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I have a two year old male yellow lab that has already had two obstruction surgeries. Both of these, Scout stopped eating and drinking and was vomiting. Last week we believe he ate a sock in which he has been eating on and off, he is drinking, peeing and is pooping. He wakes up every morning wagging his tail and is in good spirits, just lacking some energy on the days he doesn’t eat. He weighed 80 pounds on his previous checkup, yesterday we took him to our local vet, he weighed 70 lbs. The performed an x ray on him and said they believe it was a soft material that he swallowed and couldn’t determine if it was in his intestine or in his colon. While at the vet Scout was wagging his tail, holding the leash in his mouth as he usually does and ate about 20 treats. My vet charged me $360 and told me they recommend me to go to the animal hospital for an ultrasound to get a better idea of where this sock is located. I waited for 4 hours for them to tell me that they performed the ultrasound, it was somewhat inconclusive, his colon was enlarged and recommended exploratory surgery. I requested we wait to see if he will pass this. They kept him overnight, asked for an $800 deposit and called this morning saying that he was the same, and took x-rays to say it hasn’t moved. Your thoughts, suggestions or advice?
My question is about food for my cats and dogs.
Cats
Ive always been told to keep dry food out at all times so I do but I also feed them in the morning and at dinner with a mixture of wet and dry. They are all 6 years old and they are putting on weight. Should I take up the dry food so they don’t graze on it all day and just feed them their 2 meals a day. Is that enough?
Dogs
I have always fed my 13 year old once a day with a mixture of wet and dry and of course he gets tid bits from our plates through the day. Lol. He’s always been a healthy weight and seems very happy. I rescued a dog a year go that was a stray and she was 1. I kept dry food out for her all day, as suggested by my vet, and also feed her with her brother at diner time with the same mixture. I have recently taken up her dry food and only feed her once a day Now with the brother.
Am I doing the correct things for my animals. I don’t want to overindulge them and have them become overweight and have the many problems that come along with that. But i also don’t want them hungry. Not sure what to do.
Thanks
Hi there???? Personally, we feed twice a day, our cats and dogs both. They get fed in the morning after their first walk and then again in the evening after their last walk. We also only feed dry food. They do get small pieces of dog treat throughout the day for good behavior and training as well. If you are truly questioning your feeding habits though, I would speak with your vet for advice. Best of luck!
I agree with Sarah!
I agree with Sarah, as well. Never free feed, especially with multiple animals in the house. It’s hard to track who is eating what and who’s off their food. In addition, you may find it better for both dogs to feed twice a day, to keep their blood sugar even and their guts happy. (I have a breed prone to bile pukes if they aren’t fed twice daily.)
Hello,
For indoor overweight cats I recommend one 5 oz can of a high quality canned food per cat twice a day. I also say to add water. It will help them feel full and not add calories. Also limit how much dry food you offer and the type of dry food. There are lots of low calorie options available. I use these as snacks during the day.
For dogs I feed twice a day because they need calories twice a day and that way you know who is eating and how much. Which is super important if anyone gets sick or isn’t feeling well. I am a bit old. Fashioned. I like science diet. They have lots Of options and Are always affordable.
I recently adopted a 9 year old cat. He is very affectionate and loves to be pet but he won’t allow me to pick him up or hold him. I haven’t forced the issue, but someday he’s going to need a nail trim or medicine. How do I get him comfortable with being picked up and handled? The rescue paperwork notes the prior owner couldn’t pick him up either. He’s been to the vet and physically he is fine.
Hello,
I think a few things help. One and foremost, all good things happen in your presence. For example. Feeding happens near you. And should always be associated with you talking and being present. Next if you can touch him I would scruff and start to pet him to the point he relaxes so he is sort of forced to accept you. Now this is not a perfect plan. If he cannot be touched you should cage him and not allow him to hide and avoid you. My point is every cat is different and every persons expectation is different. If you want him to love you you have to prove to him that you are kind and loving and trustworthy. It means he doesn’t decide to avoid you. You decide to help him through his fears. Does this make sense?
Thank you for the response. He’s fine with everything but being picked up and held. I can pet him all over, rub his tummy, and play with his feet just don’t try and pick him up. He’ll sit on my lap for hours at a time and purr, it’s just when he feels 2 hands on him you can feel him tense up. I’ll give your suggestions a try.
Give it time. Lots of time. Mine wasn’t okay with it at first, either – it took him 6 months before I could pick him up, and another 2 years before he’d let me do nail trims without wrapping him in an afghan and pulling his legs out of the holes.
Hi, I have a 15 year old chihuahua named Peanut. He was diagnosed with IVDD on Sunday. He is able to stand for 30 seconds on his own and can walk a few steps before falling over. His right front leg and right back leg are the main limbs that knuckle over and give out when he stands. He can’t get himself to an upright standing position. He is currently on Gabapentin and galliprant. When the pain killers don’t have him knocked out he is crying and whimpering. He looks like he is pain and can’t get in a comfortable position . He is eating and drinking water. He is able to use pee and defecate on his own but most of the time does it while he’s laying down in his pen.
I feel so bad for him I’m honestly just crying all the time because it hurts to see him in pain and I feel helpless. I try and let him stand and walk for a few
Minutes a day with my support but should I be letting him walk? Or should I be trying to make him rest more? Also he doesn’t let me switch the side he lays on. He only lays on his right side . I know Dr. Krista said we need to switch the aside they lay on but he looks like he’s in more pain when I try to switch him to the left.
Any advice , thoughts, or feelings? I really just needed to not feel so alone in this.
Peanuts X-rays
Good morning-
I’m so sorry you are going trough this. Dr. Magnifico has a lot of videos regarding ivdd posted, and you might find them useful. Another thing to maybe try as far as getting him on his opposite side- when he has his pain killers in his system and is sleeping for close to it, perhaps gently maneuver him to the another side and see if that works any better. If he is not giving up, please don’t give up either. Best of luck to you both!!!!
Thank you so much for the advice! I’m going to continue to fight with him as long as he can. He still looks like he’s trying his hardest!
I work front desk at a vet and a client brought in a stray. No chip and shelters wouldn’t take her. She was going to be released outside since no one would home her and it’s so cold in VA.. so I took her in. I got her shots and tested for FIV, FeLuk, etc to know if she’s safe around my 10 yr neutered male cat. Then the vet said she seems to be pregnant but the ultrasound was inconclusive. But she definitely matches the description of “pinking” and has no hair around her nipples. But I have no idea how far along she is! Last week we didn’t see kittens on ultrasound but now they think she looks pregnant for sure. How do I know? Vet doesn’t want to stress her with more imaging. Also, what do I do when she goes into labor?? Will my male cat be okay around her? They’ve been ok the few times I’ve let them interact but will she change personality when she has kittens? Is she’s likely nicer now than she’ll be after just since she’s “nesting”? Is the stress too much to introduce her to my cat? She’s scratching through the door to get to the rest of the house so I’d like not to keep her cooped up 24/7. Also, when do I know labor is starting? Will she pick a place? How can I make that not be the bed or couch? Or can I cover them? And she eats like she’s STARVING! She looks so tiny to be pregnant.. I read you feed them all they want at a certain point; when is that? How much should I give her each stage? I have Hills ultimate care adult. I went ahead and got some Iams kitten food but when do I start mixing it in? I’m even more lost not knowing how far along she is. I’ve had her 1 week so at least that far along but I could use as much help as possible. Especially regarding labor. I know she’ll most likely do it all on her own but I see so much of what can go wrong working at a vet and I’d like to be prepared. I’ve attached pictures of her. Please help me help her.
Good morning-
She’s a cutie!! Seeing as you work at a vet’s office, I would ask my colleagues there. I’m sure your vets and the techs and other staff members are very happy that you have opened up your home to this kitty and would be happy to share their knowledge. I would start to introduce the two cats more often- the more comfortable they are together or around each other, the less stressful things will be all around. I would also keep an eye on where this new cat likes to settle down most often and put either a box with a blanket or some other nice nesting bed for her and hopefully she will use it. As far as knowing for sure about pregnancy- again I would talk to the vet. I am guessing another ultrasound and then maybe you can even count babies to see how many you might expect to have. Best of luck!????????
Thank you. I have been asking but I feel bad when they have busy days with surgery and so many clients. But I’ll keep asking. The only thing they did give an answer on already that you mentioned is ultrasound; said they don’t want to do another or even X-ray when she’s further along. They want to avoid stressing her out. Though in my opinion she doesn’t seem to mind. She’s very dog-like. Would rather get out of the house or she starts being destructive. They said I could board her there for thanksgiving since I’m leaving town and don’t know if she’ll be ready for labor. They’re helping me out like that but pinning down a vet or even a tech for a slew of questions is harder than you’d think. I appreciate your help! Have a good day!
Is a spay abort an option? If so, I’d go with that.
Hello,
I am very (extremely) concerned about e weight loss. In my opinion in a dog rhat age it is a huge red flag. It cannot be ignored and should absolutely put everyone on high alert that there is an issue. For this reason alone and the hyporexia I would say an exploratory is indicated after all other diagnostics have proven unhelpful.
In my experience nothing (absolutely nothing except maybe a ct or mri ) at helping to put answers together. I also think that if they don’t find a foreign body that biopsy samples are helpful to diagnose weight loss (the worry is cancer). The other diagnostic option is a barium study. It’s old school but helpful in gi cases.
Now I say all of that assuming there aren’t any budgetary constraints. If there are and a foreign body is on the list of possibilities I recommend an exam, cbc, and Chem panel and X-ray or ultrasound. If the patient is bright and active and eating drinking ambulating and NOT vomiting you can watch and wait as long as they remain acting and feeling normal. If they are vomiting or not acting like themselves the best to do is surgery. If surgery is not affordable call around and try to find a place it is more affordable. (For example it might be 4-6000 at a speciality hospital but 1-2000 at a general practice. If even this is not Affordable try a few days of intravenous fluids and lots of walking. Both keep the gut moving and help move stuff through. Hope this helps.