Short Bowel Syndrome – Advice Needed

[Anne A]

My sweet Australian Labradoodle was hit by a car last week which resulted in 70% removal of her small intestine. I am interested in learning about what others have experienced with this disorder and what food would be best for her. Would a raw diet be best and homemade food? Does anyone have recipes to share?
She is still in the hospital but we hope she will be able to come home soon.

Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Anne

[anonymous]

I am sure that the treating veterinarian at the animal hospital will make recommendations regarding diet as part of the dog’s discharge treatment plan and instruct you to follow up with your veterinarian.

Obviously the dog will have to be on a special diet for the rest of it’s life. I think a raw or homemade diet is about the worst thing you could do.

There are no veterinary healthcare professionals affiliated with this site.

This dog will probably need to be seen by the vet frequently for the rest of her life. They will be able to advise you and make dietary changes accordingly depending upon the findings after every exam.

Best of luck

[Kendra J]

Hi, Anne A. I’m coming in late to the game, but wanted to tell you that you are NOT ALONE. Loving a dog with Short Bowel is easy, but dealing with the special issues it can create is definitely challenging. My 3 month old Rottweiler puppy had a 75% resection of her small intestine following intussusception caused by a savage battle with Giardia. She recovered like a champ and after two rounds of nutritional absorption tests she was able to come off of B12 shots and taurine supplements. She’s now 15 months and 80 pounds (a petite little thing due to her not growing much in her first 3-4 months because of that infection, then surgery and recovery). We are feeding her over 2,000 calories a day just to keep her at 80 pounds – which based on her frame is a lean, but nice-looking weight on her according to our vet. After trying multiple off-the-shelf foods (Canidae All Life Stages, FirstMate Grain Friendly varieties, Wellness Core, Wilderness, etc.) she would end up with soft, almost-diarrhea consistency stool. We gave two weeks of transition time between varieties, then kept her on each for only about a month (as long as she would tolerate it). She’s currently on Purina EN (gastrointestinal diet) and getting some canned food as a topper because she’s bored stiff of the kibble. Her stools are fantastic, but she has to try to eat 6 cups of it a day, plus the topper. That’s A LOT OF FOOD for any dog to try to get down and I’m not keen on the ingredients – but do readily admit that she’s doing well. I’m looking to try her back on some off-the-shelf varieties, so if you’ve had success, I’d definitely like to hear about it!!!

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