[Jen M]

My 1 year old german shepherd was on Canidae for months and a few months ago he started having explosive diarrhea and the vet put him on their prescription food and a probiotic to take. This food is extremely expensive and low quality.. it is fill of wheat, corn, and all that crap that doesn’t benefit dogs at all…. I tried weaning him onto WellNess Simple Limited Ingredient Grain-Free food, I did it very slowly, but once he was at half and half, the mushy poops started again… Has anyone else had experience with this problem? Does anyone have any suggestions or tips, or know of another food for him to try?

• This topic was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by Jen M.

[Anonymous]

Nutrisca salmon and chickpea (no potato, no grains) agrees with my dog that has a sensitive stomach,
or consider homemade: http://www.homeovet.net/dynamic/php/downloads/dog-c8470f2c75dbe4b683205c3919ee2310/dog_diet_complete.pdf
You may find some helpful tips in General Guidelines

Other options, consider a homeopathic approach: http://www.vitalanimal.com check the blogs for related topics
If you want to stay with the traditional vets, ask for a referral to a specialist.
Get the condition properly diagnosed, his symptoms may not have anything to do with his diet.

[Pitlove]

Hi Jen-

You and your dogs stomach might have a different idea of how slow slow is. If there was a portion you were feeding lets say 25% new food and 75% old food and he wasnt having loose stools, go back to that portion and start again. He might just need more time to adjust to a better quality food after eating the same food for a few months with poor quality ingredients. Adding the probiotic (i keep kefir and greek yogurt both plain on hand for food transitions) will help along with canned pumpkin for the fiber. Canned pumpkin has done wonders for my dog if he has some loose stool but I have to feed quite a bit because hes 64lbs.

[Susan]

Hi Jen, what is the name of the vet diet that your dog is eating & did good on?… Vet diets are made for certain illness IBD, Food Allergies etc some diets have higher insoluble fiber & some vet diets have lower soluble fibers, lower in fat or some diets have a Hydrolized protein….

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jen,

Your vet has run full fecal testing, I presume? You said he was eating the Canidae for “months” before the diarrhea started. How many months would you say that was? What Canidae recipe was he eating when the diarrhea started? What food/s was he eating prior to the Canidae and did he ever have loose stool before that which started while on the Canidae? Did the vet confirm a diagnosis for which the Rx food was prescribed – if so what was that and what is the food that was prescribed? OK, last question, has your dog been gaining weight and growing / gaining weight “normally?”

My first thought was that he may have had an intolerance to something in the Canidae and then again to something in the Wellness. Could be the same problem ingredient, could be different ingredients. You could try plain, canned pumpkin during a very slow transition to the new food along with Perfect Form by The Honest Kitchen.

[Susan]

Yes I thought maybe food intolerance.. I also have tried the Wellness Simple last year ..I had to try the Lamb & Oatmeal formula cause Patch can’t eat potatoes so I cant feed the grainfree Simple formulas… he also started doing sloppy poos half way thru introducing the Wellness Simple Lamb & Oatmeal.. I’ve just realized this year Patch cant eat peas, & the Wellness Simple has peas…..Have you tried the “California Natural” limited ingredients Hypoallergenic Lamb & Rice large breed …it has just 4 ingredients, Lamb, Brown rice, white rice & sunflower oil, so there’s less chances of having a reaction to a ingredient…

[Jen M]

I started him on CanidaeGrain Free PURE Elements® Made With Fresh Lamb when he was 8 weeks old. He did well until he was about 9-10 months old, when the diarrhea started. The vet tested him for some disease involving deficiency in digestive enzymes which he tested negative for. I dont know what the vet officially diagnosed him with when prescribing the prescription food. He has now been on Hill’s Prescription Diet I/D Gastrointestinal Health. He has grown normally and the vet has said consistently that his weight has been right where it should be.

[Susan]

Hi, the vet would of tested him for Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI).. German Shepherds are known to get EPI, SIBO, IBD.. the Vet prescription diet Hills I/d Gastro has Crude Fiber-2.6% Dietary Fiber-7.3% Soluble Fiber-1.2% Insoluble Fiber-6.7% Fat-13.9% what you can do is email companies & ask what their Soluble & Insoluble fiber % is as they don’t normally put these % on the kibbles packaging..& try to find a kibble that is as close in insoluble% & soluble% fibers to the Hills I/d Gastro…..
Kibbles that are healthy weight diets normally have more insoluble fiber, so you could try a few healthy weight diets & see how he goes (limited ingredient diets) Wellness Simple has one its Salmon & Peas.. I’d stay away from peas when dog has bowel problems ….it may be hard to find another diet like the Hills I/d Gastro vet diet as its made specially for Gastrointestinal health problems like IBD IBS EPI.. another thing you could do is join a Face Book group called “EPI-Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency in dogs” group & ask the people in the group what diet are they feeding their dogs, even though he tested negative to EPI some dog will still have some of the symptoms to EPI…needing a lower fiber diet.. there’s a few people with German Shepherd in the group they my be able to help more as they know the breed….

[DogFoodie]

OK, it sounds like you’re saying that your dog tested negative for EPI, which was my first concern. If he’s gaining weight and growing normally otherwise, I’d lean toward a food intolerance. Digestive enzymes and probiotics still might prove beneficial. Plain, canned pumpkin helps, too; but you need to remove the food first. Be sure you aren’t overfeeding (that’s a very common cause of loose stool). You can also fast him for a bit, which helps to rest the gut.

I’d switch him to a food with a different, single, protein and starch source. Keep track of every food you feed him and make notes about his reactions to them. This is how I narrowed down my dog’s sensitivities. Also keep in mind that sensitivities can be to a lot of different ingredients. My boy can’t have any fish or fish oil, garlic, chickpeas, lentils, garlic, barley, millet or flax. He tends to have a sensitive digestive system and does better with lower fiber foods and does well on Nature’s Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet. That might be a good place to start.

I can tell you what I’ve found that works for me if you’d like, but if your dog is intolerant of an ingredient in one of those foods, they’re obviously not an option for you. I’d pick a very limited ingredient food and start with that. Merrick, California Natural, Natural Balance and Wellness Simple are a few other brands you might want to check out.

[Jen M]

Everyone has been so helpful, thank you. I tried weaning him onto WellNess Simple Salmon and Potato recipe. As I said in my original post, he did well until the transition was at 50% old food 50% new food and the loose stool started again. I kept in mind sticking with one protein source and one starch. I thought I did it correctly 🙁
He is very active and I want him on a food with real meat and benefits his body, which this vet food does not do…. I understand it is designed to be for gastrointestinal problems, but it is so blan and full of nothing but wheat and corn.. I think what I will do it print out every ingredient in this prescription food and compare it with other kibbles.. everyone has been so helpful.

[DogFoodie]

It might be the fish or even the potato in the Wellness, Jen. Try a different recipe. I couldn’t use Wellness at all because it all has fish oil in it. Check the fiber on the Wellness also. It seems like fiber is pretty high in most of their dry products. I just checked, it’s only 5%, which isn’t terribly high. One of my dog’s worst ingredients for loose stool is flax and the Wellness contains flax also.

I do understand your frustration. I’ve been at this for three years with my pup! One of the most useful tools I found to determine his problems ingredients was a journal. Save the ingredient panels for each and every food you feed him and make notes. Pretty soon, the common (problem) ingredients will start to pop out at you.

Edit: My dog’s original vet gave me I/D when my dog developed loose stool, too. It’s pretty common (the prescribing of I/D for loose stool and yes, I agree, it’s garbage). I now know that my dog was already having food intolerance issues at that point, possibly aggravated by vaccinosis.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by DogFoodie.

[Gayle R]

I’m new to Dog Advisor and want to find out a replacement for the I/D can food my vet put my senior dog on due to loose stool. I don’t think the food is very good so I’m trying to find something better. She was always a “chow hound” and never had any problems with anything she ate before. Most of her life she has been on the raw diet but it seems that is causing the problem now. Of course, the vet recommended a dry food loaded in corn which I never give her and won’t now. She just turned 12 and has always been very active (Wire Fox Terrier) but has just recently gone blind on me. She has lost some weight, still eats pretty well but I want to find a better food for her. I’d appreciate any help or thoughts. Thank you.

[Author]

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