Anyone with a dog with Pancreatitus???? or cancer??

[Karen]

My golden doodle started getting extremely sick for first time christmas eve morning with chronic vomiting, no appetite.     Took him to vet early monday morning and  he is now being treated for possible pancreatitus due to blood level results.    the other possibility is that he has cancer- due to 2 large masses that we seen on xray. vet said that it is possible that he has severe case of pancreatitus which has caused swelling in other organs which make it look like tumors on xray.     So we are hoping and praying that the masses are caused by pancreatitus and not cancer.      If no improvement in the next day or so,   we are having to euthenize him.    he is only 6 yrs old!          

have a question about dog food- we switched our dogs to beneful a few months ago to save money on feeding 3 dogs.       I am hearing bad reports at times lately about beneful and am looking to switch them to a quality food again.      but if my doodle has pancreatitus- we have to be especially careful on what kind of food to feed him. low fat etc.         Anyone have any suggestions on which brand food to feed?      thanks        

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Hi Karen,

I'm very sorry to hear about your dog's illness. Pancreatitis is common in dogs, and many of our doodles here on DK have had it. Unfortunately, cancer is also very common in Golden Retrievers, and therefore, in Goldendoodles.  I will be praying that your doodle has something which is easily treated and has a good outcome.

We have a number of wonderful resources here on DK in our Groups section. There is a group for just about everything. One of the largest and most active is The Food Group, where we have a full list of recommended foods and many discussions about what kinds of food and treats can lead to pancreatitis. What you have heard is correct, Beneful is a dreadful food. Please join us in the Food Group to learn about some better alternatives.

We also have a Health and Medical Group where you can get more info on various illnesses that some of us have experienced with our dogs.

Hoping for the best possible outcome for your doodle.

[Karen]

can you tell me what other food others switched their dog to when the diagnosis of pancreatitis was given?  are their brands that are good that a petsmart would sell?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Recommended Dog Food Brands

This is the Food Group list.

Any of the foods on this list would be better choices than what you are feeding. Many of them make lowfat formulas. But pancreatitis is generally brought on by a dog's having eaten people food to which he is not accustomed, particularly highfat foods like pork or turkey with skin. Dog food formulas which contain unnamed animal fat can also contribute, especially if they are among the first five ingredients in the food.

Wellness and Blue Buffalo are sold at Petsmart. Some stores also carry Solid Gold. These are all better brands.

 

[Jane, Rooney & Stuart]

Gosh - I have nothing to add after Karen's post but just want to let you know that we will all keep your doodle in our prayers! 

[Camilla and Darwin]

I agree with everything Karen said about the food group. You will find everything you need to know there. I just wanted to say that I'm so sorry you and your doodle are going through this. I hope it is not cancer and that his condition improves.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here is a good article on pancreatitis:

http://www.vetinfo.com/dpancrea.html

Notice this paragraph:

High fat diets, especially in combination with low protein intake, appear to contribute to the development of pancreatitis. A single high fat meal may cause pancreatitis in a pet whose normal diet is moderate or low in fat. We see an increase in cases of pancreatitis around Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter almost every year, presumably due to the ingestion of high fat leftovers from the big meals associated with these holidays.

[Adina P]

Is it recommended that dogs who have HAD pancreatitis eat a significantly low fat diet (compared to regular good dog foods) or simply avoid HIGH fat foods?  I'm curious, in dogs, what percentage of pancreatitis cases are long term bad diet related vs. an acute HIGH fat intake vs. some other reason that has nothing to do with diet.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There are dogs who are predisposed, but in acute cases, I believe it's usually your latter example of the dog who suddenly gets a hold of a pork roast, that kind of thing. Most dog foods, even the crappy ones, have fat percentages set by AAFCO standards. Once a dog recovers from pancreatitis, they eat a regular diet just like a dog who never had it, unless they have some chronic problem or disease. Their weight does have to be kept at a healthy level, too. But I heaven't heard of a dog who had to be kept on a special low-fat diet after a single bout with pancreatitis.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'm guessing that a sudden influx of fat is much more likely to induce an attack than a generally bad diet. But the Marvista site doesn't really even mention the fat in the diet except for post pancreatitis patients. It seems that the cause is not really claer. It does explain the use of antibiotics, which I had questioned.

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_canine_pancreatitis.html

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Guinness, my mini ALD, had pancreatitis a couple of months ago.  He has been on a home cooked diet for almost a year because he has IBS.  He gets 2/3 home cooked white meat chicken, rice or whole wheat pasta and lots of veggies mixed with 1/3 Acana.  His diet is not high in fat content, and he rarely gets treats.  When he does get treats it's usually plain chicken....once in a while cheerios or goldfish. He also gets one or two tbsp non fat plain yogurt daily.  So, the Vet could not explain why he would have come down with pancreatitis.  I did not have to switch his food, because he was already on the high protein, low fat diet.  He was pretty ill for about four days, and then slowly started to feel better.  He's fine now.  I really hope that pancreatitis is what your Doodle has, because with the right treatment the dogs are fine.  I agree that the Food Group can provide you with some great insight.  Is your Doodle home with you now, and what are you feeding?  I'm very sorry that you're going through all this....praying for a good outcome.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I am confused. If Rosco has pancreatitis certain blood enzymes should be
greatly elevated giving more certainty to the diagnosis. It seems this may be true in his case. And why would he immediately be getting antibiotics for pancreatitis? It is rarely a bacterial process, but the vet may have wanted to treat all possibilities aggressively. I also would think that more than a day and a half of treatment is warranted before euthanasia. A clear diagnosis is vital for optimal treatment and prognosis.

[Adina P]

If it were me I would wait on the 'new' food until I knew exactly what the issue was so you can make an educated decision in case he will have special diet needs.  It may be that he can eat any normal healthy dog food (except the very high fat varieties) once he's back at home. 

By "normal healthy dog food" I mean any of the ones recommended by those who know their dog food (Karen and many in this group).