# Please help: the worst stomach



## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Have you had an allergy test done on her to see if she might be allergic to something? Have you tried probiotics for her? Some people use probiotics and it really helps their dogs keep their good bacteria up in their system. The natures farmacy Nature's Farmacy - Store - Product Details


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

My older guy had to take a supplement named "gastralieve" to keep his stomach settled.
have you ever tried anything like that? It might help.


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## GramercyLily (Aug 19, 2008)

Lily has been on FortiFlora (which we buy at our vet) in the past, but I am 100% open to other probiotics and supplements.

And yes, she did have "major" allergy tests done - and nothing came up positive. We could always do a more detailed allergy screening? Is this worth it?


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## cathbarrett (Jul 2, 2010)

Hi,

Poor Lily, I know how frustrating it can be. I have 3 year old and a 2 year female golden retrievers. Early this summer we had Penny & Hayley on the Acana adult dog food. The regular blend. They were on that food for the longest time.... No issues at all. All of the sudden out of the blue Hayley (my younger one) Hayley she started to get diarrhea every now and again. Took her to the vet, everything came back fine. In the meantime I had started to do my own research - this all started after opening a new bag of dog food. I started to wonder if it was something in the dog food. I felt the dog food, it felt/smelt very oily... yuck... After many emails and phone calls to champion foods I finally got it out of them that they did a "formula" change. One of the changes was less meat, there was more chicken fat. I figured it must of been the increase in chicken fat. I had to research some food and fast. I decided to go with the GO Natural! chicken formula. The girls love it and are doing very well on it. A little bit more calories than I was comfortable with, they get lots of exercise/walks during the day. That wasn't a huge concern. There is a lady I had been in touch with at Nzymes (www.nzymes.com) she is a pet nutrionist I was telling her some of the problem. The 1st step was change the food. After Hayley being on the new food for only a couple of days, stool was back to normal. I also started giving them nzymes pet anti-oxidant chewables. The love them. I always put nzymes bac-pack plus over their food, it keeps their tummies in check. I had them on the Black Walnut tincture for 2 weeks, let just say this it cleaned them both out. I do that twice/year spring/fall time. Touch wood, since all of these changes, no problems. Yeah!!!

Good luck!

Catherine.


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## vrmueller (Jun 14, 2008)

We have been through the same thing with Ruby since she was a puppy. Allergy testing did show some food allergies. She is on Natural Balance Limited Ingrediant kibble in the morning and raw in the evening. She had also been through every kind of testing, too. Since making the switch she rarely has a loose stool. I need to mention that last month Ruby had thyroid testing done through Dr. Dodd's and she tested positive for autoimmune thyroiditis. Alongwith stomach issues she has other major things going on. One of the symptoms of this disorder is gastro issues. She is now on thyroid medication. You can check out Dr. Dodd's website for more info. I have spent a great deal of money trying to figure out what was going on with Ruby. I know how frustrated you are!!!


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Sounds to me like she might have inflammatory bowel disease. Have you tried her on one of the single protein/single carb prescription diets for 10-12 weeks to see what happens?


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

hotel4dogs said:


> Sounds to me like she might have inflammatory bowel disease. Have you tried her on one of the single protein/single carb prescription diets for 10-12 weeks to see what happens?


That was what I was about to suggest. Our collie had more severe symptoms than your dog and putting him on a prescription diet for the last two years gave him time to heal.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Have you tried a long term course of the metro? It obviously seems to work, so perhaps she just hasn't been on it long enough. I also know of some dogs who have had to be put on it long term, as it was the only thing that worked.

IBD sounds like a good possibility as well.


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## GramercyLily (Aug 19, 2008)

Frankly, we would love to have her on a long-term course of the Metro, but our current vet doesn't seem to think this is a good idea. 

In terms of the IBD, this was my best guess after doing my own research. But when I brought it up to the vet, she said that Lily was too young to have IBD... that it was a disease for older dogs. Does that make any sense?

Can someone offer me an example of the single protein/ single carb diet that would be appropriate for Lily? I don't think the Acana could be the cause, since she was having very solid stools for the first 11 days of the transition, and she has had the flare-ups on every food we have tried 

I just have to say that I am so frustrated and really upset that Lily keeps having these problems. I understand that in the grand scheme of things, some diarrhea isn't the end of the world, but Lily really is my child, and it kills me to see her struggle.


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## Karen519 (Aug 21, 2006)

*I agree*

*So Sorry for what Lily is going through-my First Thought was it could be the food and that's what Cath said also.*



cathbarrett said:


> Hi,
> 
> Poor Lily, I know how frustrating it can be. I have 3 year old and a 2 year female golden retrievers. Early this summer we had Penny & Hayley on the Acana adult dog food. The regular blend. They were on that food for the longest time.... No issues at all. All of the sudden out of the blue Hayley (my younger one) Hayley she started to get diarrhea every now and again. Took her to the vet, everything came back fine. In the meantime I had started to do my own research - this all started after opening a new bag of dog food. I started to wonder if it was something in the dog food. I felt the dog food, it felt/smelt very oily... yuck... After many emails and phone calls to champion foods I finally got it out of them that they did a "formula" change. One of the changes was less meat, there was more chicken fat. I figured it must of been the increase in chicken fat. I had to research some food and fast. I decided to go with the GO Natural! chicken formula. The girls love it and are doing very well on it. A little bit more calories than I was comfortable with, they get lots of exercise/walks during the day. That wasn't a huge concern. There is a lady I had been in touch with at Nzymes (www.nzymes.com) she is a pet nutrionist I was telling her some of the problem. The 1st step was change the food. After Hayley being on the new food for only a couple of days, stool was back to normal. I also started giving them nzymes pet anti-oxidant chewables. The love them. I always put nzymes bac-pack plus over their food, it keeps their tummies in check. I had them on the Black Walnut tincture for 2 weeks, let just say this it cleaned them both out. I do that twice/year spring/fall time. Touch wood, since all of these changes, no problems. Yeah!!!
> 
> ...


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## Goldenmomma (Oct 15, 2009)

I feel your pain. Sully has the same problem and that is why the vet had me switch to Natural Balance Potato and Duck this weekend. She had been on Nutro Sensitive Stomach, but she would still have the occasional problem. The fall is the worst time for her. For the last month she had been eating half cup of dry food with boiled turkey and rice making up the rest. Of course, she loved it, but talk about money. I am waiting to see if this new brand works out. (Unfortunately, I think they changed their formula recently so not sure how it will work.) For the past year, I have been scanning the forum and it appears that goldens around the world have similar problems. Just keep searching until you find what works for your golden.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

GramercyLily said:


> In terms of the IBD, this was my best guess after doing my own research. But when I brought it up to the vet, she said that Lily was too young to have IBD... that it was a disease for older dogs. Does that make any sense?


I need to double check the age of your dog, but our collie was only 2 (he had just turned 2, according to his previous owners) when our vet diagnosed him. 

As far as Metronidazole/Flagyl - I know that some vets do not like long term use of it (like every day for months). With our vet, it's understood that we give 'as needed'. So, every time our collie would get table scraps or anything that we knew he could not digest without any problems, he would get a Flagyl. In most cases, we'd give him a daily Flagyl for a week until his system settled down and then we'd stop. 

Flagyl on its own was not enough to calm his system down. He had to be on a prescription diet and we had to be pretty strict about what else he got besides that prescription kibble. Regular treats were a no-no. And as I said, table scraps were bad as well. 

- As a silver lining, he is now getting weaned onto regular kibble (Nutro Ultra). We are basically giving him a cup of Ultra in the morning and a cup of Hills at night. And he does not have any problems - thank goodness (a bag of Ultra is like twenty bucks cheaper than the Hills). He still can't get too many hand-outs (chicken dinner/steak/meatloaf/porkchops, etc). And he can't have too many regular beefy or whatever dog treats.


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## GramercyLily (Aug 19, 2008)

I find everyone's advice and comments very helpful - so thanks very much.

I am going to do some more research on supplements, since my gut tells me these could be very helpful. (I have some stomach issues myself, and take all sorts of probiotics.) The Nzymes website and commentary from the Great Dane Lady all seem to resonate with me.

We are feeding Lily some plain rice and boiled hamburger until this flare up gets better. By the time she settles down, I hope to have figured out the right way to go with supplements!


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Have you gotten a second opinion from another vet? Maybe one that specializes in gastroenterology. I dont know where you are in New York but here are some vets that specializes in it.
Dr. Eveline Han - Veterinary Internal Medicine Specialist, New York, NY (Dog & Cat)
Mercy Veterinary Hospital PC
Farmingville Animal Hospital, excellence in veterinary care for your pets, Farmingville, New York


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## GramercyLily (Aug 19, 2008)

BeauShel -

We live in NYC, right next to Central Park (or as I call it, "Lily's 800 acre playground"). We are absolutely going for a second - and third - opinion and I think I am going to make an appointment with the first vet you just linked to. Thank you very much!!!

I have also reached out to an old good friend of mine who is a vet and gave her the rundown on Lily. She asked that I fax her Lily's medical records so she can review them herself and make sure we have dotted all of our i's and crossed all of our t's.

In some ways, it would be almost easier if Lily was actually a bit more sick, since the four vets we have seen in our current practice seem to downplay the issues because Lily looks great, has tons of energy, etc.


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## Sophie_Mom (Jan 21, 2009)

Oh my goodness, we had SO MANY problems getting Sawyer's tummy figured out. Poor little guy had constant diarrhea for weeks and weeks. Here's what finally worked, though I don't know if it would be transferable to your dog or not -- He needs to be on a fish-based food. What has worked the best has been Fromm Whitefish and Potato. We've loved Fromm for a while, so I was SO GLAD that one of their formulas worked. It is also much lower in grains than the other formula, not sure if that factor helps as well....

We also use a supplement made by The Honest Kitchen (another trustworthy company). It is called "Perfect Form" and it is for well, perfectly formed stools. It's all natural and it has been a Godsend. He gets a tsp at breakfast and dinner mixed in with his food. 

We also give him a tablespoon of yogurt with breakfast - We use a brand of blueberry yogurt that doesn't have added sugar or corn syrup. He LOVES that!

Sawyer has perfectly solid, formed poop nearly every single time. At some point, we will try to transition him off of the Perfect Form and then possibly on to different Fromm formulas. It's just SO NICE to see him functioning properly!

Here's the link to Perfect Form - Pet Nutrition Supplement | Pet Digestive Track Support | Perfect Form | The Honest Kitchen


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## Summer's Mom (Oct 20, 2010)

*limited ingredient diet*

Hi!

Our 9 month old pup Summer has been like this all her short life - does well on a food and then suddenly develops diarrhea.. Sometimes it clears up, sometimes it doesn't. I've found that during an acute bout the best thing for her is plain rice with boiled chicken breast. She also likes plain rice porridge and a day on it clears up the diarrhea in NO TIME! The Chinese believe that the "rice water" mops up the intestines and I found it hard to believe, but it really works for us.

She came to us from the breeder eating Orijen Large Breed Puppy, and had semi-soft stools all the time. After we finished that bag we decided to try a little lower protein. Even though many premium brands claim that high protein is the healthy and natural way to go, it seems some pups just can't handle it. We tried Acana Wild Prairie and that worked for a short while, before she developed watery stools again.

We moved on to try Timberwolf and various other premium brands, with the same result. She was a tiny puppy, and everyone told us how skinny she looked. She ate a healthy amount but just never gained weight..

One day we dropped into a petstore outside out vet's office and they were having a sale on Avoderm dry food. Hardly considered a high-end brand, and I looked at the analysis - only 22% protein! I wasn't convinced but since we had nothing to lose I decided to try a small bag. It has safe ingredients and also promises to be additive-free, which I still feel is important..

We did a direct switch onto the food, since the previous one was making her really sick, and within a few days we could see results. She perked up a whole lot, spent her time bounding around wagging her tail (when she used to nap a lot) and best of all her coat started to feel better and she also started gaining weight! Within a week people were telling us how "cute" she looked. I'm guessing it was because she no longer looked like a starved child..

I guess what I'm trying to share is that sometimes the "premium" brands with all the best combination of ingredients don't work for every dog.. For Summer I tend to look at middle range ones with slightly lower protein (22-25%) and fat. Also not too many additional ingredients (herbs, veges etc) even though they are supposed to be good for her I can never figure out which could be causing the problem.. You could also try Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets for a while.. No harm getting a small bag!

Oh and lastly, we also started giving Summer a tablespoon of plain yoghurt every night and it seems to help firm up her poo and lengthen the time between "events".. Much cheaper than commercial probiotics and our vet tells us its equally good. Hope this helped! Good luck!


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## sdain31y (Jul 5, 2010)

We use Pro-pectalin. We got it from the Vet - works wonders for the occassional loose stools not connected to illness and helps coat their stomachs if they are taking a medicine that is tough on their stomachs. Its a large pill that they'll happily eat. 

_"_Pro-Pectalin gel and tablets contain kaolin, pectin and beneficial bacteria. They are intended to help resolve diarrhea that may be caused by stress, antibiotic administration, change in diet or other simple, non-life threatening forms of diarrhea. The combination of ingredients in Pro-Pectalin is designed to help stop your pet's diarrhea, soothe irritated intestines and restore the normal balance of intestinal bacteria. 
Kaolin, a type of clay, soothes irritated intestines, absorbs water, and absorbs any excess bacterial toxins which may be produced when your pet has diarrhea. By absorbing water, kaolin helps to firm stool. The soothing action of kaolin will help make your pet feel better. 
Pectin is a form of fiber found in fruit. It helps to absorb water and firm stool. 
The beneficial bacteria found in Pro-Pectalin are freeze dried, microencapsulated _Enterococcus fa _e _cium _, which is a part of the normal intestinal flora. Microencapsulation helps the bacteria survive in the very acidic environment of the stomach and move into the intestines. Once in the intestines, the bacteria will help restore the population of normal bacteria and eliminate ""bad"" bacteria by competing with bad bacteria for space and nutrients. Eliminating bad bacteria and restoring the population of good bacteria will help to restore normal intestinal function and eliminate diarrhea."

Just another suggestion.


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## Goldenmomma (Oct 15, 2009)

Hope Lilly is feeling better. Sully has been on the Natural Balance Duck and Potato for a few weeks and so far so good. She did have one soft stool, but I think it was because I gave her a spoonful of yogurt. Now I'm wondering if she is lactrose-intolerant. Poor baby can only have duck and potato food and treats, but better than being sick. Also instead of boiled hamburger try boiled turkey (white meat is better). Picky eater that she is, she goggles it up with her boiled rice. Good luck!


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## GramercyLily (Aug 19, 2008)

So I am happy to report that Lily is doing very well!

As per the advice of some very smart people on this board , we took Lily to a vet who specializes in gastroenterology and has been practicing for over 40 years. After an extremely thorough two-hour exam (and an absurd amount of money), the vet concluded that Lily is a “very healthy dog”. He was able to rule out IBD, cancer, and some of our other “worst case” fears. 

The vet believes her bouts of diarrhea were probably simple bugs she picked up from playing with other dogs and that her intestinal irritation was exacerbated by food that is too rich for her (EVO). As I have mentioned before, we live in NYC and Lily plays with a very wide variety of dogs in Central Park every day. High levels of socialization and exposure to many dogs who may be carriers of simple stomach bugs is likely to blame. The vet did not believe that she has had chronic-Giardia (another of my fears) after working through her medical records. 

Before we visited this last bout of problems, we had transitioned Lily to Acana Grasslands (lamb + fish). It has a significantly lower protein % than EVO. I am very proud to report that Lily has had the most solid stool of her life on this food! This is ridiculous even as I type it… but it makes me so happy to pick up (only) two (very) solid poops a day! We are also using FortiFlora each morning and 2 TBS of canned pumpkin at each meal. 

Thanks to all of you for your advice and recommendations. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we continue to have good poops!!!


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## rjake48 (Oct 27, 2010)

Hello,

My daughters Golden had a problem and we switched to Fromm dog food. White Fish and Potato in particular. When Phoenyx was have a problem we would give him a tablespoon of pure Pumpkin (not the pie filling - it has to much sugar). We also give he Probiotics every day with his food. We were referred to Fromm White Fish and Potato by another dog owner who had the same problem.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I am so glad that she is doing so much better and it is something easy to fix (food). Even though you had to spend the money it must make you rest easy to know that she doesnt have any bad stuff going on. I have to say none of my dogs can tolerate those rich foods either.


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## covertje2 (Jan 19, 2013)

Just wondering how lily is doing? Going through the same thing with our 11 month old Sampson He is currently on metro (about a month at a time). Just out of curiosity....is Lily an English Cream? Sampson is, and our neighbor has one with similar issues.


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## Tuco (Jan 3, 2013)

i would try a raw diet, worked for my old dog, not another health issue for 14 years


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