Hi Laurie F.,
Thank you for the link. I see Fromm is listed, but the sodium contents still seem higher than some others. Currently, all of my dogs but one eat Fromm (including one CHF dog). My other dog, who is a recent permanent foster, is the other CHF dog and she’s on really crappy food. She got a 3 month prognosis a month ago when she came into rescue, so we just picked up cheap Moist and Meaty. I know, it’s awful. I feel guilty about it, and despite the vet saying she didn’t have long, I’d still like to give her better food. We also saw a different vet (within the rescue) this past weekend because I wanted to get her meds adjusted, and this vet said the same thing about her health. Said she’s super sweet and friendly, but a hot mess. 🙁
My two dogs with CHF: the new foster is a chi/corgi mix, approximately 11lbs and between 12-15years old. It’s really hard to tell because of her health and her teeth are WRETCHED. I mean, just downright awful. This weekend her Lasix was upped to 5mg, she’s on Enalapril already, and I had the vet add Vetmedin. I also got another round of clindomyacin, and we’ll make that recurring monthly to help keep down any gum infection. She’s also now on incurin because she’s a leaker. It’s not a big deal because we diaper her inside, but it can make a mess on our lanai if she’s not diapered right away after piddling.
My other CHF dog is a 9-10yro Chinese Crested (hairless). He is the one w/pulmonary edema, and he’s currently on the same medications as the chi mix, and he’s been on them since I began fostering him 1.5yrs ago (I failed and adopted). He overall does great, just has the occasional breathing episode. Usually they’re slight, but every now and then there is one that is so bad that he can’t even stand up from the oxygen deprivation. It’s awful to see, and his vet is actually surprised he keeps on living. When he gets like that, there’s nothing we can do but sit with him and stroke his head hair. If we tried to put him in a car at that time, it’d likely kill him. It’d be nice if I had an oxygen tank at the house for those times. 🙁
Sidenote: I give my dogs zero treats. My crested thinks his medication is a treat, and he happily devours the pills twice a day without us having to stuff them in a treat haha. He also eats poop sometimes, so his taste buds must be wonky.
