[astroweeks]

My 2 year old Aussie mix has had a cancerous tumor removed from his intestine. He has been diagnosed now with short bowel syndrome and is very skinny. Currently getting Hills I/D low fat 4x a day but I haven’t been able to increase feedings without getting loose stool. Is there something I can do to help him put some weight on and keep the diarrhea at bay?
Thanks very much.

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi astroweeks –

I know that for a dog with SBS you want to make the digestion process as efficient as possible so adding a high quality digestive enzyme supplement and multi-strain probiotic supplement would be a good idea. I would also add some unfiltered apple cider vinegar – vinegar is an acid and will help the food to breakdown easier in the stomach. I’ve also read that fiber can help SBS dogs by slowing down the digestion process – so maybe some canned pumpkin would help. I’m not sure if you’re giving him any nutritional supplements, but depending on how bad his digestion is you may want to talk to your vet about adding additional vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids to ensure he’s not becoming malnourished. If possible, I would also look into getting him on a higher quality food that’s higher in fat and more calorie-dense to help him put on some weight. I haven’t read a whole lot about SBS so, unfortunately, that’s about all the help I can give you. Maybe someone else will chime in with some more suggestions.

[astroweeks]

Thanks very much Hound Dog Mom – love your picture, we also have a blood hound/coon hound mix 🙂
The pumpkin sounds like a great idea. I have tried him on a Fortiflora which helped a little, he’s been on metronidazole which did help with the stool but I don’t want to leave him on that in case there are long term issues.
I think I have to be careful with adding fat to a SBS dog, and this is the food the vet had suggested. Even feeding more smaller meals per day I can’t seem to get his total amount increased without the loose stool.
I am trying a pancreatic enzyme now, but its given him quite bad diarrhea so will stop on that. He is feeling a bit perkier due to his weekly B12 shots.
Was hoping there were other owners with this problem who may have found some magic bullet of calorie intake and normal stool. Maybe too much to hope for!

[Dr.Alize12]

Astral Weeks ! Hi ! My 4 year old lab ate a golf ball when she was 8 months ripping thru her intestines. They took out her jejunum.(the part that absorbs all the nutrients?!) So, the vet said Purina gastroenteric for a year, 2 Pancreatic enzymes, 2 fortiflora, 1 anti diarrheal WITH EACH meal. I didnt think any of that was a good idea cuz her diarrhea was bad. I stopped giving her all pills for a month or two and fed her boiled chicken breast and a little brown rice. I bought a grain free dog food at a animal feed store and began incorporating that with the chicken -then probably close to a year went to only dry grain free food – i drizzeled a teaspoon of honey in the bowl or sprinkled cheese on top. or Flax seed oil. and 1/4 cup or 1/2 cup of food 2x a day to start. Plain Pumpkin (organic) Plain yogurt (chobani) LOW SUGAR. If diahrrea happens still then give 2 probiotics (pour from capsule) into a teaspoon of of peanut buttter. Will you let me know how this works for you ?

[sheila23]

Astroweeks-

I had a shepherd mix with SBS syndrome as well, and tried all sorts of things. We had him on metronidazole off and on, did pumpkin consistently and fortiflora as well as probiotics from Petco (their specific brand worked the best for some reason) and b12 shots. I tried this stuff from Amazon, just on a whim

in combo with the prescription Hills I/D, along with his normal routine mentioned above and he started putting on weight and feeling better! Not sure if it was one thing in particular or a combination of everything! I never had much success with yogurt, but that’s not to say it won’t help you out. We eventually stopped the high calorie supplement and switched him to Wellness core once he put on weight. My vet had mentioned feeding puppy food as well, as its higher calorie usually. Anyways, hopefully you got something from that!

[Deborah and Jim G]

Our standard schnuzer had 12 inches of jejunuem and the cecum removed Feb. 17,2016. Diagnosis of GIST, cancerous tumor. He has had projectile diarrhea since surgery. I mean liquid stools ongoing 4-5 times a day. He will not eat Hill’s ID or WD food. He is eating pan seared turkey and Royal Cainine GI low fat. That is all he will eat. I give him electrolytes (Pedialyte) in his water. I give him probiotics in water with a syringe. He will not eat the food if I sprinkle the probiotics on it. He has not wanted pumpkin or yogurt either.
He is now on amoxicillin after being on flaggel. I am trying anti diarrheal meds very cautiously. I just bought a gel with vitamins to try to get weight on him. He is nothing but skin and bones, we tried appetite stimulant and it helps a little.HELP

[losul]

Hi Deb and Jim. So sorry to hear about your dog. I don’t know much about SBS in dogs, but I found this article, hoping it might help. Dr Tudor seems to have have personal experience with SBS patients.

http://hearthstone.businesscatalyst.com/blog/which-dogs-have-short-bowel-syndrome

he might be able to help with a customized medical diet?

http://hearthstone.businesscatalyst.com/dog-food-recipes-and-supplements-store.html

http://hearthstone.businesscatalyst.com/canine-medical-diets.html

best wishes too your family.

[Susan]

Hi, My boy has IBD & when he was eating the Hills I/d Low Fat Restore & then the Royal Canine Intestinal Low Fat he was so skinny & couldn’t keep the weight on…. When he ate Vet Diet Eukanuba Intestinal its a Low Residue he only needed 3 cups of the kibble a day & started to look good, he finally put weight on & it stayed on & poos were smaller cause its a low residue kibble, there’s the Intestinal then there’s the Intestinal Plus, the Intestinal Plus has more fiber at 4% the Intestinal has less Fiber at 1.7%… you’ll find the Hills I/d also has only has 1.7% fiber so does the Royal Canine Intestinal Low Fat, the Eukanuba Intestinal had better ingredients & was higher in omega 3 & 6 & the fat was just 2 % more…. I think that’s why he gained weight & he didn’t need as much kibble….also once Patch was stable on the Eukanuba Intestinal (he was also on a dog probiotic at the time) I started feeding a cooked meal for breakfast & Dinner….. I boiled cut up chicken breast just brought to the boil then take off stove & rinse off any fat from the chicken & boiled some Potatoes, I would freeze 1 cup of the cooked chicken pieces in sections thaw add under 1/2 cup boiled potatoes all put in a blender & blend for a few seconds so it was partly digested, I would 1/2 & give 1/2 for breakfast the put the rest in fridge & then 8pm at night give the other 1/2 & he had the kibble lunch time & first dinner 5pm…. Patch eats 7am 12pm 5pm & 8pm…finally he’s 19kgs…. maybe that’s the problem the fiber is tooo low at 1.7% he may need more fiber, when I added 1 spoon pumkin to Patches cooked meal Patches poos were sloppier….. Try 1 spoon pumkin then you will know if he needs more fiber or less fiber, also try a new kibble with a few % more fat around 10% fat & a few % more fiber about 4% in fiber & see does his poo’s improve?…. the protein in the I/d Low Fat is 25.9% so maybe look for a kibble that has a bit lower protein, the Eukanuba Intestinal is
23%-protein, 10%-fat & 1.7%-fiber or the Intestinal Plus has 4%-fiber….

For 1-2 years Patch was on vet diets & didn’t really improve then finally I started cooking & started feeding premium kibbles that had limited ingredients like Fish & just rice or Lamb & rice & oatmeal what he’s eating now & Patch has improved & gain weight finally….take the leap & see….

[Pablo H]

I have a dog that had problems after spaying her, the stitches opened and a part of her intestines had to be taken out, I give her meat with rice or just raw meat, organs and meaty bones, she is underweight but perfectly healthy, dog food is a no go because of worsening of diarrhea (5 times a day and she loses weight, with meat and rice it’s just twice a day)

[Author]

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