No more chicken or cheese or apples...Do you see this sad face mom?
I don't know who's more depressed about Chance's strict diet, him or us. It has been just over a month since Chance has been put on a special food, special treats and all he can have are veggies for snacks. He has a high pH level that showed up in his urine and for a dog who was given a taste of almost everything we eat, this has been quite a challenge for all of us.
At first it didn't seem to be a big deal for Chance, then as the days wore on and he wasn't getting any morsels from our plates, the sadness begun to seep in. I have tried to eat at least something he can eat with each meal, like a carrot or a cucumber that we can share and that helps. It also helps that Blaze gets the same at our mealtimes as Chance and only gets extras when Chance isn't around.
We have kept a couple of staples around, so it isn't a total blowout and a small enough amount that it won't blow his pH levels through the roof. Like licking the sides of a yogurt cup in the morning and I give him the tiniest pieces of cheese you have ever seen.
I think that's the biggest key to this whole new diet, is still being able to share our food with him. I've had to get creative with nighttime treats and I've had to give more of his special kibble to make up for missing calories.
After a month now, this whole ordeal is starting balance out. Chance is not deprived by any means and he loves vegetables so no real problems there. It was just for those first few weeks he was sad and confused, wondering what was happening. The poor guy. We were all miserable together and how can you explain to him what's going on? Hubby, Mark took it pretty hard. He worries so much about the dogs, yet it looks like it is all going to work out after all. Just needed some time and patience to go through the changes. Hopefully we'll be able to add some different food to his diet when his pH levels go down, but we'll have to see. We are just taking it one day at a time.
I think that's the biggest key to this whole new diet, is still being able to share our food with him. I've had to get creative with nighttime treats and I've had to give more of his special kibble to make up for missing calories.
After a month now, this whole ordeal is starting balance out. Chance is not deprived by any means and he loves vegetables so no real problems there. It was just for those first few weeks he was sad and confused, wondering what was happening. The poor guy. We were all miserable together and how can you explain to him what's going on? Hubby, Mark took it pretty hard. He worries so much about the dogs, yet it looks like it is all going to work out after all. Just needed some time and patience to go through the changes. Hopefully we'll be able to add some different food to his diet when his pH levels go down, but we'll have to see. We are just taking it one day at a time.
2 comments:
I know how hard it is for ME to stick to a special diet, and I also know how hard it is to stick to a special diet for THEM. They don't make it easy for us, do they? Those eyes... :-) But you're doing it, and I hope that very soon you get to add back those favorite treats.
Thank you Kim! Yes, it has been hard. It is such a habit for us to "eat" together. Chance was bumming pretty hard. :( Can't wait to see his results now.
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