Sensitive Stomach

[leopuppy04]

Hi All,

Just been off the phone to my vets as one of our kids has had a bit of an upset belly. We actually took her in to have her hips scored and she had loose, bloody stools all over the table !

Anyway vet says results came back all normal but he thinks it's a bit of an upset tummy that has been going on for a while (dog doesn't live with me). She's on some AB's and also some meds to help reduce any inflammation in the gut.

He's recommended a bland diet for the next 6mths. His recommendation is i/d which is fine, but it's out of stock at the moment. Can anyone tell me the difference between i/d and sensitive stomach??

Also - if anyone has had their dogs on a sensitive stomach diet for some time, how did they go when you transitioned them back to their normal foods? Zara has always been raised on a mix of BARF and Artemis, a mix that I'm very happy with and seeing as she'll be bred from in the future I want to make sure she's on the best diet to raise a litter, and I don't think a sensitive tummy food would be!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated Have never had to deal with anything like this before as all my kids have always had fairly stoic stomachs!

Thanks!

Edited June 27, 2011 by leopuppy04

[W Sibs]

Advance has Sensitive Stomach kibbles - it's Turkey and rice.

[Guest english.ivy]

My two have always had semi sensitive tummies in the past and both are perfect on Black Hawk Holistic.

Natural yoghurt is also good for an upset tummy.

[JulesP]

Having looked at all the sensitive foods (Amber has allergies) I couldn't see why a lot of them were called sensitive. The ingredients in the Advance one are really bad.

I would probably feed a natural diet. Mince and rice for a while to let her tummy settle down. Not balanced but shouldn't hurt her for a bit. Try and freeze mince/bones first to reduce salmonella risks.

After trying every food available (including Artemis) I am actually feeding Supercoat Sensitive. Very embarrassing but it is working. It has heaps less ingredients then a lot of other kibbles. So I guess it could be called bland. I know a couple of other people have had success with it for dogs with tummy problems.

[Dogsfevr]

I feed Pro Plan salmon & not due to tummies because it does wonder with my dogs coat & condition plus there raw.

personally i wouldn't feed hills unless it was life & death & most dog s wont eat it anyway.

I would be looking at her diet & consider which items could be causing her the runs .

I have read some people have had issues with the dry & runs.

Barf doesn't agree with all dogs & some ingredients don't always agree with some dogs

Liver/hearts etc etc

Right down what exactly she gets feed & whether it is worse after certain foods .

If i was feeding bland i would be doing chicken & pumpkin for a week or so & then going from there but each dog is a case by case thing.

I would be adding flora max or similiar to help realign the good gut bacteria

[leopuppy04]

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I'm not much of a fan of Hills either, however I do want to follow as the vet has suggested as Zara has been on her current diet (Raw and Artemis) her whole life with no issues, so I doubt it is a continual diet issue rather than a rather nasty bug that has played havoc with her. I want to keep her on a bland diet for some time and I don't want to feed her 'homecooked' stuff as I want to ensure she is getting a balanced meal.

So again - I ask the question if anyone has any suggestions of foods similar to Hills i/d specifically designed for sensitive stomachs, not food designed for allergies etc. I want to feed her a bland diet for the next few months. I know what I will switch her on to once her belly has had a rest.

Edited June 28, 2011 by leopuppy04

[Mason_Gibbs]

If its just a bug why do u want to feed bland for a few months??

[JulesP]

Here are the ingredients which might help.

Ingredients for Hills Prescription Sensitive Stomach:

Brewers Rice, Whole Grain Corn, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken By-Product Meal, Dried Egg Product, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Chicken Liver Flavor, Flaxseed, Lactic Acid, Soybean Oil, Oat Fiber, Dried Beet Pulp, Potassium Chloride, Dicalcium Phosphate, Iodized Salt, L-Lysine, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), L-Tryptophan, minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), preserved with mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid, Phosphoric Acid, Beta-Carotene, Rosemary Extract.

Protein 24.9

Fat 15.3

Carbohydrate (NFE) 53.2

Crude Fiber 1.6

Calcium 0.70

Phosphorus 0.63

Sodium 0.36

Potassium 0.72

Magnesium 0.083

Vitamin C 207 mg/kg

Vitamin E 574 IU/kg

[leopuppy04]

If its just a bug why do u want to feed bland for a few months??

Ask the vet not me . I don't want to change her diet as I'm happy with it and she's not had an issue before. I think because of the severity of her dihorrea he wants to give her stomach a really good rest and the ability to build up 'good' rather than only getting a bit better and then having a tummy upset again. I think also because she has had the runs on and off for the last few months. So a change of diet to something bland, some meds and some AB's to make sure everything is clear and that the inflammation settles down.

I hate the I/D stuff. It's basically just cereal and I think it's cr@p food. But I agree with the vet's sentiment of feeding her a bland diet to help settle her insides down before returning to normal. I think I like the Royal Canin high digestibility better... might try that...

Edited June 28, 2011 by leopuppy04

[trinabean]

Not sure if it helps Leopuppy04 but I have a 6 month old puppy with some ongoing digestive issues.

Our vet put him onto Eukanuba Low Residue dry for 4 weeks to settle things down. It was apparently more easily available than some of the other prescription diets too (vet had 1 bag of RC intestinal left and supply was difficult).

The ingredient list didn't impress me however it's apparently very easy to digest. I was surprised that it worked, he did the first 'normal ' poos in his life. For months we had been dealing with hideous liquid/ cowpat poos, often with blood and mucous.

I have transitioned him off the Eukanuba food now (it's quite expensive and not a puppy food). Things are still a bit hit and miss for us but we are working out what suits him.

Good luck with getting your girl healthy again...

[CBL]

One of mine has a sensitive tummy - I switched them all onto Royal Canin Sensitive and they did really well but I switched them to Black Hawk (a bit cheaper). The other 2 did great (and condition wise look better than they ever have), but he wasn't 100% on it so I have put him on Eagle Pack lamb and rice, its not a sensitive one but he is doing great.

[Mason_Gibbs]

My dog had heaps of digestive issues as a pup, turns out he is allergic to chicken, turkey, beef, all grains - worst reaction he has is to wheat. The Hills ID did nothing for him except make his stomach even more upset. If I were you I would look at an elimination diet if it has been an ongoing issue.

[SammieS]

His recommendation is i/d which is fine, but it's out of stock at the moment. Can anyone tell me the difference between i/d and sensitive stomach??

Also - if anyone has had their dogs on a sensitive stomach diet for some time, how did they go when you transitioned them back to their normal foods? Zara has always been raised on a mix of BARF and Artemis, a mix that I'm very happy with and seeing as she'll be bred from in the future I want to make sure she's on the best diet to raise a litter, and I don't think a sensitive tummy food would be!

I was feeding Asti BARF (which made her stools firm and lowered her hyperactivity) BUT we seemed to get a 'bad batch' (i.e. it had been thawed and refrozen before I bought it) and when we gave it to Asti it caused hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (very bloody diarrhea) which meant overnight hospitalisation and all sort of things!!! Since then I have stayed away from BARF. Is it possible this is what Zara had?

For several weeks we gave Asti bland bbq chicken and rice until her tummy settled and then we put her on the Hills Science I/D wet food (which has to be bought at a vet surgery and is also hard to get) and Advance Adult Small Breed Turkey and Rice (because its hard to get any sensitive stomach kibble in Brisbane at the moment (the shop assistance said it's due to the floods but that was back in January!).

Overall this combo seems to be working better than ever (her stools are firmer than on the BARF)... and although I think that BARF was better nutrient wise for Asti, I wouldn't want to risk putting her through that pain and discomfort again, so Hills wet food and Advance dry food it is!

[leopuppy04]

Not sure if it helps Leopuppy04 but I have a 6 month old puppy with some ongoing digestive issues.

Our vet put him onto Eukanuba Low Residue dry for 4 weeks to settle things down. It was apparently more easily available than some of the other prescription diets too (vet had 1 bag of RC intestinal left and supply was difficult).

The ingredient list didn't impress me however it's apparently very easy to digest. I was surprised that it worked, he did the first 'normal ' poos in his life. For months we had been dealing with hideous liquid/ cowpat poos, often with blood and mucous.

I have transitioned him off the Eukanuba food now (it's quite expensive and not a puppy food). Things are still a bit hit and miss for us but we are working out what suits him.

Good luck with getting your girl healthy again...

Thanks - this is exactly what we are hoping to do as well so I will look more into this

My dog had heaps of digestive issues as a pup, turns out he is allergic to chicken, turkey, beef, all grains - worst reaction he has is to wheat. The Hills ID did nothing for him except make his stomach even more upset. If I were you I would look at an elimination diet if it has been an ongoing issue.

Not an ongoing issue. She's always been perfectly healthy and had a fairly stoic stomach for 2 years (can eat anything) what I mean by on again / off again diahorrea is say over the past month or so - one day of diahorrea out of every 2 weeks, so nothing that really raised concern until she crapped out this bloody stools. Ongoing condition for me means continuous and unable to get the dog better. I would be fairly surprised if this dog is allergic to something because the rest of her looks 110% healthy, not to mention, I would have always expected her to have resistance to foods as a pup, not a 2.5 year old dog.

I was feeding Asti BARF (which made her stools firm and lowered her hyperactivity) BUT we seemed to get a 'bad batch' (i.e. it had been thawed and refrozen before I bought it) and when we gave it to Asti it caused hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (very bloody diarrhea) which meant overnight hospitalisation and all sort of things!!! Since then I have stayed away from BARF. Is it possible this is what Zara had?

Thanks SammieS - it IS possible that this could have happened, however the dog doesn't live with me so I can't be sure. However I'm fairly certain that my mum buys only the freshest meats seeing as she will buy Zara meats when she buys her own foods and freezes it almost immediately. BUT it is possible.... I will keep this in mind.. thank you . BTW - what do you give Asti to keep her teeth clean??

[SammieS]

BTW - what do you give Asti to keep her teeth clean??

Asti gets Deer Antlers and Fresh Breath chews... the vet is always very happy with her teeth when we go for a visit As she's a braccy breed she can't have bones/chicken necks and wings because she attempts to swallow everything without chewing!

[Ron]

Agree one of our dogs has been on Z/D for 3 years when it became unavailable put onto Black Hawk which we feed the other dogs and she has had no problems.

My two have always had semi sensitive tummies in the past and both are perfect on Black Hawk Holistic.

Natural yoghurt is also good for an upset tummy.