth (thank you bad breeding) and he is so young.

We do however wet his kibble to soften it.

Soft food is often blamed for dental diseases, but if you think about it, there is no reason for it to be any worse than kibble. When a dog chews on kibble, it does not clean their teeth. Healthy, safe chews (like bully sticks, pig/lamb ears, etc) and raw meaty bones scrape teeth clean, but crackers do not. Chewed up kibble actually cakes to their molars, which is the biggest cause of tartar. Soft food is much less likely to do so, plus it contains much more real meat than kibble. The key is buying a premium soft food, rather than the grocery store crud, and feeding appropriate chews and brushing the teeth to keep them healthy.

Have you been giving any digestive enzymes? My friend's dog has severe pancreatitis, and she is given enzymes with every meal, which has helped a LOT. She used to be a skeleton, but started gaining weight instantly with the help of enzymes.

I have also heard of raw working miracles for dogs with Pancreatitis. Just something to look into.

 

[Bailey08]

I second B-Naturals and K9 Nutrition as resources. I use B-Naturals's supplements, too -- the Digestion Blend would be well worth looking into (I use it for my guy, who has GI issues). Lew Olsen has been really helpful to me. I would also do a search on the dogaware.com site for more information about pancreatitis.

You may want to consider switching to home cooking (or raw if you're comfortable with it). I have found home cooking (and using supplements) to be quite helpful for my dog's health.

Some other, more expensive, options are seeing an internal medicine specialist and/or consulting a holistic vet and/or nutritionist (to help balance your dog's meals if you cook). I know I'm going beyond the scope of your original question, but having just dealt with an veterinary office that chose to treat symptoms rather than figure out an underlying cause (which we're now fairly confident is IBD), I would suggest that you consider consulting another expert if you feel that your concerns aren't being addressed (I want to kick myself for going along with a vet's advice for too long).