Hello all–
My basenji, Kona, is 4 years old. Earlier this year, he started to get skinny although I didn't see it right away. I was petting him and I felt his ribs. I thought maybe I was petting him too hard, but I looked down and could actually see them. He began to have very runny diarrhea, and often. I took him to the vet and they did some x-rays and saw a large pocket in his stomach. He was also dehydrated, so they gave him two sub-dermal fluid injections which supposedly disappeared more quickly than normal.
I love Kona very much, so I opted for exploratory surgery. Inside, they found stuffing from a dog toy, rotting food, some kind of green cloth, and a few bits of plastic (I assume it's part of a toy, but who knows). All of this blockage was preventing Kona to digest food properly, and he couldn't absorb nutrients either. This is the cause for the dehydration, weight-loss, diarrhea, and sluggishness.
This mass of blockage was removed and Kona recovered like a normal dog. The doctor took interest in Kona and took the time to personally call me every few days to see how he was doing.
Kona eats well, is active, has regular bowel movements, and seems brighter-eyed and happier. However, he's still skin and bones. I also have a miniature schnauzer, and she weighs more than he does... it should be the other way around.
I asked the vet whats going on, and he said that as long as Kona doesn't vomit or lose any weight, everything is fine and it will just take time. It has been 6-months and he's still the same.
Before surgery, he had also lost some muscle mass as well. I am not allowed to give him any kind of physical activity until he gains weight, so that is a slow re-building process as well.
Also, Kona also has more accidents inside the house. I am not home during the day and I sometimes work late, so I often come home to large piles and/or puddles on the floor. He used to be well-trained, but when I got my schnauzer puppy, he went into a "if she can do it, I can do it" phase. My schnauzer (Jada) is very very well house-trained, but Kona needs to be re-trained. Its been a long time, and I don't know what to do. As you all know, Basenjis can be quite stubborn. He's a wonderful dog, but I need to get him to stop using the carpet as a toilet. He generally tells me when he needs to go outside, but the problem is when I'm not home.
Does anyone have any advice on either issue? I could really use some help.
I attached some pics of Kona and Jada his "sister". You can see how he used to look vs. his skin and bones.
And poor you!
