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Hey everyone, After hundreds of Google searches & hours of reading I decided making an account would prove much more helpful & could answer specific questions. 

Poncho found me June 3rd 2017, She came bumbling out of the woods to me like she had known me her entire existence. My life has never been the same. Malnourished, Tic/flea infested, covered in dirt, mud and Lord knows what else I picked her up, feeling every rib...My main concern was feeding her first & cleaning her up second. 

The first food I ever gave her was bread, as that was all I had in my bag at that moment (she popped out during a hike) and I wanted to give this poor baby something until we made it back to the car to go buy real dog food. 

Well you'd think a dog who appeared to not have eaten in weeks, possibly months would gobble down whatever dog food was placed infront of her, I had sped to the nearest gas station & bought a can of dog food, I know now that Poncho is not a fan of wet food but at the time I was baffled at her turning her nose up to the wet food. 

Well, I get her home, Bathe her, remove every tic (I lost count after 15) and just love on & cry over my new found blessing. 

I made an "asap" appointment with a vet, and we were in the office the next day. This is where my questions will later come in..

Poncho was diagnosed with heartworms and a bad infestation of parasites, This was in June. She is on heartgard monthly, and Doxycycline 10mg 4 pills 2 times a day. 

I took to the internet to find the best vitamins, supplements, oils, and whatever I could to ease any discomfort, aid her prescriptions, and help with her extreme need to gain weight. 

It is now October & Poncho has maybe gained a solid 10 pounds, her ribs don't show, but her hip bones jut out and she has an overall lanky appearance. It never fails when we are in public that a remark is made about her needing to eat, or that I am starving her. It kills me. 

What can I do? Poncho is fed a mixture of Pure Balance dry kibble with Ol Roy moist lightly on top, I just now got her to grasp the concept of a bowl, feeding her used to be an hour or longer feeding her by hand until she was done. Every other day she gets a scrambled egg cooked with coconut oil, I pop a fish oil vitamin into the scrambled egg and add a small amount of flax seed. She will eat about half of this. 

I've read up on the health benefits of coconut oil & it just so happens she loves it, I've gotten where I melt a teaspoon & drizzle over her dog food. I boil chicken breast, I'll give her small amounts of bacon, I've tried tuna (wasn't a big fan)

I'm aware the parasites make it very hard for her to gain weight & the only noted side effect from the heart gard is lack of appetite (she hasn't reached the coughing stage, or just doesn't cough) 

What can I do to combat these side effects?

I am open and willing to try anything.

has anyone tried ground pumpkin seeds to aid in the fight of heartworms? I've read about this.

What do I do? I want to get her to a healthy weight, kill the heartworms & parasites. I'm 24 years old on minimum wage, I'll procure whatever i need to give her a long happy life. People say I saved her, but she saved me. I don't ever want her to be in pain or succumb to her health problems. I need any and all information, reccomendations, regimes that have worked for you, tips, advice, anything... I'm all ears. Thank you in advance. I'll be more than happy to answer any and all questions. 

20171017_130848.jpg

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Hey everyone, After hundreds of Google searches & hours of reading I decided making an account would prove much more helpful & could answer specific questions. 
Poncho found me June 3rd 2017, She came bumbling out of the woods to me like she had known me her entire existence. My life has never been the same. Malnourished, Tic/flea infested, covered in dirt, mud and Lord knows what else I picked her up, feeling every rib...My main concern was feeding her first & cleaning her up second. 
The first food I ever gave her was bread, as that was all I had in my bag at that moment (she popped out during a hike) and I wanted to give this poor baby something until we made it back to the car to go buy real dog food. 
Well you'd think a dog who appeared to not have eaten in weeks, possibly months would gobble down whatever dog food was placed infront of her, I had sped to the nearest gas station & bought a can of dog food, I know now that Poncho is not a fan of wet food but at the time I was baffled at her turning her nose up to the wet food. 
Well, I get her home, Bathe her, remove every tic (I lost count after 15) and just love on & cry over my new found blessing. 
I made an "asap" appointment with a vet, and we were in the office the next day. This is where my questions will later come in..
Poncho was diagnosed with heartworms and a bad infestation of parasites, This was in June. She is on heartgard monthly, and Doxycycline 10mg 4 pills 2 times a day. 
I took to the internet to find the best vitamins, supplements, oils, and whatever I could to ease any discomfort, aid her prescriptions, and help with her extreme need to gain weight. 
It is now October & Poncho has maybe gained a solid 10 pounds, her ribs don't show, but her hip bones jut out and she has an overall lanky appearance. It never fails when we are in public that a remark is made about her needing to eat, or that I am starving her. It kills me. 
What can I do? Poncho is fed a mixture of Pure Balance dry kibble with Ol Roy moist lightly on top, I just now got her to grasp the concept of a bowl, feeding her used to be an hour or longer feeding her by hand until she was done. Every other day she gets a scrambled egg cooked with coconut oil, I pop a fish oil vitamin into the scrambled egg and add a small amount of flax seed. She will eat about half of this. 
I've read up on the health benefits of coconut oil & it just so happens she loves it, I've gotten where I melt a teaspoon & drizzle over her dog food. I boil chicken breast, I'll give her small amounts of bacon, I've tried tuna (wasn't a big fan)
I'm aware the parasites make it very hard for her to gain weight & the only noted side effect from the heart gard is lack of appetite (she hasn't reached the coughing stage, or just doesn't cough) 
What can I do to combat these side effects?
I am open and willing to try anything.
has anyone tried ground pumpkin seeds to aid in the fight of heartworms? I've read about this.
What do I do? I want to get her to a healthy weight, kill the heartworms & parasites. I'm 24 years old on minimum wage, I'll procure whatever i need to give her a long happy life. People say I saved her, but she saved me. I don't ever want her to be in pain or succumb to her health problems. I need any and all information, reccomendations, regimes that have worked for you, tips, advice, anything... I'm all ears. Thank you in advance. I'll be more than happy to answer any and all questions. 
20171017_130848.thumb.jpg.073845ede3de5e7110b81df0f6d706ad.jpg

PONCHO is beautiful!!! [emoji3][emoji3][emoji3][emoji177][emoji179][emoji178]So huskies really aren't big eaters anyway unless they are puppies. Now with the heartworms and parasites your right it does make it a little harder for them to gain weight but if you can't see her ribs and only her hips your making great stride. I would switch her food over to grain free and add grain free can food to help her gain more weight. Give her heart guard plus it helps with parasites intestinal and in the heart works like a charm [emoji3][emoji3] Her greeting you like a best friend is a wonderful thing and good for her [emoji4][emoji4][emoji4]

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Thank you all so much!! I was not expecting replies so fast 💜 I will have to get the heart gard plus, I've been reading up on ivermectin alot. I have looked into a raw diet, I'm nervous to take that plunge, I add the boiled chicken & eggs along with the dog food, in hopes that covers all bases. What brands do y'all recommend? What brands are grain free? Is Pure Balance an okay brand? Thank you all so much for the love & kindness!! I hope I'm replying the correct way. Thanks so much once again. 

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Well done for taking her in and bring her back to health. Over the past year I have been struggling getting and maintaining weight on Mowgli. Be careful going to mad on supplements etc as I found that some can cause a unset stomach. Fish oils don’t agree with mine that well.

A few good things you can add to her diet is a table spoon of natural yogurt with live bacteria with each meal and for loose stools pumpkin purée helps a lot. A lot of people say our dogs don’t need as much food as other breeds but personally I think it is down to there life style and amount of exercise. Too much for some though can cause upset tummy.

I tried multiple brands of kibble from stuff which cost £20 a bag to £100 and nothing worked 100%. A couple of weeks ago I decided to try raw (pre-prepared type) and it has transformed Mowgli. His has gained weight and his poos are solid. My advice is trust your eyes and gut and your both do fine.


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I agree with Markie, huskies are well known for their ability to thrive on small amounts of food. Knowing this just makes it all the more important to ensure that what little they do consume is of great quality. Doxycycline has a tendency to cause stomach upset and gerd in humans so it could be upsetting your pup. Make sure Poncho is eating a little something with it. One last thing. Hold your head up high and don't worry about what the people are saying. You know you are doing your best and that is all anyone can expect. They don't know the story. It is easy for people to judge that which they do not know. I hope everything works out for the both of you. 🤗🐾💞🐾🤗

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Wow what a story lucky Poncho was blessed the day you found each other. She has put on weight, that's great well done xx what you are doing is working and it won't hurt if she puts weight and condition on slowly. She is beautiful and you both look very happy xxx welcome to the wonderful mad world of husky and all it entails and welcome to husky owners a community of mad owners who all love their fur babies and offer the best support x

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my tried and tested weight gain diet is

Burger meat, one egg, chicken yogurt pasta  added to a chicken and rice diet dog food and i would feed twice a day split the daily amount into two meals you may also find that the hips showing is due to lack of exercise not food you want to biuld muscle not fat

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Heartwarming story, lovely pics to.
Both of mine are on a raw diet, lamb is good for putting on abit of weight, chicken with rice will ease an upset stomach, my 2 love scrambled eggs or boiled, you can give them raw also. You can also buy a dry mixer to add to raw food.
Sounds as tho you’re doing a great job, it’s trial and error finding the foods they like, they can be fussy eaters at times. Wishing the best for both of you [emoji3]


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I’d recommend raw over everything else, if you must add kibble give grain free. Raw is easy, my Luna picks out the raw chicken thighs (with skin and bone) First no matter what else is in her bowl. In the UK Nature’s Menu make a mixer from vegetables and a little oats which they bake slowly, it’s crunchy and she enjoys that too. Meat offcuts, offal if she’ll eat it, minced meat, really any sort of raw meat and fish, she’ll eat as much or little as she wants. If taking her out and being on the end of unkind/unpleasant remarks upsets you, maybe invest in a thin coat to cover her over? I think you’ve tried really hard and I’m sure you’ll succeed because you obviously love her and have an amazing bond. Good luck.


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I'm so glad you and Poncho found each other. I don't have any direct advice to give you because I haven't dealt with such issues, but it does look like others have given you some great advice about what to feed Poncho.  I can tell you that I feed my dog, Olaf, a grain-free kibble. I use Annamaet Salcha, the poultry formula. I have also heard from other husky owners that their dogs like Earthborn Holistic. My Olaf didn't care for it, but I also tried giving him the seafood/salmon formula, so maybe he's just not a seafood lover. (Neither am I.) The Earthborn Holistic is a little less expensive than the Annamaet, and you can order either one from Chewy.com.

Good luck to you - I hope Poncho continues to gain weight. 10 pounds in great so far!!

Kim

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This is the kindest community of people I have ever come across 🖤💜🌼 you all just made me smile, I copied all the advice into the "Poncho Bible" ( it's like a day planner but all things poncho) I can't say enough how much your kind words mean to me. I've started the transition to a raw diet, with rice chicken eggs and I'm looking for cod, I've read it can be very good for them but I'm kinda leery just cause cod seems weird lol 

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This is the kindest community of people I have ever come across 🖤[emoji171][emoji272] you all just made me smile, I copied all the advice into the "Poncho Bible" ( it's like a day planner but all things poncho) I can't say enough how much your kind words mean to me. I've started the transition to a raw diet, with rice chicken eggs and I'm looking for cod, I've read it can be very good for them but I'm kinda leery just cause cod seems weird lol 

Raw is good!!! :-):-):-) Mine get that at night :-):-):-) I have one of those books for each of my huskies also [emoji6][emoji6] We are all happy to help [emoji3][emoji3] Cod is kind of weird I think it's the name LOL [emoji23] Do you have anymore questions?? [emoji4][emoji4]

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  • 4 weeks later...

i second the raw food. i dont know where you live but there are some good pre-made commercial brands out there! a high quality whole food diet will only strengthen the immune system, i think that is the first place to start, especially in her condition. cooked foods are not the same for dogs as they are people, when cooked there is essentially no nutritional value and probably would not help with gaining weight. an idea to help with her eating is tripe, you can get it in a can at the pet store, i have NEVER seen a dog refuse it. try mixing it in with the kibble.

 

i would not stop the meds from the vet considering she actually has heartworm but im a fan of the natural dewormers. worth a shot to try as well, and definately doesnt break the bank. here's a link

http://pitbulls.org/article/natural-worm-and-parasite-control-dogs

 

goodluck! and your doing a great job!

 

 

some additional info!

someone on here suggested pumpkin, i would steer away from that.

look into making a bone broth for her most dogs dont turn that down either!

kefir is the best source of probiotics, very easy to make

http://rawfed.com/myths/

 

oh and if you ever wanted to switch to raw THE BEST source out there is a facebook group called RFU-Raw Feeding University. everyone is helpful and always positive. [emoji5]

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Have to say, Amy refused tripe, cooked or raw!!! And she eats about anything!!! Its just finding what works for you and your fur-ball!! [emoji23]


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I don't know if it's been mentioned n I know this thread is a few weeks old now but if your feeding raw don't feed kibble at the same time , make sure there's several hours between , if mine eat kibble and then meat too soon after they throw everything back up as it digests at different rates so they should never be mixed

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@PonchosMom93 ~ Hello, how have you and your PONCHO Baby been doing?? I pray the Vet's heartworm & parasites treatment has worked. Also, don't know if antibiotics are done. But I sure hope your baby is feeling better overall and has gained a tad more weight!! Good luck!!
[emoji171][emoji274][emoji170][emoji252][emoji179]

~ANGIE, ARMANI & ALINAH~

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  • 3 weeks later...
Hey everyone, After hundreds of Google searches & hours of reading I decided making an account would prove much more helpful & could answer specific questions. 

Poncho found me June 3rd 2017, She came bumbling out of the woods to me like she had known me her entire existence. My life has never been the same. Malnourished, Tic/flea infested, covered in dirt, mud and Lord knows what else I picked her up, feeling every rib...My main concern was feeding her first & cleaning her up second. 

The first food I ever gave her was bread, as that was all I had in my bag at that moment (she popped out during a hike) and I wanted to give this poor baby something until we made it back to the car to go buy real dog food. 

Well you'd think a dog who appeared to not have eaten in weeks, possibly months would gobble down whatever dog food was placed infront of her, I had sped to the nearest gas station & bought a can of dog food, I know now that Poncho is not a fan of wet food but at the time I was baffled at her turning her nose up to the wet food. 

Well, I get her home, Bathe her, remove every tic (I lost count after 15) and just love on & cry over my new found blessing. 

I made an "asap" appointment with a vet, and we were in the office the next day. This is where my questions will later come in..

Poncho was diagnosed with heartworms and a bad infestation of parasites, This was in June. She is on heartgard monthly, and Doxycycline 10mg 4 pills 2 times a day. 

I took to the internet to find the best vitamins, supplements, oils, and whatever I could to ease any discomfort, aid her prescriptions, and help with her extreme need to gain weight. 

It is now October & Poncho has maybe gained a solid 10 pounds, her ribs don't show, but her hip bones jut out and she has an overall lanky appearance. It never fails when we are in public that a remark is made about her needing to eat, or that I am starving her. It kills me. 

What can I do? Poncho is fed a mixture of Pure Balance dry kibble with Ol Roy moist lightly on top, I just now got her to grasp the concept of a bowl, feeding her used to be an hour or longer feeding her by hand until she was done. Every other day she gets a scrambled egg cooked with coconut oil, I pop a fish oil vitamin into the scrambled egg and add a small amount of flax seed. She will eat about half of this. 

I've read up on the health benefits of coconut oil & it just so happens she loves it, I've gotten where I melt a teaspoon & drizzle over her dog food. I boil chicken breast, I'll give her small amounts of bacon, I've tried tuna (wasn't a big fan)

I'm aware the parasites make it very hard for her to gain weight & the only noted side effect from the heart gard is lack of appetite (she hasn't reached the coughing stage, or just doesn't cough) 

What can I do to combat these side effects?

I am open and willing to try anything.

has anyone tried ground pumpkin seeds to aid in the fight of heartworms? I've read about this.

What do I do? I want to get her to a healthy weight, kill the heartworms & parasites. I'm 24 years old on minimum wage, I'll procure whatever i need to give her a long happy life. People say I saved her, but she saved me. I don't ever want her to be in pain or succumb to her health problems. I need any and all information, reccomendations, regimes that have worked for you, tips, advice, anything... I'm all ears. Thank you in advance. I'll be more than happy to answer any and all questions. 

20171017_130848.thumb.jpg.073845ede3de5e7110b81df0f6d706ad.jpg

Ask you vet about Trifexis. Look it up for yourself too. Hope this helps. She’s beautiful!

 

 

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