Pooping blood.... again.

[Shalista]

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For those of you that haven't been with Bax from the beginning, I got him from a really crummy breeder and I 100% blame all his gut issues on them.

From the beginning he pooped blood. just a little bit every so often. I got him in September I think. On Christmas eve I dragged my new puppy to the vet because he was squatting and just pooping a stream of straight blood. the vet was having his Christmas party and thankfully took a quick look. prescribed him some very expensive kibble that was mostly grain and left it at that.

the high grain food gave him mucusy loose stool but the blood mostly stopped.

then I heard about raw and the gates of heaven opened for me. the blood stopped almost immediately. he got nice firm stools once a day regular as clockwork. and that lasted for a few years.

then I moved and freezer space got tight and I'd gone vegan and my vet recommended this particular kibble that was also vegan.... so I switched him back to kibble.

He's been on kibble since september and for the past week, he's been having bloody stool again. not yet the rivers of blood but definitly blood in the stool and a few drops of straight blood at the end. i was hoping it was just a passing thing but its getting worse so I'm calling the vet today...

sigh..... BAAAXXXTTTTEEERRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(I'm vegan now but I will 100% buy him chicken if that's what it takes. I made a commitment to him long before I ever became vegan and I'll be dammed if he suffers because of my life choices. it's just depressing because he WAS doing well on it. nice glossy coat, lots of energy, maintaining weight..... sigh)

 

[Mad Murphy]

Sadly our dogs dont always agree with our choices.. I tried raw with Benny and he point blank refused (which if you know about beagles you know refusing food is just unknown to them) then he ate it because he was so hungry and puked all over the house.

For him lightly steamed food was the best and a dry food I didnt like but was low enough in fat to avoid any tummy troubles.

As you say its about whats best for them.. Hope Bax is feeling better soon.

 

[JudyN]

I hope he's better soon and you can work out the best diet for him - which is probably raw as that's what has worked for him before.

 

[Shalista]

yeah i have a sneaking suspicion its going to be raw to. but im going to do my due diligence to assuage my conscience and take him to the vet. if i dont hear anything super compelling about other options its gonna be raw again.

its hard though because im essentially saying that my dogs life is worth more than the countless chickens he's going to eat over his life time and that just doesn't jive...... but i made a promise to him and i'm going to do right by him.

 

[JudyN]

its hard though because im essentially saying that my dogs life is worth more than the countless chickens he's going to eat over his life time and that just doesn't jive......

I know - I've had the same feeling when dealing with a delivery of 40 chicken carcasses and piles of mince very 40 days. But if I follow that route, I end up with the logic that I could kill my own children and with the money I save, buy a small country's worth of reydration packs and save the lives of many children. Or I go and shoot all the lions in Africa to save a greater number of zebra...

You might also be able to get raw chicken that wouldn't otherwise be eaten, e.g. carcasses, or focus on buying ethically raised meat, if it's affordable.

With ethical decisions, I believe that logic can only get us so far and in the end we have to say 'OK, I feel I'm being hypocritical here, but I'm reasonably comfortable with it and it's the best I can do right now,' - and don't feel you have to justify yourself to people who do it differently. I have a few strict vegan friends who feed their dogs meat.

 

[merlina]

Well I'm a veggie and buy and feed raw as part of our boys' diet. Don't beat yourself up! All any of us can do is make a reasonable moral compromise with reality. The old saying 'tread lightly on the Earth' doesn't mean don't tread at all! Do what you must to get Bax well.

 

[Shalista]

thanks for your kind words guys. i still think i'm going to take him to the vet on the off chance that maybe a simple med might fix it or a dif kind of kibble might be better but i do feel better about what i think will inevitably my decision to feed bax raw again.








........ he does love his raw >.>

 

[Mayblossom]

Go with what he loves if it’s better for his health , they are with us for such a short time so if he’s happier and healthier then you’re doing your very best for him

 

[Kara 1]

We have been vegan for years but still feed our 5 raw meat ...we buy free range meat for our dogs ....
Hope bax is back to normal soon

 

[Caro Perry]

Vegetarian here but Harri gets fresh meat. I salve my conscience by buying the most ethically raised meat I can.

 

[Shalista]

finally got in contact with the vet

1) fecal sample dropped off tomorrow
2) vet appointment Monday evening
3) UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE SWITCH HIM BACK TO RAW

she was very adamant on the last point. I'm tempted to think she's one of those that don't like raw..... but she has the degree so I'm willing to hear her out Monday

 

[Kara 1]

Mmm im always dubious about vets and the raw diet ...if you switch him back to raw and he was fine again(like he was before ) then there would be no need for a faecal sample or several vet visits .....

 

[JudyN]

Yes, do ask her why she says not to switch him to raw - whether she's against it in general or just while Bax is having his problems. And if the former, if she knows of any scientific research backing up her concerns.

 

[Ari_RR]

i would be hard pressed to switch diet when the dog is not feeling well, unless there is evidence that current diet is a contributing factor. I would probably prefer to stabilize the dog first, then switch diet.

 

[Shalista]

we have an answer! they called me today. fecal sample came back. Hook worm. i came in immediately and they gave me a big dose of SOMETHING (two pills) and recommended that since he probably picked it up just walking around the neighborhood that he go on a year-round interceptor dose. so problem solved (hopefully). best of all they let me cancel mondays appointment since he's well on his way to good health without it.

 

[Ari_RR]

So, great then, no need to compromise on vegan vs raw.

 

[JudyN]

That's brilliant, Shalista Is there any chance that this is what he has had in the past, & the previous vet missed it?

 

[Mad Murphy]

Glad you got an answer...

 

[Shalista]

So, great then, no need to compromise on vegan vs raw.

Nope! looks like I'm all set!

That's brilliant, Shalista Is there any chance that this is what he has had in the past, & the previous vet missed it?

Extremely likely. he's never been medicated for it though which makes me wonder why it disappeared and then came back.....

 

[JudyN]

Extremely likely. he's never been medicated for it though which makes me wonder why it disappeared and then came back.....

I'm tempted to say the wonders of raw feeding... but that could be taking its benefits a bit too far!