My dog has been diagnosed with colitis and my veterinarian told me she needs to eat special food. What does colitis mean?
Colitis simply refers to inflammation of the colon (also known as the large bowel or large intestine). It is a fairly common problem in dogs. Diarrhea is the most common sign of colitis.
Colitis causes diarrhea characterized by straining (with little stool volume produced), urgency, and the presence of mucus and/or blood on (not in) the stool. Some dogs also seem to feel unwell with lethargy and a lack of appetite, but most dogs with colitis appear bright and alert. Colitis can be acute or chronic, caused by a single gastrointestinal insult, or ongoing issues requiring systemic or nutritional management. Something as simple as some diet changes can cause a bout of colitis. For more information on this condition please see the handout “Colitis in Dogs”.
You definitely need to get a vet check in the first place or talk to your vet again. Go back to your vet for a re-examination because things do change and it might not just be a simple colitis that were dealing with. Your dog might need additional treatment. So that could be anti-nausea treatments for example, they might need specific treatments for something like giardia that isnt just going to resolve by itself, or there may need to be different tests run to try and reach a diagnosis. So that could be fecal testing, it could be blood testing, it could be X-rays, it could be a whole number of different things.
We dont necessarily know the best bugs to include in these probiotics. Also, the probiotic industry is unregulated and quality control is really poor. Were giving live bacteria, so handling needs to be very careful. they needs to have been stored correctly. The manufacturing needs to have gone through some quite strict regimes to make sure that theyre producing live bugs.
So really we want to be feeding a bland food that is easily digestible. You should be avoiding high fat foods, avoiding high salt foods, avoiding rich foods even though theyre the ones that your dog may find most appetizing, most appealing.
We dont want to be using those because theyre just going to irritate the gut. That gut is going to have a harder time digesting those and thats going to perpetuate the diarrhea.
So lets start off with what colitis is. So colitis is due to a problem in the lower intestinal tract. So not up by the stomach, but lower down. And typically well see straining, sometimes little produced and sometimes with a lot produced. As well as straining, the hallmark of colitis is that there is mucus or some blood or both in the stool.
FOS and hypoallergenic foods for dogs with colitis
Foods made for dog with colitis often contain large amounts of fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), which is to say carbohydrates that help removing bacteria and keeping clean dog’s intestine. If this issue is due to intolerances and allergies, it is better to feed some hypoallergenic food recommended by a specialist. Dogs with a weak intestine should avoid chestnut, chickpea flours and sugar, in order to prevent fermentation.
Can Dogs Eat Eggs? RAW or COOKED?
In this blog post, I will discuss whether scrambled eggs are good for dogs with diarrhea. This is a question that many dog owners have asked themselves because they want to know what their best option is in order to ensure that their pet gets the nutrients it needs.
Dogs with diarrhea can be tough to deal with. Scrambled egg is a common food for dogs, but what about when they have diarrhea? Can dogs eat scrambled eggs if they have diarrhea? Is it good for them and does it help their stomach feel better or make the problem worse? Read on to find out more!
The answer to this question can be quite difficult as there is not enough research available on how well dogs tolerate egg whites and yolks. The majority of studies conducted on this topic were done with chickens or rats (not pets).
However, some animal shelter veterinarians say that if your pet has been experiencing abdominal pain from its stomach lining eroding due to chronic vomiting or diarrhea, then adding an egg white may help provide some relief from the inflammation.
It should also be noted that you should still talk to a vet if the condition continues for any length of time.
If your pup has diarrhea, it can be difficult to know what you should feed them. Scrambled eggs are a good option for dogs with diarrhea because they are easy to digest and packed full of protein.
Dogs who have been vomiting or eating stool may not be able to handle the high-fat content but scrambled egg is one of the best options out there.
So if your dog has been acting up lately, try scrambling some eggs and see how your pup does!
Note that if your dog is suffering, sometimes feeing it its usual dog food may not suffice and can cause a further upset stomach. With an upset stomach, you. might also want to think about some further useful human foods. Human food such as the following are useful – plain boiled rice (white ride or brown rice is also suitable), a little cottage cheese, cooked eggs (chopped up), sweet potatoes, hard boiled eggs, other cooked rice, pureed pumpkin, white fish, or a mix of some of these in a little warm water. If you want to feed your dog dog food, go for dry food not wet food.
Do check however, that there are no food allergies and although you may feed your dog raw eggs when it is 100% healthy, you might want to avoid a raw diet to give your dog’s upset stomach a change to rest.