Jenk
Well-Known Member
Here's a run-down of Pinkerton's dietary issues (since mid-Sept.). I would like any suggestions of what I might try (even gentle criticisms of what I may be doing wrong)....
1) He was fed a variety of greens, hay and alfalfa-based pellets at the shelter (for five weeks').
2)I fed him the same diet his first night with me; he got mushy poops, so I cut out the greens (temporarily, per the vet's suggestion).
3) He showed signs of bladder sludge (or nearly so) within the first 24 hours' that we had him. The vet suggested I slowly convert to timothy-based pellets using the 1:5 ratio method.
4) His gut was very loud/gurgly, at least from the start of the pellet conversion. I took him off pellets (fed hay only) for three days'; his gut quieted.
5) The vet suggested I slowly re-introduce greens first to see if Pink's gut remained loud. For the most part, it was more quiet, but he started to feel thin.
6) The vet suggested that I again try timothy-based pellets, re-introducing them slowly (1/2 Tbsp./day to start). She theorized that maybe some gurgling was his system's way of adjusting to the diet and that he needed to work through it.
7) Pink's gut was still gurgly on hay, pellets and two greens; but his fecals were normal (as they had been throughout all of this).
8) After hewas eating 1 Tbsp. of pellets/day for about two weeks', he seemed to form a blockage. (He had bloat symptoms that ended with sub-Qs and Metacam. Not sure Simethicone really helped in this case.) He wasn't groomed for a week; I don't know if he just ingested too much hair, or if the pellets somehow caused a build-up of something (gas?) that complicated things.
Now, he's eating hay and a few greens. He's already lost a little weight, andhis gut's still loud and somewhat gushy-feeling (since his bloat-ish episode). I don't know where to go from here.I fear that taking him on/off things isn't helping--yet keeping him on things that make his gut loudseem suspicious, too.
We're awaiting results on blood work and a fecal culture. X-rays show a white-colored shape that'sin hisintestines thatwe can't identify. I can only imagine it being apiece of a willow ring chew toy (buthe shouldn't have an intact piece of it in him anyway). It if is a piece of the ring, it's moving slowly through his system (he's not had the ring in 1.5 weeks'). Could that have caused himthe sudden discomfort as it moved through him (e.g., the pyloric valve)? Ack!
Thank you,
Jenk
1) He was fed a variety of greens, hay and alfalfa-based pellets at the shelter (for five weeks').
2)I fed him the same diet his first night with me; he got mushy poops, so I cut out the greens (temporarily, per the vet's suggestion).
3) He showed signs of bladder sludge (or nearly so) within the first 24 hours' that we had him. The vet suggested I slowly convert to timothy-based pellets using the 1:5 ratio method.
4) His gut was very loud/gurgly, at least from the start of the pellet conversion. I took him off pellets (fed hay only) for three days'; his gut quieted.
5) The vet suggested I slowly re-introduce greens first to see if Pink's gut remained loud. For the most part, it was more quiet, but he started to feel thin.
6) The vet suggested that I again try timothy-based pellets, re-introducing them slowly (1/2 Tbsp./day to start). She theorized that maybe some gurgling was his system's way of adjusting to the diet and that he needed to work through it.
7) Pink's gut was still gurgly on hay, pellets and two greens; but his fecals were normal (as they had been throughout all of this).
8) After hewas eating 1 Tbsp. of pellets/day for about two weeks', he seemed to form a blockage. (He had bloat symptoms that ended with sub-Qs and Metacam. Not sure Simethicone really helped in this case.) He wasn't groomed for a week; I don't know if he just ingested too much hair, or if the pellets somehow caused a build-up of something (gas?) that complicated things.
Now, he's eating hay and a few greens. He's already lost a little weight, andhis gut's still loud and somewhat gushy-feeling (since his bloat-ish episode). I don't know where to go from here.I fear that taking him on/off things isn't helping--yet keeping him on things that make his gut loudseem suspicious, too.
We're awaiting results on blood work and a fecal culture. X-rays show a white-colored shape that'sin hisintestines thatwe can't identify. I can only imagine it being apiece of a willow ring chew toy (buthe shouldn't have an intact piece of it in him anyway). It if is a piece of the ring, it's moving slowly through his system (he's not had the ring in 1.5 weeks'). Could that have caused himthe sudden discomfort as it moved through him (e.g., the pyloric valve)? Ack!
Thank you,
Jenk