# Help for golden with sensitive stomach



## jwemt81

Natura (California Natural) has just been sold to Procter & Gamble and there may possibly be a formula change coming, so that wouldn't be my first choice. We used to feed it, but no longer. We now feed Fromm Duck & Sweet Potato. Our oldest Golden has food allergies and they both love it and do wonderfully on it. Their stools are smaller and much less frequent on the Fromm than they had been on any other food.


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## PeytonsMommy

Thanks for the advice! I actually did end up getting a Duck & Sweet Potato flavor but from the Pinnacle brand (it's supposed to be good for sensitive stomachs)...I'll keep my fingers crossed.

PS Tucker & Tyson are adorable!


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## kgiff

First, every dog is different. Second, I have a berner that it took us 4 years to figure out what worked so i can sympathize with you.

We found that Evo works well for him -- but as I said every dog is different and the higher protein doesn't work for everyone.

Good luck in finding something that works.


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## Ranger

My brother's puppy had a super sensitive stomach when he was younger. He was getting fed Acana LB puppy and had to keep going to the vets for meds as he'd have diarrhea for weeks at a time. Poor thing was skin and bones. 

Eventually my brother realized that he also got loose poops when he was getting fed a bland diet of hamburger/rice but when it was hamburger and potato, the puppy was fine. Acana uses rice in its formula so he swapped to Orijen 6 fish, which uses potato. Puppy's stools immediately started firming up and he's been fine every since. 

Also to note, Ranger is currently getting fed Acana Lamb and Apple, which is being touted as really good for sensitive dogs and hypoallergenic dogs since it only has one protein source. It's not why Ranger is on it, but maybe something to look into?


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## Florabora22

Flora had diarrhea for about 7 months before I finally nipped it in the bud. We're talkin' nasty, liquid stools in the house diarrhea.

Anyhow, I've got her on Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Formula, which has done wonders for her. I know it's not considered a "high quality" food like Evo and Orijin, but those foods I have tried (along with Solid Gold, Wellness, and Blue Buffalo) and they all gave her gas and diarrhea for weeks, despite me trying to very slowly phase them in.

Every dog is different. If Flora could tolerate the "high quality" foods I would have her on them because like most everyone else, I find the ingredients in those foods to be personally appealing, but she doesn't tolerate them well so I feed her what she does well on. Just my two cents. 

Note: I did try California Natural and I believe that actually agreed with her (maybe slightly loose stools but not too bad) but I stopped buying it b/c it was too expensive, and in Baton Rouge it's just impossible to find. So that might be a good food to try if you can find it!


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## lizandhec

Zoey also has a sensitive stomach, so we feed California Natural. She does really well on it and likes it a lot. I think they just newly came out with a grain free recipe if that helps you any. Good luck!


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## RBH55

My golden has a very sensitive stomach and the only thing she does well on is raw.


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## sophiesadiehannah's mom

we give the girls proplan sensitive skin and stomach, wonderful results


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## nixietink

I would recommend ProPlan sensitive stomach as well. I've seen a lot of people have great success with it and it is affordable and widely available.

If you're looking for something a little different, you could try a food like Fromm (duck and sweet potato). I feed it to my dog and he is fantastic condition. I mean, the best I've ever seen him. However, all dogs have different needs and what works for one doesn't work for the other. For instance, my dog is a mess on the high protein foods. His GI tract just cannot handle it. It's a sucky trial and error process. 

And yes, Jo is right. Natura is selling to Proctor & Gamble. A formula switch may happen. But, it's currently a great food for allergy and sensitive prone dogs.


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## PeytonsMommy

Great advice, thank you so much everyone! I visited a little pet store by me that sells great quality dog food last week, and the owner had suggested Pinnacle Duck & Sweet Potato, so we are giving it a go! But it certainly helps to have other suggestions, in case this one doesn't go over well either...


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## tippykayak

Is it a cycle where you get a week or two off from the diarrhea, then it starts up again and it's bad?

If so, that cycle might be a sign that the dog actually has a parasite like giardia, not a sensitive stomach. Giardia and coccidia both routinely give false negatives in fecal float and snap tests, so they can be present even when the tests say they aren't.

Is there ever blood in the diarrhea? Mucus?


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## 58loosy

Had Lucy on c.n. puppy did okay but last few weeks stool started getting very soft, added rice was okay, so it was time to change over to adult food (10 mos.) she started on wellness simple solutions lamb/rice, started with just 1/4 cup and hasn't had a soft stool since the last couple of days she is up to 1/2 and 1/2. My springer has been on simple solutions for about a year because he had bad seorrhea and hairloss tried other prmium foods and nothing helped his hair is beautiful not one flake. I know how frustrating it can be finding the right food. Good luck with it.


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## GoldenCamper

I would let the kibble soak in water for 10-15 minutes before feeding, makes it a whole lot easier on the digestive tract. You also want to introduce it slowly over a period of time with the boiled dinner till you get to the point where you are feeding kibble only. With some dogs it can take a long time, so be patient.


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## NuttinButGoldens

I'm staying on it until I hear there is a change. The local pet food boutique stated they had meetings with P&G and were promised there would be no changes.

And no, I don't believe that 100% either  There are ALWAYS changes when going from a privately owned company to a public company that has to answer to shareholders profit wise.

At best, I suspect the 26 pound bag is in our near future.



jwemt81 said:


> Natura (California Natural) has just been sold to Procter & Gamble and there may possibly be a formula change coming, so that wouldn't be my first choice. We used to feed it, but no longer. We now feed Fromm Duck & Sweet Potato. Our oldest Golden has food allergies and they both love it and do wonderfully on it. Their stools are smaller and much less frequent on the Fromm than they had been on any other food.


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## Doodle

My first thought is what Tippykayak said...have you tested for intestinal parasites???? If not, I would do that. Brady has a sensitive stomach and has done well on California Natural. Natural balance and Wellness also have hypoallergenic foods.
Edited to add: Have you noticed if the diarrhea/vomiting are after your dog gets into something, like eating a stick outside, too much grass, rawhide, bully stick, etc? These are things that upset Brady's intestines.


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## hh2420

Our breeder highly recommended Pro Plan Sensitive Skin and stomach. I know a lot of people will complain about ingredients and that it is not grain free, but our experiences with it have been amazing. Coats are great and poops are normal. We recommend it. It's not too expensive so if it doesn't work for her you're not out a whole lot


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## PeytonsMommy

Hey Everyone,

Thanks again for the extra suggestions! Tippykayak, yes his diarrhea has a break for about a month or so and then comes back, and the last time was the first it had blood in it. (He was at the vet for two days getting fluids because of it.) But, he's been tested for worms (came back negative), and was on two courses of Panacur a few months apart -- that would've killed the giardia and coccidia right? I take him to the vet every time he's sick to try and figure this out, I'm still waiting on results to see if he might have IBS or problems with is pancreas. He's currently on a powder antibiotic and FortiFlora, and never has any problems when he's on them, but the last time as soon as we were done both he had an episode about three days later.

Doodle, yes he does sometimes eat random things when we go for walks, I try my best to pry everything I can out, but unfortunately he's a vacuum...So it's hard to tell if that's really the cause of the stomach upset or not.


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## tippykayak

PeytonsMommy said:


> Hey Everyone,
> 
> Thanks again for the extra suggestions! Tippykayak, yes his diarrhea has a break for about a month or so and then comes back, and the last time was the first it had blood in it. (He was at the vet for two days getting fluids because of it.) But, he's been tested for worms (came back negative), and was on two courses of Panacur a few months apart -- that would've killed the giardia and coccidia right? I take him to the vet every time he's sick to try and figure this out, I'm still waiting on results to see if he might have IBS or problems with is pancreas. He's currently on a powder antibiotic and FortiFlora, and never has any problems when he's on them, but the last time as soon as we were done both he had an episode about three days later.


Actually, it's pretty common with both coccidia and giardia for symptoms to return fairly quickly after the medicine is stopped. That's either because the dog gets re-infected (which is really easy) or because some of the parasites were in cyst stage during treatment and weren't affected. They then "hatch" out of cyst stage and restart the infection.

I think the new protocol for persistent cases is to give metronidazole (flagyl) for a week, then take 1-2 weeks off, then treat for a week again. You might want to ask your vet about a staggered protocol like that.

When the symptoms are doing a stop-start like that, it can be indicative of a parasite's life cycle. Also, it's worth mentioning that giardia and coccidia both give false negatives fairly frequently in tests.


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## 58loosy

We went from c.n. puppy but aways had intermittent soft stool, maybe from getting a twig, don't know, just changed to wellness simple solution and she has not one soft stool since changing even at the begging of the change over, hard to believe but true or could be she hasn't gotten to a twig, she loves it and I love it, lol.


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## Lilliam

Although I'm leaning towards thinking that it's either giardia or coccidia (my old vet missed testing for it unless I asked specifically and then seemed to under treat) I had a time when Dru went through these cycles. He was young, under twelve months. The doctor treated for inflamatory bowel disease and resulting colitis, and Dru cleared up. I don't remember what he gave him....I want to think it was Flagyl. I know it wasn't parasitic. 
We changed his food at about that time, early and under doctor's supervision, from the puppy food he came home with to Innova.


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## PeytonsMommy

Hi Tippykayak,

He's actually been on a few courses of metronidazole along with the Panacur. The panacur was given for a few days (I think it was three), then repeated three weeks later (and we did that whole cycle twice). He just finished up a six week cycle of Tylan powder since the Metro didn't seem to be doing anything, and when he finished that is when he had the last episode. He's now on another six week cycle + the probiotic. Sorry I probably should've mentioned he'd been on metro!


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## windsock12

My nine month old puppy, Bonny, is now on Science Diet Z/D to reset her system. She still seems to have tummy pain and we are now on the look out for another food. She pants and paces. Any suggestions?

Thanks.


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## ssacres

windsock12 Try starting a new thread in the puppy forum.


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