Need some advice Please...

[cheryl & oliver]

Karen, I hope u read this...We have been having stomach issues with Oliver for about 2 mo. now. He has had days with loose stools and diarrhea on and off.  We have tried changing his food to several different brands, and gone slowly with all.  He does ok with brown rice and white meat chicken with some pumpkin on it, or some green beans, and I have started adding back the dog food very gradually.  He is now on orijen with poultry and fish, and he seems to love it, I haven't been able to give him that alone without the above, because as soon as I increase the orijen, his stools get loose again.  He was given Metronidazole 500 mg. one tab. twice daily.  When he is on that he gets better, but I do not want him on that forever either.  I was wondering if some kind of probotics might be needed to get his stomache back to normal.  He is acting fine, playing, running, eating fine, just perfectly happy...But I am worrried.  they have tested the stool, and there is no giardia, or anything else, the vet thought maybe it was a stomache virus, so I started with the rice and chicken and pumpkin, now I can't seem to get him back to eating just reg. dog food.  He gobbles down the food I give him twice a day no problem with that.  Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.  I am going to call the vet in the am, and see if I can get an app't. for him tomorrow or Wed. I just don't know what to do at this point...Thanks everyone for reading....Cheryl, Olivers Mom

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Cheryl, If they carry the Force formula, that would be fine too. It's lower in fat, which is good, but it's also lower in protein, so you would need to add more chicken. But otherwise, it should be just as easy on the digestive tract.

[Oliver & Elizabeth]

Have you tried Lotus brand food? When my Oliver was struggling with GI issues it was recommended to me (chicken recipe) and, with just a little canned pumpkin, resolved his stool issues within a week or so. I was totally thrilled, it was getting very frustrating trying so many brands (grain free never worked out well). We have since switched to Acana Duck and Bartlett Pear (limited ingredient food) topped with various meats for variety as he seems to like it better. Good luck!

[Laurie, Wally & Charlotte]

Hi Cheryl,

I was advised today to give Charlotte some Pepto Bismol 30 minutes before each meal, so that her stomach is coated before she eats.  I am going to try this tomorrow and see if it helps.  I'll share the results with you.

Laurie

[Laurie, Wally & Charlotte]

Hi Cheryl, I just sent you a private message, but ran out of room.  I guess that we need to be official DK friends before I can write more.  Laurie