Hi,
This is my first posting I have 2 Corgis (1 Cardigan and 1 a Pembroke)
the Cardigan was diagnosed with Pancreatitis at 1yr old and has had it for 6months without having another flare up. He has been on Royal Canin Gastrointestinal low fat both the kibble and wet food together., Ideally I would like to move to a more regular food that my other dog could also eat, I have spoken to my vet his view is that unless I can get data from another company showing that their food is suitable for dogs with pancreatitis then he would not advise me to change.
Do you think companies would do this? there are a number of foods on this site that when you put in the neccessary pancreatitis filters come up but do you think that them just saying it is suitable for dogs with pancreatitis will be acceptable to my vet and ultimately my insurance company should he have another bout.
Hello and welcome to the forum. We have quite a bit of information about pancreatitis on the forum. If you use the search box at the top you will be able to locate each thread that contains the word ‘pancreatitis’. Here are some threads:
The pancreatitis thread.
Diet for pancreatitis.
David has written this information about prescription diets. He has also written a page on feeding dogs with pancreatitis here.
The Royal Canin GI low fat dry food information is here. It has 7% fat, which is very low. There are very few commercially available foods that have a fat level as low as that. Usually low fat foods are categorized under ‘light’ ‘senior’ or ‘diet’ labels. They are not often recommended for long term use because dogs need fat in their diet. They can be found by using the filters on the Dog Food Directory.
As you are working with your vet on this issue, I feel that the best approach would be to discuss the specifics of the food, e.g. the percentage of fat and protein. This will then enable you to search for something better (and cheaper) than the Royal Canin. All of the low fat foods will contain a high percentage of carbohydrate - this is unavoidable.
As your dog is very young and has not had a flare up for 6 months, I can’t see why you should not look for a new, digestible food that has a little more fat in it. However, as you are under veterinary care, please speak to him or her about any changes. Any reputable company should be able to give you full information about their products but I am not sure whether they would categorically state that it is formulated for pancreatitis. I can’t remember now but there may be legal issues regarding this. Re the insurance company, if you have ascertained key features of a suitable product from the veterinary surgeon and had agreement from him that your chosen food would be suitable then surely that should satisfy them.
It might be worth looking at the cold pressed foods because they are usually low in fat and very digestible. There are a few UK companies who sell them - their customer services should be able to help you with information. Gentle might be a good place to start. They have a fish variety that might suit quite well.
I would be grateful if you would update your thread because we really need feedback. It helps other people (and us) enormously.
Thank you.
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Burns Original is 7.5% oils and fats - their nutrition helpline on past experience is very honest and if they dont have a suitable product they tend to say.
0800 083 66 96
Thanks for all the info I will contact Burns re Data and possibly some other makers I will let you know any replies
Thank you for responding to our replies. The Burns Original review is here. As you are looking for something to suit both dogs, it is worth mentioning that the dry weight fat is 8.2%, protein 20.1%. Both of those are very low for your healthy Corgi. Also, it is very high in cereal. If you opt for that, it might be worth considering topping up the healthy one with some good quality wet food. Something with low carbohydrate and containing good quality meat, e.g. Nature’s Menu Country Hunter would provide more balance.
Re the pancreatitis - did it have a causative factor? For example, did he eat something he shouldn’t, for example a fat ball from a bird table? If so, I am wondering why the vet feels that your dog needs to have low fat long term. If the dog was older, and the condition was chronic then restricting fat long term would seem to be logical but your dog is very young and from what you say, this was acute pancreatitis as he only had it once.
Hi, no he hadnt scavenged anything that I know of, my only idea is he was on a mix of a highly recommended dry food with the manufacturers own topper and I think this was to fatty for him, although despite following their feeding guidlines I ended up with one corgi having pancreatitis and my other put on 4kg very quickly.
I dont know if it is a corgi thing (1 is a cardigan and the other a pembroke), I have now got the overweight one back to a good weight having fed a vet prescribed weight controlled diet and he is now ready to go back onto normal food and it would be so much easier if they could both be on the same food as i have had to feed them seperatley for the last 6 months.
Thanks for all your help
Hi,
[size=14pt]I have just seen your post re giving info.
dog 1 is a male Cardigan Corgi aged 18months no health problems other than a severe (4days 3 nights in hospital) case of pancreatitis at 1yr old at that time he was on Forthglade Chicken and their complete meal wet food (mixed flavour box) he was allowed 0.25% of a tray a day. Since developing the pancreatitis he has been on Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Low fat 207gms a day kibble and half a tin of the corresponding wet. I stopped giving him the wet a week ago as he had gone over his optimum weight of 20kg and up to 22kg. Having looked at the dry matter of the wet food it seems a little high hence wanting to chang him. I have been adding a little chicken breast to his kibble which he seems happy with.
Dog 2 is a 3yr old Pembroke Corgi he has arthritis in knees and elbows for which he has yumove he weights 12.5kg and at present is on Royal Canin obesity Management kibble (120gms) with a little chicken breast. Once again I am looking to take him off the Royal Canin
The only treat either of them get is fish jerky to help clean their teeth and 2 pieces of thrive pro reward chicken a day
From what you say, this rather sounds like the pancreatitis was acute due to diet. The fact that your other dog put weight on rapidly would seem to support this. Clearly you need to discuss things with your vet but from what you say, a moderate level of fat in a good quality, digestible dry food i.e. 10% to 12% fat dry weight might well suit both dogs, fed in the right quantity and with no extras. There are very few wet foods with that level of fat but dry, freeze and air dried would ok.
You can very easily search using the Dog Food Directory filters. It returned two pages of products with the following filters:
- All dry completes, air/freeze dried, cold pressed.
- Natural/clearly labelled.
- Rating 3.9 to 5 stars.
- Fat slider - 0% to 12%
These products should also suit your dog who gains weight easily as long as the right amount is given.