Pug refusing Hill's W/D

[dcuneo]

My eight year old Pug, Katie, was recently diagnosed with diabetes. The vet sent me home with W/D and Vetsulin. Initially Katie did well with the canned W/D, but recently she started refusing it, almost gagging on the food. I have tempted her with cat food, hard boiled eggs and baby food with some success but not consistently. Does anyone have any suggestions for a highly palatable wet food?

[CraigM]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

Welcome to the forum.

It seems some pups just turn their nose up for a food for unknown reasons. What did you feed Katie before diabetes? Some have just gone back to the old food, or picked something new. Yes, the vet might want you to feed w/d, but if Katie won't eat it you've got to find something she will eat. We have members that use w/d, regular canned or dry kibble and homemade. The only thing I'd try to avoid would be a food high in fat.

Tell us more about Katie. Weight, spayed, insulin dosage, any other medical condition / medications?

Craig

[Cara Sandler]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

Hi, and welcome!

Unfortunately, this is a very common story. Most dogs either refuse to eat the W/D from the beginning, or they stop eating it after a while. After I spent several months doing everything I could think of to get Sparky to eat a low fat diet, he made it perfectly clear that he was not interested in lowfat meals. He would prefer to skip meals than eat lowfat meals. So the thing I would tell you is to find the lowest fat dog food you can find that Katie will eat (low fat is important because diabetic dogs tend to get pancreatitis, and a reduced fat diet helps prevent it).

I'm not sure why you specified a wet food - does Katie have any health issues that require her to eat moist food? The only reason I ask about this is that wet food tends to be broken down more quickly, so you get a quicker "spike" after moist food.

Really, bottom line, is that the best food for your dog is the food that she will eat willingly and consistently. I would get the highest quality, lowest fat food that she'll eat. I would say that less than 1/2 the dogs on this forum are on prescription food for diabetes and they do just fine. However, if you change her food, be aware that you will probably need to adjust her insulin as well.

[amydunn19]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

My dog refused wd from the beginning - she did this gagging thing as well. Some dogs don't do that texture. I have had good luck with the Merrick stew meals - in particular the cowboy cookout flavor and Nutrisca stews. They look like something we would eat and the Merrick ones smell pretty darn good.

My advice is to not force the issue and quit trying to disguise or fix up the wd - if they don't like it, don't feed it. The last thing you need is a battle on a daily basis over food. Diabetes is difficult enough.

Tell us all about Katie! You can come here for any questions or concerns or to just vent your diabetes frustrations and of course, celebrate your triumphs.

[dcuneo]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

Thank you for your quick response. Katie is spayed, weighs about 25 lbs. I have a motley crew of four dogs due to my home being a favorite location for dumping unwanted pets. Prior to her diagnosis she ate one meal daily consisting of Diamond Lamb and Rice Light and a couple of tablespoons of Wellness Venison canned on top. She ate her one meal consistently and did not seem hungry except at dinnertime.

[CraigM]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

Thank you for your quick response. Katie is spayed, weighs about 25 lbs. I have a motley crew of four dogs due to my home being a favorite location for dumping unwanted pets. Prior to her diagnosis she ate one meal daily consisting of Diamond Lamb and Rice Light and a couple of tablespoons of Wellness Venison canned on top. She ate her one meal consistently and did not seem hungry except at dinnertime.

My recommendation would be to go back to the lamb & rice, or anything else that she would eat 100% (the Merrick that Amy mentioned?). Also, food quanity is important and needs to be accurately measured. Some use measuring cups, but I use a kitchen food scale to be as repeatable as possible. I truly believe just .1 ounce more or less food makes a difference in my Annie.

What dosage of insulin is she on? You are using U-40 syringes with Vetsulin, right? Thinking about home blood testing?

Craig

[dcuneo]

Re: Pug refusing Hill's W/D

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Received your tips prior to her dinner last night. As a result, did not force the w/d issue. She loves hard boiled eggs and tuna, so mixed one egg with small amount of tuna in her regular dry food and she was much happier. So was I! Katie is on 8 units 2X daily using the U-40 syringe. Other than an UTI at the time of her diagnosis, she is doing well with glucose readings between 117 and 138.