[Matthew R]

Hey all,

I am hoping I can get a bit of help. New to the forum. I have an older great dane, she just turned 11. Over the years she has had the occasional bouts of colitis or irritable bowl. My ex and I have always cleaned up the subsequent mess got her on metronydozale and that would be the end of it for a few months. This past spring and summer, the problem has been becoming more frequent. It was only once every 5-6 months and it has progressed to almost monthly. My now current living situation is less then ideal as I rent rooms from a friend who has a big house. My dog has free range of the house during the day while i’m at work, and has made a disaster area of my friends room.
I need to get this under control. I took her to the vet today, and aside from going on the metro and tylan powder, he also recommended going to a different protein based food. she is currently on the Blue Buffalo Wilderness chicken and grain free senior diet. There is a possibility that she may have an allergy to chicken. I was thinking of trying the red meat version of the same brand, but when I looked at the ingredients, it still lists chicken meal and chicken fat. Does anyone have any high quality recommendations that I can switch her to? It would have to be a chicken free (no salmon either), senior based, large breed diet. I think grain free as well. Or should I stick with the Wilderness red meat?

[elaine c]

the best food for her would be Answers Pet food. Check it out on their web site it is miraculous. It is raw it will sooth your dogs tummy.

[elaine c]

they have beef and pork and chicken ( which I understand you don’t want)_

[Acroyali]

I am a raw feeder, so I can’t suggest much in the way of kibble but I have noticed that there have been some tummy-related complaints with Blue Buffalo. This isn’t to say it’s a horrible food, it’s just that some dogs seem unable to utilize it as they should.
I know that Wellness has a very limited ingredient line (4-5 ingredients only) that can be of a big help when it comes to food intolerances. (I believe most of the line includes novel protein sources like duck, etc.)
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/categories.aspx?pet=dog&cat=3#Simple Dry Limited Ingredient Diets Dog Recipes
I don’t believe it’s formulated for seniors, but it’s just my (personal) opinion that senior diets are kind of gimmicky unless there’s a serious medical reason that specifies a low(er) protein diet.
Fromm is an excellent company that, if I fed kibble, I would feel 100% comfortable feeding. They have a beef formula, no chicken.
https://frommfamily.com/products/four-star/dog/dry/#beef-frittata-veg

Also, it might be worth checking into giving this dog some probiotics and/or digestive enzymes to help digestion. The metronydozale is a helpful drug in this instance and can stop the problem in it’s tracks, but re-feeding her gut with beneficial bacteria might help even out the occurrences of diarrhea. Both probiotics and D.E’s can be VERY helpful when transitioning a dog with a sensitive gut over to a new food, too, so that might be something to consider.

I don’t know if you’ve ever given her pumpkin, but many people swear by it to help with chronic diarrhea and firming the stools.
Hope this is helpful.

[Matthew R]

Thank you for the response. Typically her stool is very firm, and then one day its everywhere with no warning sign. she get probiotics every now and again. Pumpkin for what ever reason never really seemed to agree with her. Though admittedly we only used it when she already had a problem. I will look into those other brands mentioned. Right now she goes through about 25 lb bag in about 2.5. weeks.

[Matthew R]

Has anyone tried the Nulo brand of products? The review has them as highly rated. Its a bit more then I wanted to spend. Bella has never had fish based food before..so it will definitively be novel.

[Susan]

Hi Matthew,
I have a 8yr old English Staffy with diagnosed IBD, thru Endoscope & biopsies, the vet said Colitis, food sensitivities, before we got biopsies done….. it can take from 1 day up to 6 weeks to show signs of food sensitivities…
Are you 100% sure she isn’t eating anything she shouldn’t be eating having free run of the house?? the only kibble that has been the best & worked for Patch & heaps of other dogs with IBS, EPI & IBD is “Taste Of The Wild” kibbles, I feed TOTW Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb or TOTW Pacific Stream, Smoked Salmon kibble, but Patch likes the Roasted Lamb the best….
I’d stop feeding the brand of kibble your feeding & stop feeding chicken… Limited ingredient kibbles are the best to feed less ingredients are best & add some cooked foods to her diet, foods high in omega 3 fatty acids for her brain, stiffness & joints BUT always feed the same cooked foods, I make pork rissoles & sweet potatoes & freeze them in sections & cook a batch once a fortnight & freeze….
What I have found with my very sensitive boy was some of these kibble companies DO NOT have good quality control or don’t use regular suppliers & just but the cheapest truck loads of potatoes, sweet potatoes & veggies etc, not wanting to pay more money for better quality ingredients….When I have feed Patch different brands of kibbles some that are 4-5 star kibbles Patch does really good when eating the smaller 2.5kg bag, then when I’ve bought the bigger 12kg bags or 6kg bags that were from a different batch, Patch wakes me up crying at my bedroom door, then runs to front door, poor thing, he needs to get outside ASAP always around 12pm or 2am or 4am then runs outside & all you can hear is loud noisey diarrhea & then he wants grass & wont stop eating it… when I emailed one kibble company, I said the last bag of kibble was lighter in colour he was fine, no diarrhea but this new bag kibbles are darker & the lady said oh it’s probably a new batch of kibble that’s why the kibbles colour varies, we don’t buy the same make of potatoes, sometimes we get rustic or white or brown potatoes, then I thought they probably buy cheap rotten green potatoes, the cheapest they can get & cause Patch has a very sensitive stomach & bowel he reacts, so then I tried TOTW & touch wood, Patch has been eating TOTW for over 1 yr now & Patch hasn’t woken me up thru the night, oh only after my grandson visits sometimes or I’ve tried a new kibble that doesn’t agree with him, I have had a few problems cause my grandson has given Patch whatever he’s eating & Patch has had diarrhea about 5 hours after my grandson has left, so I’ve made a new rule, no food around Patch no more & “no feeding the dog” like your girl, Patch takes Metronidazole for 10 days after he has diarrhea that doesn’t stop within 2 days, the vet has written out repeat scripts to keep at home so if it happens I just get the scripted filled at chemist….What I like about TOTW kibble the kibbles are ALWAYS the same colour I never open a bag & the kibbles are lighter or real dark & they use purified reverse osmosis water & I’d say after what has happened with the Diamond company they have really good quality control now & have really cleaned up their act…… here’s a video showing their food safety.

Food Safety

[elaine c]

kibble doesn’t even compare to Answers Pet food look it up… you hare having colitis because your dog can’t eat that stuff. Change and you will be shocked at how fast she will get better. I have seen this over and over with so many dogs that have switched to this food

[Jennifer]

I have a 13 year old Great Dane and an 18-month old GD who has allergies. I feed them Orijen Regional Red which has no chicken and has an exceptional reputation for the quality of their food. It’s expensive, but I’ve found it worthwhile.

[Karen D]

Hi, I was going through the same thing with my 15 yr. old Cocker, one Vet said food allergies, but restricting her at her old age was not in her best interest. I tried the Honest Kitchen Turkey, still runny poop, I tried the Honest Kitchen poop firmer powder which worked for a short while. I tried Orijen Senior, she didn’t like it. Then she was diagnosed with a heart murmur & while adjusting to that I bought Acana Duck & Pear, she loves it but the runny poop issue returned, back in forth to vet, prescription dog food, dry & canned, she wouldn’t eat most of it. So I started cooking whole turkey breast for her along with veggies, rice, pasta etc added to the Acana….but what really has solved the problem is….1/4 Metronidazole tab twice a day everyday…no runny poop since last Oct. It’s a bitter pill so I put it inside a gelatin capsule & wrap in turkey. Vet is happy with the regimen & when asked if it was Colitis she said “probably”. Now she can eat a variety of things without the tummy noise.

[elaine c]

instead of the metronidazle if you gave raw goats milk it would fix all the bad bacteria in her gut that is making her have runny poop. the med you are giving is killing all the good bacteria and you will have to keep giving it to her and you will have a vicious circle. Goats milk has everything a dog needs to live believe it or not. If you want to give it a try start with about 1/4 of cup. She will have runny poop maybe for about 5 days and then as the goats milk works she will be fine… same for the Great Dane but you need more like start with about a cup

[Acroyali]

Raw goats milk is great stuff, but it has to be raw and (very important) from a good, clean source. At 15 years, if it were a case of comfort over cure I would at least consider using the medication as needed but pair it with goats milk or a good probiotic (or perhaps both).

My only issue with using anything long term (especially on a young or young-ish dog) is the potential for the effectiveness of the medication to wear off and needing to go to something stronger, having it work for 4-6 months then needing something even stronger than that, etc. I’ve had that happen before, and it’s kind of a nerve wracking place to be when your dog is getting the maximum dose of something that used to be helpful at a much lower dose, and the maximum dose is no longer working.

Just my personal opinion, of course!

[Susan]

Hi Elaine, Metronidazole (Flagyl) is an antibiotic & has a steroid like ingredient in it as well, it’s the only stomach/bowel medication that has an anti inflammatory & antibiotic together…..Karen’s dose 1/4 of 200mg Metronidazole is a VERY low dose, a 40lb=18kg dog is suppose to take 250mg twice a day…. Karen could probably stop & do like I do, stop & start when needed but at this age 15yrs old why rock the boat, I stop & start with the Metronidazole cause I don’t like giving any medications, 4 years ago Patch started having bad side effects when he was first put on the Metronidazole, he was acting real paranoid, very scared of other dogs & he’s always a very friendly boy, he was real jumpy scared of his own shadow, he had been on the Metronidazole for 1-2 months, so vet said stop the Metronidazole for now, then he went down hill again with his IBD about 6-8months later that’s when I started giving 200mg Metronidazole once a day just for 10-15 days, to stop the bad bacteria breeding in the bowel & stomach & reduce any inflammation that may be happening, then I stop the Metronidazole after 1-2 weeks…..
1 yr ago when I started him on TOTW Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb all his sloppy poos & diarrhea all went away & he hasn’t needed any Metronidazole but I still have a few scripts of Metronidazole in the cupboard just in case, he eats something off my grandson or I rotate a new kibble & he starts reacting to ingredient in the new kibble, I quickly start him on 200mg Metronidazole for 10-15 days if his sloppy poos don’t stop after 3 days….

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