[Kayla]

My pup started his new food transition on Oct 3rd, I slowly transitioned new food in his dog food. I am switching from Alpo come and get it (bad food-made him sick) to Pure Balance. He seems to be doing well on the new food. But for the past two days…he is more “gassy” than normal? Is it because of the old food that is still being fed to him or new food? This morning his stomach was making noises so I figured he was hungry because he hasn’t eaten since yesterday at dinner time which was around 5pm. I figured the old food was giving him the gassy problem so I completely switched him to new food today… and he is still gassy! It smells awful!

I have done half and half while switching him from old to new food and he did well on it, so I did it this time. But, why is he still gassy?…even when I completely switched him over? He doesn’t appear or seem sick. He is still active, no loose stools or anything…just gassy. 🙁

[Susan]

Hi Kayla, does the new food have peas or something that would cause wind, when I changed Patch to Wellness Simple he was farting & farting real bad at night the smell was awful, so I only give the Wellness Simple for breakfast now & I give his vet diet Eukanuba Intestinal for dinner & the farts stopped, so I asummed it was the peas, also Patch cant have Potatos when he does have a kibble with potato he was having bowel rumbles & gurgling, that is gases going thru their bowel, you might need to find a new kibble, something with a few different ingredients also when I look for a new kibble I always look for a kibble with the same amount of fat% or around the same fat% as his old kibble his Eukanuba Intestinal… I found a higher fat% caused problems even a high protein caused problems for Patch, so I have to stay around 10-13% fat & 21-24% protein & Patch is Ok, no waking up with his gurgling bowel.. Have a look at ingredients & compare the fat & protein with his old food is it higher then his old food…some dogs can just eat & change any foods & nothing happens but some dogs are more sensitive…

[theBCnut]

Kayla

His system does not have the probiotics it needs to deal with the new food. Normal transitions require changing the food 1/4 at a time and for some dogs take a month. You can try adding probiotics to his meals for a couple weeks, but if that doesn’t fix the issue, he may not be able to handle something in the new food.

[Kathleen C]

BC, you helped me earlier with the carbs in Jack’s food, he’s been on Wellness Core Reduced Fat now for a couple of months or more and is suddenly being very gassy. I seem to remember others reporting this about the Core and being told to wait awhile and it would clear up. I don’t think this is because he hasn’t been on it long enough. Could peas be Jack’s problem too? Are there peas in the Core? I’ve stopped giving him canned green beans and not very many carrots. Still no weight loss.

[pugmomsandy]

Six days was probably not long enough of a transition to the Pure Balance. The ingredients are quite different. You can try starting over and changing his food slower if you still have his old food. And probiotics/enzymes with meals should help. Some dogs can take weeks or months to get regulated on new food, especially if they’ve eaten one kind of food for a long period of time. Some dogs can’t handle going from a 1 star food directly to a 4 star food very well.

[Kayla]

I really appropriate your thoughts and advice and I am sorry for the late reply! So far, I am thinking it was the old food that was making him have the gas because once I completely switched him over and quit giving him some of the old food it completely stopped and he is doing better with much harder stools and no gas.

[Kayla]

I am thinking about giving him some probiotics just in case, would that be necessary? If so, where can I get some walmart, petsmart? Or can I just use plain yogurt for him? Do you have any recommendations?

[Kayla]

I still have the old food, do you think I need to start the transition over?

[pugmomsandy]

If he’s having solid stool and no gas than continue on with what you’re feeding. But for a healthier gut and immune system, it could be beneficial to add some additional probiotics once a day or just a couple times a week, and also doing a rotation diet. I buy the Swanson Vitamins Dr Langer’s Ultimate Probioitcs. They’re often buy 1 get 1 free! I also buy Garden of Life Raw probiotics from the health food store. I buy the human products and just share with the dogs.

http://urbanpawsmagazine.com/archives/59

http://probiotics.mercola.com/probiotics-for-pets.html

[Kathleen C]

I’ve been following this thread and the Swanson and health food store suggestions can be expensive so would plain yogurt work too? My dogs have always liked that, but you do still have to be careful of sugar content with some.

[pugmomsandy]

I sometimes use Lifeway Kefir. It has 10 strains of probiotics, more than yogurt.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Kathleen C:
I prefer kefir over plain yogurt; as pugmomsandy wrote it has more strains of probiotics and has a longer shelf life. Here’s some info on kefir:

http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.com/2013/07/dairy-products-cheese-kefir-yogurt-are.html
http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/05/foods-rich-in-probiotics-beneficial-for.html

[Kathleen C]

That’s a drink, I use it myself, how do you give it to a dog…as a drink?

[Kathleen C]

Where I shop has several flavored Lifeway Kefir choices and I’m guessing also plain, though I’ve never had it.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Kathleen:
Yes, plain kefir, no flavoring or sugar.

If you check out those links they have dosage suggestions noted in both articles. I mix kefir in my cats canned food. My dog loves it so much I feed it to him as a treat without mixing it with anything; I just pour it in his bowl. It would really depend on your pup.

Kefir really helped my kitty with his skin and fur. He had extremely dry skin and bald spots on his face, back, and tail area. I have fed it to him daily for the past five or six months and his fur has almost completely grown back. His skin is still dry, but not nearly as bad; dry skin is also a side effect of a medication he takes daily. Recently, my dog started having some minor skin irritations so he is also getting some daily now. When all is well with him I feed it to him 3x/wk.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Bobby dog.

[Kathleen C]

You use the Lifeway Kefir just like what I drink only a plain version?

[Kathleen C]

OK, just checked the articles and answered my own question. I’m going to the store tomorrow and will look for plain unsweetened.

[Bobby dog]

Depends on where I am shopping, I have used Lifeway, Greek Gods (I think that’s the name) and I picked up a different brand from my co-op this time; all only plain versions.

I posted this info just after you answered your own question!

Just a thought, although I have been very happy using kefir (very affordable and my dog loves it), if you still find you have issues you might want to look into the other probiotics mentioned because they include some other strains of probiotics that kefir doesn’t have. Swanson’s, Now, Dr. Stephen Langer’s probiotics, Mercola Pets are just some of the brands regulars often recommend.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Bobby dog.

[Kathleen C]

Thank you, Bobby dog, I got the Kefir this A.M. and Jack just enthusiastically lapped up 1 tsp. which was the least amount listed. I will increase it to a bit more if he still has problems. Do you add fruit juice or something to it for yourself, I can’t possibly drink it as is.

[pugmomsandy]

I’ve mix yogurt or kefir, frozen fruit and some juice and maybe some Garden of Life Raw Meal and make a smoothie.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Kathleen:
I don’t think I could drink plain kefir either, lol, I would have to make a smoothie out of it with fruit. The plain kefir is just for the cat and dog.

I normally freeze half of the bottle because I don’t use it up before the expiration date. I shake it well, pour some in ice cube trays, then store the kefir cubes in a zip lock bag and thaw them out as needed. This month I really didn’t need to freeze any of it since I upped Bobby’s amount from 3x/wk to daily, oh well.

Glad your dog liked it and hope it works out for the two of you. 😉

[Bobby dog]

Nothing like a good smoothie!

I was thinking about making some blueberry smoothie kefir cubes for Bobby from the blueberries I picked this summer and froze.

[theBCnut]

Any of the dark fruits are fantastic. I use pom juice, blueberries, blackberries, currants, cranberries, raspberries, whatever I have on hand and sounds good at the moment. I have loads of berries in my freezer too.

[Kathleen C]

Wow, that sounds interesting. I was thinking about just using fruit juice. Thanks.

[theBCnut]

My favorite is the pomegranate juice and plain kefir. Second is pureed blackberries and plain kefir.

[Kathleen C]

I love Pom juice so I’d be interested in trying it this way.

[theBCnut]

A little Pom is good for your dog too, antioxidants, you know.

[Bobby dog]

I think I will make a few blueberry/pom kefir cubes too and see if Bobby likes them.

[theBCnut]

That’s the ticket.

[Kathleen C]

Really, Pom juice for the dog? I didn’t think people were talking about kefir ice cubes for the dogs, but for themselves. I’ll have to go back and read those posts again. The hardest thing to find at the grocery store these days is 100% Pom juice in the little bottle. It’s more likely to have a mix in it since the pure is so popular. Can you use the frozen berries instead of fresh?

[theBCnut]

I use frozen berries all the time. We have U Pick fields all over the place, blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries. I try to pick enough to last me until at least New Years. The antioxidants in the berries are as good for the dogs as they are for people.

[Bobby dog]

Kathleen when I make them for Bobby I can tell you I will be the official taste tester of the smoothie before I make cubes for him. lol I never thought of making them with pom juice, thanks BC, but the more antioxidants the better. He loves blueberries. I picked raspberries & blackberries over the summer too, but they didn’t last long because I ate them all (they tasted so good). Next year I’ll pick more for sharing.

[theBCnut]

We ate about 10 lbs of blackberries and I froze more than 10 lbs, but I think I’m down to the 3 lb bag I’m saving for a huge blackberry crisp on Christmas morning. I have about 6 lbs of blueberries and the strawberries are all but gone.

[Bobby dog]

Yummy, presents and a homemade crisp, nice holiday plans. Wow, did you have help picking all those berries? I am the only one in my household that does it now, but it is well worth it to have them during the winter.

Since I was the pig this time (not Bobby for once) and ate all the berries I actually did write down how many pounds I need to pick next year so I would have some over the winter. At least I still have the blueberries.

[theBCnut]

I have a couple kids that are occasional help. My daughter actually thinks it’s fun, as long as she isn’t overwhelmed by school at the time. The berry places are right down the road from me so I don’t have to pick them all at once. I go for an hour several different times.

[Author]

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