Fasting together

This is Sox on Tuesday morning. He was scheduled to go to the vet for a fasting blood test and could not have his breakfast. I didn’t think it was fair to eat breakfast when he couldn’t and so we fasted together.

I couldn’t bear the thought of him being hungry watching me eat as normal. He would have thought something was wrong, or he was being punished or teased. Dogs are sentient, capable of feelings and sensation. Feeling hungry and left out are reasonable assumptions in this situation.

Do you fast in sympathy with your dog?

My Sox is well on his way to a confirmed diagnosis of Inflammatory Bowel Disease; a condition we cannot cure but can only find a way to manage. It’s tough when he is not yet 5 years old with a lifetime ahead of him. I was told that Sox would regularly collapse after racing with a condition called acidosis. But I also wonder if he wasn’t already showing the symptoms of IBD (with regular bouts of inappetence and diarrhea) which would have zapped his energy stores.

We will persevere and I will update everyone about Sox’s progress in future posts.

Kathleen Crisley, Fear-Free certified professional and specialist in dog massage, rehabilitation and nutrition/food therapy, The Balanced Dog, Christchurch, New Zealand