Dog Community

malabsorption problem in dog

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:05:40 PM

Hi Everyone:
Still new to this and learning slowly, so please bear with me. i have a 3 yr. old wheaton poodle mix, who has terrible digestion problems. he cannot absorb foods that he eats. I have tried kibble, homecooked, pre-mixes and am at a loss. he was infested with every parasite imaginable when we got him and had IBD and colitis. I've always tried to stick with the holistic better foods and have not yet found one that agrees with him. The pre-mixes seem to work about the best but I have to blend the food into a powder and he still has a lot of pieces of it in his stools. Plus they just don't seem to fill him up, even adding a sweet potato or green beans doesn't work, besides, he doesn't digest those well either. Vet only suggests prescription foods, pepcid if needed and constantly checking his stools to make sure the parasites are all gone.
I really have reservations about the prescription foods, I don't understand how some of those ingredients can honestly help my dog's digestive troubles. Canned i/d and Eukanuba low residue both dry/canned don not agree with him.
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:24:39 PM

Prozyme. My Emma is the same. She has pooped whole kibble, before. Prozyme saved her life.

Digestive enzymes of any kind will help. Green Tripe. Berte's Zymes. Prozyme. Whatever you think is best.

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:34:37 PM

I forgot to add, I DO give digestive enzymes. Dr. Harvey's suggested it 3x a day (people kind), and I do have the Prozyme and one called Genoflora.
Thanks

jennie_c_d

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:39:19 PM

Hmmm... is he prone to yeast infections?

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:43:10 PM

no, not at all, why?

krispie

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:45:52 PM

Our cocker spaniel had Pancreatic Insufficiency which sounds very similar to what your dog has. Her pancreas was not producing the enzymes necessary to digest her food. She had constant diarrhea, IBD and frequent bacterial overgrowths. Once the condition was diagnosed she was treated with enzyme replacement powder - Pancrease-V and antibiotics to treat the bacteria overgrowth. She was on a prescription dog food - MediCal Gastro. I would have loved to cook for her but MediCal was the ONLY food that worked for her. I hope you find something that works for your dog!

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:47:12 PM

yes, it sounds exactly like what Dusty has. Where do you get the food?

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:47:43 PM

and the Pancrease V too?

jennie_c_d

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:57:58 PM

Monzie, yeast overgrowth in the intestines can cause malabsorbtion... That was just another thought

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It appears that the Pancrease V is only available in Canada.

jessies_mom

Posted : 5/8/2006 8:58:39 PM

I know the ingredients in the prescription diets don't look like the kinds of things that provide the best nutrition; Science Prescription Diets, for example, have a carb such as corn for the first ingredient and contain little in the way of meat, as does their regular products, but if regular foods aren't working you may have no choice; you have to do what works for your dog. Lori, who's user name is Willowchow , has a dog with IBD and feeds her canned Science Diet i/d ; you may want to try that; canned food should be easier for your dog to digest than kibble. After Willow ( Lori's dog ) was on the canned i/d and was doing well, Lori gradually introduced homecooked food to Willow and found that she could tolerate some things but not others. Here is the link describing the canned i/d :

[linkhttp://www.hillspet.com/zSkin_2/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441760532&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302037389&bmUID=1147139601789]http://www.hillspet.com/zSkin_2/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441760532&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302037389&bmUID=1147139601789[/link]

I hope this was helpful and wish you luck in finding an answer for your dog.

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 9:03:13 PM

Thanks, I have talked to Lori. I have been feeding the i/d for the past week and he's throwing it up and diarrhea is worse. Z/D ultra was ok, but the preservatives just worry me.

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 9:04:42 PM

i could try to get it, if not I could ask the vet for something similar. I can't find the Gastro food on line, who's it made by?

lisa baker

Posted : 5/8/2006 9:15:57 PM

found it, made by Royal canin and is in Canada. Thanks, I'll check into it more.

krispie

Posted : 5/8/2006 9:21:54 PM

MediCal is a Canadian food (well, it's now owned by Royal Canin/Hills). I think the American version is Select Care. I am actually not sure that it is all that different than Eukanuba Low Residue. What is crucial with Pancreatic Insufficiency is replacing the enzymes. Pancrease-V Powder is actually powdered pigs pancreas. The equivalent supplement in the U.S. would be Viokase. Has your vet tested your dog for Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency? Our vet diagnosed it in Molly by using a TLI test (tryspin like immunoreactivity).

BJ Thurman

Posted : 5/12/2006 9:03:07 PM

I have 8 dogs and I feed what I am sure you are calling a "better holistic dog food" to most. However, one of these dogs has a sensitive digestion and cannot tolerate any super premium kibble. The only kibble he thrives on is from the grocery store, with a tablespoon of natural yogurt with live cultures added to normalize his intestinal flora and improve his digestion. I am done with trying to feed him a "better" dog food, as I have made him sick more than once. I would feed him what he does well on, and try not to worry about ingredients I disapproved of. And I would definitely have the test for EPI before pursuing treatment for that, as the pancreatic enzymes are very expensive.