[Regina D]

My dog has to be on a low residue diet to rest his GI tract. Of course, the vet put him on Iams low residue. My research shows this is a terrible food – dried beet pulp, corn grits, chicken & beef byproducts. I can find no good alternative here. What can I do??

[Dori]

I’m not sure I know what a low residue food is. Please explain and maybe we can better help. Thanks.

I certainly wouldn’t let any of my dogs eat Iams anything.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Dori.

[Regina D]

Low residue has easily digested ingredients that are absorbed easily by the body so the digestive system doesn’t have to work as hard. There is little “residue” left; therefore stools are smaller and less frequent. My dog has been sick for 2 months with intermittent diarrhea and anorexia. We have tried many things (along with the vet). The vet feels now that the dog’s system is so messed up it would be best to let it rest as much as possible, and I agree. It is just that I don’t like the vet formula Iams ingredients and yet I haven’t found a good alternative.
I’d like to add that I am also giving probiotics in an effort to boost his immune system. I hope this low residue diet regime will be short term.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Regina D.

[Susan]

Hi Regina, my boy was put on the Eukanuba Intestinal low residue kibble awell its a bit better then the IAMS that u get in America the Eukanuba doesnt have the meat by-products, it has Chicken & Turkey.. I dont understand why the Eukabuba is made a bit better (No By-pruduct) when they are suppost to be the same company.. anyway after Patch rested his stomach/bowel & got better…now Im trying the Wellness Simple Duck & Oats, its a limited ingredient kibble & this kibble also softens as soon as water is added, it goes nice & soft like the Eukanuba Intestinal, so Ive been sooo slowly adding the Wellness Simple Duck & Oats to Patches lunch feed for 2weeks… everything went good, so now Ive started to add the Wellness Simple to his dinner only 1/4 cup to 1 cup, so far everything is good, no pain after eating & no sloppy poo no whinging after eating.. I have tried other kibbles & Patch didnt do well..had his pain again… the Wellness Simple has been the only kibble so far that he can tolarate & still do good poos….they have Lamb & Oats but the fat & is a little bit higher, also there’s Simple grainfree kibble but they have potatos.. I found when a kibble has potatos its toooo hard for Patch to digest….Patch was on the Eukanuba Intestinal for 5 months before I started trying new kibbles they all made him worse..to high in fat% to high in protein % to high fiber %. then finally Wellness Simple come to Australia, 1 month ago..
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/categories.aspx?pet=dog&cat=3

[Regina D]

Sue: Thanks for the helpful and encouraging information. My Alf will not eat dry kibble; however, I had him on canned Natural Balance lamb & rice. I wanted to put him on a better limited ingredient diet and someone did recommend Wellness Simple duck and oats. I was just thinking of transitioning him to that when he got sick again. So he is on “tummy rest” for now. The vet said at least 30 days, then ‘re-evaluate”. I was encouraged that Patch was on the intestinal formula for 5 months and that you are now able to slowly add Wellness. I thought if he still wasn’t well after 30 days this would be a permanent thing. I sure don’t want him on Iams permanently. I will check Eukanuba canned on their US website.

[neezerfan]

Regina,

I am awaiting test results for my dog to see if he has EPI. If so, he will have to go on low residue food as well as other types of treatment. I was supposed to hear yesterday but won’t hear until tomorrow. I have researched that food and it’s not perfect but it’s not so terrible. If need be, I will use it until he gets stabilized. Then I will look into switching him to something I think is “better”. I’m still not clear on the definition of “low residue”. Whether it means low fiber, low ash or what. The important thing is getting him better. He’s skinny, losing weight and poops like a cow! 🙁 I really need an answer!

[Regina D]

I feel your concern and understand how you feel. We have been trying to find something that would help Alfie for 2+ months. I too am willing to use food that may not have the best rating or ingredients if it helps him. Some people can’t understand that, but it is better than having him poop away his life. I am hoping to eventually get him onto a better food. Good luck with your fur baby. He looks so cute in his picture!

[neezerfan]

The dog in my picture is my healthy boy, it’s the other one that’s the problem!

[Susan]

Hi Regina, when they start getting so skinny & cant eat with spewing or diarrhea, who cares that the prescription diets are rated very very low on this site.. like Patch the Low Residue Eukanuba Intestinal was the only food that helped him in the end, within 2-3 days of being on the Intestinal, Patch was doing a normal poo again…He didnt do good on the low residue Intestinal Plus wet tin, poos were still sloppy.. when I looked the fiber was 4%, I thought maybe that was the problem but when Ive tried other wet tin foods he was doing very sloppy poos as well, so I thinkits the fat % now its too high, so I try to stick around the 10% fat now.. Patch is still on his Eukanuba Intestinal & Im soooo slowly adding the Wellness Simple Duck & Oatmeal, its good to know that there’s another kibble that he can eat as well as his Eukanuba that breaks up very easily…..Ive read that Eukanuba is made Switzerland & Iams is made South America..have a look on ur bag & see where ur Iams is made, I’m curious, maybe that’s why they use different ingredients, all I know is it has helped my boy, there’s even a Eukanuba “Sensitive Digestion” that isnt a prescription diet & sold at Pet Barn, the only difference is the fat & its 13% where the Intestinal is only 10% fat & Chicken & Turkey is the first ingredient intstead of corn….Ive told a few dog owners at the dog park that had their dogs on the Hills Sensitive Stomach, now their dogs are pooing real good.. now I’ve told them about the Wellness Simple limited ingredients & hope it also works for their dogs. We dont have Iams here in Australia only the Eukanuba & Eukanuba prescription diets. I hope Alfie is feeling better & gets better soon…

[neezerfan]

I just thought I’d mention that I’ve already tried the Wellness Simple Duck and Oatmeal and it didn’t work out too well. It has a lot of carrageenan, IDK if that’s the problem or not….

[Susan]

Hi Neezefan, it probably was the fat% too high, the fat in the Duck wet is 7% fat, the lowest fat in the Wellness Simple wet is the Salmon & Potato at 5%….when converted at 5% fat that’s 22% fat if it was a kibble, too high for dogs with diarrhea,Pancreatitis EPI etc…I cant feed Patch any tin wet foods as they are all to high in fat %, but the Simple Duck & Oatmeal kibble so far has been the best, it breaks up very easy, so easier for them to digest, like the Low Residue Intestinal kibble.. If ur dogs has EPI he’ll need to be on a very low fat diet & low fiber diet…best is to home cooked, Ive been giving Patch a small tin of Tuna in spring water, I drain the water & add some pumkin, I had him on boiled chicken & pumkin for breakfast but he was still having his stomach pain with the boiled chicken breast now he’s getting the Tuna in spring water drained he’s not whinging after breakfast no more…so the boiled chicken breast must have more fat then the tin tuna, I want to try the pink salmon next cause its higher in omega 3 then tuna but the salmon felt very greezy, I know salmon has a good fat & is a digestable fat but Im a bit scared to try just yet..I havent had no diarrhea since last December when I tried a new grain free kibble the fat was too high at 15% & it had potatos.. Potatos make a kibble very hard & Patch cant digest it properly… I didnt know back in December that the fat was giving him the runs, I kept thinking he needed a lower fiber diet, dogs with EPI need a low fat & low fiber diet..

[neezerfan]

I got the results of Reo’s blood tests and he does not have EPI. His enzymes were normal, his cobalamin levels were normal and there’s no sign of small intestine bacterial overload. The vet thinks it’s a food sensitivity so we’re trying the Royal Canin something or other for 4 weeks.

[Susan]

Hi Neezefan, ur lucky blood test came back all good, no EPI, or intestine over growth, try cutting down on Reo’s fat & see if things get better, maybe after being on the R/C things will get better..

[Regina D]

So glad you had a good report on the tests. I hope things go well for your pup on royal canin.

[Regina D]

We thot we had this thing licked. Then Ralph refused to eat at breakfast & lunch. Early afternoon his stomach started gurgling again. He had one large soft formed BM this morning, no diarrhea all day. Gave him a Pepcid around 3PM. By dinner time he was able to eat 1 can. He won’t eat anymore tonite. We will see how things go tomorrow. It is so frustrating…he does well for 5 or 6 days, then the same old thing again. I wish we could find something to help.

[Susan]

Hi Regina, My Patch didnt do good on the Eukanuba tin low residue, I looked up the Eukanuba tin low residue & the Iams Tin low residue & they have the same ingredients, also when I put it in the fridge the next day you’d see the white fat that had hardened on the side & top of the food, the fat is too high at 4.5%.when you converted to kibble fat thats around 21% fat thats high…There’s too many ingedients also in the low residue tin, there’s fish, chicken liver, chicken & beef..Have you tried cooking a low fat meals….I give Patch light Tuna in spring water drained then mix in a bit of boiled pumkin for breakfast, he does real well on the Tuna better then on the boiled chicken breast…also have you looked at the Low fat diets in the review section, look for something lower then 3% fats in wet foods….also you say that Alf wont eat kibble, have you tried soaking the kibble in water to soften, then draining the water off.. I do that with Patches Eukanuba Intestinal kibble & the Wellness Simple Duck & Oatmeal kibble, have you tried adding some low fat tin food or some tuna on top of the soften kibble, to make him eat…..I know when Patch had his gurgling stomach/bowel I’d make him a piece of dry white toast with a little bit of thinly spread honey on the toast & his bowel would stop gurgling & rumbling, its gases going tru his bowel, also Royal Canin make a tin food called (Gastro Intestinal Low Fat) its only 1.75% fat, maybe try the Royal Canin low fat tin food, Ive read a few people on the Dogpancreatitis yahoo group use the Royal Canin low fat tin food with great success…I hope Alfie gets better…but look at the fat % content, it took me 1 year to realise that it was the higher fat% making Patch ill, the stupid vet didnt even realise until I saw another vet that said lower his fat under 9%..I did then Patch started to get better again & no more rumbling & gurgling stomach/bowel..

[Regina D]

Sue: So many good ideas. Thank you for taking the time to share. I am going to print your suggestions and try to incorporate them into Alf’s diet. I want to give the vet’s prescription a trial for a couple more weeks. So far no diarrhea, and gurgling only 1 day in the last 10. I have figured out he doesn’t like to eat in the morning. I was feeding him 3 times a day. I have cut back to twice. I will definitely try the toast & honey next time he has gurgling. I am also continuing Pepcid every AM. That is on recommendation from a friend. If he returns to being ill, I will try wetting dry kibble as you suggested. I am adding a small amount of boiled chicken and rice to his canned Iams. He loves chicken and rice. I may try adding that to dry kibble. I don’t mind cooking for him, but think I should be adding vitamins and minerals if I feed homemade and I’m not sure how to do that.

[DogFoodie]

Hi Regina,

Please be careful with the Pepcid.

For some additional insight, please read losul’s post here: /forums/topic/desperate-for-help-vomits-every-day/page/4/#post-47439

In particular, read his first to the last paragraph, which begins, “BTW.”

[Regina D]

Thank you for the info re Pepcid. Not that it changes the warning, but Alf is a 50 lb standard poodle. He has had digestive problems for so long, I am desperate and willing to try anything – not a good way to operate. Thanks again. Any other suggestions welcome.

[Author]

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