Barney has pancreatitis - home cooked diet help

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by 107barney

No, he's not the one with the liver issue. Barney did have pancreatitis about 4 years ago (an acute episode requiring a 4-day hospitalization).

We are here in the same boat with him but this time the vet felt we could watch him here at home and if he is not 50% improved by morning, we have to take him to the hospital.

He is feeling just awful - he seems to be in a lot of pain. We brought him in this morning and he had a fever, his blood work was off the charts - there was so much fat in his blood we could not get accurate readings - and his white cell counts are up.

It is distressing to watch, I'm losing it.

so his triglycerides were real high - yikes dex tests high on 12hr fast when he has no signs of pancreatitis so that is why he is so prone to it I hate this disease

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by 107barney

We just got home from the vet with Barney - he was diagnosed with pancreatitis.

He ate 1/4 of a can of Wellness chicken for dinner last night. He woke up painful, shaking and would not eat.


I'm looking for any home cooked diet help for dogs prone to pancreatitis.


Thanks.

why homecook? dex is on 8% fat purina ha and doing well for 4 years now.

What have you been feeding that has worked for years? I would not switch off what is working with these dogs that have had this as it is just asking for trouble as once they have pancreatitis they are more prone for the rest of their lives. I would go back to what was working and never give him anything but that for the rest of his life lollllll that is what i am doing with dex for sure he gets nothing but purina ha

[107barney]

Just got a script for tramadol for pain. Prior to this, he was eating mostly home cooked - chicken, brown rice, spinach carrots & yogurt. He also ate merrick Grammys pot pie for the last year or so along with HC. Yes brown rice but I cook it very long and with alotbof water so it's ok and they do great.

Blood was so fatty couldn't get analyse reading.

He's in sub q fluids for today - can start ice cubes tomorrow and food (1 tsp) every 2 hours by mid afternoon. If not 50% better by morning or any worse, it's to the hospital.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by 107barney

Just got a script for tramadol for pain. Prior to this, he was eating mostly home cooked - chicken, brown rice, spinach carrots & yogurt. He also ate merrick Grammys pot pie for the last year or so along with HC. Yes brown rice but I cook it very long and with alotbof water so it's ok and they do great.

Blood was so fatty couldn't get analyse reading.

He's in sub q fluids for today - can start ice cubes tomorrow and food (1 tsp) every 2 hours by mid afternoon. If not 50% better by morning or any worse, it's to the hospital.

I am glad you got something for him for pain. Hopefully he will have a better night....and you, too.

[dwerten]

Originally Posted by 107barney

Just got a script for tramadol for pain. Prior to this, he was eating mostly home cooked - chicken, brown rice, spinach carrots & yogurt. He also ate merrick Grammys pot pie for the last year or so along with HC. Yes brown rice but I cook it very long and with alotbof water so it's ok and they do great.

Blood was so fatty couldn't get analyse reading.

He's in sub q fluids for today - can start ice cubes tomorrow and food (1 tsp) every 2 hours by mid afternoon. If not 50% better by morning or any worse, it's to the hospital.

poor guy so sorry I hated when dex had this i was a nervous wreck

[107barney]

I am a nervous wreck. We just came upstairs and Barney is laying here sleeping. I am not sure if I should take him to the ER and just admit him. On the one hand, he is sleeping now on the tramadol. On the other hand, I worry that he needs to be hospitalized to be on the IV. He did not accept the ice cube and shows no interest in anything really. He had the sub q fluids so he is not going to dehydrate over night and is on pain meds. But am I doing everything for him by keeping him here or should I just take him??

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by 107barney

I am a nervous wreck. We just came upstairs and Barney is laying here sleeping. I am not sure if I should take him to the ER and just admit him. On the one hand, he is sleeping now on the tramadol. On the other hand, I worry that he needs to be hospitalized to be on the IV. He did not accept the ice cube and shows no interest in anything really. He had the sub q fluids so he is not going to dehydrate over night and is on pain meds. But am I doing everything for him by keeping him here or should I just take him??

Usually when they give subcutaneous fluids, they give around 200 cc for a small pup (not sure of his size) and can give up to 250 cc. That is what they also will give over many hours in an IV; so, I am not sure they would start an iv if you took him in now. He may have had enough fluids for now. They cannot give too much or he will end up in chf.

I always leave mine because I believe, as does my vet, that IV fluids are best. But, since they said to bring him home, I am not sure why you are questioning it, unless they had wanted to keep him for IVs. Even if so, I really doubt they would give him much more for tonight.

If he is sleeping now (pain free) and hydrated, I would leave it go until early in the morning. Be sure to check that his gums are not tacky feeling...that is how you check for dehydration.

I feel for you. I have had many sleepless nights with sick pups, and it looks like that is what you are going to have.

[107barney]

I'm not sure how many cc's they gave him. He is 10.5 lbs so he's a big boy.

No, they did not want to keep him for IVs. The question was to either bring him home with subcutaneous fluids or take him to the hospital where he would be admitted with nursing care in ICU. So the vet felt that since we would be able to assess our dog, we could take him home.

I'm questioning whether to keep him home because he seems to go off and on with pain. For a while, he was napping and took the tramadol and seemed ok....he just peed and now is making gurgling noises and seems uncomfortable. Maybe the oral tramadol bothered his pancreas.

He had the fluids around 1:30 or 2 PM and the vet called me at 4 and she was very happy he was not vomiting. He only vomited once, early this morning before taking him in.

[ladyjane]

I feel that it is ideal for them to be hospitalized for the first 2 - 3 days....although only during the day. I rarely have had to leave them overnight. The only time was when they got really bad late in the day. But...when I have had really bad ones, I have had to move them from my vet during the day to the EC at night.

It is too bad you did not have an injectible pain med to give him. That might have been better. I hope the tramadol has not bothered his tummy.

I honestly don't know how much more they would do for him right now. He might just drift back to sleep now that he has piddled.

[Cookie2]

I can imagine how worried you are seeing him like this.
Keep him near you so you can watch him through out the night. If possible in bed with you.
A tiny bit of fluid every hour or so.
it's so stressing to see your baby like this but you are doing everything you can. If he gets unresponsive, get him to the emergency vet asap.


I'll be praying for you and Barney. Hope he feels better soon.


Gen

[107barney]

LadyJane - I think you were right...he drifted back off into la la land after his pee. He is sleeping calmly now - breathing is steady, he is not in pain, so I think we are ok. His gums are wet and he's snoring. The vet said the tramadol was not an nsaid so would be fine on his tummy. He has not vomited since early this morning so hopefully we wont dehydrate.

Gen: yes he's in bed with me - every day of his life in fact LOL He kind of is off by himself though. He was curled up with Teddy but Teddy is annoying so he moved off. Daisy inherently knows to give him space but Teddy does not observe the canine rules of good manners LOL.

I think we will be ok tonight. We are 15-20 mins away from the ER, open 24 hrs, if we have to go we will. My poor lil baby!

[miabellaamoure]

We are all saying our for our pal, BarneyBoo to feel better fast!

[ladyjane]

Oh good! I am glad he is sleeping. Try to get some sleep yourself! I have a feeling he is going to be fine....each day gets better.
Will look forward to hearing how he is tomorrow. I will say a prayer for him tonight.

[107barney]

thank you, I will post an update. I'm going to see if he will accept the ice cube but if not, I'll try again in the morning. He is a good boy.

[jencar98]

Just now reading this, sorry to hear Barney has been so sick. Hopefully things will improve for him overnight now that he is resting. Hugs from us, I know this is scary!