Post by Jes on Jan 20, 2014 13:09:25 GMT -5
Background:
Jessie is approximately 8 years old and has been with us since spring of 2011. She came to us severely overweight (120 lbs, maybe more), on a poor diet (all-day access to dog food, plus whole pizzas, chips, fish sticks, etc.), very frequently passed gas that would literally clear the entire house, with *severe* skin problems that I've since learned are typical of goldens. The little daily exercise she got was when they took her out to do her business.
As of summer 2013 she was down to 73 lbs. Her daily diet consists of a grain-free dry dog food soaked in a little water; 1 1/2 cups in the morning, 1 1/2 at night. Plus access to fresh water at all times. The diet-change also reduced the horrendous gas problems (in terms of frequency and smelliness) although she can still clear a room.
After spending too much money at a vet with no improvement in the rashes, sores, itchiness, and fur loss, the switch to grain-free food seemed to do the trick. Maybe twice since the switch have I found a sore on her and I accredited it to the high stress levels in our household at the times they occurred. Jessie is highly sensitive to the environment around her. I do wonder if the skin problems she had when we got her were due solely to the environment of her previous home but am too pleased with how well the dogs do grain-free to switch to a lesser food. I'll add that she has a growth on one of her legs that our then-vet (I no longer use them) glanced at and told me was nothing to worry about. Since it is simply a growth with no discoloration, oozing, or apparent discomfort to her I have merely kept an eye on it. It has grown in size, however, and I plan to bring it up with the new vet at our next appointment.
Daily exercise fluctuates but we're active people, the dogs do the outdoor chores with me every day, and I make sure that they get a chance to run and burn off energy before we call it a day.
Now...the problem we're having is that she seems to still be losing weight. I would say that she is a low 2 on the body scale chart. Her energy level is the same and appetite is a ravenous as ever; I've even increased her food slightly with no obvious weight gain. I've also noticed loss of muscle tone, increased water intake, thin and lifeless fur, a couple of accidents in the house which is completely unlike her. Jessie's behavior has only changed in that she has to sleep in our bed with us at night. She won't sleep on the floor and no matter how many times we wake up and make her get off the bed, she crawls back up with us as soon as we fall back asleep.
This all seems to coincide with a change from an expensive grain-free brand to a slightly more affordable grain-free brand. I read over the ingredients and percentages before the change and have gone over them again recently; the are very similar to my eye. I don't see anything that would cause such these things. I'm going to be switching back to the previous food to be safe but can all of this really be due to an ever-so-slightly inferior brand??
I'm more inclined to think that she's either aging poorly or developed a medical condition. The growth on the inside of her leg along with the laundry list of problems has me suspecting cancer; if that's the case then the best I will be able to do is keep her comfortable...I dislike that course of action so am hoping for something more readily treatable...a thyroid problem, perhaps? Our family has dealt with so much cancer in the past few years that anything else would be a relief to me.
Opinions, advice, thoughts? The majority of the people around me tell me that I'm starving her and if I would just give her more food that she would gain weight and presto, no more problems. One friend tells me that she looks fine and is simply getting old...normally I value her opinion but my gut is telling me that she's wrong this time. I'm looking for real answers, or the correct questions to go to the vet with that will get me real answers.
Jessie is approximately 8 years old and has been with us since spring of 2011. She came to us severely overweight (120 lbs, maybe more), on a poor diet (all-day access to dog food, plus whole pizzas, chips, fish sticks, etc.), very frequently passed gas that would literally clear the entire house, with *severe* skin problems that I've since learned are typical of goldens. The little daily exercise she got was when they took her out to do her business.
As of summer 2013 she was down to 73 lbs. Her daily diet consists of a grain-free dry dog food soaked in a little water; 1 1/2 cups in the morning, 1 1/2 at night. Plus access to fresh water at all times. The diet-change also reduced the horrendous gas problems (in terms of frequency and smelliness) although she can still clear a room.
After spending too much money at a vet with no improvement in the rashes, sores, itchiness, and fur loss, the switch to grain-free food seemed to do the trick. Maybe twice since the switch have I found a sore on her and I accredited it to the high stress levels in our household at the times they occurred. Jessie is highly sensitive to the environment around her. I do wonder if the skin problems she had when we got her were due solely to the environment of her previous home but am too pleased with how well the dogs do grain-free to switch to a lesser food. I'll add that she has a growth on one of her legs that our then-vet (I no longer use them) glanced at and told me was nothing to worry about. Since it is simply a growth with no discoloration, oozing, or apparent discomfort to her I have merely kept an eye on it. It has grown in size, however, and I plan to bring it up with the new vet at our next appointment.
Daily exercise fluctuates but we're active people, the dogs do the outdoor chores with me every day, and I make sure that they get a chance to run and burn off energy before we call it a day.
Now...the problem we're having is that she seems to still be losing weight. I would say that she is a low 2 on the body scale chart. Her energy level is the same and appetite is a ravenous as ever; I've even increased her food slightly with no obvious weight gain. I've also noticed loss of muscle tone, increased water intake, thin and lifeless fur, a couple of accidents in the house which is completely unlike her. Jessie's behavior has only changed in that she has to sleep in our bed with us at night. She won't sleep on the floor and no matter how many times we wake up and make her get off the bed, she crawls back up with us as soon as we fall back asleep.
This all seems to coincide with a change from an expensive grain-free brand to a slightly more affordable grain-free brand. I read over the ingredients and percentages before the change and have gone over them again recently; the are very similar to my eye. I don't see anything that would cause such these things. I'm going to be switching back to the previous food to be safe but can all of this really be due to an ever-so-slightly inferior brand??
I'm more inclined to think that she's either aging poorly or developed a medical condition. The growth on the inside of her leg along with the laundry list of problems has me suspecting cancer; if that's the case then the best I will be able to do is keep her comfortable...I dislike that course of action so am hoping for something more readily treatable...a thyroid problem, perhaps? Our family has dealt with so much cancer in the past few years that anything else would be a relief to me.
Opinions, advice, thoughts? The majority of the people around me tell me that I'm starving her and if I would just give her more food that she would gain weight and presto, no more problems. One friend tells me that she looks fine and is simply getting old...normally I value her opinion but my gut is telling me that she's wrong this time. I'm looking for real answers, or the correct questions to go to the vet with that will get me real answers.