dog not eating following surgery

[ejb110]

My dog had his tonsil removed on monday 1/19.  I have not been able to get him to eat any more than about 6 ounces of food since then.  Also he had some kind of effect from anethesia as he has hard time walking on his rear legs.   Will be calling the vet tomorrow for help.  was not eating much for 2 weeks before surgery.  Just wondering if anyone has suggestions for getting him to eat.  Tried just about everything

[Jaybay]

Hey Ghilly!  I so wish I knew about NutriCal when Chica was in kidney failure.  Once she was diagnosed, it was too late to do anything more than try to get calories into her every day.  At some point ANY calories are better than contraindicated calories, which is why her last meals were a few bites of a very expensive standing rib roast.

How common is tonsilitis in dogs?  I confess I'd never heard of dogs having this problem before I read this post.  Learn something new every day.  :-)

[have 2 kids]

I didn't know dogs had tonsils either.    Hope your dog is doing better.

[peekawho]

I'm astonished that dogs even have tonsils.  I don't know why I assumed they didn't!

[Ghilly]

Pick up some NutriCal and give him loads of it until he is back eating his regular rations.  NutriCal is a very high calorie supplement that comes in a squeeze tube and it's excellent for helping to maintain body weight in dogs and cats that are not eating properly due to health issues.  It tastes great to them, most of them will lick it eagerly right out of the tube.  If he won't, squeeze it right into the corner of his mouth because it's quite thick, kind of like a petroleum jelly consistency, so it sticks to the roof of their mouth like peanut butter so they HAVE to eat it if you get it into the mouth.  It will work wonders in keeping his strength up until he's back to normal.  Just a word of caution - buy it at PetSmart and not from your vet.  Most vet offices sell it for around $10 a tube.  At PetSmart you can get it for half that.

Ghilly

[arachnaphob]

Pets can be a worry can't they?  My little Tina used to get tonsillitis as a puppy.  She wouldn't eat for days and it worried me a lot.  I asked the vet for something that was easy for her to eat until the antibiotics kicked in and he recommended a complete nutrient supplement that can be bought as a paste in a squeezable tube.

Well, dogs  being dogs, she wouldn't eat the paste either so I started putting some of the paste on her paw and she would lick it off in the process of cleaning herself (just like a cat) and when she was too sick to bother about cleaning herself, I'd put some paste on my finger and then pop some in her mouth.

To this day I always have a tube of nutrient paste in the house for the times when either of my 2 dogs or cat are off their food. It might not do any good but it makes me feel a little better to know that they are getting some nourishment.  I also always keep some sachets of electrolyte replacement powder in the cupboard as well.

Why do pets always get sick when the regular vet surgery is closed??

[Jaybay]

Now that's a new one.  I've never heard of dogs having tonsilectomies before now.  :-)

It sounds like your dog (1) had a whole lot of infection going to justify surgery, and (2) even with surgery it's going to take more time and medication to get rid of it.  Between the infection, antibiotics and surgery I'm not surprised he doesn't want to eat.

I'm glad to hear you're calling your vet about the leg weakness.  It may be a combination of everything I've mentioned above and lack of enough calories to keep him on all fours.  Regardless, you've got to get some calories into him and if he can't eat enough yet on his own, he's going to need some help from the vet.  

Water intake is even more important that food intake, so put your energies more in that direction until you can get to your vet.  Water is the most important, pedialyte is better if your dog will drink it.  Melt some honey in warm water and let it cool before offering it to your dog.  The honey helps replace electrolytes if your dog won't drink pedialyte.  Chicken or beef broth would be good ones to try as well.  With a sore throat from surgery, it may be a few more days before solid food is appealing.

Please post back tomorrow and let us know what your vet has to say.  You'll be helping other members with your story, and we're here to help you get through this time.  :-)