Problem with Kody in Quarantine

[Rich & Kody]

Hi All,

We have a problem with Kody in Quarantine which is concerning me.

When he was in Switzerland he was on a dry diet (science plan for puppies) and he was ok on this, We had the odd bout of the runs but mostly he was quite solid. However since bringing him over to the UK he has it all the time. At the first Quarantine centre he had the runs for 2 weeks, He was starved for 24 hours and then put on Chicken and rice for about 2 weeks, This did the trick and he went back to normal. Then we moved him to a centre much closer to home, And now hes back to having the runs.

His diet has remained the same, the same quantity and brand of food. Nothing has changed except his surroundings.

I'm really getting concerned now, as above all else, hes rejecting food now. His weight (hes 11 months old) is 18.6KG so hes lost 0.2KG in a week. I've advised the centre to start him on raw chicken wings for the next few days to see if he will eat, and see if his stools firm up, failing that i had planned to go back to boiled chicken and rice.

I was just wondering if anyone had any idea as to what might be going on. He's never refused food before, and what they feed him he just turns away from it, unless i scoop it up and then he will eat, but only out of my hand.

I'm really worried about this now, We're just about to hit the half way point (9th December) so still have 3 months left of this BS.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Best Regards

Rich & Kody

[Lil Miss Bump]

Oh no poor Kody, I'd say he's missing you and is unsettled.....I know that when we've moved our boys have been unsettled for a while-it took Ozzy about 5 days to eat after we moved.......I hope you manage to get something sorted, sounds like he needs a bit of tlc xxx

[Rosemary]

Sorry to hear he's not doing so well in the new place. Hopefully, as Diz said, it is just the new surroundings and he will be ok after a few days. It's can't be easy on you either. I truly hope he perks up soon.

[Rich & Kody]

Cheers for the support. Its hard yeah but its getting a little bit better.

The thing is hes been at the new centre since the 26th of October. I dont think its just the surroundings

[Andy]

If Kody is on the same food in both locations then,

It could be the change in the water.

or the disinfectant that they are cleaning the enclosures with.

After a few days they acclimatise to the new water / chemicals.

However until they do, they get the runs.

[Rich & Kody]

Just had a call from the Centre hes not eating the chicken wings either

[renniwano]

Maybe they could check for underlying issues.. like a toothache or a sore throat ??

I would tend to agree that it could be something different from the old centre to the new centre.. do you see him more now he is closer ?? it could be anxiety kicking in..

Maybe instead of chicken wings.. you could ask them to try a mush of mince/minced tripe etc or something similar to make sure it's not the texture ??

Unless there is an underlying issue - I would doubt he would starve himself intentionally hun.

I would be asking them to try something else or a vet check

Hugs

Nikki xx

[louisaw]

Hi there,

Firstly Poor kody *hugs* I would suggest also feeding boiled rice and chicken but only for 7 days or there abouts ( gentle on stomach etc but please bare in mind dogs wont get all they need from this diet long term and what with kodi being so young that something i'd bare in mind ) after this amount of time things should have sorted themselves out in to poo area! as stated in previous messages it only takes a few days for a dog to adjust to new water/surroundings and of course he's probably missing you !

If things are not any better I would get a professional opinion its not like ANY dog to NOT eat food for more than a few days. They say a dog will never starve/not eat ! Also i'd be concerned about dehydration if his poo is still soft, i've also heard sibes have sensitive bellies which doesnt help when moved around and to new surroundings etc

Awwwww I really hope this helps, If in doubt about his health please get a vets advice

All the best and i hope kody is well and back to normal ASAP !

Louisa x

[Rich & Kody]

Hi All,

Thanks for all the messages,

I've asked the Quarantine centre to try a mix of everything they have in stock until he takes to something. If this doesn't work I'll be taking tomorrow off work and head down and see if its just the fact im not there.

I go down for about 6 hours on a Sunday, And if i can ill do the same on the Saturday.

If he wont eat anything they have in stock (and they have a very large selection of food) I'll take down a mix of Boiled Chicken and Rice, with some pumpkin and bio yogurt. Will see if this tempts him at all.

Yesterday I fed him some rawhide bones, and he destroyed these in less than an hour (and they were not small either!) however i did notice he was bleeding on the bones. I checked his mouth but couldn't see where the blood was coming from. A vet comes every day to the centre so if things haven't gotten better by the Friday ill get him to come in. I just don't want to go through the same as we did before. Stool samples, meds a large bill and no difference at all.

I'll keep you posted, Most likely ill take tomorrow off and go see the lil fella.

In addition i have to say he has changed quite a bit, before he was quite independent. He would find his own space to sit down in and wouldn't be too bothered where i was. If he saw me he would follow. But now he wont leave my side, If i sit down, he sits on me. I get up he follows.

Really hope hes not too depressed, its so hard when there is literally noting you can do about it. Short of quiting my job i cant be there any more.

93 days to go :/

[Removed #2]

It does sound like he's missing being in his family. I know when we got Andy he would not eat for a while, and when he did eat, when it came out the other end it was not pretty. This sounds more behavioral to me, and that he's missing you. It's so hard since you have no choice. I'm so sorry you have to go through this.

[louisaw]

Hi again,

Ashuming you've tried actually with holding food for 24 hours?! then try feeding him again ? the blood on bones is probably through chewing quickly and just his gums ! mine do the same I agree he sure sounds as though he's missing you terribly though i hope your all ok

xx

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

do you have ur new girl yet? maybe he can smell her on you if you do and its upsetting him to think your spending time with another dog?

[Rich & Kody]

no no shes not coming until Januray at best, however seeing how he is now, I may have to wait until he is out. I just dont know at the moment.

I'm waiting for the Vet to call me back regarding this, The more i read the more i think hes just pining for me. If this is the case I have no idea what to do. Thinking about getting 2 of the staff at the centre to spend more time with him to gain his trust, maybe it will help if he can associate with someone there. Other than that i have no clue

Also I have read that males go through a phase towards adulthood where they will refuse food for a while, dont know if this is just what hes doing. Will wait and see what the vet says.

best regards

Rich & Kody

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

ah thats my theory out of the window then lol

but yeh blaze went thru a phase of not really eating for a few months on and off, he would go a month with just picking at food then he would have like a proper meal then just graze again, could they leave food down for him so he can free feed?? might help

[Rich & Kody]

Yeah we're doing that leaving a bowl in the room. That is interesting as what you are describing with Blaze sounds just like what Kody is doing. I'm worried that by giving him so many choices he will see it as a way of getting other food.

Going to give him a few days and see what happens, if no joy by friday think ill get the vet in.

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

we did the same with blaze tho - have u tried sausages? at one point thats all we could get blaze to eat? - cooked then cooled down - he wont touch them raw

[Sarah]

oh god this has got to be so so hard for you I really feel for you

To me it sounds like he's really down in the dumps. I don't know how quarantine works, how much exercise does he get a day? If he doesn't get much then maybe he's not eating as much because his body doesn't need it? Also if he's not exercising as much he will loose some of the muscle, which weighs more than fat so that could explain his weight loss?

Wish I could be of more help....please keep us posted as to how things are going hun x

[HuskyCouture]

poor Kody I hope you guys can figure something out, it definitely sounds like he misses you

[Austinville]

Does he get his food from the same individual each day? It sounds as if he's having difficulty adjusting to his surroundings and if something doesn't stay consistent it only confuses him more. Just an idea....though my heart says he's missing you.

[Rich & Kody]

Well I spoke to the Centre manager today who told me Kody ate all his food again today. So thats good news, However he still has the runs bad. Going to give him until friday to see if this clears up. If not

its onto chicken and rice for a while.

He gets his food mon - thurs from the same guy, but friday and the weekend its different as the staff work weird shifts. Tbh i dont think he likes the girls there, and to be honest neither do i. Recently found out that

the girls had been locking him up in a 1.2m by 1.3m room for 15 hours a night. I went mental at this, and the centre owner has instructed all staff on his care now, and placed signs on his door to ensure

this doesnt happen again.

Think at the weekend I will have a long chat with them and see if we can change a few things. Still not happy with them, but theres nothing i can really do until 9th March

[davidjk]

when you go on holiday you may suffer from bad guts. this is because the local bacteria is different to where you live, and may give you an upset stomach.

the same is true for animals.

when we got micha she came with food she was on, and within a few days she had bad guts, we changed her food, but nothing seemed to work, she eventually settled down.

the conditions in a quarantine centre will very clean, because the last thing they need is disease to spread.

i think it might just be the change in environment that does it.

good luck and i hope you get it sorted soon.

[Austinville]

Tbh i dont think he likes the girls there, and to be honest neither do i. Recently found out that

the girls had been locking him up in a 1.2m by 1.3m room for 15 hours a night. I:(

So very sorry to hear this.....I hope things go better for him. No wonder he's unhappy. Just remember that in the long run, this is all for the best. Give him a hug from Ryn and I...will be thinking of you both. Keep us updated.