Expert: Kaza - 2/11/2009

Question
I am a pet sitter for an 11 year old female Bichon on heart medicine for an enlarged heart. She is overweight also. She is now having "episodes" when she gets excited, falls on her side, shows signs of seizure, whimpers, looses bladder control at times. Owner will return this Sunday. I need to know if I need to be more cautious about anything other than keeping her calm. Will it hurt to restrict her diet while in my care? He also has her on predisone for itching. She pants a lot and does cough frequently. I take her to my home where she is very calm and she doesn't have any episodes. Any suggestions would be helpful. I am prone to holistic treatments and am open to any suggestions.

Answer
How lonmg has she been on prednisilone, as this is only really a short term solution  and will cause many more problems than it resolves. I would instruct the owner to place this dog on a better diet , a BARF one, its an intolerance to the diet that is causing her problems.
If obese she MUST lose weight as a matter of urgency, for heavens sake, this dog needs help.
She should only be on about a cup full of food , she should eb on fish oils, fibre, vegetables, glucosamine and chondratin, all will help her immediately.
YES restrict her diet and give her a better diet, but you need to wait until her owner returns, it would be an offence to do this without consent.