Sick, Gassy Stomach Often-HELP

[eauxbehv]

My 6 yr old Yorkie always has a sick stomach. I hear it gurgling and making all kind of sounds. He currently eats chicken or tuna plus rice in the morning because he just went through a round of having a sick stomach and then he had elongated palate surgery. It is time for me to get him back on some regular dog food. For dry he eat EVO chicken and today the pet store suggested raw food.

Regardless of what I feed him he always goes through bouts of having an upset tummY. The treats he gets are 1/4 of a chicken jerky and bully sticks.

He recently had his tummy xrayed because he had an acute onset of throwing up. The vet said he has no obstructions and gave him some meds. Also when he had surgery they vet said through his blood work his organs seem to be functioning properly.

Can dogs take Milk of Magnesia? What can you give them for a gurgling upset tummy?

TiA,

[bran]

We give tums or pepto for upset tummys but you should ask the vet if its ok with your little one ours are about 2.8lbs and it works great

[eauxbehv]

Thank you, I will have to check with the vet. Do you give a little piece of a tums? He weighs 6.5 lbs

[bran]

Yeah i just break 1 tum in half and and Dustee loves tums if i eat 1 she has to have some she thinks their treats i think. Her stomache is always bubbling and gurgiling and i give her some and it settles down.

Originally Posted by eauxbehv

Thank you, I will have to check with the vet. Do you give a little piece of a tums? He weighs 6.5 lbs

[eauxbehv]

Thanks Bran I might have to give that a try

[LuvMySissy]

What you are describing is a sign of IBD or another chronic gastro-intestinal issue. A full blood panel (not just a CBC) should be run. Especially check the values for Amylase, Lipase, Albumin, Protein and the immune system markers. Chronic digestive issues can very quickly become detrimental, so I wouldn't hesitate on this based on his age. IMO bloodwork should always be the first thing a vet does as an xray is only ever going to give limited information. If you vet didn't suggest this, just did an xray and prescribed meds (which may or may not be what he needs), I would be looking for another vet.

As far as a diet goes, I would suggest a consultation with Susan Davis. She is a pet nutritionist who works with a holisitic vet in CA (phone consultations are what she does regularly). She has helped many of our yorkies on YT. At the very least, with consistent tummy issues, your baby should be on a daily probiotic supplement. Susan's information is invaluable and definitely worth the $....
Pet Health Pet Nutritionist Holistic Pet

[orlnurse]

Max had very similar problems to what you are describing. After a couple of visits to the vet with a complete GI workup and xrays; a change in diet with the elimination of chicken and bully sticks, he's better. He's currently on Wellness Simple Solutions Duck & Potato (wet and dry) and I add a digestive enzyme powder to his food. No more fatty treats...such as cheese, bully sticks or PB in his kong. For treats I choose ones with fish, sweet potato or fruit, and I also home bake oatmeal based treats. He eats plain oatmeal now and again for a treat as well. Oatmeal is soothing for the intestine.

Turns out he probably has IBD but a definite diagnosis can't be made without a biopsy.

[ally173]

Originally Posted by orlnurse

Max had very similar problems to what you are describing. After a couple of visits to the vet with a complete GI workup and xrays; a change in diet with the elimination of chicken and bully sticks, he's better. He's currently on Wellness Simple Solutions Duck & Potato (wet and dry) and I add a digestive enzyme powder to his food. No more fatty treats...such as cheese, bully sticks or PB in his kong. For treats I choose ones with fish, sweet potato or fruit, and I also home bake oatmeal based treats. He eats plain oatmeal now and again for a treat as well. Oatmeal is soothing for the intestine.

Turns out he probably has IBD but a definite diagnosis can't be made without a biopsy.

i believe its welness simple solution duck and rice; not potato. these are good suggestion adding enzymes and probiotic will help.
my dog has severe chronic ibd and i tried all king of dog foods; and she couldnt' tolerate any. she did great on homemade ground turkey and oatmeal. i fed that for months; and recently i switched to aunt jeni's raw food. you are supposed to feed it raw however i cooked it slightly and add oatmeal. so far so good. i also give the ark natural green granules and animal essentials plant enzyme and probiotics. and what really made a difference is seacure. this helped heal her GI. good luck

[lisaly]

The last year of Ashley's life she was having some symptoms of what was most likely irritable bowel. She was sixteen years old at that point. For a couple of years before this, she was having gas pockets in her belly which were probably caused from her trachea and heart problems. The problems from her heart and trachea were mostly symptom free much of the time, but it did cause Ashley to have problems with the gas. When it got worse, she had the gurgling noises and at times an upset stomach. I had been walking Ashley a lot before this, and when she started to have problems with the gas, I took her for walks more frequently. She was walking about 2 miles a day, sometimes more, and it helped her gas a lot. When her belly would bother her, I think we walked in the middle of the night more nights than not. There were times she preferred to be held, but that was still calming to her, but most of the time she wanted to walk. She took Reglan two or more times a day, and that helped her belly. I was concerned about long term use of that medication, but I also knew that she was almost seventeen. If I didn't think she needed it, we gave her less doses. We gave her 1/4 tablet of Pepcid daily and Gas-X 1/4 tablet or baby Gas-X. They can have Pepto-Bismol, but it has aspirin in it, so I would be careful. On rare occasions, Ashley's doctor told me to give it to her. I would check all of this with your doctor first, but Ashley's doctor, who is very careful with medications, told me the Pepcid and Gas-X wouldn't hurt her. She was on herbal remedies, which her doctor developed, that worked great, but Ashley was so difficult to give pills to (her doctor combines Eastern and Western medicine). Even with trying to do anything to get her to take them, she managed to hide them in her mouth and spit them out later much of the time. Ashley was 4 pounds. She passed away in June right before her seventeenth birthday, and just the week before her doctor said he was amazed at how well she was doing--her heart, lungs, and stomach seemed great. I hope you can find something to help your baby and that he feels better soon. If you need my help with anything, I'd be happy to.

[eauxbehv]

Thank you EVERYONE so much for all of your input. i have a lot to look into. I will definitely have him tested for IBD, remove his bully sticks and chicken strips. I have to find something for him to chew on though because he LOVES to chew.

This weekend I did get a sample of raw dog food which I plan on trying with either brown rice or I like the oatmeal idea. I also think I am going to try the Wellness as a dry good. He currently eats EVO chicken but I was told that is high in protein.

Thanks again!! I love YT

[ally173]

Originally Posted by eauxbehv

Thank you EVERYONE so much for all of your input. i have a lot to look into. I will definitely have him tested for IBD, remove his bully sticks and chicken strips. I have to find something for him to chew on though because he LOVES to chew.

This weekend I did get a sample of raw dog food which I plan on trying with either brown rice or I like the oatmeal idea. I also think I am going to try the Wellness as a dry good. He currently eats EVO chicken but I was told that is high in protein.

Thanks again!! I love YT

there's no blood test for ibd; it can only be diagnosed via endoscopy and biopsy. however most ibd dogs can't tolerate chicken and beef.
it's ok if evo is high in protein; nothing is wrong with that; however he might not be tolerating the chicken formula very well.
i would suggest a bland diet like ground turkey and oatmeal for a while. no chews at all. eventually you can try the dehydrated green tripe from dr harvey's power patties. or some carrot sticks to chew on.

[eauxbehv]

Thank you

[LuvMySissy]

Originally Posted by eauxbehv

Thank you EVERYONE so much for all of your input. i have a lot to look into. I will definitely have him tested for IBD, remove his bully sticks and chicken strips. I have to find something for him to chew on though because he LOVES to chew.

This weekend I did get a sample of raw dog food which I plan on trying with either brown rice or I like the oatmeal idea. I also think I am going to try the Wellness as a dry good. He currently eats EVO chicken but I was told that is high in protein.

Thanks again!! I love YT

Although there is no specific test for IBD, they will usually not have completely normal lab results either. That is why I suggested a Chem 27 panel to look specifically at Lipase, Amylase,Total Protein and immune system markers. Susan Davis is an excellent source based on her knowledge and work with dogs, especially yorkies. She can give you excellent food suggestions.

Many times with constant gastric upset, the first thing you should do is eilimate all the standard allergan sources - all grains, poultry and eggs. A fish-based diet is generally a good one to start with, limited ingredients even better.

As for chewing options, check into Antlerz. They last a really long time and pose no problem at all.

[MochaBoyMom]

I'm not sure if it's the same case with your Sebastian but my Mocha used to have very bad diarrhea and vomiting on a regular basis. The vet said he's perfectly healthy but has weak stomach. I give him pet probiotics everyday with his food and the problem went away.

[Ladymom]

Originally Posted by eauxbehv

Thank you EVERYONE so much for all of your input. i have a lot to look into. I will definitely have him tested for IBD, remove his bully sticks and chicken strips. I have to find something for him to chew on though because he LOVES to chew.

This weekend I did get a sample of raw dog food which I plan on trying with either brown rice or I like the oatmeal idea. I also think I am going to try the Wellness as a dry good. He currently eats EVO chicken but I was told that is high in protein.

Thanks again!! I love YT

It's not the high protein in Evo that causes problems, it's the high fat content.

Are you aware that raw is high protein, too? A raw diet is generally recommended for healthy dogs only. With the stomach issues your Yorkie is having, I would not feed him raw, especially because someone in the pet store told you too.

As a few others have suggested, you need to find out why he is having these digestive issues, then find a diet that is appropriate for him. A consult with a canine nutritionist after you get a diagnosis is a great idea.