Pancreatitis Again...Food & Ideas?

[a1r1ka]

Papi is on his second bout with pancreatitis and I don't like that the vet is PUSHING Royal Canin Digestive Low Fat as the only option for the next few weeks while Papi takes prescribed meds and heals...

We feed him 1/2 Honest Kitchen Embark (grain-free, gluten-free turkey soup) and 1/2 Acana Pacifica (an Orijen brand grain-free kibble made up of primarily fish) in three to four meals per day, and while I understand the vet is just trying to recommended the only low-fat food he knows that assists in stomach recovery (and that his office, no doubt, gets kickbacks on), I don't think he understands what's best..

I don't really want to switch Papi off a food that provides normal stools, a healthy coat, reduced eye boogers, is something he likes, and is something that removes what used to be major gas problems.

FYI: Red meat foods don't agree with him, but he doesn't have any allergies

1. Any low-fat, stomach-safe suggestions for food (outside of RAW)?
2. Any supplements or products I should add to his meals?
3. Anything else I should be doing to help him along?

 

[MOMTOGUINNES]

I had the same problem with Guinness.

Guinness used to have such bad problems with his stomach. The rumbling sounds would wake me from a dead sleep! I knew I was in for a bad day. He would not eat on those days, he would not settle, it seemed his stomach was hard and making horrible sounds. He would run wildly around at times and dash outside frequently. The Vet said his levels of pancreatitis enzymes were through the roof at some times and he couldn't believe the dog was still functioning let alone running around. The Vet put him on tylocene twice a day when he had a flare up along with an antacid tablet. This usually helped to alleviate the problem by about 4 in the afternoon and he would finally eat his breakfast.

This was happening three to four times a month and it was really worrying me. I started feeding him home cooked meals. Cooked ground beef or chicken with brown rice and shredded carrots, sometimes he gets sardines or salmon. I also include a chopped egg in his food for extra protein. He also loves Macks Meatloaf (you can find the recipe in one of the forums- it freezes great and he loves it).

He has had only one incident of his stomach problem in the last six months and that was over the Christmas holidays when I know my sister-in-law was sneaking both the dogs extra treats.

I will never go back to store bought food for him. It has made all the difference. He loves it and the vet says he is thriving on it and to keep it up. Just a suggestion to maybe try and see if it helps. These home cooked meals are a bit of work, but you can make big batches and freeze. They are also so easy on the stomach that just to give it a try should be of no harm and maybe a good solution. Good luck, I Know how annoying the problem can be and they seem to really be so uncomfortable with it. Sending you good thoughts that your baby is better soon.

 

[a1r1ka]

Maybe home-cooked is the only way...I don't even cook for myself, but I don't want Papi to go through this again. My kitchen won't understand why I'm there, so I'll have some 'splaining to do.


Cooking and freezing his food might be a good solution so that's it's ready when I need it. Thanks for sharing your experience and insight!

 

[sriley]

My sweet Buddy had pancreatitis once and the vet told me to go to the drug store and buy a vitamin E supplement for him. It was a while ago and I can't remember all the details, but I'm pretty sure the vet sent us home with some canned lamb and rice that's apparently more gentle on the stomach. Good luck. I hope your baby is feeling better soon.

 

[a1r1ka]

The meds have calmed his stomach, but I hope to go to more natural remedies after this...I will look into the Vitamin E--thanks for the advice!

 

[sriley]

The vitamin E was used to help give my boy's liver a boost. Pancreatitis affects the liver and his liver enzyme levels were through the roof. After a few days, his enzyme level decreased significantly and eventually returned to normal. Once he recovered, he never had another bout of pancreatitis again, but my husband and I became very cautious about the treats we fed him. The vet told us to stay away from Jerky Treats, Snausages, etc., that are full of fat and chemicals. Fatty foods can often be the culprit when pancreatitis is diagnosed. I'm glad your fur baby is feeling better.

 

[a1r1ka]

I think that's one of our frustrations...our dogs are fed high-quality foods and rarely get treats. When we do spoil them, they get free-range dried chicken treats or maybe a trachea...everything is low fat, grain-free, etc.
ARGH!
It's enough to make me crazy because he should be the picture of health...poor little guy.

 

[Loladog]

Lola has chronic Pancreatitis due to Cushing's Disease and I too am trying to find a good, low-fat diet that agrees with her stomach. At the time of the diagnosis, she was eating Orijen with some Wellness Core canned. I also had good luck with The Honest Kitchen Embark and she definitely seemed to do better with grain-free. Unfortunately, all of these foods are very high in fat. We are still working on getting her Lipase levels (Pancreatic Enzyme) down to normal but the numbers have gone down significantly since switching to a low-fat diet. When she was first diagnosed and eating Orijen, her Lipase levels were through the roof.

The low-fat foods I've tried so far are California Natural (they have a low-fat version but the regular is reasonably low in fat as well and not as high in carbs). I also fed Wellness Core Reduced Fat for a while which agreed with her in the beginning but I stopped because she started having loose stools and anal gland problems. I think the fiber was just too high with this food (8.5%). I also tried The Honest Kitchen Verve which is low-fat but it didn't agree with her at all (this wouldn't work for Papi either as it is Red Meat based). I tried The Honest Kitchen Force but she started vomiting. I think it caused a flare up of the Pancreatitis because it's pretty high in fat. Right now........I'm feeding Innova Large Breed Senior because it is low-fat and low-fiber but it still has a reasonable amount of protein (26%). Her stools are normal on this food but she's really gassy so I'm not sure yet if it's a winner. She's only been on this food for a little over a week now.

I've given up on canned food for the time being because the only low-fat ones I've been able to find don't agree at all with her stomach. I tried Innova lower fat canned and Wellness Senior.

I definitely realize that home cooking would probably work out the best for her. However, my idea of cooking for myself is a frozen pizza. I'm with you in that it would be a major shock to my kitchen!!!

Maybe some of the above mentioned low-fat diets might work for Papi. I definitely think you're going to have to get away from The Honest Kitchen Embark and Acana though because they are both very high in fat. This is very unfortunate because I know how hard it is to change from foods that agree with their stomachs! I really wish that I could feed The Honest Kitchen because I really like the company and their beliefs. If you find something that works, please let me know. The Innova Large Breed Senior is working out ok for Lola but I don't think it's going to be ideal.

By the way.........we also supplement with fish oil and Vitamin E. Even though fish oil is fatty, it's a "good fat" and our vet recommended it for Pancreatitis because it helps reduce inflammation. We also supplement with "Denamarin" which is support for the Liver. It's a combination of Milk Thistle and Sam-E.

Good luck and I look forward to hearing about what works for Papi.

 

[violetashlee]

Ivy has colitis and secondary pancreatitis and finding something feed her has consumed a lot of my time. I finally gave in a agreed to feed her the Royal Canin LR from the vet and things cleared up right away. I really was not thrilled with it, so, I kept searching and I read somewhere online (I dont remember the source) that feeding colitis/pancreatitis dogs small meals helps. So, I changed her to eating 4 small meals a day (Natural Balance Venision) and its working great. Solid stools and no pancratic episodes.

Its worth a try. I hope he feels better soon.

 

[a1r1ka]

Wow, Loladog, I think I have done almost the same cycle of foods you have...I haven't done California Natural or Wellness Core Reduced Fat, so I suppose I could try those...all the rest of those you named have given Papi gas or loose stools. This mix of Acana and THK has been amazing...and then came the pancreatitis...twice. :( I haven't tried The Honest Kitchen Verve, so maybe? I didn't realize the soups were so high in fat. BUMMER!

Violetashlee, the vet gave me Royal Canin LF, too, and I just can't see giving that to my dog for long while...there has to be something better. We tried a few varieties of NB a while back and they never really agreed with Papi, but we never did venison. We did Innova a while back and he was always gassy. We also had Papi on Orijen before the Acana and his lipase levels were very, very high, too. Geez...you think you're doing the right thing by feeding a great food from a great company, but no dice. SO much research and I thought I found the right combo until now...