New to yorkie parenthood and have a sick puppy please help!
 

Hello my name is Mary, I am new to the yorkie parenthood. My little boy is two months old, he's had all of his shots and deworming except for his last shot is due a week and a half from now. Everything has been golden since I got him, but one problem arose last night. I've been doing research and made the decision I do not want my boy eating regular store bought iams/purina dog food, though that's what he's been eating. I did some research and decided to cook him some deboned chicken, carrots peas and cut up green beans and brown rice. I did not switch him over in moderation I gave him his first new meal last night, he loved it and scarfed it down quickly, but threw the entire thing up 2 minutes later, after throwing up all the food he continued to throw up stomache fluid this morning. I don't get paid for two weeks because I just started a new job so I can't take him to the vet, I feel so terrible. After doing research I realize I should've switched him over slowly. He has refused to drink so this morning I took the purina healthy puppy dry food (even though I didn't want to, and mixed in water with it because I know he's dehydrated. He are quite a bit for being sick! I've gotten him to drink since then out of concern of dehydration... He won't drink from his bowl but he will drink from a stream lol! (Hose or water bottle) I'm happy he ate and drank and I will ensure he continues to however seeing he's only two months old I've been freaking out! Did I mention he ate a centipede too? My husband says I'm overreacting but I'd rather do that then to oversee something and let it progress. He's not running a fever thankfully. Basically I need to know if anyone else had this issue, and what I can do to help. Also, I've read soooo many different things about food, like dogs are carnivores and veggies are not necessary, they need raw meet (RAW MEEt?!?!) then I hear veggies are important, I'm over whelmed and don't know who to listen to!! Please help me ensure i have a healthy happy full and hydrated puppy before I lose my mind :-) thank you so much.

- Harley's mommy

Well, first, Welcome to Yorkie Talk:D
Great place for information and support.
I am not a nutritionist or a vet - have raised Yorkies for 17 years. My first question is has he stopped throwing since you went back to his previous food? If so then you need to staunchest for awhile till his stomach settles back down.

Next, yes you should get excited when they start the throwing up thing. He is very young and can dehydrate VERY QUICKLY and aspirate when he is vomiting.

You hit the nail on the head when you said you did not gradually introduce the new diet! So after things settle down you can start that VERY SLOWLY.

If you do home cooking you will need to use an additive like BALANCE IT in order for your pup to get all of the proper nutriments like vitamins and minerals. I order it on line.

I am sure others will come forth and add other important things for you to consider, such as, health insurance or Care Credit for financial help if you need it.

The good news here is that you were a front-and-center good Yorkie momma and looked for help when your baby had a problem. Stick with YorkieTalk - I can't tell you how much I have learned from these very smart, experienced and caring folks!

Hi Mary,

Welcome to YT and yorkie parenthood. I am sorry to hear about little Harley. What I would suggest is you at least call the Vet they can give you a little bit of pointers over the phone, at least mine does. Aa far as the food change I do not have any pointers I am sorry.

Laila is on Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula® Chicken & Oatmeal Recipe For Small Breed Puppies. When I got her last week she was on Diamond puppy food. But I wanted something with less grains. She had not pooped at all when using Diamond, but as soon as I changed her over she loves it and her stool is perfect. We also use distilled water for her to drink and that helps with eye boogers. She doesn't get them any more.

But as far as what you should do I would suggest asking the vet on what you should feed. As most websites you read are based on peoples takes on things and what was best for their pups. That does not guarantee it is best for your pup.

Please keep us updated.

Harley has stopped throwing up and has drank almost a whole bowl of water and has kept down his food! He's hyper and jumpy and very happy now, I got a little too excited about cooking his own meal and wasn't thinking it would have such a harsh effect on him! I'm going to take him to the vet though when he gets his shot and ask for advice on food and ask for an allergy test to save myself another trip there! Thank you so much for the advice, he also went potty it wasn't runny it was nice and solid and good colored so that's a good sign! I would love some info on how to go about vet financial plans if anyone has any tips and once again thank you so so much!!! And harley says ruff ruff! -Aka thank you :-) is there somewhere I can post a picture of him? If you're having a rough (ruff!) day I'm sure it will warm your heart! :-) :-)

Thanks- Harley's momma!

Attach Photo
 

Yayyy! So glad to hear Harley is feeling better.

The way you go about attaching a photo in any thead you have to make sure you a re first in the Advanced View for the reply. If you look at the bottom to the right of Quick reply you will see " Go Advanced".
Once you go there you will scroll down and you will see Manage Attachments. This is where you can attach pictures. Once you attach you can post and they will be there for us to see.

Let me know if you need any further help.

Welcome to Yorkie Talk. Happy to hear little Harley is feeling better. You can post a picture here on your thread and also in the picture section (if you need help on how to post a photo, there are 2 "sticky" threads with instructions in the section):

My Yorkie Pictures! - YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community


I would stick to the kibble he was eating for awhile. Don't let what you read online about commercial foods panic you.

There is a wide range of opinions on what the best diet is for dogs. Here on Yorkie Talk, you will find dogs who thrive on kibble, homecooked, raw, and some other variations. Dogs have more specific nutrient requirements than humans. Puppies need more than adults. As Yorkiemini indicated, if you decide to homecook in the future, you should use a supplement like BalanceIt.

I would not be concerned about allergies. From what I have read here from people experienced in this department, a very small percentage of allergies are food related.

Some dogs simply cannot tolerate some foods. My Yorkie boys do not do well with carrots, green beans, apples, and other popular treats for Yorkies. Teddy cannot tolerate the smallest piece of egg.

Always test new foods slowly and in very small quantities.

Finances for vet bills: there is information in the library here about insurance plans. You can also look into Care Credit, which is a credit card with zero interest for a designated time period on qualified purchases (usually over $200). Your vet's office determines some of the terms.

Best wishes.

Glad to hear that Harley is better. I have Care Credit and Pet Insurance. I did not know about Care Credit until I joined YT. I filled out the application at my vets office and was approved in just a couple of minutes. I did interest free for 18 mos. and as long as you are never late on a payment then it is interest free. You might be able to go online and fill out the application or pick up it up at your vets office. I have Pet Plan Insurance but have yet to file a claim with them so not sure if they are the best. Others on this site can fill you in on other options. Hoping your little guy continues to improve.
There is a thread or sticky on how to post pictures here. We'd love to see photos of Harley. Welcome to YT!!!

Welcome to YT. Sorry to hear that your little one is sick. Like Maximo said, don't believe everything that you read online about well.....just about everything including dog food. :D

Glad to hear he if no longer throwing up and back to drinking water. If you are going to home cook in the future there is a whole lot more to doing so than just tossing together people food. To do it properly you need to feed a properly balance meal with added purchased supplements. There are several Vet Nutritionists that you can purchase or even use for free their properly formulated diets to home cook for your dog. But for now, you need to concentrate on making sure that his is back to feeling well and eating what he is used to being fed. He is still very young and has a delicate tummy that is just getting used to even eating puppy food.

Thank you guys so much! I have learned more today than the puppy training class at the pet store HA! Thanks again... Here's some photos of my little harley!

Here's another one, and I have one more then I'm done spamming with puppy pictures! Hah!!

Harley is adorable......love that tongue! :p

Sleeping beauty haha thanks again hope you guys enjoy!

Oh and another thing... I can't stop thinking about the other yorkys the breeder had, when I got him he smelled sooo terrible and needed 3 baths to get the stench off the breeder admitted he hadn't bathed them since they were born and that they throw up and poop on each other so what's the point (of course they were he had them a stuffed in a travel crate sliding around in the back of the car, and he said he had been feeding them regular dog chow, they are puppies I'm not an expert but most puppies need puppy food before dog food, right?) he hasn't thrown up at all since I got him except for the food I have him which was my own fault... But I wanted to take them all home and save them... I felt so bad they had flys on them and it was just sick, if I were to show you the picture of him the from second I got him you would not believe he was the same dog, malnourished, greasy smelly, he had a giant poop stuck to his bottom ( when I asked the breeder about it he said "oh, I thought that was his tail" ) I had to cut it off... I know it's probably hurting your heart to hear this but I can't stop thinking about it... I can't afford to go get the rest of the puppies and I don't know what to do to help.... I mean bless his heart for bringing me my little angel but still... I'm worried about those puppies...

Hi Mary, Welcome to Yorkie Talk. It sounds like your pup is now getting back to normal, and that's great. Sudden diet changes and eating a centepede can both cause problems, but it's great he is on the mend.

There is a lot of info on this site, as you have found, and lots of people who love Yorkies and are willing to help out with any questions that come up. Harley is a real cutie and I hope things go well for you both.

Thank you so much!

Welcome to YT! I'm glad he's doing better! You've been given great advice that I can't add to. Glad you're here!

Just a little opinion here -- others fplease feel free to weigh in, my ego is not involved -- but I have generally not found vets to be very well versed on dog foods/nutrician except where a specific illness is involved.

I have found actual dog nutricianists to be the best advice/information.

Others may disagree. But as a new person to YT I wanted to just throw that issue out there.

welcome to yorkie talk and glad Harley is feeling better

So... Call me a cautious mommy but my boy gets the hic-ups 10x a day is this normal? Does anyone else have a prescious angel with the same cute problem?


-thanks again <3

Welcome to YT, happy to see Harley is back to normal, yes sudden food changes do have an adverse effect on pups. I have read changing food should be done over a 7 day period. Slowly decrease old food and add new food in small amounts. When I change Cody's food I stretch it out over a 10 day period, it's easier on their digustive systums. Harley is adorable. I can't offer info. on hiccups, I never had a baby that had them. I also have an insect eating boy, I have to watch him like a hawk when he's outside. With all the pups I have had, I never had one that wanted to eat insects, glad to see he not the only one attracted to bugs.

Hi Mary and welcome to YT. I am attaching the thread below about pet insurance so you can check out each one. They are always good to have for your little guy.

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/gen...insurance.html

I'm glad to hear Harley is doing much better. He is adorable. There are good store bought dog food out there you just need to research them if you choose to go that way. I feed Remy Fromm puppy food and also give him fruits and vegetables that I know he can have and it won't harm him. There are certain foods that can be toxic to dogs like onions, garlic, grapes, raisins, chocolate, macadamia nuts etc. There are tons of great info on this forum that you can read and it will help you out. Best of luck and welcome to YT.

Thank you guys so much! & thanks for the insurance info I've noticed when you have it, you don't need it, when you don't have it, you need it! So Id better be safe than sorry. & yes you are not the only one! It's almost like he knows which ones are bad, he won't go for flys or ants he goes for bees spiders and centipedes! Crazy like his mother I suppose? Haha, just for an update he is still doing 100% and hasn't gotten sick since. I like the idea of a pet nutritionalist, will I have to file bankrupt after seeing one? Or are they somewhat reasonable? Also I took a pet training class and I'm not being successful what so ever in that area, my husband says he's too young to understand but id say it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks! If anyone has any advice it would be greatly appreciated!! & does anyone know why my pup prefers to pee on carpet as opposed to tile floor? He has been going number two outside, I've caught him almost in the act a few times but today he decided he didn't want to potty on the grass and preferred the concrete, is it opposite day or do I just have a wild pup!? He won't go on the couch, bed, crate, anywhere but he loves to do his business on the carpet! Even if we sat outside for 30 minutes, the second we go in it's show time :-/ comments please? Thanks thanks thanks!!! Feels so good to have honest opinions from people who have a Yorky like me. Thanks from the bottom of our hearts!

First of all, there's nothing wrong with puppy food. Secondly if you want to home cook, you can contact BalanceIt for a free recipe for your puppy. You can buy their all-in-one supplement and since the company is founded by, run by, and supported by vet nutritionists who have advanced training, you can trust that the puppy will be getting appropriate nutrition. Since this is a puppy, your vet will need to approve the diet. BabieChloe here just did this, you might want to ask her about what she learned from BalanceIt about puppies and home cooking.

The diets you find online will lack all the nutrients your dog needs. Improper nutrition in a puppy can become very serious very fast do either you have to pick a puppy food you will use or you need to home cook properly.

Hi and welcome to you and Harley. I think he may be peeing on the carpet because if they were kept in a crate with a towel he may be used to peeing on fabric. Yorkies can take a while to potty train so be consistent and don't give up hope. There is a a book How To House Train Your Dog In 7 Days, also Yorkshire Terriers for Dummies is a good reference book. I also would recommend insurance as it sounds like he may not have have had the best genetics and nutritional start like my Buster. Harley is adorable and these sweet little dogs will fill you with joy and love. Harley is lucky to have a good mom who is concerned and willing to learn. YT is great for learning and sharing.

Does my harley shake after and during a bath because he's cold or just because he's worked himself up so much about it? Anyone know a way to make him like getting a bath? I try to make it a very enjoyable experience for him but he cries and ttys to escape and his tummy rumbles and he almost makes himself sick from the whimpering and afterwards he shakes soooo badly!!

Welcome to YT! :)

For housebreaking, I recommend the following website. I am linking to their Ten Commandments of Housebreaking that I think are awesome! :)

The Ten Commandments of Housebreaking - The Housebreaking Bible

That is a great reminder/link and pretty much covers basics of house training. I am regretting the use of pee pads and even tough my pups are 5 and 6 I am trying to get them to go outside more and hold it longer. I am home most of the time so it is stupid to have them pottying in the house on a pad when they should be going outside all the time.