Our newest member of the family, Dessie (a lab/chow mix) has some serious gas issues! She sleeps in my room, and I swear the 'copious emissions' woke me out of a dead sleep last night, and I moved on to the family room couch to escape!
We have had her since march, and she was about 1.5 years when she came to us. She had wandered on to a nearby farm, and they could not keep her.
I have tried expensive foods. I have tried cheap food. I have relocated cat food out of her reach thinking that was the issue. I walk her twice a day, and she has full run of the backyard on demand.
I did just have her spayed, and will follow up with the vet when we get her boosters...But thought I would ask for any suggestions? Is there a specific brand food? We do not give table food.
Anyway, I thought I would ask. It is like a heavy cloud descends when it happens. HELP!!
Thanks in advance!
Thank you ALL for your prompt responses! I will do some shopping today for some items, and try things sort of one at a time to see what may help!
I also had not thought she might still be a 'scavenger', so I will check the yard more carefully once all the snow melts. I did notice that when the snow initially fell, she was gobbling mouthfuls at a time - even though there are three clean water areas in the house. Maybe old habits die hard!
I am glad to know *I* am not the only one that has had this issue! We have had many dogs over the years...mostly larger breeds, but some smaller as well. She is our first stray older dog though.
We love her to death, but she has had some issues adjusting to being a 'family' dog, so stress may be an issue. We have had to teach her to 'play'. It is as if she was never a puppy somehow.
Anyway, thank you all again!
Thanks for posting this. Small breeds must have an issue too because my little 10# Chinese crested/terrier mix can really let some out and literally makes me gag. lol So I'm going to try some of these tips. Good luck to you as well.
The vet suggested finding a dog food with no chicken in it to help with my dog's explosive aroma. After just one day on a lamb and rice food he (and the neighborhood) had a much better smell. No chicken for him!
Hi Feline, We struggled with this issue for years as well, & with multiple dogs in our household, well, I'm sure you can imagine!!
In talking with other breeders, we took the advice to change our food to one that had meat & grains other than corn as the first few ingredients (corn is OK, just not the 1st or 2nd (or 3rd) ingredient preferably).
Also, adding canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling!!) to the meal can add bulk & prevent some of the gassiness. Probiotics can be useful too - acidophilus tablets or capsules sprinkled over the food, or a spoonful of yogurt (be careful to use plain or check for Xylitol sweetener if using flavored).
Hope some of that helps! T. :)
I don't know what the long term solution is but activated charcoal tablets will help tone down the smelliness of the farts.
Ask your vet about it.
http://www.best-dog-treat-recipes.com/activated-charcoal-...
Aw, man, I feel ya! my boxer/lab/rott/chow mix can have some seriously bad gas. I, like you, tried many different things. I finally found a food where her gas is at least livable, lol! It is Pure Balance Grain free formula with Salmon and Pea Recipe. Don't know if it would work/help with your dog, but it's definitely worth a try!
Grain free food - it solved our problem. Costco sells it in a huge bag!
Watch her when she is outside. Does she eat poop or anything off the ground like leaves, rabbit poop , fallen crab apples, etc? Since she was a stray she may have needed to scavenge for food to survive and has gotten in that habit. Our dog is better now, but as a puppy ate everything and anything and it played quite a number on his digestive system! At one point we were at the emergency vet, because all the bad stuff happens on weekends, with bloody diarrhea. Good luck! Oh, our boy gets Fromms Gold dog food. It is excellent!
I have no help for you but I do suggest that your kids read, "Walter the Farting Dog."
I've never had trouble with my toy poodle until last week, I took him to doggy day care 4 days to prep for me leaving him Mon-wed.
At home, after day care he was gassy and had the runs ( thank god on the doggy pads)
I was worried and at doggy day care, they sprinkled some sort of pumpkin something on his food and he was normal when I picked him up!
He's typically not gassy unless stressed. This worked.
I hope something I said helps.
Sone large breed dogs just have gas. Part of the package.
Other than experimenting with different foods, add a heaping tablespoon of plain live cultures yoghurt to her food.
Our dog had really bad gas for years (it w's so bad that he even learned to get up and leave the room when he heard the word "fart"). Our vet recommended the yoghut and it helped but did not completely fix the problem. Our dog was also a bad eater and had a hard time keeping weight on. Were feeding him NutroMax Lamb and rice, which had worked really well for previous dogs and our second dog. One day the vet store was closed and we bought a bag of Trader Joe's Lamb and Rice. All farting stopped, our dog gained weight, he's cleaning out his bowl every day.... there musthave been something in the other food... Hope you'll find something she can tolerate, meanwhile try the yoghurt .
We had three dogs growing up.
Our larger dog produced more gas if I recall. The other two not so bad.
The one thing my dad would do is to give them a walk before bed, after their last meal. It worked the gas out. I know some humans find that when they go for a walk say after supper, it gets things moving. People with bowel issues find it really helpful - as opposed to sitting. It helps with digestion and can allow them to sleep.
So that was what my dad did. Gave them good stretch in evening after their last meal. You've probably tried it but we didn't seem to have too many problems. Good luck :)
You have tried everything I would have suggested.
I give my dog probiotics and I give her high quality food, which helps.
I think most animals have terrible smelling gas, even the small ones.
My 14 lb dog could knock you out. I could bottle it and use it as a weapon.
Just like people, some foods make us gassy. Some food affects us while not others. You have to experiment with different types of grains and meats to see what works best. I try to buy chicken, fish, veggies, and rice. It helps, but our girl still lets them rip when she has to.
no good advice, i'm afraid. ours isn't usually too gassy but when he is, boy howdy! you really do have to leave the room, it's just dreadful.
makes me think of a wonderful story by james herriot, about a boxer who belonged to a dainty woman who couldn't even get herself to describe the problem to him. he ended up being rehomed with a hearty fellow who had no sense of smell.
:) khairete
S.
