My dog had ACL knee surgery about 3 weeks ago. He ate fine for the first 4 days - though he was very dopey recovering from the anesthesia and pain killers. After that, he has almost completely refused all food. Absolutely no wet/dry dog food, no pill pockets for the meds, no people food. He has no interest in anything and has lost 16 pounds already. His knee is getting weak because he doesn't have any nutrients to help build up the muscles and is wasting away. I'd love any input/advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation. I have started to purée dog food with water and put fingerfuls in him mouth to force feed him - though nothing close to the calorie intake he needs. He is a large 91 lb. Golden retriever... went in at 107 lbs. Stealth weight is around 99lbs. Any ideas are welcome. As of today, he has only eaten twice in two weeks. Very scary.

Have you spoken with his vet about the weight loss? It may be that the vet thinks he may need to lose a few pounds so that his joints don't have such a heavy load to bear.
I would speak to him about it, but you are right he does need to eat something.
Dogs can take appetite stimulants, but only your vet can prescribe those for you.
Dogs can handle boiled chicken and rice well or boiled hamburger and rice.
Be sure to drain off the fat if you decide to try it.
You could try putting clear chicken broth in his regular food and heating it a little also.
You could try heating his canned food, it makes it smell a little stronger and sometimes the stinkier it is the better they like it.
Anther member posted a really good weight chart recently, and I'm off now to see f I can find it for you. I think you will get a clear idea of thin versus normal versus overweight from it.

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Originally Posted by britta

My dog had ACL knee surgery about 3 weeks ago. He ate fine for the first 4 days - though he was very dopey recovering from the anesthesia and pain killers. After that, he has almost completely refused all food. Absolutely no wet/dry dog food, no pill pockets for the meds, no people food. He has no interest in anything and has lost 16 pounds already. His knee is getting weak because he doesn't have any nutrients to help build up the muscles and is wasting away. I'd love any input/advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation. I have started to puree dog food with water and put fingerfuls in him mouth to force feed him - though nothing close to the calorie intake he needs. He is a large 91 lb. Golden retriever...went in at 107 lbs. Stealth weight is around 99lbs. Any ideas are welcome. As of today, he has only eaten twice in two weeks. Very scary.

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Had the same thing with a Rott several years ago. She absolutely had a terrible time recovering from surgery. Believe it or not she tore the second leg within two weeks and had to have another surgery - which went better.

Was your dog overweight? Is the weight loss dangerous?

I fed my dog whatever she would eat, whenever she would eat it. I actually ate sitting on the floor, offering her food. Sometimes she ate, sometimes she didn't. I felt for a long time like I took in one dog with one personality and got somebody else's dog back!

She came out of it but it took well over a month before she was herself. The Vet had no explanation other than the surgery just triggered something in her.

I would make certain there are no other issues and then ask the Vet about a high cal liquid you can give her.

http:/dog_weight_chart1.jpg

Here is the chart, special thanks to Lucky098,

Sometimes our ideas of ideal may be a little skewed, this chart should be helpful to you.
But I would suggest that you do touch base with your vet and let him know the situation.
Just to make certain like, Judy said.

Quick update. He has now lost 20 lbs... and vet is very worried too. Getting an ultrasound tomorrow to test for spleen hemoragging or other internal organ issues. And, possibly a camera down his esophagus to see if there was damage there during the tube while under anesthesia.
Been getting a few calories in him with puréed dog food by putting it on the roof of his mouth - though, it is a messy process. He won't eat anything - no chicken/rice/steak/wet dog food/treats/etc... absolutely nothing. Acts like he doesn't know how to eat or swallow.
Trying to rule out tetanus and any other diseases that attack the internal organs through blood and urine tests today.
Fingers crossed that we can determine the issue soon. Thanks for your feedback and thoughts.

I was afraid to ask about damage from the tube -

Fingers crossed. Please come back and let us know.

That IS a significant weight loss.
And obviously if he is refusing everything, there is nothing more that I can suggest other than what you are doing by working closely with your vet to try and get her figured out.
I wish you and her the best.

I'm so sorry you are going through this. Is there a good update?

I am having the same issue with my 2 year old Yorkie. She had knee surgery 3 days ago and has refused to eat ANYTHING since she has been home(48 hours). I've tried all of her favorite treats, chicken, cheese... she won't touch anything. She's refusing to drink water too, so I've had to give some to her via syringe. I just can't force solid food down her throat. I picked up some Nutrical to get some nutrients in her and I am hoping that will stimulate her appetite. I was also told I could give her diluted pediolyte for electrolites. I'm concerned because any weight loss on her is significant since she's a small pup already.

Does anyone know of a liquid I could give her(like a dog's version of Ensure)? Also, has anyone used a prescription from the vet for an appetite stimulant? I was wondering if they work and in what form the come? If it's liquid, I could get that and if it's a small pill I might be able to get her to swallow. She won't anything she has to chew though :(

Have you contacted your vet to let them know that she is now refusing to eat and drink?
I would do that.
There actually is a form of supplement drinks for dogs, but sorry I can't remember the name.
Call your vet or local pet supply store for this product, it does exist.
As far as the appetite stimulants, only your vet can prescribe them, usually in pill form but it can be compounded into a liquid and flavored, that is if you have a compounding pharmacy in your area. If not, there are pharmacies that compound and ship directly to you.
Your vet should have a list of them, we use Road Runner, they are fast and reliable.
The Nutri-cal and pedialyte are good, but she doesn't need to go without eating.
So if you haven't already, I urge you to call your vet and see what they have to say.
Good Luck