Hi Jayde!!!
I thought your name looked familiar....So happy that little Trooper is doing so well. It truly is amazing, how well these little guys can do, with Olga's help, isn't it? My Vets were very negative about Chewy given his age at diagnosis and his bloodwork and HE symptoms were quite severe when he was diagnosed. I just stayed positive, knew this little guy was NOT going anywhere anytime soon, and did all my homework and researched what I needed to do to get him healthy and make his surgery a success. I love my dogs like my children (I don't have any children yet, so in reality, they are my children). My husband and I call them our little boys and with Chewy being our first born - we were devastated when he was first diagnosed. Thank God for Olga!!!!
So SO SO happy to hear Trooper is doing great....I agree with what you said, and to me, as long as our boys are getting adequate amounts of protein - regardless of the source (in our cases, vegetarian), I think that is all that matters. I don't see the point in risking how great Chewy is doing by introducing meat into his diet.
BTW - what exactly is Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency? I only ask because our newest addition, Sparky, (who just turned 1 btw) knock on wood, based on BATs seems completely healthy. Except - he had a VERY bad reaction to the food they gave him for the BAT. When he got home he threw up constantly and the DLD site ultimately thought it was pancreatitis. After 2 days of pediasure he was back to his wild crazy energy self. But given how severe the reaction was, it has caused me concern that something might not be 100% right....
He eats great, very normal poops, TONS of energy - my only concern is he does pee alot (but I've heard this is common with Yorkies due to the teeny bladder) and his pee is very light yellow. He also eats quite a bit - but he's still a skinny little guy - not unhealthy skinny, but skinny nonetheless. I'm thinking he's just one of the skinny lanky Yorkie's as opposed to the compact little stocky ones...but curious what this illness is regardless....I've changed Sparky's food from the Innovo EVO (Very high fat) to a low fat (Healthy Weight Wellness) along with some wet that is a bit more meaty for him.
I'm also wondering if he might have allergies - but not sure what it is that Yorkie's are often allergic to - I've heard chicken, which I know his kibble is derived from, but then I'm not too sure what to feed him instead.
BTW - Chewy's name came from two instances - first when we saw him, as a puppy, he kinda looked like Chewy from Star Wars - but then the minute we got in the car with him, he started chewing on my index finger...and with that - the name Chewy stuck...and he is a CHEWER!!! Actually - so is my Yorkie for that matter - but as long as they have plenty of nylabones and toys - they stick to chewing those and not household items. Chewy did do a number on our dining room table and chair legs as a puppy - oh well! He was so cute - we couldn't even yell - we were more concerned about wood in his little puppy belly!!!
Anywho - I'm babbling on as usual ;-) So happy to hear Trooper is doing so well!
All the best,
<3Tania, Chewy & Sparky |