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weight gain from food or thyroid issue

2K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  littlebuddy 
#1 ·
So Mr. Django has put on another pound. I am not over feeding him and the vet is concerned it might be his thyroid. He's on a diet the next 3 weeks (we go to the vet every 21 days for his shot) so if he doesn't loose weight we need to check his thyroid. If that checks out okay then I need to change his food. HE will be 9 in January. Does anyone have any good recommendations for a Senior Diet? He cannot have beef, lamb or wheat. Not fond of fish.
 
#4 ·
Nina is a pup but I just recently tried her on Taste of the Wild and they have all types of protein sources like bison, fowl, boar. http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/ I am not sure if they have a senior dog food. I have a friend with a beagle that has thyroid dissorder. He is always hungry but his vet wants him to loose weight. I think she was adding some water to his weight loss kibbles to make him feel a little fuller.
 
#5 ·
Because of Djangos Addisons I have to be careful that he doesn't get too much protein in his diet (potential kidney issues due to addisons.....hopefully not for a long time). Raw is not an option either due to several routes of pancreatitis, raw diet believe it or not is too rich for his system, vet strongly discouraged raw.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I would seriously recommend going to Jean Dodds Hemopet site http://www.hemopet.org/ and arranging a set of thyroid tests. I think you have to rule out hypothyroid problems. You've got a lot going on with him and dealing with a professional rather than guessing is the best route. Give her a letter with a concise discription of his problems , and see what she recommends. She knows all about these issues that he is struggling with. This probably will be less costly in the long run too. Talk to Missy for some reassurance on this.
 
#7 ·
Do you think I should wait for his blood work from the vet first? The clinic is probably the best in the area, state of the art everything so I am confident in the lab that will be doing the bloodwork.

He's going to the vet in 2 weeks so we will check his weight and see if he's lost any pounds. If he hasn't, then we know there's something going on other than diet and will do bloodwork at that time.
 
#8 · (Edited)
sure, see what comes up. Get a clear understanding what's involved. I simply recommended Jean Dodds, because she is a leading researcher and tester, in hypothyroidism. Her org. is non profit too. I would not trust just any lab with this myself, but I would hers. JMO . If you need a diet change, I will continue to recommend Sabine, or a vet that is a dietitian as well. I always believe vets are critical for our animals health, but most are not experts in diets, nor are they experts in behavior, unless their are board certified veterinary behaviorists.
 
#9 ·
Yes, I agree. I have an amazing behaviorist and an amazing vet. My issue with changing Djangos diet is that we are in a good place right now and anytime I change his diet things go south. I will wait to see what his bloodwork tells us and then go from their.

BTW we have an appointment with an allergist who came recommended by my behaviorist and vet. Django has these odd patches, perhaps dermatitis or something of that nature. It's not ringworm.

So, after the bloodwork and the appointment with the allergist, once we see what's going on I think I will touch base with Sabina. So much has changed since I emailed her last. This might be a good time to make dietary changes, he's also turning 9 in January.
 
#10 ·
Yes, I agree. I have an amazing behaviorist and an amazing vet. My issue with changing Djangos diet is that we are in a good place right now and anytime I change his diet things go south. I will wait to see what his bloodwork tells us and then go from their.

BTW we have an appointment with an allergist who came recommended by my behaviorist and vet. Django has these odd patches, perhaps dermatitis or something of that nature. It's not ringworm.

So, after the bloodwork and the appointment with the allergist, once we see what's going on I think I will touch base with Sabina. So much has changed since I emailed her last. This might be a good time to make dietary changes, he's also turning 9 in January.
Great, yeah , all that I"m saying is find out what the tests show and if a diet change is required go with an expert in nutriion ie. a ACVN or someone like Sabine, . Hugs
 
#11 ·
Hi Angeleke. poor Django, Poor You! there is always something going on. and you take such good care of him. If thyroid does show up... I agree with Dave that Jean Dodd's and a hemopet analysis is the way to go. when Jasper's thyroid was elevated i just emailed dr. dodds all his results and she gave me great advice. I then, had him retested with hemopet and got her recommended prescription. Behavior issues are often thyroid. Jas has been doing great.

In fact, Dr. Dodds may just take an interest all together in Django, with so much going on, it may be a puzzle that intrigues her. When I wrote her about Jasper and she was so helpful, i asked how I could pay her for her time and she said if I wanted to she could make a donation to hemopet :)

Also, about raw... It is not really higher protein, it is just cleaner protein with less additives I don't know, if you know that me and my vet had suspicions with Cash with some sort of subclinical addisons/thyroid disorder/diabetes/bouts of pancreatitis/allergies/weight gain ... since he has many of the symptoms even though his tests are all normal... going on raw cleared up most of his symptoms. we are careful to make sure the protein is below 10% for the pancreatitis. the chicken formula has 6% fat. and 13% protein. I know it is not really comparable to kibble ratios cause kibble is so much more condensed. But if it were me, I would try a raw diet, no matter what my vet suggested. I am lucky to have a vet who accepts raw. be sure to add probiotics. who knows... he may just do so much better? obviously, I am not a vet and cannot replace a vets advice. but many vets just get freaked out about raw. But the commercial raw diets are pure food. the only additive is mixed tocipherals (vitamin e) I know when I tried to home cook for Cash he became an allergic mess, we suspect due to the suppliments I had to add.

I would give raw 2 weeks, if nothing bad happens keep going. the NV site has a portion calculator. what if that was the answer to many puzzles? just like kibble, we ocaissionally get a bag that does not agree. but most stores take it back.

Good luck. keep us posted.
 
#12 ·
I am all for raw, i guess it's finding the right raw or food in general. Thanks to all for your tips. Very helpful and a lot to take in. Going to touch base with his vets again after his visit for his monthly shot and figure out a plan of action. Hopefully his blood work will come back normal and we just need to change his diet because he's entered his "Golden years!"
 
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