Got my girl back after being apart for 2 months, is her diet affecting her behaviour?

[deka]

Join our free community today.

Connect with other like-minded dog lovers!

Login or Register

Adding onto old theories and experience of mine her overall behaviour has greatly improved and can go 3-4 hours without wanting out. Relatives who cared for her gave her a supplement for digestion and that ran out 10 days ago and during the period where she was with them and until a few days after the supplement ran out she was at her best for toilet habits she only had 1 accident in 2 months after they gave her a cooked pork sausage.

Since supplement ran out she has been getting a bit hyper at times i.e biting lead again and pulling and tonight wanted out a little more though my flat is so hot tonight, 24 degrees with no heating on and she was panting for hours, earlier today she chewed my slippers which she hasn't done for a long time and chewed the edge of my leather sofa and after she came back in from her toilet she did a full on zoomie and for the first time I have seen her, she has laid down in the hall maybe as its far cooler.

 

[JudyN]

What is the supplement? Why not give it to her again and see how she is?

 

[excuseme]

What difference is there between your home and the home where she has lived for the past 2 months. House with garden, flat with no outside access. What type of food and brand do you feed her, and what was she being fed while away. What about the ages of her carers, Does she notice any tension from yourself, have her part time carers been less excitable and more laid back. Maybe home life in general, cage, shut in another room, how much social activity before and after.
And yes, even diet can influence temperament.
There are so many if, and or but reasons.

 

[deka]

Well shes a runner, relatives have their own back garden which they took her in and they stay in a village so a walk was a calm walk down to community centre a few minutes walk away and around the grass around it then back,

I have a cottage flat so I have to take her downstairs and into side of property, relatives are pensioners in their 70's.

Not sure about tension except when she looks out of window

One of the relatives was strict but also gave her a lot of affection i.e he told her to back off when she went into kitchen and calm when she was hyper and she wanted a lot of affection from him like cuddles and always listened to him, if he left room she slept in his chair etc.

They just fed her cheap supermarket own brand food, Asda I think I settled on Aldi own brand but they also topped it up with things like leftover veg and meat in small quantities.

 

[Sus]

I wish I was a bit more like your strict relative but am too soft and my dog walks all over me
Regarding the toilet issues, my girl was overweight, traumatised with lots of health issues when I rescued her. Short story, owner died and wife ended up in hospital
She has had issues with her anal glands (one of the health problems) loose poo and going several time a day. I have had endless vet visits and tried many supplements but after advice from this site she is now on a raw diet, her anal glands problem are no longer a problem and when she was on a diet she was only going once a day now that she has lost the excess weight and I have increased her food she goes twice a day.
The only downside is that it is expensive but there are cheaper companies out there and you could do it yourself which would reduce the cost enormously
I am no expert and all dogs are different but you will get the very best advice from this site. I do not know how I would have managed without the help from here and other dog owners and walkers. Vets are not always the best place to go for advice.
Good luck and I hope you get it sorted

 

[deka]

I wish I was a bit more like your strict relative but am too soft and my dog walks all over me
Regarding the toilet issues, my girl was overweight, traumatised with lots of health issues when I rescued her. Short story, owner died and wife ended up in hospital
She has had issues with her anal glands (one of the health problems) loose poo and going several time a day. I have had endless vet visits and tried many supplements but after advice from this site she is now on a raw diet, her anal glands problem are no longer a problem and when she was on a diet she was only going once a day now that she has lost the excess weight and I have increased her food she goes twice a day.
The only downside is that it is expensive but there are cheaper companies out there and you could do it yourself which would reduce the cost enormously
I am no expert and all dogs are different but you will get the very best advice from this site. I do not know how I would have managed without the help from here and other dog owners and walkers. Vets are not always the best place to go for advice.
Good luck and I hope you get it sorted

My girl was at her best when I was feeding her cooked chicken breast or beef mince every day, like 2/3 small poops a day only wanted out every few hours it got worse when I put her on chicken mince for dogs, she also drank little too rather than a lot now.

 

[deka]

Shes actually been acting strange for days and eating grass, wanting out a lot again, pulling on lead so it could be stomach related and/or the fact my flat has been 23/24 degrees so shes drinking a lot, I still am spacing out her outside visits best I can so around 2 hours even if she wants but today she has had 2 poop accidents despite taking her out, but she has been pooping less overall for about 5 days.

To think this may be as simple as a sensitive tummy is crazy or it could just be a coincidence.

She was also restless for last few days and this evening I said her name as she was having a nightmare and she instantly woke up and barked at me, when I took her out 30 minutes later she did a pee and didn't seem interested in pooping then came in and went into hall and pooped then had a zoomie and started scratching up my sofa, then I told her off and she laid down a second, then she started again then I told her of again and she got off the sofa went into corner and started looking at things.

What I am worried about is she got off the lead 2 weeks ago and ran into the bushes and since then she was scratching until about 4 days ago basically the same time as she got cranky.

 

[deka]

Spoke to PDSA vet as she got worse over past few days and wanting out during night around 1.30am and had at least 2 accidents during night and one when I went out for a few hours (after taking her outside right before I left and she pooped)

She has gone back to her old routine plus ignoring me when I tell her something, vet said its likely she does have a sensitive stomach and since probiotics seem to work put her back on and she may be that way for life.

 

[Flobo]

I'm glad you spoke to the vet, hopefully the probiotics will help. (was this the supplement your relatives gave her too?)
Also stress and anxiety can affect the whole digestive system(not just diet). I wonder if she got stressed leaving you, then settling with your family for 2 months and then back to you. Maybe through the process of re adjusting again and having the accidents indoors things have compounded her worrying and she's kind of got into a cycle... just throwing ideas out there, I am not a behaviourist or vet! I do think it's good to look at the bigger picture sometimes though - What's she like when you take her out for a walk, out of interest? Does she toilet whilst out, does she seem relaxed and enjoy her walks etc..

I would definitely speak to the vet again if she doesn't improve.

 

[deka]

Ok so she has had a few accidents the past week but getting less common, but wants out every night around 3-4am.

She enjoys her walks, but I think this started around time she was spayed 6 months ago but just got more common she growls and sometimes pulls on walk when she sees certain other dogs, initially it was just large dogs like German Shepherds she has always been fine with terriers and other collies but now is getting nervous around certain other dogs, a neighbour has a 6 month old large breed dog and she jumped in air and spread her legs when it came close and then hid under my legs, on walks if a dog comes up to her she either is fine or hides under my legs, earlier a female GS came up to her and my girl got off her lead and they were happily playing when I got her back on lead my girl seemed more nervous and at one point my girl snapped at the GS and the GS lunged at her back but seconds later they were wagging each others tails and playing in fact my girl was whining when the GS left and tried following.

She is on Yumove probiotics now, she was on a different brand but I couldn't find it on Ebay

Interestingly she has only had 1 wee accident and that was about 10 days ago, heard her wake up then whine a little and I had the door open to cool off and found a wet patch on floor and she pooped in hall.

The next day she did pee in morning on the mat by front door.

She has twice though in past week once was the night before she had a large accident went into garden and walking and squatting at same time and shoving her face into her butt, she did it again last night.

I don't know if thats a blocked anal gland.

Her behaviour is ok in the sense she has regressed with sounds as when she was away and I got her first back she did bark at the binmen or hearing neighbour putting their glass empties into recycling but if she heard another dog bark she was fine, she stopped lunging at cars now she has regressed, she does bark if I turn my very old tv on but normally shes not bad for that, and she used to be ok with doorbell going now she barks consistently.

But she can and will go 3-4 hours without wanting out again, which is great as she was that way at relatives, in morning she wants out more often i.e within 2 hours and maybe just before and just after her evening dinner but then holds it in to at least 8.30pm

 

[Flobo]

As a process of elimination it may be worth getting her anal glands checked and her urine sampled just in case there is something contributing there.

 

[deka]

Managed to get her a PDSA appointment next week, if she shows any signs of getting worse will take her to local vets which is pricey but worth it.

Small update, Thursday night gave her half a cooked salmon slice and some dry food, she was fine and I was worried as Friday she only wanted one small poop in morning so worried she was blocked she did ask out a few times but did nothing, today she did 2 poops so I was glad but did whine and bark a bit around dinner time.

I did realise that the probiotic I was giving her I was not giving her enough I thought it was 1 a day but for her body weight she needs 2 a day so have upped them.

 

[deka]

Another update, the vet said she had blocked anal glands, said they were full. After they were cleared my girl was calm for a few days then went back to wanting out and having accidents, her poop was rock solid, I put her back on the previous brand food that gave her soft poops before and stopped the probiotic and since then she had 2 more accidents.

Shes totally random in her process, she often does small poops throughout the day and 1 large poop at lunchtime, never has pee accidents.

 

[Flobo]

Just out of interest what foods are you giving her?

 

[deka]

At the time she was blocked I gave her Aldi dry food, that ran out about 2 weeks ago and I put her back on Arkwrights that I had stored from before my accident, the Arkwrights always gave her soft poops, the Aldi stuff seemed to give her solid black poops which I assumed was why she was blocked.

Since she has come back off the probiotics she has been wanting out during the night again. about 3am whining.

It's difficult finding that balance, she has had no accidents since but wanting out more.

 

[Flobo]

Ok... is there a particular reason you're feeding her either of those two specifically? They are both quite high in carbs and not too much else by the look of it, which probably won't be helping her issues...
Have a look here Dog Food Reviews | Find the Best Dog Food - All About Dog Food this is a great source of information re different foods, qualities and costs. If possible I would have a look at changing her diet.

 

[deka]

It was just finding something that suited her well, even when she was on more expensive branded food she had accidents but that was before she was 1 year old, after that I tried tinned food, and even chicken mince at one point she had accidents on each, she was the best on plain cooked chicken breast but that's an expensive and bland diet.

Just unsure on a balance.

 

[Flobo]

I wonder if Chappie might be worth a shot? I know it's not deemed as a great food, but it does seem to really suit some dogs with sensitive digestions... one of mine has only ever eaten chappie because of his digestion and it's totally suited him, he's 12 years old now and apart from only having one eye(the other was removed because he had a tumour behind it), he is as fit as a fiddle!

 

[deka]

Sorry didn't see your response there, she has been on Asda branded food as she was on that when she was staying with relatives whilst I was recovering and she has been on this now again for almost 3 weeks zero accidents much firmer poops and drinks less and wants out less so an overall improvement, she also has stopped wanting out during night again which she did for about a month when she was on the Arkwrights.

 

[deka]

And she has gone back to having accidents, last week she had 4 in space of few days and overall suddenly wants to poop more and having zoomies in evening, she jumped on me on Thursday when I was eating and I put my hand up and she snarled at me and tried nipping my hand.

Vet has given medication but told me to hold off using it until we get the results of her urine test.

Also she has gone back to wanting out sometimes within a very short time after being out before, this is how she acted when she had blocked glands before she wanted out due to the discomfort.