# Chi with HORRIBLE IBS



## LadyBugLew (Nov 11, 2008)

HI Guys,

I have a situation that I wanted to see if anyone could help me out with. I have 3 chi's (6,5,and 3) My oldest about a year ago, one day starting having diarrhea. Basically it was so bad that I would come home, and the kitchen would look like someone had been killed, blood every where- and poo (like a gelatiny substance) would be everywhere. So I take her to the vets- I tell him, OBVIOUSLY something is wrong. He gives her SD W/D food- and of course she WILL NOT eat it. He also gives her flaggisol? or something spelled like that. NOthing works, he basically tells me,the reason for the blood is the inflammation- and that the medicine with diet should work. It doesn't, I make her rice, then chicken and rice with some greenbeans and carrots- and she finally eats. LONG STORY SHORT......I take her back 4 times because nothing is working.

A year later she is still sick. But now the only difference is she acts and eats totally fine. I have obviously run out of the medication- but im not kidding when I say that I can't remember the last time she had a solid poo. When I get up in the morning, her kennel which I put the potty papers in, are covered. I am incredibly desperate because I know she is suffering inside- how could you not? BUT I do not want to continue to have her on this medication which does nothing.

Does anyone have any experience with this? or knowledge of a more natural remedy/approach/food/something to maybe help her. I just want her to be healthy again 

Thank you guys for any help you can give me!


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## OrchardLane (Aug 30, 2008)

Here are some quick and easy things that you can start to do at home that could help your girl:
Get Innova Evo as her dog food (Allergy to grains is one of the most common reasons IBS is diagnosed or should I say mis-diagnosed).
Switch all dog drinking water to natural spring water. 
Add pro and pre-biotics to her diet (you can get these in many yogurts now 1-3 teaspoons daily should do).
Reduce stressers for her as much as possible as IBS can be stress related.

You can look into additional supplements such as:
Milk Thistle to help promote liver function
L-Glutamine can help rebuild inflammed intestinal walls
There are some clays (bentonite or montmorillonite) that can absorb toxins which can irritate the GI tract.
Could look into a probiotic supplement instead of the yogurt (some contain digestive enzymes).

*Now about IBS* 

IBS in dogs can be caused by several things as the symptoms of IBS are also symptoms of other problems and since this has gone on so long and treatment thus far hasn't cured it - it might be good to look into some of these:

Inflammation in the GI tract.
Bacterial infection of the GI tract.
Overgrowth of GI bacteria. 
Fungal disease of the GI tract.
Parasite infestation.
Symptom of cancer in the GI tract - (mainly Lymphosarcoma).
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

I would suggest you take your girl in and get the following done:
Complete blood count (CBC) 
Biochemical profile (organ function blood panel)
Urinalysis
Fecal tests for parasites, protozoa and bacteria
Fecal cytology (look for evidence of inflammatory cells which could mean IBD)
Tests for bacterial overgrowth in the intestine
Abdominal ultrasound
Endoscopy and intestinal biopsy 

These added precautions/screenings will give you a very good idea of where your girl stands internally. You will be ruling out the major medical causes for IBS which will lead you to treatment or food allergy.


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## *Sarah* (Apr 19, 2005)

I switched Zero to Orijen and it stopped his stomach problems, he used to get incredibly ill and pass the entirity of his stomach lining once a week, he has *ulcerative colitis *which sounds exactly the same as what you've just discribed, I would get your vet to carry out some medical tests.

Also pro-biotics pastes work wonders we use pro-kolin you can get it from your vet usually or possibly something similar, which is more affective than yogurt with major attacks.


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## Rosiesmum (Oct 14, 2007)

I agree with Sarah, definately try probiotics, I too have used Pro-kolin, you don't need to see a vet, in the UK to buy it, it's available online, not sure about elsewhere. Or you can walk into vet surgery and ask for it.

One vet we saw was talking about, blood tests, scans and heaven knows what as we couldn't get to the bottom of our dogs colitis. Pro-kolin sorted it within days as well as a "sensitive" diet food.

My late Honey was allergic to chicken and it would kick of a nasty tummy bout if given, so don't presume chicken is okay. Honey was fine with lamb dog food.

Hope you can get to your little one sorted. Have you considered seeing a holistic/homeopathic vet?


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## LadyBugLew (Nov 11, 2008)

So here is an update. First I have to thank you all- because the info I have received here has been much better than my vet(not saying anything bad about him) but seriously, it costs so much money, and while I pretty much don't ever even question it- there has got to be some other route besides spending a ton of cash.

So basically I took Orchard Lanes info- on IBD---I did a bunch of research on that, and figured, yes- this is her to a T. I had found a site that explained dog IBD and what test to get done, all of them I have already had done, and well they came back the way the site said they would. 

So I the first thing I did was get the pro-biotics, and I mixed it with a little activa and pure pumpkin (I had read that it helps bulk things up) and every morning for a week I would feed her that. It's been about 5 days and it is SO much better. I went to a boutique today and purchased the EVO small bites, and so now I will switch her over to that. So I will see how that goes, hopefully things will continue to get better. 

It's amazing how after all the tests and money, sometimes these vets come back and say, Oh well- it is what it is, here is some medication. With a little research and asking you all, my Olive is feeling MUCH better, and I don't dread coming home to a mess everyday! If you all have any other tips- please let me know. 

But thank you all so much for the info you have given me so far!!!!


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## hershey109 (Jan 11, 2011)

I know this is a very old thread, but there's a lot of good information here that I want to retain.

I haven't been here for a long while. Got busy with a lot of other things. Fast forward, Hershey is now 7, and Nilla is 6. My 2 bundles of joy.  They have always been on ziwipeak venison and fish and Fromm kibble.

Hershey first had runny and slimy poop with a hint of red July of this year. Brought her to the vet (I moved so first time going to this vet). She was given antibiotics, proviable probiotic capsules and paste. Fecal exam for parasites came back negative. Her pooped came back to normal, but she'd have like one day in a week or two with tarry soft stool and slime but would be back to normal again after a couple of days. Months went by like this. She's her normal self, eating, drinking, playing, sleeping, so I didn't get alarmed. Until 3 days ago (Tuesday).... I woke up to my bathroom tiles full of blood and slime in several spots.  Took her to the vet that morning and saw the vet on duty (not the one from July). He gave the same meds plus + sucralfate. He explained to me full blood panel, xray, ultrasound. So I had them do the xray and full bloodwork. He wanted to wait for the bloodwork results to do ultrasound. 

Xray results shows inflamed intestines and gas. He called me the following day and said Hershey's protein levels are borderline low. His diagnosis are Protein-Losing Enteropathy (PLE) and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), and wanted to get her started on steroids. He then said if I wanted to get a more accurate diagnosis, a biopsy needs to done either via surgery or endoscopy.

Hershey is eating only boiled chicken and rice for now, and I give her small amounts every 4 hours. But she's not as lively as before and is not drinking as much. She hasn't passed stool since that blood bath episode Tuesday morning, which is 2 days ago.

What should I do??? 

Would an ultrasound give us more information? Should I do the intestinal biopsy? I hate for her to go on surgery, but I read endoscopy, though less invasive and more expensive doesn't always yield best results if pathology is located in the deeper layers of the gut wall. 

Should I agree to get her started on steroids?

Or should I sit tight for a while and see how a diet change can help first? I noticed the loose bowels are happening after she eats ziwipeak, so I'm planning on stopping that.

Thank you everyone for reading this long post. I'd appreciate everyone's thoughts and input.

Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Oh dear. My cat has IBD and is very well controlled on a grain free quality kibble. I do not give her any thing else. Maybe once in a blue moon I give her a tiny bit of meat from whatever I am eating. Most of the time, she smells it, and leaves it. She is 13+. 

Whatever you both decide to do about food, please do it slowly. My chi's when I change their food, I do a quarter of the food and add it by quarters, until it is full of the new food. These are healthy animals (at least their digestive tracts are!) so I would make the change over at least a weeks time. Any time the poops are not good, go back and start over. Slowly, slowly! Keep us informed please.


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## Ari1405 (Apr 18, 2017)

I haven't had a dog go through this so I really don't know much about this.
What did the vet recommend? To just wait a couple of days or to go ahead and do the biopsy?
Please keep us updated on Hershey


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## hershey109 (Jan 11, 2011)

Update. The vet and I agreed not to do biopsy and see first how meds and change of food work out. She's on prednisone (steroids) and would slowly be weaned away from it. Like 2x a day 1st week, 1x a day 2nd week, every other day 3rd week, and so on.

She was given Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Gastrointestinal Low Fat canned food and kibble. Both are prescription. I know a lot of folks here don't like Royal Canin, but it seems to be working for her. Her poop is now normal consistency and good light brown color.

We'll do another full blood panel next month and ultrasound to monitor progress. 

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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Good news. A slow weaning off the steroids is good. Use her stool as a sign if you are weaning too fast. I had a cat that I weaned off too quickly, and I had to go back. It took me 7 months finally. She had had diarrhea for months before so maybe you can get away with a few weeks. Just be aware that some animals need the steroids longer to fully heal. 

I'm glad that you found some food that is good for her. Just remember its not forever and if that food is helping her, well lets forget the negative things.


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## hershey109 (Jan 11, 2011)

susan davis said:


> Good news. A slow weaning off the steroids is good. Use her stool as a sign if you are weaning too fast. I had a cat that I weaned off too quickly, and I had to go back. It took me 7 months finally. She had had diarrhea for months before so maybe you can get away with a few weeks. Just be aware that some animals need the steroids longer to fully heal.
> 
> I'm glad that you found some food that is good for her. Just remember its not forever and if that food is helping her, well lets forget the negative things.


Thanks Susan!! Sooo glad she's doing very well now. She's mostly awake, perky and plays more as compared to before where she's asleep most of the time. Here hoping she's back in full health in no time.

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## Darkly_Innocent (Jun 9, 2010)

That's wonderful news! I hope everything continues to go well for her!


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

I just want to tell you about some of the steroid side effects, in case the vet didn't. Mostly, she will drink more and pee more! So if she has to go more often, that's why. My cat has some excess abdominal fat?, skin?, so that when she walks she has a lot of skin swinging under neath. She is 13+years old, so obviously it has nothing to do with her health. (she took prednisone when she was a young cat, ) She just looks like a lactating mama! The last thing I remember is that she will be HUNGRY all the time! Try and give her 3-4 servings of her regular amount, so that she will not become too fat!


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## Ari1405 (Apr 18, 2017)

I'm glad Hershey is doing a bit better. I personally would have also went that way (changing diet and medicine) then a biopsy.


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## Papillon (Mar 20, 2020)

Oh dear, we are so lucky, our vet herself has ibs, so she’s incredibly well versed in alternative diet for dogs
How boy had digestive issues, she did put him on vegetarian diet ! 
Grain free And animal protein free, all home cooked and fresh !
after a while we tried one animal protein at a time, beef was forbidden and chicken is a definite no go, turkey is fine and so is lamb (but that stinks too bad)
Most of the time he have his veggie diet, and once in a while he enjoys a bit of raw meat or cooked fish
All organic, with quite a few superfood (algeas, a variety of oils for him to choose from, brewer malted gluten free yeast, apple cider vinegar, bee pollen (as clicker treats), etc)

Took some times but he’s all healthy without any meds or chemicals 

I wish you good luck, don’t give up
There are lots of things to try 

Ps: 
All cleaning the liver will help with allergies 

If nothing works, you can try an osteopath for dogs (if something pressure his liver he will suffer from allergies, and putting things in place can bring fast relief - but it’s a «*if*»


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