# PLEASE HELP!!! (i know this is a long post)



## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

I am not a new chi mommy...I actually have four of them! I just adopted my newest...the breeder contacted me asking me to take him. He was just 6 weeks old but had a LARGE inguinal hernia that distended into his scrotum. I had his surgery last Thursday. He was born on Dec. 2, 2012 and only weighs in at 2lbs. As my vets suggested, I keep him separate from the others, only letting them play together for small periods of time until they get used to him, as they are so much larger! Friday, he had a SEVERE episode of hypoglycemia! It didn't even register on their glucometer! I tried giving him Nutrical but that didn't even help so the vets took him home for the evening. After 30cc of Nutrical and an hour, it came up and they got him to eat. They let him come home Saturday. Once home, he ate a little two times then scarfed down the third time on the special food due to his hernia repair. But he refused to eat after that. I had to once again give him Nutrical and begin syringe feeding him. It was the same thing on Sunday. And the same thing today. He simply REFUSES to eat anything! I did call the vet today and they said continue the same thing I have been doing. He has to stay on this food (EN) due to the hernia repairs that had to be done and the severity of it. I heat it up and have tried different bowls, on the floor, on the bed...I've tried to getting him to eat out of my hand...NOTHING! Once I syringe feed him, he nods off for a few minutes, gets up and potties. Then he runs around full of energy for 10-20 minutes, then it is time to sleep for a few hours...I give him his pain meds (2 more days of it) and he zonks out for several hours. I've just run out of ideas on how to get him to eat. The vet said after he gets his stitches removed, they will examine him & he should be ok to try other foods. I am desperate to get him to eat on his own. I know it is best to syringe feed him but I feel like I am torturing him! 

PLEASE HELP!


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

I would do what you're doing,as your vet says he has to have food .It must be very hard for you to do but it's for his own good.Good luck and keep us updated


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

If he were mine I would give him any food he will eat in order to avoid the hypoglycemia. I am not a fan of prescription diets generally, and it seems that neither is your puppy! I would offer him something yummy instead, some chicken, tripe or scrambled egg. 
If you wish to stick to the prescription diet, then you will have to continue syringe feeding him. His life is at risk from the hypoglycemia, feeding him has to take priority. Good luck with him, poor little soul.


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## fizzy n kirbys mum (Jan 17, 2005)

Bless him I understand your worry, my Zeta also had a huge inguinal hernia . She had surgery at 6 months old ( so not as scary as your little chap who is very young) she weighed 3lbs , it was a long and hard recovery, a good 6 weeks till she was her normal self ( her op was 5 years ago so I'm sure things are more advanced now) 

I personally would syringe feed him like you are doing as it is getting food into him . Yes he hates it but it seems the safest option .. I understand why the vet wants him on EN as the last thing you want is for him to have upset tummy when just had surgery close to his bowel and if he strains etc it could cause problems..

Hope he will eat on his own soon ..


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## Evelyn (Oct 14, 2012)

I would do as the vet said , he will eat in time, but you have go slow with this one, try something he might like, keep trying to offer him some food make sure it is soft, but also keep him on the food the vet has suggested. He is a beautiufl little guy, keep us up to date on how he is doing.


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## rubia (Jul 3, 2008)

I have to think that once the hernia repair is done he wil start to feel better about eating. I would push that Nutra Cal evey couple of hours....once there is a better health outlook it will get easier. so rough for you right now. Hang in there.... Is he merle ?


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## erinself (Jan 20, 2013)

try supplementing with some raw goats milk. You can even soak the kibble in it and it might make it more appealing. She is such a young pup she would probably prefer to have some milk still and raw unpasteurized goats milk is great for their health.


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

Wicked Pixie said:


> If he were mine I would give him any food he will eat in order to avoid the hypoglycemia. I am not a fan of prescription diets generally, and it seems that neither is your puppy! I would offer him something yummy instead, some chicken, tripe or scrambled egg.
> If you wish to stick to the prescription diet, then you will have to continue syringe feeding him. His life is at risk from the hypoglycemia, feeding him has to take priority. Good luck with him, poor little soul.


Agreed 100% I am not a fan of prescription diets at all! No need for it. Also the pain meds could be causing the not wanting to eat, upsetting his stomach. If he is playing hard then he is not feeling any pain and doesn't need the meds. Also not feeling any pain can cause more damage as they don't know their activity limits. You might need to find a medium with the meds or stop them.


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## lulu'smom (Jan 4, 2012)

I'm sorry I have no advice, I just wanted to say what a beautiful baby! Good luck!


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

Try different canned foods. Try boiled chicken. Try chicken or beef baby food. Nutrical is fine, it is basically a sugar syrup with some vitamins, and it does make their blood sugar go up..... but then crash back down. So get some protein into him when he has the nutrical. That will stabilize his blood sugar. Right now I wouldn't be concerned with keeping him on the vets prescription food. You just want to get protein into his system so he can heal. 

If he won't eat on his own, you will have to syringe it into his mouth, or dip your finger in the food and have him lick it off. It is vital to get him to eat every few hours. 

Hypoglycemia kills puppies. He must eat, and you have a job ahead of you making sure that he does. Force feed him if you must, but try and get him to eating a little on his own. You may have to get up every several hours during the night as well until you get him through this. Once he is over 3 pounds, you can relax a little. But for now, a 2 pound baby is going to need special care.

I would not let him play with the other dogs and zoom around burning his energy. Right now he needs rest and recuperation. Playing will just burn up his reserves. I would keep him very quiet and separated from the other dogs, or in your arms. 

Keep us posted!!


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## TLI (Sep 3, 2008)

I'm sorry to hear your baby is having some trouble. Hope to hear his recovery is quick and smooth. First and foremost your pup has to eat. Which I'm sure you know. If syringe feeding him is the only way he'll eat, as tough as it is, keep doing it. I've even gone as far as taking the food on my pinky finger and wiping tiny amounts on the roof of their mouth. You can try mixing his food with beechnut, chicken meat only, baby food. He probably just doesn't feel well, plus the Meds don't make their tummy feel all that great. I personally would limit any food changes, or offering to many different foods. If he gets diarrhea, or starts throwing up, you'll have even bigger issues. Any running around, playing will burn his reserves. I've had one acting perfectly normal, playing, and just fall over on her side going into a hypo attack. Nutri-Cal is a life saver, but needs to be combined with food to stabilize the sugar level. Otherwise it's spiking it, then it drops. My advice would be to give a pea sized glob of NC, wait about 30 minutes, then offer his food mixed with the baby food. Do this 4/5 times during the day, and I'd do it at least once during the night. Once you get your baby at about 3 lbs., the chances of hypo decreases provided the pup is healthy. But I can't stress enough that within hours you could lose your baby without regular feedings. I would keep your baby in a playpen, or small area away from the other pups for now. This will also limit the pups activity until he's stable. Please keep us posted. Sending thoughts and prayers to your little Angel.


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## TLI (Sep 3, 2008)

2 of the 4/5 times of NC and food needs to be first thing in the AM, and at bedtime.


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Just remember that low blood sugar needs sugar to reverse it quickly--thus the nutri-cal, then some protein to keep it up. This is where the stuff that you are force feeding him come in. Ask the vet if you could add some baby food meats. My vet advocates the chicken baby food. Keep us updated please. You're doing a great job.


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

he is still REFUSING to eat the EN....he has even figured out how to spit it out when i syringe feed him...so i am still giving him the nutrical every couple hours and a little chicken too. He smells chicken and literally goes nuts trying to get to it...If that is all he will eat, then i am just going to let him eat it...i don't know what else to do!


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

MarineChicShara said:


> he is still REFUSING to eat the EN....he has even figured out how to spit it out when i syringe feed him...so i am still giving him the nutrical every couple hours and a little chicken too. He smells chicken and literally goes nuts trying to get to it...If that is all he will eat, then i am just going to let him eat it...i don't know what else to do!


Smart! Give him what he wants!


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

rubia said:


> I have to think that once the hernia repair is done he wil start to feel better about eating. I would push that Nutra Cal evey couple of hours....once there is a better health outlook it will get easier. so rough for you right now. Hang in there.... Is he merle ?


yup...im not usually a big merle fan but i just love his little face and the stripe on his neck!


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

Gunner died today


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

I am so sorry for your loss! May he rest in peace


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Such sad news, I'm so very sorry.


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## Rolo n Buttons (Sep 22, 2012)

Much love. So sorry. Poor little guy. You did your absolute best. Xx


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## Rach_Honey (Jan 13, 2012)

I'm so sorry, RIP little man xxx


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

oh no.


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## miuccias (Aug 22, 2012)

😭 RIP little angel


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## Rubyannie (Jan 24, 2013)

Wicked Pixie said:


> If he were mine I would give him any food he will eat in order to avoid the hypoglycemia. I am not a fan of prescription diets generally, and it seems that neither is your puppy! I would offer him something yummy instead, some chicken, tripe or scrambled egg.
> If you wish to stick to the prescription diet, then you will have to continue syringe feeding him. His life is at risk from the hypoglycemia, feeding him has to take priority. Good luck with him, poor little soul.


I agree. He could be fed on easy to digest, soft, highly nutricious food. Priobotic plain, yogurt given as a supplement is also very good in aiding digestion.


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## intent2smile (Dec 4, 2011)

I am so sorry for your loss.


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## Rubyannie (Jan 24, 2013)

My sincerest condolences. This is so very sad. RIP little guy.


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## fizzy n kirbys mum (Jan 17, 2005)

Oh no I am so very sorry  

Inguinal hernia surgery is a serious operation, you did the best for him xx


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

i am so hurt...wow...so the breeder i got all my dogs from is blaming me for Gunner's death saying their vet told them he needed to wait until he was 4 months old and i never should have gotten him the surgery...but i have found out that Gunner was NEVER SEEN IN PERSON by their vet, just via a phone convo they were told this! so NEVER buy from Kentucky Puppy! They said the vet cleared him and said he didn't have worms...funny becuz he was FULL OF WORMS when i got him!!!


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Hey this breeder is being very defensive. The fact that this pup was never seen by their vet, and that he was full of worms, suggest to me, that they thought he was going to die, and just didn't want to spend any money on him?? It is sad that they thought this way, but???? So sorry after all your good, hard work it turned out so sadly.


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

susan davis said:


> Hey this breeder is being very defensive. The fact that this pup was never seen by their vet, and that he was full of worms, suggest to me, that they thought he was going to die, and just didn't want to spend any money on him?? It is sad that they thought this way, but???? So sorry after all your good, hard work it turned out so sadly.


all of the dogs i got from them were full of worms and had ingested so many fleas they all had coccidia, nearly dying. EVERYTHING I have said about them has been documented by my vets office as well as the emergency vets I have had to take them all to after purchasing them. 

I LOVED Gunner...I got up every two hours to syringe feed him. I paid hundreds of dollars to get him well in a week and a half of having him...i have done nothing but cry since the vet called saying we lost him yesterday. I am hurting too much from losing him to need to deal with this.


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

I'm sorry for your loss. Jut for curiosity sake, why did you go back to the same breeder after a bad experience before? Sounds like they are shady. I can't believe the whole ordeal you've gone through. At least you can be competed that you did everything possible for him. 


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

I had gotten my other three within a month of each other. They all got sick around the same time...two I got at the same time came to me sick about the same time my first was getting sick. As for this last one, they basically made me think if I didn't take him they would have him put down since they couldn't breed him and make money.


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

MarineChicShara said:


> I had gotten my other three within a month of each other. They all got sick around the same time...two I got at the same time came to me sick about the same time my first was getting sick. As for this last one, they basically made me think if I didn't take him they would have him put down since they couldn't breed him and make money.


How awful. Sounds like a horrible situation. You had four pups at once? What a brave woman!!! Lol. 


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## MarineChicShara (Jan 28, 2013)

LoL...
Chase was born March 17th
Rosie - May 13th
Chip May 15th
Gunner was born December 2nd and died January 31st


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## rubia (Jul 3, 2008)

Sory about the wee pup--you did everythin possible for him


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