cowanbree Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) I have a sheltie that due to a oesophageal stricture can only eat liquids. I have managed him for 3 years and once we got into the swing of things it has been fine. I have been having some issues lately as he doesn't want to eat the food he has been on previously which is dry food soaked and then blended into a liquid in the morning and raw meat, normally lamb also blended with water at night. To get some of these to blend into something liquid I have to add quite a bit of water. He has never been overly food orientated and the sheer volume he has to eat is causing some issues. He is not eating full meals and has lost weight. I am looking for ideas as to what I can add to his meals that will keep the weight on and enable me to reduce to quantity he has to eat. I was thinking protein powder but not sure if that is a good idea or not as I need his diet to be balanced Edited November 18, 2012 by cowanbree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karly101 Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Hills A/d ... its a prescription diet specifically for that purpose, its balanced but high calorie so you won't need much and doesn't need much water added, the more you stir it the runnier it gets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuddleDuck Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 I would try something like eukanuba vet maximum calorie tins, they're soft enough to tube feed without adding water (though if needed you could always add some) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florise Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) Ask your vet about TwoCal http://abbottnutrition.com/Products/twocal-hn Not sure if it is OK for dogs, it is a human product. (Having said that, I used it for my sick dog and she loved it). Edited November 18, 2012 by KaseyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 I used Pediasure for my sick dog. Heaps of people use it in a Yahoo group I am a member of. It is kids version of Ensure. I got it from Chemist Warehouse. http://www.pharmacyonline.com.au/pediasure-balanced-nutritional-powder-vanilla-flavour-400g/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 I had to use the likes of AD when he was in his recovery period and he won't even look at that type of food now. Might be an option to add a little to his blend though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Ok.. what if .... you blend lamb muscle meat plus some canned food? Also .. make up some chicken soup .. chicken meat/offal/some veg/rice ..and let it simmer until some liquid is gone . blend this with any other meat he has . he may also benefit muchly from lactose free milk & egg = eggflips ! Flavour with some melted bacon fat as you blend :) Eggflips can also have sardine blended in ... my old cats love it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christina Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Add some Nutrigel too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 I used Pediasure for my sick dog. Heaps of people use it in a Yahoo group I am a member of. It is kids version of Ensure. I got it from Chemist Warehouse. http://www.pharmacyonline.com.au/pediasure-balanced-nutritional-powder-vanilla-flavour-400g/ Is this totally smooth with no lumps? It doesn't have texture? May be an option Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) I used Pediasure for my sick dog. Heaps of people use it in a Yahoo group I am a member of. It is kids version of Ensure. I got it from Chemist Warehouse. http://www.pharmacyonline.com.au/pediasure-balanced-nutritional-powder-vanilla-flavour-400g/ Is this totally smooth with no lumps? It doesn't have texture? May be an option Totally smooth. Mixes up really easily. Texture like milk. Edited November 18, 2012 by JulesP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeebie Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 Can the stricture not be just surgically via endoscope removed, or alternatively a dilatation to enable ease of swallowing semi formed specific types of food and I have seen one dog who had a small direct tube (they are called Permanent Enteral Gastric tube - PEG) inserted into stomach and was drip fed via this all its life from age 6 ->12yrs, could still lap water and animalac (dog milk supplement).here is link to a dog who has a peg feeding device in site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share Posted November 19, 2012 Can the stricture not be just surgically via endoscope removed, or alternatively a dilatation to enable ease of swallowing semi formed specific types of food and I have seen one dog who had a small direct tube (they are called Permanent Enteral Gastric tube - PEG) inserted into stomach and was drip fed via this all its life from age 6 ->12yrs, could still lap water and animalac (dog milk supplement).here is link to a dog who has a peg feeding device in site. Thanks Zeebie. Cowan was fed exclusively via a feeding tube direct to the stomach for a number of mths, it took 5mths before he was eating 100% by mouth. It was a real experience, in a lot of ways easier than what we do now but I was of the understanding that it wasn't an option long term as certainly in Cowan's case he started to have issues with tube insertion site. His issue is not so much a stricture as scarring from his stomach acid as a result of extremely long operations to fix a blockage and then peritonitis. Not a nice experience, it was a really tough journey. I have looked at where they insert a balloon and pump it up slowly to enlarge his throat but it requires repeated operations and each operation is a 16hr round trip. Even then it apparently isn't permanent so I have decided given his age (12yrs) to manage it as best I can. It is a lot of work and can be a bit stressful but he is worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puglvr Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 Is that they boy? If so he is beautiful. Could you make up the Leerburg formula and use it as the liquid part of the mix if he likes it? High in calories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Rusty Bucket Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 I have occasionally used sports drinks like staminade sports for meal replacements - ie theres a lot of sugar (calories) in it as well as electrolytes. But I'm not sure that's suitable for a dog in recovery. Some body builders use some sort of protein based "shake" too. That might be better for a dog. Maybe the vet could advise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 try the leerburg formula I have found Di Vetalact and the RC puppy starter mousse blends easily with not too much water added and stacks weight on quickly. You can add nutrigel or mince to the mix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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