Madzy420
Jr Member
I hope someone can give me some encouragement and/or helpful suggestions. Our 2-year-old girl was spayed last week. We also opted for a gastropexy and had that done at the same time. She is healing up nicely and has had no issues with the surgery. She still has another week of being stuck inside to ensure the incision is healed.
The first odd thing is, she stopped eating her kibble. This dog has always been very food motivated and before, would eat anything. She used to devour it indiscriminately, but now, she won't eat it. We do make a homemade topper for added nutrition that we sparingly add, and she will devour that. (It's organic venison, green beans and pumpkin puree from my garden.) and I've also noticed, she will eat soft foods, but now, crunchy foods and treats, she doesn't want. I'm not sure if that's relevant or not. (NOTE: I looked at her teeth and gums and don't see any sores or irritation of any kind from surgery, etc.)
We feed her the high-performance kibble from Voyager Dog Food, so I think it's pretty good food, nutrition wise. This morning, I had to mix the topper with the kibble and HAND-FEED her to get her to eat something. She won't eat from the bowl, but she'll eat from my hand. The first few days after surgery, she would drink water from my hand. She was barely drinking water, too and that worried me at the time. The vet said to put broth in her water. I tried chicken broth and got her to drink a little, but she'll only drink about 1-2 cups a day at first. I get that she's stuck inside for 2 weeks and hasn't exercised like normal, so her food and water needs have decreased, but it worries me. Today, I got her to drink about 2-3 more cups, so that is great, but she still won't eat a lot of food. I'm hoping this is just normal from surgery and the antibiotics and pain meds.
She totally refused pill pockets for her meds, so hubby started giving her deer heart and chicken chunks to hide the pills. I think that spoiled her, so that could be one of the culprits. I know these dogs are ridiculously smart and will play you to see what they can get away with. I just don't understand why she'd become so picky overnight. I'm guessing the surgery and change in her routine and being confined inside are also culprits.
Lastly, she is exhibiting what I'm assuming is nesting behavior; also, from the spay and lack of hormones? I know dogs don't go through menopause like we do, but she is definitely going through something. She has been pulling all of her toys around her, especially the little yellow chicken. She won't go anywhere in the house or out to potty without the little chicken! She licks it and all the other toys, like they're her puppies which is something she's never done before. I feel for her so much! Did anyone else's dobie do this after a spay? I don't know what else to do except lay in the floor with her and snuggle. She seems to want more of that, so I'm happy to oblige and give her all the pets and love she wants. She's been really clingy, more so than usual and that's ok.
Any advice or suggestions on the food or behavior? Thank you in advance.
The first odd thing is, she stopped eating her kibble. This dog has always been very food motivated and before, would eat anything. She used to devour it indiscriminately, but now, she won't eat it. We do make a homemade topper for added nutrition that we sparingly add, and she will devour that. (It's organic venison, green beans and pumpkin puree from my garden.) and I've also noticed, she will eat soft foods, but now, crunchy foods and treats, she doesn't want. I'm not sure if that's relevant or not. (NOTE: I looked at her teeth and gums and don't see any sores or irritation of any kind from surgery, etc.)
We feed her the high-performance kibble from Voyager Dog Food, so I think it's pretty good food, nutrition wise. This morning, I had to mix the topper with the kibble and HAND-FEED her to get her to eat something. She won't eat from the bowl, but she'll eat from my hand. The first few days after surgery, she would drink water from my hand. She was barely drinking water, too and that worried me at the time. The vet said to put broth in her water. I tried chicken broth and got her to drink a little, but she'll only drink about 1-2 cups a day at first. I get that she's stuck inside for 2 weeks and hasn't exercised like normal, so her food and water needs have decreased, but it worries me. Today, I got her to drink about 2-3 more cups, so that is great, but she still won't eat a lot of food. I'm hoping this is just normal from surgery and the antibiotics and pain meds.
She totally refused pill pockets for her meds, so hubby started giving her deer heart and chicken chunks to hide the pills. I think that spoiled her, so that could be one of the culprits. I know these dogs are ridiculously smart and will play you to see what they can get away with. I just don't understand why she'd become so picky overnight. I'm guessing the surgery and change in her routine and being confined inside are also culprits.
Lastly, she is exhibiting what I'm assuming is nesting behavior; also, from the spay and lack of hormones? I know dogs don't go through menopause like we do, but she is definitely going through something. She has been pulling all of her toys around her, especially the little yellow chicken. She won't go anywhere in the house or out to potty without the little chicken! She licks it and all the other toys, like they're her puppies which is something she's never done before. I feel for her so much! Did anyone else's dobie do this after a spay? I don't know what else to do except lay in the floor with her and snuggle. She seems to want more of that, so I'm happy to oblige and give her all the pets and love she wants. She's been really clingy, more so than usual and that's ok.
Any advice or suggestions on the food or behavior? Thank you in advance.
