New EPI diagnosis

[belgin]

Thanks, Janet. I so appreciate the input from all of you! And I am grateful that Olesia is contributing too!

One thing I believe I am starting to understand (I'm not always the quickest on the draw) is that any food ingested by an EPI dog that is not accompanied with enzymes can contribute to the accumulation of unhealthy byproducts in the gut.

Is this correct?

I am so eager to feed her what she will eat, and eventually, give her treats to promote training, but this may do more harm than good. I certainly see the 4% fiber need and can comply with that.

Is there a solution for the treat issue? It is sooooo hard to train without treat rewards!

[Olesia711]

Jane, you gave some really good advice/tips and suggestions....... and that folate score is only 1/10 off the range for proximal disease.... you kind of have to dig deep for the actual TAMU range for this...........it is just something i memorized so when i see a low Folate score, it sets off warning bells in y head for proximal disease.....................................

[Barb]

Hello, Debbie. A warm welcome to you and Elsa. I am sorry Elsa is having difficulties. You have received excellent advice already. I just want to let you know, as you have probably noticed, that the beginning stage of treatment is the hardest until you get everything balanced. It is not unusual for people to feel very overwhelmed at the beginning. We all remember that feeling. And with Elsa's complicating issue of C diff, you have more to deal with and worry about One of the best suggestions we received at the beginning with Kolby was to keep a daily log/journal if you haven't started one already. It saved our sanity. Record everything you give Elsa each day, the amounts and the resulting poos. There is something about seeing it in writing that helps you to see patterns or information you might not have noticed if you hadn't written it down.

You are doing great so far. She is lucky to have you. She certainly is beautiful. It's hard to see our pups struggling and we want to hurry the process, but it sometimes takes longer than we would like.

Hang in there.

Barb

[belgin]

Thanks for your kind words and encouragement, Barb.

You're so right, it is difficult to be patient when we want positive results right away. And it seems this is a situation that will have good days and bad days, and I will need to prepare myself for that.

I have been keeping a log and finding this very helpful. It's not only important to have the information on hand, but it is also very rewarding to write down that she ate or meal or had a normal poop.

It's funny how happy a dog's good poop can make a person!

[Montgomery]

I put his enzymes in capsules and just give them to him like any other pill, followed by a good amount of water via syringe. It was stressed to me at the time I began doing it that we needed a great deal of water to make sure it got where it needed to. I've been doing this with Montgomery for nearly five years now and its working well. He gets his enzymes and then he eats.

[belgin]

Thank you!

I tried to measure out how much of the enzymes would fit into one capsule and it didn't seem like much. Do you have any idea? I need one tsp for my dog, you probably need much less for Montgomery.

[belgin]

I answered my own question about how much enzyme will fit into one capsule. I found a tiny measuring spoon in the bottle of PancreaPlus and determined it measures 1/4 tsp. If I really cram the powder in there, I can get that amount in a capsule. So Elsa will need 4 capsules to equal 1 tsp.

She refuses to eat again today, and only had 1 cup of goats milk yesterday. I gave her a 1/2 tab of Cerenia 60 mg about an hour ago. Still no appetite. She had one soft, sl. formed brown poop, normal size, this AM.

Is there an appetite stimulator we can give to dogs? Humans get Remeron or Megace. CBD can be effective too.

I realize I am asking a ton of questions here and apologize for that. I am reviewing the articles on this website and reading through the forum for answers too. So worried about my little pup!

I have a call into the vet, but she's super busy so may not hear back soon.

[Olesia711]

YES!!!!! there is canine appetite medications, but they have to be prescribed by your vet. One of the popular ones is called "Mirtazapine".
I think i mentioned it earlier,,, if you want i can send you some CREON samples (enteric coated enzymes that elsa won't taste or smell) if you want. just email me at : olesia.kennedy@gmail.com

BUT if she won't eat at all.... call your vet and see if they will put her on canine appetite medication..........

Good luck and please keep us posted!

[belgin]

I spoke with the vet today and she said to bring Elsa in tomorrow if she is still not eating or drinking. This will likely be the case. She mentioned an appetite enhancing medication, not sure if it is Mirtazapine (Remeron)or something else.

I expect Elsa may need more subqu fluids as well as she has had very little to drink for three days now. I've tried everything. What worked the best was when Gretel, my 4 yr old GSD, walked up to a bowl of broth I had put down for Elsa and started drinking. Suddenly, Elsa wanted in on the action so I called Gretel away and Elsa took several laps of the broth. It can be very beneficial to have two dogs in the house!

Olesia, I will email you about the Creon. Thanks much.

[Montgomery]

Sometimes just putting a little dab of food on the nose helps. They lick it off and then it sort of gets them started. If you can heat up the food a little bit, that may make it more appealing as well, as it enhances the aroma.
You can get all sorts of capsules. I use zeros for Montgomery, but they come a lot bigger than that. The smaller the number the bigger they are, and a compounding pharmacy should have them or be able to get you some. Its a lot cheaper than the veterinary clinic.