losing weight?
by K. Schafer
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
Our six year old Maltese (Lacy) doesn't seem to be getting any better. Although her appetite seems OK, she has lost weight and looks very skinny, almost bony. We took her to the vet a couple of months ago and he ran blood tests on her. The results turned out that all was fine except that she was a little anemic. We started giving her vitamins but this does not seem to help. Lacy does have a problem with her knees going out. Would this be why she is losing weight?
I must say that, even though Lacy is very special to us, we have
three children and we just cannot afford a large Vet bill. Through our prayers we are hoping that Lacy will come around. Any information you would like to share with us will be appreciated.
DISCUSSION:
I'm sorry to hear about Lacy not doing so well. Does she only eat dog food? I was just wondering because my grandmother is a firm believer in giving dogs healthy people food. She would suggest yogurt, carrots, hamburger (browned), and anything that might help her to put a little weight on I guess the first thing I would do is give her yogurt, and they really seem to like it. Don't get the fat free kind and give her 1 to 2 tablespoons a day in her regular food. I'm no specialist or anything, but that's probably what I would do. Maybe even some oatmeal and some scrambled eggs. Good luck and let us know how she is doing.
Kirsten & Mattie
At your dogs age it needs a professional teeth cleaning if that has not already been done. And the knee can be very painful and keep her from running around if not corrected by surgery. It leads to early arthritis for one thing. Financial considerations must always be taken into consideration when buying a dog. Maltese are expensive because they are expensive to keep their whole lives. Be sure you are feeding a kibble with a high fat content, not the cheap stuff for the big guys. Purina One is what I use, a good grocery store diet.
Mary Lou
My daughter just had that same problem with her cat, lost half his body weight but seemed ok otherwise. Turned out that he was hyperthyroid. Ask if your vet ran the test for hyperthyroidism. She also had to suggest the test to her vet and turned out that she was right about it.
Nancy
I also have to recommend human food as well. Maisy was so skinny it was awful to even hold her. I had to cook her a special diet for kidney failure, but it involved browned hamburger, which she loved, scrambled eggs, which she loved and bread and rice, which she didn't love. Anyway, she's back up to her normal skinny weight. Best of luck to you and lacie.
Tricia, Beau and Maisy
| Please bear in mind when reading topics pertaining to health issues, that most of these questions were answered by helpful Maltese owners with no formal education in veterinary medicine. When in doubt seek a professionals advise. |
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