Hi ARiem.
I think it’s important to arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible, so you are doing the right thing, but also as Patty said, very important to find a vet and/or nutrititionist. One that is at least willing to research and consult if not already knowledgeable about your dog’s condition him/her self. Your own knowledge combined with a good vet’s guidance can be very powerful stuff.
Your dog sounds like it’s near emaciated (about 30% underweight) and probably your suspicions are correct-slowly starving for nutrition. Also the Hill’s W/D is also very low in protein (17.9% dry matter average). I also think that your best bet can be with homemade meals-but only with the the help and knowledge that is very necessary.
There are many things believed to cause pancreatitis, hereditary predisposition, ingestion of any atypical meal-usually high fat is implied, gallstones or other obstruction in bile duct or pancreatic duct, hyperlipidemia, hypercalcemia, some medicines such as steroids, antibiotics, and immune suppressants, hyperthyroidism, trauma, etc. Each bout with pancreatitis might damage the pancreas further and limits even more the ability to produce digestive enzymes and maybe insulin also.
Again it’s very important to seek professional help, but it’s possible that your dog is one that is actually in dire need of digestive enzymes to survive and thrive. Has your vet ever discussed this or exocrine pancreatic insufficiency? If EPI is the case, he might need the “big guns” pancreatin (porcine or bovine based), rather than less potent or less efficient OTC plant based enzymes. The prescription enzymes can be quite expensive-middlemen, etc. but they are highly standardized and more tightly controlled. If you and your vet find your dog does need these, enzymediane cuts the middleman and I think are comparable to the prescription ones, albeit maybe not as tightly controlled, but MUCH cheaper. It’s saved lives for many that couldn’t afford the prescriptions. My new friend’s GS I think is one of those.
http://www.enzymediane.com/enzymecomparisonchart.htm
a very good site on canine exocrine pancreatic deficiency.
http://www.epi4dogs.com/
Hope this helps and wishing you and your dogs the best.
