Marley has had a second op to remove a swallowed toy since March(toys are now all binned!!!) He has recovered well, better than we dared hope for and is eating well. Only thing wrong is he has a lack of energy. He was getting on OK until he helped clean up an 'accident' on Tuesday evening and it resulted in both him and the younger one getting sickness and diahorrea.
After starving him on Wednesday and feeding bland yesterday he is fine again but obviously lacking energy from lack of food.
I am still feeding him four small meals and was wondering what I could add to give him more energy without overloading his system.

I would ask your vet to prescribe a short course of painkillers to find out if discomfort or pain is causing dullness - adhesions or other post op problems may still be ongoing.

Often a dogs way of dealing with pain is to be quiet and depressed ( not as in unhappy but as in detatched and withdrawn) so painkillers should show the dogs real character coming through...then you would know that it's not just lack of energy.

Good old Enervite (if you can find it) is a good tonic and appetite stimulant if a good pick-me-up is required.

> OK until he helped clean up an 'accident' on Tuesday evening and it resulted in both him and the younger one getting sickness and diahorrea.
>

There is a lot of parvo about at the moment, and if he has been run down after the two ops he has had he may have a mild case of parvo. Otherwise as the previous poster has said try getting pain killers from the vet. Do not give ibuprofen or paracetmol. Aspirin can be useful and is not poisonous to dogs, but should be given in small doses.

As you are a flatcoat owner why not contact the health committee for advice as we have two vets who work with the health committee Jane Alexander and Chris Hewison.

Regarding building up a dog after illness I was always advised to boil up breast of lamb, mince it then mix the mince with the stock it was cooked in and a bit of rice or if he is ok with it some biscuit.

> As you are a flatcoat owner why not contact the health committee for advice as we have two vets who work with the health committee Jane Alexander and Chris Hewison.
>

I have to re-iterate what Polly has said the link for the Society website is:

http://www.flatcoated-retriever-society.org

I would most probably only give him white meat (chicken) or white fish, after having been boiled, and boiled rice (very mushy, not how we eat it).  No biscuit yet, as that can cause diarrhoea.

Also with this hot weather he will be feeling lethargic, more so if he has had an upset stomach, and can take a few days for them to recover.   If there is no improvement you must go back to your vet.

In case I did not make it clear start with rice and when he is well if you want to put a bit of weight back on him then use the biscuit. Dogsdinners advice is good I hope you will also contact the society.

Marley is feeling much better now and has come on a bundle over the weekend, so much so that he was instigating play with the younger one for the first time since his op. In a way it has been quite good that he was quiet as it has made it easier to keep him calm for his wound to heal.
He is getting some white fish added to his normal food as well as probiotic natural yoghurt which he is loving. Glad to have him back to his idiotic self even though I won't can show him for a long time until he grows some belly hair!!
Thanks for all your suggestions.

Good to hear that Marley is recovering well.

Good to hear he is on the mend. :-)