As 2008 was about to dawn, my husband and I headed out of town for a 5 night getaway. We grappled with taking Sadie with us, but decided against it. We returned January 5, and my mother-in-law remarked that Sadie had not eaten her hard food the previous day. Now that was odd! Ever since Sadie’s trouble with bladder stones, she was on a dog food-only diet. Her “treats” were actually baked soft food and she never knew the difference. She loved her “kibbles” and she and I had a nightly feeding routine. She would come up to me, get my attention, and hit me when she was ready for me to hand feed her, piece-by-piece. Some nights she even barked at me. I loved it! She showed her love to each of us in different ways, and this late-night feeding was “our thing.” She also had a habit several times a day of playing “kibbie ball.” She would take the hard food, throw it up in the air, play with it, dance on it, and throw it across the floor before eating it. For her not to eat her hard food was out of the ordinary, to say the least. The whole reason she landed up with us in the first place was because she loved food so much! We thought perhaps with my husband’s illness and us being away, that maybe she didn’t feel up to it.
She was very glad to see us, but she did not eat her hard food again the next day. Over the next two days she would also stop eating her treats. What’s going on? She’s just been given a clean bill of health mere weeks before! Now, I must pause her to say that there would be the odd day out where Sadie would not eat; she had little vomiting episodes whenever something didn’t agree with her, but to snub all food completely was out of character. So we tried fish. And she ate it. But then lost it. We called the vet and they suggested we try chicken and rice. She loved that. On Jan. 9, my husband awoke with searing pain; we rushed him to the ER and discovered he had torn a muscle in his neck. It was one of those seasons in our lives where it was literally one thing after another. Sadie came back home from my in-laws' the next day. She was eating chicken and rice, but nothing else. I was somewhat comforted that she was at least eating, but I knew that long-term chicken and rice were not providing her with all the nutrients she needed. On Jan. 13, we took Sadie to the vet. Blood work and a urinalysis were done to check for infection. Baytril was given “just in case” there was infection. Sadie continued to eat the chicken and rice until on the 17th, she discovered that I was trying to trick her into taking the Baytril. She was not happy. And she didn’t want to eat any more chicken after that. We could entice her here and there with various things, but nothing steady. The blood work showed an elevated platelet count (654), monocytes (1056), BUN (41), Creatnine (1.8), and low glucose (55), albumin (2.3), with all other values normal.
On Jan. 21 we took Sadie back to get a sterile urine sample. Test came back fine. On the 23rd, my husband and I had to go out of town for a couple of days while he had tests at a major hospital. She woke up and wouldn’t eat. We thought perhaps she was depressed because she saw our luggage. My in-laws gave her an egg, peanut butter, and soda crackers, all of which were vet-recommended. On the 24th, she ate non-drained ground turkey, but she threw it up. I know I’m giving a log of her eating history, blood work, and dates, but when she was ill those types of data would have helped me greatly.
My husband’s tests went wonderfully. To make a long story short, the surgery he was facing was no longer needed. God had worked miracle after miracle on his behalf. So we were relieved for his sake, but when we returned home on the 25th, Sadie had not eaten that day and my father-in-law thought her stool was black and tarry. Something had to be done. This habit of eating sporadically had been going on for exactly three weeks, and Sadie’s muscle mass was deteriorating quickly.
In upcoming posts, after Sadie’s story is completely told, I want to offer tidbits of helpful advice for those who are going through a pet’s illness. So I will save those types of comments for the future. But for now, I want to note that in retrospect, those first 3 weeks were crucial. Yes there were several other crises going on in both our lives concurrent with Sadie’s illness, but had I been able to keep her from losing muscle mass early on, it would have been so beneficial. Our vet recommended several “special” recipes, which I tried. She wouldn’t eat them. I later learned of a pork roast recipe that many dogs with a poor appetite will eat. Later on in the illness, Sadie would eat a little turkey bacon. Some days I would cook for hours trying to make something --- anything she would eat. It was tough. Had I known how helpful small syringes were in feeding a dog, I would have used them during those weeks, filled with yogurt, baby food or cereal mixed with crushed vitamins. PediaLite also helps replenish electrolytes lost through vomiting and diarrhea.
At the time we were doing all we could. We were advised to visit other veterinarians; however, we trusted our clinic to be there for us when we needed them. Their bedside manners cannot be beat. Still, it felt like we weren’t getting anywhere. This was more than Sadie just being moody. If I had known about such a thing as a veterinary teaching hospital, I would have taken her there the first week. But I did not know. I did the best I could with the information I had at the time. We took Sadie to the vet within two hours of returning to town. The question had to be answered: What was wrong with Sadie?
She was very glad to see us, but she did not eat her hard food again the next day. Over the next two days she would also stop eating her treats. What’s going on? She’s just been given a clean bill of health mere weeks before! Now, I must pause her to say that there would be the odd day out where Sadie would not eat; she had little vomiting episodes whenever something didn’t agree with her, but to snub all food completely was out of character. So we tried fish. And she ate it. But then lost it. We called the vet and they suggested we try chicken and rice. She loved that. On Jan. 9, my husband awoke with searing pain; we rushed him to the ER and discovered he had torn a muscle in his neck. It was one of those seasons in our lives where it was literally one thing after another. Sadie came back home from my in-laws' the next day. She was eating chicken and rice, but nothing else. I was somewhat comforted that she was at least eating, but I knew that long-term chicken and rice were not providing her with all the nutrients she needed. On Jan. 13, we took Sadie to the vet. Blood work and a urinalysis were done to check for infection. Baytril was given “just in case” there was infection. Sadie continued to eat the chicken and rice until on the 17th, she discovered that I was trying to trick her into taking the Baytril. She was not happy. And she didn’t want to eat any more chicken after that. We could entice her here and there with various things, but nothing steady. The blood work showed an elevated platelet count (654), monocytes (1056), BUN (41), Creatnine (1.8), and low glucose (55), albumin (2.3), with all other values normal.
On Jan. 21 we took Sadie back to get a sterile urine sample. Test came back fine. On the 23rd, my husband and I had to go out of town for a couple of days while he had tests at a major hospital. She woke up and wouldn’t eat. We thought perhaps she was depressed because she saw our luggage. My in-laws gave her an egg, peanut butter, and soda crackers, all of which were vet-recommended. On the 24th, she ate non-drained ground turkey, but she threw it up. I know I’m giving a log of her eating history, blood work, and dates, but when she was ill those types of data would have helped me greatly.
My husband’s tests went wonderfully. To make a long story short, the surgery he was facing was no longer needed. God had worked miracle after miracle on his behalf. So we were relieved for his sake, but when we returned home on the 25th, Sadie had not eaten that day and my father-in-law thought her stool was black and tarry. Something had to be done. This habit of eating sporadically had been going on for exactly three weeks, and Sadie’s muscle mass was deteriorating quickly.
In upcoming posts, after Sadie’s story is completely told, I want to offer tidbits of helpful advice for those who are going through a pet’s illness. So I will save those types of comments for the future. But for now, I want to note that in retrospect, those first 3 weeks were crucial. Yes there were several other crises going on in both our lives concurrent with Sadie’s illness, but had I been able to keep her from losing muscle mass early on, it would have been so beneficial. Our vet recommended several “special” recipes, which I tried. She wouldn’t eat them. I later learned of a pork roast recipe that many dogs with a poor appetite will eat. Later on in the illness, Sadie would eat a little turkey bacon. Some days I would cook for hours trying to make something --- anything she would eat. It was tough. Had I known how helpful small syringes were in feeding a dog, I would have used them during those weeks, filled with yogurt, baby food or cereal mixed with crushed vitamins. PediaLite also helps replenish electrolytes lost through vomiting and diarrhea.
At the time we were doing all we could. We were advised to visit other veterinarians; however, we trusted our clinic to be there for us when we needed them. Their bedside manners cannot be beat. Still, it felt like we weren’t getting anywhere. This was more than Sadie just being moody. If I had known about such a thing as a veterinary teaching hospital, I would have taken her there the first week. But I did not know. I did the best I could with the information I had at the time. We took Sadie to the vet within two hours of returning to town. The question had to be answered: What was wrong with Sadie?
