Sick Dog Question– help, please?!

[ownedbyspencer]

Spencer is continuing to feel better today, so much so that he is resuming his picky ways. Dog food balls are a total bust– even heated. Those get nothing more than a disdainful sniff. We have a new favorite, which sounds pretty gross-- though not to Spencer. Tuna salad mac-n-cheese balls. I made tuna salad for lunch with egg whites (no yolk) and plain yogurt instead of mayonnaise. I mixed some of that with bread and some leftover mac and cheese and made tunaballs for Spencer. We have a winner! Tonight I went back to leftover chicken and veggie balls and bread balls with gravy. Doable, but not as good as the tunaballs. Surely he'll be back to eating like a regular dog soon. Though I'm not sure what I'll feed him, since he had gotten downright reluctant to eat kibble.

Last night, he wet the bed. That was a first. Not just a little bit, either, but a whole bladder full. He must have done it in his sleep, because he seemed quite shocked this morning. Though not as shocked as me. I'm hoping it was a one-time thing. The only other weird thing is that his teeth chatter after he drinks. I'm guessing all this is due to the infection, which he continues to fight.

As to your question about thrush, Sissy, we checked for that. But he is on antibiotics, so I'll keep an eye out for it. Thanks for mentioning it!

[Chealsie508]

I know nothing about fanconi restrictions so I'm asking purely to learn, are the satin balls too much protein for a dog affected? Just wondering… I assume from what I've read it will be extra hard to put weight on him because there are nutritional restrictions for fanconi dogs, is this correct?

[ownedbyspencer]

Yes, Chealsie, you're right. I have to manage a low protein diet with the need to put weight on him. I'm using veggies, rice and bread as filler, with lean cuts of meat and egg whites. It's not ideal, and I'm giving him more protein than I normally would, but he is really thin. It will take a while to get him back to a good weight. I'm feeding him five small meals a day right now, instead of the usual three, and hoping I don't screw it up!

I'm not sure what the satin balls are, but I'm going to search them. I'm interested to know.

[Chealsie508]

There's a recipe on the forum, and my memory may serve me wrong but I thought it was high protein based… Usually suggested on the boards to feed the males when the females are in heat and they don't eat...lol, when Oakley was out of the hospital he lost a few pounds and I considered making a batch but I opted to add bison to his meals, which is a lean protein, maybe you can add that to his new "meatballs" diet...

[ownedbyspencer]

Hmmm… I never thought of bison. That sounds like a very good idea! Where do you get it? In the meat department or is it frozen?

[svdreamer]

Another lean meat is ostrich. I can find ostrich here a lot easier than bison, which I have never seen.

[MacPack]

Chelsea, are you talking about satin balls? I have been looking for that recipe, high in fat but evidently very yummy and will put weight on quickly. I'll keep looking.

[tanza]

For the bed, get a water proof bottom sheet. For years with my elders I used them. Makes changing the bed, even in the middle of the night much easier. I got mine on line QVC. Well worth the cost

[MacPack]

Found it in the 'food' category, from 2010 post by Sharron Hurlburt:

SATIN BALLS
#10 of cheap hamburger meat
1 lg box of Total cereal (1 lb box in USA)
1 lg box of oatmeal (uncooked) (the 32 ounce in USA)
1 jar of wheat germ 10 eggs
1 1/4 c. veg oil
1 1/4 c. unflavored molasses
10 sm pks of unflavored gelatin
pinch of salt and garlic
mix all ingredients together well, much like a meatloaf… put into
separate freezer bags and freeze, thawing out as needed. I mixed it in
with kibble. Make "meat"
balls (golf ball sized) and mix with food as well.
Do not cook.

[ownedbyspencer]

@tanza:

For the bed, get a water proof bottom sheet. For years with my elders I used them. Makes changing the bed, even in the middle of the night much easier. I got mine on line QVC. Well worth the cost

That's good advice– thank you-- and I'll take it. Do you think this problem is likely to continue? Spencer has never wet the bed before. He woke me up to go out every hour all night long with the subQs, but last night he slept through the night-- and I found a wet bed in the morning. I was hoping it was just a fluke thing. Did your elders wet the bed every night when they got older?

[krunzer]

You should be able to get ground bison at a local butcher shop.

[ownedbyspencer]

@MacPack:

Found it in the 'food' category, from 2010 post by Sharron Hurlburt:

SATIN BALLS
Do not cook.

That doesn't sound half bad– if it were cooked, without kibble! So it's served raw, I guess, for dogs.

[ownedbyspencer]

@krunzer:

You should be able to get ground bison at a local butcher shop.

Thanks– I'll check it out! I thought bison was tough, but maybe not. Or maybe it's like jerky to a dog.

[Chealsie508]

Bison is a much leaner, less fat and healthier than ground beef.. You can find it in stop and shops and local grocery stores next to the hamburger meats, sometimes in the higher end meats section, you know, the organic steaks and better cuts of meat, it generally comes unfrozen in a ground form… Looks like hamburger meat but tasty and healthy. That's the only form I use, it has the texture of a ground turkey or hamburger- not tough at all!

Here's a link just to show you the package I use:

[Chealsie508]

Macpack- that's the thread I remember reading it from!! It's always hard to find something here when you want to!! Lol! Glad you found it

[agilebasenji]

It'd be easier if you'd just move to my neighborhood. I could tell you where to get bison from (could even show you where they live!), or I could just give you some longhorn burger that I have in the freezer. (the longhorn is about as lean as bison. I've never had to "drain the fat" as is called for in some recipes. Downside is that I have to add something for burgers to stick together) I have another 1/4 animal coming next month. Grass fed and delivered by the woman who raised it. Sometimes you can find local ranchers on craigslist or maybe ask at your local feed store. You will need a freezer, but it's much, much better meat than you find at the supermarket. I also have eggs from my neighbor. Don't know why his hens are still producing, just happy they are!

[nobarkus]

You can get Bison at Whole Foods Market. There are several in TN.

[dcmclcm4]

A dog with Fanconi Syndrome only needs to be on a low protein diet if it is in renal failure or going into renal failure. It is based on the blood tests-BUN and Creatinine.

I would wait until Spencer is over his illness and feeling better to have another blood test for the AKLP. Was the test result for the ALT normal? What about the other liver tests?

Jennifer

[ownedbyspencer]

@dcmclcm4:

A dog with Fanconi Syndrome only needs to be on a low protein diet if it is in renal failure or going into renal failure. It is based on the blood tests-BUN and Creatinine.

I would wait until Spencer is over his illness and feeling better to have another blood test for the AKLP. Was the test result for the ALT normal? What about the other liver tests?

Jennifer, his ALT was fine (50) and so were the other liver values. CREA was 1.9 (up from 1.6 in Sept) and BUN was 19. Only the ALKP was high, at over 2000 (up from 869 in Sept). Dr. Gonto recommended that I put Spencer on a lower protein diet after he had a seizure four years ago. I give him quality proteins in a moderate amount and watch the phosphorus, but I don't restrict him totally. He's tired of chicken and rice, so I'm going to have to broaden our culinary horizons. What do you feed Missy?

I can see that I've misjudged bison, so I'll have to look into that. Perhaps some fish, too. He hasn't been too interested in my culinary pursuits today. I'll try Muttloaf tomorrow. That's usually good for a day or so.

[ownedbyspencer]

@agilebasenji:

It'd be easier if you'd just move to my neighborhood. I could tell you where to get bison from (could even show you where they live!), or I could just give you some longhorn burger that I have in the freezer. (the longhorn is about as lean as bison. I've never had to "drain the fat" as is called for in some recipes. Downside is that I have to add something for burgers to stick together) I have another 1/4 animal coming next month. Grass fed and delivered by the woman who raised it. Sometimes you can find local ranchers on craigslist or maybe ask at your local feed store. You will need a freezer, but it's much, much better meat than you find at the supermarket. I also have eggs from my neighbor. Don't know why his hens are still producing, just happy they are!

Longhorn burger? Now that sounds tasty! Though the people at the University of Texas probably wouldn't think so.

Sometimes, we get good cuts at the farmer's markets, along with fresh veggies, but those are pretty much shut down until spring. I'll have to cozy up to the butcher at the grocery store and see what he recommends.