Hi, Im not sure whether to post on this board or health board, so hope someone can help. I have a mastiff aged 7months who unfortunately ate a dead animal(rat/mouse) at the weekend, which was wrapped in nylon twine(possibly some kind of nest). We immediately took him to the vets as at the time we did not know what was wrong-he would not eat or drink. As it turned out it was stuck in his osophegus and was not detected by the vet until the next day by x-ray, when it had began to travel through his body and cause untold damage. He has undergone hours of surgery and had it all removed, but his outlook is poor. If he is able to get through the next few days (which we hope and pray he will) and come home, he will initially have to be fed a liquid diet. I am very worried about what to give him to maintain his weight and growth that will not irritate his bowels and cause more discomfort. He currently weighs 7.5stones. Anyone who has been through this or knows anything that may help, please reply- we are desperately worried.

So sorry to hear about your bad news, I hope he pulls through for you. I have no idea what you could give him but just wanted to say take care etc etc.

Don't worry too much about any weight loss, at his weight he can afford to loose some with out compromising his well-being. If he were mine I would simmer some chicken or turkey breast, without skin, and then liquidise the flesh and the liquid to make a soup, then feed it a few spoons at a time every hour and gradually increase the amount and the thickness over the next week adding rice to the water when cooking as he starts to improve. Hope he improves soon.

Hi

When he comes home your vet will almost certainly send some "invalid" food home with him and give you instructions on what, and how much he should be fed.  It only takes a few weeks for them to get back on "normal" food so don't worry about his growth at the moment - the more important thing is that he will be fed little and often.

I had to give my adult male Dobe 1 tablespoonful of food at a time to start with when he had his blockages (twice) removed and he went down to 23 Kg - he is now just over 40 Kg and looking wonderful.  I hope your boy recovers well - dogs are generally very resiliant

Thanks for your help, I keep you posted on his condition :)

Hi
Our boy came home today :D and looks great! The vet even operated on his cherry eye whilst he was under and included it in the bill, which was half what we expected. We count ourselves very lucky and are looking forward to nursing our babe back to health

Kerrie :)

Hi sorry to hear about your boy and so glad he's going to be o.k. - just a thought about his 'liquid diet' waht about giving him the puppy porridge that Pedigree make for weaning pups ? It is highly nutritious, great for growth and contains all the nutients he will need. You can get it from your local Pedigree agent ( look on the pedigree site for names.)

Yvonne

Ahh so pleased to hear that he's back home.  Keep us updated and give him a big hug from me :d

Hi
Update on Thorn, he is really well, much more lively than he's ever been, so we are having to sedate him, as there is the worry that he may tear his stitches inside. Also there is a daily trip to the vets for an anti-biotic jab, but so far so good. looks like he's out of the woods :D