Scout hasn't eaten in 5 days-we've been to the vet
 

I guess I just need some reassurance and to to know if anyone has ever had this problem. I sure wish we had a resident Vet at Yorkie Talk we could pass things by!
Here's the story: Scout (11 month old) ate unidentified poop while we were on a walk on Tuesday. It was old, dried out stuff-sorry for the detail-I don't know if that's important or not. On Wednesday I noticed he was not eating the dry food that is out all day. I give both the dogs 1/2 pkg of Cesar wet food every night and Scout did not eat his Wednesday night-Pippa ate all of it. Thursday he vomited a few times and did not eat anything, but drinking water pretty well. Friday, still no eating, NO BOWEL MOVEMENTS-loose or otherwise, a little vomiting, but drinking pretty good. I took him to the vet Friday afternoon because I thought there might be a bowel obstruction or something-even though I know he hasn't really eaten enough to make poops, but I expected at least something! The vet said he didn't have a distended abdomen, so he didn't think it was obstruction. He said he wasn't dehydrated-yet-he showed me how to check his skin turger for "tenting"-it should snap back into place if he's hydrated. He thought it was the stuff he ate on Tuesday. So he gave him a cimetidine shot to ease tummy pain, and an antibiotic (Albon) shot and sent us home with oral antibiotics. Scout still hasn't had any interest in food, he didn't vomit all day yesterday but I had to force feed him water out of a dropper. I got him to eat some boiled chicken breast and rice (he ate about a teaspoon full) last evening, which he vomited about 2 hours later. He just wants to lay around and seems depressed. He will still get up and bark at the door if someone comes to it. This morning he took about 2 cc's of water from a dropper. He's getting skinny because he feels lighter when I pick him up and he has definite thinningbetween the ribs and hips. I guess what I want to know, do you guys think he can wait to go back to the vet till tomorrow morning if I can keep water in him or do we need a trip to the $$$$ vet ER today? I forgot to mention, he refuses nutrical as well. His eyes still look bright, his gums are a little tacky this morning, but hopefully I can keep the water going. Also important to note that Pippa, my other yorkie is the picture of health-so I don't think this is a contagious virus or something like that. Sorry this was so long!!

Wow, first of all im so sorry your baby isnt feeling well. I would definately get him to the er vet today....i would not wait one nmore day. To me it would be very scary exspecially because he is not taking nutrical. This little one needs some nutrients fast or he is going to go down. Good luck hun and please keep us posted.

Have you tried mixing the food with some cottage cheese. This is what I did to get Chachi to eat when he was having stomach problems. I think he will be fine untill tomorrow just keep giving him the water and you might get some pedialyte give him.

I tried cottage cheese last night-he refused it. I had to put Pippa in another room for him to be able to come over and sniff it and decide if he wanted it. He turned around and walked away. Pippa promptly came out and gobbled it up. She's getting fat during all this!

Sorry i really dont have any answers for you but just wanted to say i hope your little man gets better real soon

sick
 

Unless he falls over and refuses to get up I would wait for the regular vet.
Put the Nutra-Cal on your finger and put it on the roof of his mouth..he will have to eat it.
Best wishes

I would definitely get some pedialyte and give it to him in a dropper and it is your call about the emergency vet. Five days is a long time to go without eating and if he is losing weight it could be something more serious.

Oscar was sick like this about a month ago. We went to the vet and he said he had eaten some poop and grass he should not have. Oscar would not eat and had not pooped for a couple of days. He was also throwing up the yellow foamy bile stuff and his tummy was making awful noises. He put Oscar on Pedialyte, soft scrambled eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese and told me to give him 1/4 of a 10mg Pepcid AC - that would be 2.5 mg - and only one dose. He was much better in just a few hours. He tried to get a stool sample when I took him in but it was so sticky and packed that he had a hard time getting one. I hope your baby is better soon! I would do like was posted earlier and put the Nutrical on the roof of the mouth.

Poor baby - Albon does work wonders and usually they start feeling better pretty darn fast. I agree with Pat and sometimes we have to force feed the Nutrical. The faster you can open his mouth and put some on the roof of the mouth the easier it is. I put my hand on top of their muzzle and with my thumb and finger of my left hand on the corner of their mouth I force it open and then with the Nutrical on my right hand finger I put it in. Fast.

Cimetidine is used to reduce GI acid production and has very, if any, adverse effects.

Albon is used for GI antibacterial and antiinflammatory activity. The adverse effect can cause decrease in eating but this is very small.

I also agree with Pat on waiting to see your vet tomorrow unless you see him really start going down fast. Sometimes these things have to work through their system and if you can get the Nutrical in him I think you will be alright. I have had many rescue's ( many came in with Coccidia - which Albon works wonders with) refuse the chicken and rice. It does help when I cook the rice in chicken broth (swanson's no salt) and I also keep jars of Junior size baby food in the house, along with the chicken hotdogs for kids. I am a believer in these little ones that it is important to eat but it has to be bland. I have also force fed some when they wouldn't eat (the rice). Just a little bit but it helps to have something in their stomachs. I have even tried ice cream to help coat their stomachs. I have sat on the floor with many a little one begging them to eat just a little. Sometimes they like that I pick up their food and hold it for them and I have gotten some in that way. Obviously fluid are important also but I think you have a handle on that.

Tomorrow if you can take a stool sample in I would just to be on the safe side.

I think these little ones handle upset stomach's just like we do and food is the last thing on their minds.

Let us know how he is doing today and if he is still alert and givening warning barks.

Soft scrambled eggs are another great idea. Yogurt and cottage cheese will work but I would not do the Pepcid AC as your vet has already given him a shot that should do the same thing. A baked potato with nothing on it might also work.

I also always keep a can of NO SPICE pumpkin in the house or I go to the store and get some yams that I boil up. It is another food they seem to like. Obviously you can see I try a number of different things and my kitchen counter looks pretty strange with all the things I will try to get a little one to eat.

P.S. This isn't an issue now for you but I would seriously consider trying to get your little ones off of Little Ceasars. It really is full of a lot of things (by-products) that are just not healthy in the long run.

Thank you all so much for the advice. I went to Walgreens to get some pedialyte and got him to take a little from the dropper. I'm going to get some baby food and some of the other "groceries" that were suggested. I also did nutrical on the roof of his mouth-he didn't fight me too bad. Here are some pics of my poor little boy this morning. He looks so sad!

Bless his little heart!

Poor little dude - you can see he isn't feeling very well. The Nutrical will help spur his appetite so I am glad you got some in him. Let us know how he is doing as the day progresses.

Poor guy, hope he feels better soon ! You never know what those little guys picking up on their walks, and they are soo fast... Rosi has an upset tummy too since yesterday...and she wont eat chicken and rice either.

Poor little guy looks like he doesnt feel a bit good sending him lots of lovenlight and hopes for a speedy recovery .

Hope he feels better soon . Sounds like you are doing everything you can.

Still no improvement and he's just wanting to sleep today. I am force feeding him water and pedialyte. He refused baby food, cottage cheese, and chicken and rice today so far. I'm laying off the food and just concentrating on fluids. My daughter's friend works at Scout's vet's office and even came by to see him today. She is arranging for him to be seen first thing in the morning. I'm basically going to show up when they open. I really think he needs IV fluids. He will get up a pitter patter around for a few minutes and use the pee pad (thank goodness he's still peeing-I know I'm getting somewhere with the fluids). I will update you when I get back from the vet tomorrow-I've already called into work for my sick "child".

What a lovely mum you are! Best wishes for your boy's speedy recovery. I hope you have a good night and a quick resolution to your problems.

Poor little Scout!! :getwellso

Poor baby and Mom. I'm so glad you are geting him in firstthing. Cali has had to be Iv'd twice for stomach problems and she comes back good as new.

Poor little guy... I hope he feels better soon --- I'll be checking back to see updates on him tomorrow. Good luck and know I'm sending positive thoughts your way! :)

Tmatherly -- A dog can go for a long time without food (and, of course, they will get thinner and lose some weight - but it really isn't as lifethreatening as you might think. Wild animals often go days without food - simply because they can't find any, and people can go some 30 days without food. But, water is a necessity - and you have to keep water down him. Even we (humans) can go only a few days without water before we run into serious problems.

Personally - if he really has some sort of a stomach problem right now - forcing food down him may not be what you should be doing. I know one of my dogs was sick once, and the vet said that he'd eat when he was ready and not to worry --he said my dog didn't feel like eating and needed to let his upset stomach rest for a while and take a break.

And, I remember my mother - no matter what was wrong with us, she made us eat. And you guessed it - we promptly threw it up. Even the doctor then said not to force food down us and that we'd eat when we're ready.

Again - my advise would be not to try and force food down him. His not eating is really not his problem. Whatever it is that is making him feel this way - is what needs to be found out and addressed. Back to the vet - right?

Keep working on the fluids....even a few drops of water now and then will be very helpful.

Good luck - Keep in touch. Carol Jean

Thanks Carol Jean. You are right, and exactly what I've been thinking too...he will eat when he's hungry. I've been dropper feeding water and pedialyte (more water...he hates the pedialyte) all day and first thing tomorrow he's going back to the vet. Right now, he's actually perked up a little and looking out his favorite window to bark at people. I never thought I would be happy to hear him bark his head off at someone!!

aww poor scout!! i realllly hope he feels better soon! he looks so sad, i hate seeing babies sad, i'm sure you do too! well-keep us updated!

Well, here it is almost 1 oclock in the morning, and I am up with my little man. I was so excited at about 10:00pm he went over to the water bowl by himself and had a drink...I was thinking...yayyyy! Finally a turning point. We went to bed and as I was getting ready to climb into bed, Scout came over and stood right by my leg real quiet like. I was talking to my husband about where the remote control was and suddenly I hear him fall-collar jingled on the ground, he staggered to get back on his feet and I realized he was vomiting. Poor guy had slipped in it. We cleaned it up and I tried to get him to go in his bed and he finally did. About 20 minutes later we smell this horrific smell and my husband says, I think Scout finally pooped. I turned on the light, little Scout just wobbling around, but no poop. I took him to the potty pad-nothing. I went to the kitchen to get a drink, he follows, hovering near my feet, then squats and out comes this weird looking jelly-like substance. I immediately think, OMG he has a bowel obstruction because that's what kids do when they have one (I am a pediatric nurse). Then he has this blow-out poop, part solid part liquid and LOTS of it. I'm thinking, whew...ok...maybe not a bowel obstruction.Maybe he had an Ileus? I guess I better let the vet decide... Poor little guy had to have a bath and he's feeling so lousy. He trembled for awhile afterward-this is the reason I'm still up. He's sleeping quietly now with no trembling. Im thinking we can go to bed. Still going to the vet in the morning. Sorry to be so long, just need to release my anxiety!

Poor little guy! He should have felt better after all of that. Please let us know how it all goes at the vet! Hope he is feeling better soon! Maybe you both can get a nap when you get home from the vet's office! I know you are exhausted worrying about him!

TMatherly - Me again - I'm glad your little pup is starting to feel better.
I've had sick little dogs before - and we sure all do worry when this happens. But sometimes, they just get sick for a few days and get over it like we do.

Carol Jean

aww I'm sorry he still isn't feeling well, but maybe he is getting somewhere. Let us know what the vet says!

I hope he feels better soon!