Brinkley ate half of a 7 lb smoked pork butt...

[Heather & Brinkley]

and now I think he's feeling "off" to say the least.  On Saturday, my husband spent 10 hours slow smoking a pork butt.  The hubby and h is friends ate what they wanted and then returned to the kitchen to find Brinkley far reaching his doodle body so he could get to the remainder of the pulled pork.  Hubby put it up higher than normal but this was one determined doodle!!  Like I said, this happened Saturday-- it's now Tuesday and he really doesn't want to eat much. Is this normal this late in the game?  He seems a little sluggish but he'll heat a treat... he'll eat cheese... but he didn't want his food this morning.  He's seems more low key than normal-- sleeping more- but he still has pep when he's up.  

 

He's pooping smaller logs (sorry TMI) than normal but he's still going.  We leave for a cruise on Friday morning and I really am hoping this is something that passes quickly and that it isn't more than an upset tummy. Would he still be feeling off three days later.  Last night was the first time we realized he was feeling off. 

 

Geez.

[Heather & Brinkley]

DH said the weight was prior to cooking so post cooking he probably ate 2 lbs... still A LOT!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yes, it's still a lot. Two lbs of pork butt contain almost 3000 calories. That's roughly three days worth of food calories in one meal, much of it from fat.

 

[Heather & Brinkley]

How do you know this stuff? lol!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Nutrition textbooks. :)

But you can look up the calorie content of almost anything on-line.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Heather, how is Brinkley today??

[Amber (with Maggie)]

I have learned soo much from this posting! I am so glad I joined DK! I hope everything works out for Brinkley.

 

(I was always told that the only two animals that will eat themselves to death are dogs and horses. I am not sure it is true because I learned that as a kid, but scares me.)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Dogs really don't have an understanding of cause and effect. They might eat two pounds of pork and feel deathly ill, but they have no concept at all that it was the overeating that caused them to feel sick. This is one reason it's never a good idea to try to tempt a dog who doesn't want to eat with special foods to get him to eat. The rule of thumb is, if the dog doesn't want to eat, trust him. You will have to find out why he has no appetite, but don't try to change his mind with tempting tidbits, because it will only make things worse.

This is really a timely discussion, with Halloween coming up. It is essential that you keep all candy, especially chocolate or sugarless gum and candy, out of your dog's reach. Don't think he can't reach something, make sure he can't see it, reach it, or smell it if you have to take your eyes off him. This means that anything that might tempt a dog has to be put away in a cupboard or closed, dog-proof container if you are not standing right next to it. This is especially important if you have kids who are going trick or treating. Start thinking now about where you are going to stash the "loot", and make sure the kids are in on the game plan.

Two years ago, someone I knew almost lost her dog because of carelessness with Halloween candy. This lady's daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren came to her neighborhood for Halloween. The women and kids went out trick-or-treating, returned home to drop off their loot, and went back out to a Halloween party in the neighborhood while the son-in-law stayed behind. He decided to help himself to his kids' candy while watching TV, and laid down on the sofa with the kids' plastic pumpkins full of candy. Then he fell asleep. The lady came home to a dog who was not far from death, and had she not gotten him to the emergency room when she did, she would have lost him. Even then, he was touch and go for days.

A dog will not stop eating something that tastes good, even when he's full, and he will not remember that it made him sick last time he ate it.

Emergency vets see more dogs during the Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas each year than they see the rest of the year combined. (Halloween is also the number one day for dogs brought in to emergency vets after being hit by cars...they bolt out those doors that are opening and closing for trick-or-treaters.)

Just an FYI, while we're on the subject.

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Wow Karen, you really do know everthing!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

My DD would dispute that!

[Bonnie and Kona]

Send her to us if she wants to dispute your wisdom! We'll set her straight! ;o)

[Heather & Brinkley]

Hey Guys,

 

Sorry I haven't been on today.  I've been sick myself.  I was on my way to work when I had to pull over to throw up... and I went downhill from there. I turned around, went home and called my back-up producer to produce the show for me this morning.   As for Brinkley, he isn't lethargic, he's eating his bland diet without hesitating, but the drinking is still an issue.  He runs from his water bowl.  He'll lick a bit of ice but that's it.  We took him back to the vet today, where they said he wasn't dehydrated-- they said he probably hasn't been thirsty b/c of all the fluids he was given yesterday.  Does this seem right?  We asked them to give him a bit more fluids to be on the safe side... and then I was just able to get him to drink after DH took him on a short walk. This little man is stressing me out!

[F, Calla & Luca]

Sounds to me like he''s on the mend.