Brother's pup is sick

[JDouglas]

My brothers dog began vomiting at 9AM yesterday and this continued off and and on until about 2:30 so he was taken to the Vet by his wife.


Jared's pup, Toby, is an Olde English Bulldogge mix(not 100% sure what dad is) that is 10 weeks old. He has been feeding it three meals a day which consists of a little Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy mixed with raw venison(white tail deer), a little milk and an occasional egg mixed in.

The Vet took xrays which showed nothing. She told him the raw venison was too rich and was upsetting his stomach. She gave him antacid medication, nausea medication, and what she called a bland canned dog food to help settle his stomach. I can't remember what it was called but it was mostly made of corn? She also gave him a bag of Science Diet to feed after that once his stomach settles. I can't help but think this is bad advice after reading about diet on this website.

When Jared got home he went out to take a look at the the dog poo in the yard. He found a stool that had pieces of a wooden pencil, a small piece of plastic, and pieces of a granola bar wrapper in it. I guess his wife wasn't watching him very well while he was at work. We both think that this is the cause of the vomiting and at 6PM the dog was back to acting normal.

My brother bought a bag of Merrick Classic Chicken, Brown Rice & Sweet Pea and will be feeding that along with some raw and ignoring the Vet's advice. What are your thoughts about this vets care and advice?

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

Sounds like pretty standard advice to me.

Most vets are against raw feeding.

Many people here are horrified that I feed chicken and corn in a bag (otherwise known as Hills j/d) but my dogs do really well on it and that my barometer. I just agree to disagree. C'est la vie!

What I WOULD do would be to feed a bland diet for a few days-- boiled chicken and rice would be good-- and keep a close eye on him. A 10 week old puppy can crash fast from vomiting and diarrhea.

[JDouglas]

Yes, I agree that he should feed a bland diet until things cool down. I called and gave him this advice but he will be feeding the higher quality Merrick after that.

[JDouglas]

I have a female pup that is a sibling to my bros pup and she was eating the same Iams puppy food. She started getting more and more itchy. When I would pet down her back her skin would jump and flex and she would reach back to chew/itch. She also has a very itchy spot right in front of her tail that when scratched will make her chew on my arm with her front teeth. It was cute at first but I began to notice that she was getting more itchy in other places as well. I came to this website and others and found a lot of information on diet and I switched her to the Merrick puppy food that is available at Petco. After a week she is less itchy so this is partly why he is switching to it. I don't feed raw but I am considering it when she gets a little older. I give her cooked chicken and beef for treats now and she loves it.

[Misskiwi67]

Puppies grow incredibly quickly and raw diets are notoriously bad for growth due to the extreme nutritional needs of animals that reach adulthood in such a short period of time. There are numerous examples of puppies on home-prepared diets with severe malformations secondary to inappropriate diet.

I agree that "dietary indiscretion" is the most likely cause for the puppies vomiting, particularly if he's doing better now, but I still think home prepared diets are a bad choice for puppies when there are so many alternative options available.

[Breezy833]

I've had some of the same concerns. We'er treating demodex and i talked with my vet, told him i've been doing A LOT of reading on line in regards to it. I saw a thread on here that suggested you treat the demodex from the inside out in conjunction with vets medication. Better food, vitamin C, Fish oil? Hes dismissed it all saying that the food doesnt really matter. I dont really know how to feel about his position on this matter because almost EVERYTHING i read says that food and suppliments DO matter. Also that they could help aliviate the demodex quicker.

In your case brothers case i would feed a bland diet. Whats to lose?

[JDouglas]

I guess I was surprised the vet would suggest such a poor quality dog food once his stomach settles. Science Diet isn't any better than the Iams he was already feeding it. The vet overlooked the real cause of illness once she heard what the dog had been eating. Instead of blaming the diet the Vet should have pursued the real cause which was ingestion of inappropriate items. Toby was looking better a few hours after the vet visit without any meds or food given to him. He will be given a bland diet for a few days and then will be fed a quality dry food, Merrill, along with some raw meat. I guess I don't see how adding real meat to his hard dog food is a bad thing.

[JDouglas]

Puppies grow incredibly quickly and raw diets are notoriously bad for growth due to the extreme nutritional needs of animals that reach adulthood in such a short period of time. There are numerous examples of puppies on home-prepared diets with severe malformations secondary to inappropriate diet.

I agree that "dietary indiscretion" is the most likely cause for the puppies vomiting, particularly if he's doing better now, but I still think home prepared diets are a bad choice for puppies when there are so many alternative options available.

I see you are a Vet and after reading a few of your previous posts I learned a few things. Raw diets can have bacterial contamination which lead to illness and it is difficult to get all essential nutrients a dog needs. I understand now and will make sure to continue to cook my pups treats first and stick with the Merrill. I have read several posts that state Vets no little about nutrition but it is clear to me that you do. What food do you recommend for your clients?