I read that pancreatitis is caused by a lot of fatty, rich foods… I'm wondering, if you fed Zeus leaner meats, such as chicken breast and lean beef (bison is super lean, if you can afford it), if that might help with his problem.

Thanks everyone.

Since we caught the Pan. early, it is very treatable and "temporary."  However, once dogs exhibit a tendancy to get Pan., then they are aways at risk for it.  His first bout with it was in July 2011 – when he was still on his regular kibble and well before we switched him to a protein diet so I don't think the diet actually caused it (Dr. R said it can actually be a side effect from the chemo), but I would guess that it is not helping to heal it and I would also guess that the diet may make him more prone to an attack.  We can't stand to see him uncomfortable so we will do whatever it takes to get him over this, even if it means carbs.  Everything I've read recommends fasting and a bland diet so today he will fast and tonight he will get chicken and whole grain rice and see how he does.  Keep your paws crossed!

On a brighter note, Dr. R thinks the looser stools for the last couple weeks were caused by the Pan., and not an adverse reaction to the chemo, which I guess is a good sign that he's still tolerating chemo okay (assuming the WBC count is back up on Friday and we can go forward with the next round).  I guess he was right, b/c since starting the meds for Pan., his poop has been much more solid.

Oh my, Karen you called me on it!  I am so paranoid every time I post something about bodily functions!  But truth be told, I do keep an eye on those things b/c I know that's one of the first signs when something internal isn't right.    Are you at least convinced by now that I will do ANYTHING for this boy?!

Admin, thanks!  Zeus had whole oats for dinner.  He's standing at the counter wondering when the rest of his food is coming.    Hopefully we can get him back on track quickly.

Hi Zeus!

We're going throught the EXACT same thing! We have a puppy with Histicytic Sarcoma, very nasty stuff. He's been on Neoplasene and wasn't supposed to make it past Thanksgiving. We've been very blessed that the meds have been working for him and he's still here 7 months later and doing well on the cancer front! He was actually just certified cancer free by UPENN last week! WO-HO!

With that being said, he was also hopsitialized there for 4 days last week and diagnosed with pancreatitis. They ruled out the cause being related to his cancer or his cancer treatment, but that still leaves us in the same situation you're in. We feed him a home cooked "cancer diet" and we're researching now to see what we can change.

He's been on a low fat and low calcium diet with high protiens and veggies, so they weren't sure that his diet was the problem. He's on Royal Canin right now because that's what they fed him in the ER and he HATES it. We're gradually switching him back this week, but if I find anything helpful in my research on diet's for cancer and pancreatitis prone puppies, I'll let you know!

Best of luck!