Saluki Dinner Time!

In addition to lots of rest and medications, diet is also an important part of healing and health. I rotate between feeding my dogs several types of quality kibble though there are many other great kibble brands out there! There are so many diverse opinions about what constitutes a good canine diet (kibble, cooked, raw, mixed) that you really have to experiment, do your research, and find out what works best for your dogs. If you've run across some good books on canine diets, send along the info - I'd love to read them!

For dogs with injuries that render them immobile or with joint problems, it is really important to keep your dog at a healthy weight. It is important to reduce the food intake for a dog that is not as active. Check with your vet, but while your dog is immobile recovering from an orthopedic injury, you may want to cut his/her food by up to 10-25%. 

Spoiled Saluki with some Salmon leftovers for Omega-3's!

I feed my dogs twice a day - and give a mix of kibble and some variation of a cooked meat and veggies. This can include cooked ground turkey, cooked chicken breasts, sometimes hamburger, and sometimes fish. In addition, I might throw in yams, potatoes, carrots, green beans, peas, cottage cheese - really whatever I have on hand that day. Immediately after Taj's surgery for the first couple of days I gave him rice cooked in chicken broth mixed with boiled chicken and then started mixing this with kibble. 

The veterinarians recommended that I start Taj on a joint supplement (Dasuquin) to help with supporting cartilage production and to reduce joint inflammation (since there will be slightly more strain on his other 3-legs and to repair the broken leg). Dasuquin comes in liver-flavored chewable tablets (see below). These pills are huge (quarter-sized)! Of course, Taj refuses to eat them, so I have to either hide them in his meals or use lunch-meat to hide them.

The vets also recommend I give omega-3 fatty acid supplements (EDA and DHA) from marine sources. I tried to give Taj salmon oil as a supplement (I like Grizzly Salmon Oil). Rumi does great on this; however, it gave Taj loose stool. Therefore since Taj is so "high maintenance," I actually just throw sardines (or herring) fillets in his food a couple times a week. Occasionally, Taj is very spoiled and gets a bit of cooked salmon in his food as well.

Dasquin Tablets (Joint Health)

Grizzly Salmon Oil (Omega-3's)