can I give chiquita ENSURE?
Chiquita has been very, very sick. She has been to the vet twice and it's supposedly just the flu or gastrointestinal distress. She has an antibiotic and we are keeping her hydrated. She has lost 15 pounds and she is WAY TOO SKINNY. WE ARE THINKING OF GIVING HER ENSURE. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THIS IS OK? We are so very worried and upset. She will not eat but a few bites every day. She's had terrible diarrhea and vomiting. The vomiting and diarrhea has stopped. She's taking pepsid, antibiotic and good flora. Imodium when she's had diarrhea. She is drinking on her own some and we are giving her water by turkey baster. We have tried every food we can think of....I mean everything....we've tried it, cooked it, baked it, served it by hand.  Please help if you know if ensure is a good idea or not. thanksStephanie |
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| I'm thinking probably not. Milk based stuff for those not used to it often causes diarrhea...exactly what you don't want. Best will be to get her truly healthy (no diarrhea, not dehydrated) then worry about adding weight. It looks bad (as it is so visible), but it's really the least critical problem.  to Chiquita |
| there is an ensure for canines made by ross nutrition rather than abbott labs ensure for humans. is that what you were referring to? there is also clinicare liquid for dogs. both are available from amazon. |
| Hi Stephanie, Have you tried ALL Meat baby food that comes in a jar. It is pureed and a very good way to get a non eating dog/cat started eating again. I usually get liver, as it is the smelliest one and seems to really stimulate eating, although any of the pure meat ones will work. If they are really reluctant to eat I smear some around their mouths and they then have to lick it off. They then discover they like the taste and begin to eat. I then offer it in spoonfuls. This is not to be used as a regular diet, but just to entice them to eat. Good luck getting Chiquita to eat better! Kathie |
| Stephanie, have you tried chicken soup? I'm not being silly, I mean homemade chicken soup, starting with broth. As she takes to that then puree some meat and veggie (carrot for example) and add a dollop into her broth. You can increase this and even incorporate cooked rice into the puree. Initially it might be by turkey baster but eventually she may take interest in lapping it herself. The 15 lbs was probably mostly water and the few pounds will come back. |
| 15 pounds is a lot of weight to drop unless she started on the heavy side and the weight loss was over a longer period of time. It depends on her starting weight but if she started out at 70 pounds, it's a 20+% drop. Has the vet restricted any foods to prevent future diarrhea/vomiting? Don't try any of this without their approval... Hills Prescription a/d is for seriously ill dogs and cats. http://www.hillspet.com/products/pd-fel ... anned.html It comes in a small can and can be fed in a bowl, off a spoon or syringed... you might be able to mix in a little water and syringe it into her mouth... just be extremely careful she doesn't aspirate/inhale it. To prevent choking, you might try smearing a small dab of food on the roof of her mouth, just behind her front teeth... it depends on how weak she is or if she'll allow you to put it in her mouth. Kaytee arrived underweight because she was tube fed but she also had an infection... this food helped. I wouldn't pick up multiples to start but maybe a variety of canned foods. Maybe even some of the small cans of dog food for small dogs from the grocery store. Sometimes a sick dog will eat a food once and refuse it at the next feeding. Soft foods will go down with less effort. Warming the food may make it more appetizing and smelly. Smelly foods might help entice her to eat- tuna in water, beef liver, cheese, hot dog, mashed potatoes with a little bacon or garlic powder, scrambled eggs... even a Vienna sausage or two (canned type in water not the greasy kind). It depends on the type of dietary restrictions the vet's got in place. Obviously this isn't something you want to keep her on and if she starts eating, try to quickly switch her over to better food like chicken or beef and rice. You just don't want her to throw it back up or have it race through her. Frequent feedings of small amounts, keep her well hydrated and keep in touch with the vet about your concerns and how she's doing. Weighing her daily can help you determine if she's going in the right direction. There are meds that might stimulate appetite. But sometimes the body needs a down time to heal. I hope she'll be well again soon. |
| When they have been so sick the weight does fall off fast, food is not the concern while she is still feeling not crash hot, only a concern if they are not getting the fluids, which chiquita is and taking it on her own so that is a good sign she is over the worse. When she settles down she will start eating again so dont worry too much about that, when she does the weight will be back on fast. I can tell you that as last year my girl spent 4 days in the vet hospital on drips as she had contracted a corona virus and it turned into Hemmagoric (sp) gastro enteritis, which meant lots of blood coming out of her back end as well. Took ages to get her to eat after treatment and she lost heaps of weight and her ribs were sticking out. Vet said not a concern as long as the fluids were going in and that when she does feel better in the tum tum and starts to eat well again the weight will come back fast. It did. I started off with just poached chicken fillet, hand fed in little bits through the day. I did not want to overload her and have her throw up are even worse start the loose bowel motions & blood happening. progressed to a little bit of boiled rice and the chicken then onto her dry but soaked in chicken stock to soften it & make it more appealing and still hand feeding her and lots of little hand feeds through the day, no set meal times just frequent tempts out of my hand through the day. It took after a good month and more to get her back to her normal diet and her wanting it on her own. Trying to tempt them with something strong in smell can set them back when they have been sick and upset there empty tummies quite easily & can be a major set back to them vommitting and diarreah happening over again, just too much for there systems to handle after being so sick. Start with bland stuff and build up from there back to her normal diet. You will find she will when feeling better wack the weight back fast. I have a piglet now and it did not take long for the weight to return that she had lost. Fluid is the most important at the moment. Chiquita wont starve herself to death and will eat when she is feeling better. So start off with bland food from your hand through the day and build up from there, it will take a little while for her to return to her normal diet and wanting to eat on her own from her bowl.  |
| Hills Prescription a/d is for seriously ill dogs and cats. http://www.hillspet.com/products/pd-fel ... anned.html It comes in a small can and can be fed in a bowl, off a spoon or syringed... you might be able to mix in a little water and syringe it into her mouth... just be extremely careful she doesn't aspirate/inhale it. To prevent choking, you might try smearing a small dab of food on the roof of her mouth, just behind her front teeth... it depends on how weak she is or if she'll allow you to put it in her mouth. Kaytee arrived underweight because she was tube fed but she also had an infection... this food helped. I agree with Jaci. This food is usually used to lure a dog or cat back to eating again, after they are adverse to eating after severe abdominal distress. Very tasty for dogs and high calorie too, and once you get her started eating on this, she should start eating again. Your vet should have this in stock and they may recommend feeding with a syringe. If he/she doesn't have this in stock, they should recommend a vet where you can pick this up right away. 15 lbs is a huge weight loss? Is this just after this illness bout or during a certain length of time? |
hank you so much for all of your help. I was soooo worried. It took seven days but she has started eating again. According to the vet she just shredded her intestines and it took time for her tummy to feel better. The one day in the vet on a drip seemed to really help and then it was just nursing her back to health. I'm so glad to report that she is back to acting normal, drinking and eating. I'm sure you are right that the weight gain will happen easily  |
| That is great news! |
 Thank goodness. I'm so glad to hear she's on the mend! |
| Wonderful news.....and I bet you are so relieved and happy!! |
DannyboyStephjoy's OES wrote: I'm sure you are right that the weight gain will happen easily It will especially as she is eating and drinking normally now. Great news so glad she is on the mend, frightening how fast they go down but also amazing how fast they recover and back to there normal bouncy selfs with lots of TLC.  Hugs for your precious and hugs for her momma too. |
| Great news. Lisa Frankie and Mattie |
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