Sick Siberian Husky Puppy!!!help!!!

stefanototti

My girlfriend and I just go a 12 week old female husky. Foolishly we forgot to take home some of the hard food she was on, as we were just so excited to get her! Anyway, the wet food we gave her didn't agree and after two days she had a bit of diarrhea and vomiting....we took her to the vet who said she was healthy otherwise, but to feed her boiled chicken and rice for now, and also gave her some tablets for dehydration tablets.

Trouble is she now wont eat anything and is very lethargic, just lying around most of the day, we've only had her since Tuesday, last but are really worried...has anyone got any tips on how to get her eating again?

We would really appreciate it.

Thanks a lot!!

sweetnjuicy

id try get your hands on some of the food she was on, she was used to it and it will take a few weeks to switch her over to something else if you want to.

ISDW

Siberian huskies have notoriously difficult stomachs, so if she just had diarrohea with the new food I wouldn't be too worried, but the vomiting and lethargy are not good. Puppies can get dehydrated very quickly, so please make sure that she is drinking. Its late now, but if you have any diarylte in the house, I'd mix that up for her, make sure she's getting electrolytes.

Having reread your post, I think you're saying that she's got used to the chicken and rice, and so doesn't want anything that isn't as appetising? Phone the breeder, and find out what food she was on if you don't know, and get that tomorrow. Mix in a little bit of sardines (in sunflower oil, NOT in brine) so that the food is smelly if she just isn't interested in it. Dogs generally won't let themselves starve, so feed her 4 times a day, small amounts, put the food down, take it up after 15 minutes. She should learn that she needs to eat what she is given.

If she is lethargic, I would get back onto the vet in the morning and get her checked over.

Sigma Force

If you give her chicken and rice will she eat it and then liven up?
It's unusual for a young puppy to be overly fussy about food they usually burn off energy quickly and will eat most stuff and stuff they should't too.

I would take her back to the vets just in case it's something else, ensure she's drinking plenty of water.

With a really upset tum she should be on the chicken and rice for a week at least, usually with a touch of the runs one to three days does the trick but with some dogs if it's a bad bout they need to be on it longer.

As said, if it's just her being fussy now try to make the food more appetising definetly get her back on what she was being fed. Wet food can be pretty pongy and works out expensive esp. for a larger dog like a husky.

Different foods work for different dogs, what suits one may not suit the other but here's a few brands worth considering, Royal Canin, Burns, James Wellbeloved and Hills.

stefanototti

hey guys, thanks for getting back, got onto the breeder and it was royal canin, which is actually what we started her on yesterday coincidentally.

She is really weird though, she won't eat it out of the bowl, but when we throw it on the ground she jumps around it gobbling it up...now her breeder used to just throw the dry food out in her kennel....but I can't keep feeding her like this, shall I just try the 15 minute thing? Oh and now she won't touch chicken with rice in it, and will only eat chicken out of my hand...weird?

With regards the lethargy, she acts like a dead body, but when I pick up her led she acts like a dog possessed, trying to get out the back door, it's almost like she's bored?we walk her 2-3 times a day...long walks, but we're also afraid of over doing it as she's so young?

Thanks for all your help and replies, any more will be equally appreciated!!

Blueprint

It actually sounds rather like she's scared indoors, if she gets all lively when she thinks she's going out. At least her actions sound like my dog acts when he's scared of something - he'll just lie there looking unhappy and refuse to budge. If she's only ever been used to a kennel, she will be finding the indoor world quite a strange new place.

As for the excercise, it's really important in large breed dogs especially not to over-exercise them as it puts too much stress on young bones and joints- I think the guide is 5 minutes of on lead exercise per month of age.

ISDW

Blueprint wrote: »

It actually sounds rather like she's scared indoors, if she gets all lively when she thinks she's going out. At least her actions sound like my dog acts when he's scared of something - he'll just lie there looking unhappy and refuse to budge. If she's only ever been used to a kennel, she will be finding the indoor world quite a strange new place.

As for the excercise, it's really important in large breed dogs especially not to over-exercise them as it puts too much stress on young bones and joints- I think the guide is 5 minutes of on lead exercise per month of age.

Definitely don't overdo the exercise, sibes can suffer from hip dysplacia, so stick to the 5 minutes per month rule.

She's 12 weeks old, so I guess she's fully vaccinated and is okay to go out? Usually after the last vaccination you should wait for another 2 weeks before you take the pup out into the big bad world.

andreac

Ok, you need to establish a routine with your pup, its all new to her and she needs to get into a routine.

With the food, dogs wont go hungry, trust me, so if you you are still feeding 3 times a day then feed at set times, put the food into the bowl, leave it down and leave the bowl down for about 15 mins, dont fuss over her or encourage her to eat as she will only get fussy then.

Once the 15 mins is up, take up the food and the bowl and dont offer her any food til next meal time, at next meal time repeat as above. She will learn to realise that this is all she is getting and will eat up, but it could take a few days for it to sink in.

The key is patience and routine so stick with it. Fussy dogs can take a while to get it sorted, my dog went 3 days without eating as he wanted more than just his kibble, as i had been adding stuff into it and he wouldnt eat it without then, so it took 3 days of leaving the food down and taking it back up again and not getting anything else before he gave in.

Try not to feel sorry for them and think they are starving because they wont.
With the exercise, 3 long walks a day is way too much, the rule is 5 mins per month of age, so she should only be getting about 15 mins exercise. You can play games with toys in the house and that to keep her occupied, but until shes mature you need to be very careful with exercise and make sure shes restricted until fully matured.

stefanototti

Thats great guys.....we have 3 set meal times now and thats it. She is begging once we lift the bowl but we are staying strong!!! just a quick question....so she's just over 3 months old, so is that 15 minute walk per day, or more than one walk but only 15 minutes at a time?

Cheers again for all the good advice!

andreac

Its a total of 15 for the day so you would break it into 2 walks maybe.

Is she eating anything from the bowl yet? do you give her any treats too in between meals? try not giver her anything bar her 3 meals until you get her eating again.

looserock

Plenty of good advice being given so far, and it sounds like she is OK, the most important thing is that she doesn't get dehydrated, you can check this by gently pinching a few inches of skin and if it springs back quickly she is well hydrated, if it takes a long time don't panic but she needs water.

I'm not familiar with huskies in particular but I think it would be better to feed from a raised bowel rather than from the ground, it helps prevent them getting bloat.

good luck.