How many of you give Nutri-Cal on regular basis?
 

Just curious to see how many of us here give their Yorkies Nutri-Cal on a regular basis? And not just those with BABIES, but those with even ADULT Yorkies? How many of you actually BUY this on a regular basis? I work at home, so I am here with Stedman all day. However, whenever I leave the house, I give him Nutri-Cal - and sometimes I will give him some "just because"...and also because he eats like a little bird! :rolleyes: And because he is so little. Although I don't give it to him as much as I used to because I am here pretty much all day to watch him, but I ALWAYS have Nutri-Cal on hand.

So what is your routine with Nutri-Cal? Do you usually give it daily? Or only when you have to leave them alone? Just curious to see what everyone does! :p

I always have it on hand but only give it to mine if they are sick

Jewelina gets some in the afternoon, and right before bed. If I ever have to leave her for any amount of time she gets some then too.
Jaden gets nutri-cal on some days when he seems like he doesn't feel well or right before we're going for a long walk or if I'm going to be gone for more than 3 hours. He does well with his eating and has never had a hypglycemic episode so I'm usually not too worried about him if he has food out.

I used to do that everyday since Haruka had hard time eating as a puppy, but now she eats and eats and eats... so I stopped

I used to give Rocky some every morning with his medicine. I haven't given it to him in a couple of months, except a couple weeks ago when I was going through his diaper bag and found it. He loves the stuff though! I think I should use it for training, LOL

My vet gave me dextrose to give T.O. every morning and night but I also give him nutrical if he won't eat alot..I love for him to eat eat eat but some days he just doesn't care about food as much as others so I tend to worry...those days he gets nutrical at least once plus the dextrose twice daily.

It is not good to give Nutri-Cal to a healthy adult yorkie who is eating regularly. Yorkies over 12 weeks of age are able to regulate their blood sugar on their own. Giving Nutri-Cal unnecessarily can easily lead to diabetes. Please be very careful giving Nutri-Cal unnecessarily.

I ALWAYS have it on hand. It also helps to stimulate an appetite when they're poor eaters.

I only use it when they are sick, not eating, or we have a long day planned away from the house. Otherwise, she never really needs it.

REALLY? Wow - I didn't know that. I get freaked out because my sisters best friend who's Yorkie is 5 years old had a Hypoglycemic episode a couple of months ago - it was VERY bad, and she almost died. I have NEVER been through that with Stedman, and I never want to.

Actually My vet said the opposite. He said it can take away their appetite. He says onlygive it when they are sick and may need it because they arent eating so they dont get low blood sugar

Well, Nutri-Cal is sugar. The same thing happens to us humans if we get too much sugar...we develop diabetes. Too much sugar throws your body's ability to control the bloodsugar on it's own all out of whack. Your friend's yorkie probably was never eating. If Stedman is eating like he should be, 2-3 times a day, then I would not give him NutriCal. If you are going to be gone from the house for awhile, give him a healthy treat before you leave, like a nice sized dog biscuits or something. That is what I do with mine. Every morning before I leave the house, they get a treat. This helps to maintain their bloodsugar without giving them pure "sugar," which is basically what Nutri-Cal is, and it helps clean their teeth at the same time! :D Then when I go home for lunch, they eat a meal and then before I leave to come back to work, they get another dog biscuit and they are good to go until I get home in the evenings when they are free fed.

Same here, I also agree with Rainy -- feeding a small amount when one gets silly about eating stimulates their appetite.

I agree, too much nutri-cal can be a bad thing. That's why Jewelina gets it daily and Jaden does not. The only tim I give it to Jaden is if he's not been eating well, like he was a few days ago when he had his puking bit and didn't want to eat. Jaden doesn't really like the stuff and I have to stick it in his mouth to make him eat it. Jewelina on the other hand loves the stuff. I monitor her intake though, because even though she is very small I don't want her to get diabetes. She gets 1/2 of a 1/4 tsp and Jaden gets the same dosage when he needs it. I used to give Jaden biscuits when I'd leave but a friend of mine had a yorkie similar size as Jaden give him a biscuit went to work and came home and found him dead from choking on a piece of it and he couldn't expel it himself. I heard about this with rawhide and greenies and of course Jaden never gets either of those things but I can see now how a biscuit could go down the "wrong tube" so to speak and if they were alone...:confused: So, the only thing Jaden get to eat while I'm gone is his dry food. I could never forgive myself and I gave him something and he choked on it while I was away.

Joy, that is REALLY scarey!! I'm going to have to remember that. Maybe something soft like Pupperoni would be better than a dog biscuit. Neither of mine will eat dog food if I'm not at home. :rolleyes:

That's a good plan!

I've never given Ferdinand any NutriCal before. I don't think I would give it to him unless he was sick. Like a human, if you're using is unnecessarily, wouldn't it just spike their blood sugar only to make them crash when it wears off?

Yes, that is exactly what it does. Thus, leading to diabetes.

At the beginning Pepper wouldn't eat much, or nothing at all, so I made sure I gave it to him in the am and pm. After he turned 12 weeks or so he's been eating much better and gaining so I stopped. He's 7 months old and 5 lbs so I don't even think he'd need it anymore...Oh, I gave him a tiny drop on the day when he was neutered as he wasn't supposed to eat anything. Even if he doesn't eat much during the day - I free feed and sometimes he doesn't even finish his daily portion- I'd rather give him a doggy buiscuit or little cheese than Nutrical.

Ferdie won't eat unless I'm home either - so I just put his food bowl in our room while I'm getting ready in the morning and he'll eat it all.

That's a good idea. I'll have to keep that in mind.

Sugar Does NOT Cause Diabetes
 

Please read the following link:

http://www.healthcastle.com/sugar-diabetes.shtml

Nutrical is not used just for preventing hypoglycemia. It is a high-calorie supplement containing nutrients that your puppy/dog may not be getting in their regular diet.

not true. the amount of nutrients and vitamins in nutracal isn't sufficeint to make it a regular thing to be given. its basically liquid sugar. I wouldn't recommend giving it to an adult dog or even an older, healthy puppy that is a regular eater. Morgan stopped getting it at 14 weeks old cause she was a piggy. not only can it lead to diabetes but it can also make stools softer and cause diarrhea.

While it may not directly cause diabetes, the effects of the nutrical on the body can lead to diabetes.

That said, constant spikes of glucose can lead to an incorrect amount of insulin being released... which over times leads to diabetes.

P.S. My father is diabetic, and went to OHSU (a large research university) - the above statement is similar to what he was told by them.

Sugar raises the insulin levels and can cause another attack of low blood sugar. That's why it's important that they eat complex carbohydrates and protein that don't cause a sudden drop in blood sugar. When a diabetic is having a low blood sugar episode, they are give a dose of sugar, but this again needs to be followed by foods that have a stabilizing effect on blood sugar levels. So NutriCal should only be used when the dogs are sick or having a hypoglycemic episode. You wouldn't give you child a piece of candy for breakfast would you?
Nancy

Well thank you everyone for posting all your opinions, and your knowledge! :D That is why I LOVE this board!! So much helpful info ;) As I said, I don't give it to Stedman that much anymore - but I DO always have some on hand just in case. I feel safer having it here - because he is NOT a big eater. To tell ya the truth, I don't even think he EATS 3 times a day :rolleyes: He eats like a bird...always has. I haven't given him any Nutri-Cal since my surgery (my sister was giving it to him when she came to let him outside to go to the bathroom while I was in the hospital) and that was toward the end of Nov. - so he hasn't had it in a while. But, if we have to leave the house for (several) hours, I do feel safer giving it to him - because he ISN'T a big eater, and it just freaks me out. My vet recommended I do this since he eats so little - so I DO feel safer doing it, BUT - only when we have to leave for several hours and no one is here to watch him.

Thanks again for your input everyone :D

Hi everyone, I'm glad I came upon this post. I have two yorkie girls. The one is 2 lbs and the other is 5 lbs. Both of them are adults. I've never given the 5 lb nutrical. She actually doesn't like the taste. However, I usually give my smaller yorkie Pia a tiny bit of nutrical right before bed. I almost lost Pia months ago when her sugar dropped too low. However, its a long story and just to upsetting to write about. She's perfectly healthy and it was 100% the vet's mistake. Regardless, I now have a wonderful new vet that saved my little girl's life. Pia is known as a miracle because she survived the terrible mistakes the other vet did. My new vet actually suggested that I give Pia nutrical everyday. She said I could do it 2x a day and that would still be fine. She said because she is so small that its actually a good idea. She even told me that my other yorkie could also get a tiny lick each day. I only give it to Pia once a day and now I'm very nervous from everything I just read on here. I don't want to be hurting her and I even called my vet to ask about this and she said the same things as before. 1-2 times a day is fine because of her size. I'm so confused now?? Pia eats like a piggy. She's always wanting more treats. I swear she would eat treats all day long if I let her. My point is that she eats great but the vet still says before bedtime is good due to her size. I just wanted to pass this info on. I have no idea whats right or wrong and hope everyone's babies are healthy and happy :D

not only have i never used in it the 25 years that ive had yorkies id never even heard of it untill i came on here, ive had 3 yorkies as puppies and bred another two (tye and zac) myself and been very lucky i guess with them all as all of them have been fine.:)

Hypoglycemia is a serious medical condition and can lead to death if not treated promptly. Signs to look out for include confusion, dizziness, and loss of appetite. My breeder recommended checking their gums, which should be pinkish and not grey. Touch your finger to the gum and release it should return to its natural color immediately. If not, apply Karo Syrup or NutriCal to the roof of the mouth. Appling to the roof of the mouth allows the glucose to enter the bloodstream immediately.

Dina_Nichole, your vet probably is recommending NutriCal because Pia is so small. Since she eats so well, I would ask him why she needs it everyday and not just if she shows symptoms. I'm just one of those people who like to know WHY!!!

Nancy

Me too!!!!!!!!! I think if given on a daily basis it could cause the dog to become diabetic. Not sure tho.