My dog has EPI and chronic soft stool. What diet or treatment helps?

Unfortunately we have. I would highly recommend placing Echo on probiotics (i.e. Advita, Fortiflora, or Proviable) for roughly 2-4 weeks, adding 1-2 tsp of canned pumpkin (not the Pie filling) in his food daily, Purina EN Gastrointestinal food can be tried, and then consider having the stool rechecked through your veterinarian. Oftentimes if a pet has many worms they need multiple dewormings to get things to return to normal. I would try those suggestions first and see how Echo responds. If the stools still have not resolved after 2-4 weeks, then consider treating Echo with a long term antibiotic (i.e. Tylan powder) to treat for suspected inflammatory bowel disease. I hope that things resolve soon for Echo. Take care http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=598

EPI can be a very frustrating condition to manage, weekly B12 injections, a hydrolyzed diet such as royal canin hypoallergenic and lypex supplement all help to control symptoms and maintain weight but any treats or stolen snacs can be expected to create flare ups

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Remi. In the bloodwork that was run, did it include GI specific testing such as cobalamin, folate, PLI and TLI levels. These are values that will give information such as the location of GI disease (small intestine vs pancreas) and treatment options. I typically do this planel in conjunction with an abdominal ultrasound. This information with the ultrasound can give insight into conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, pancreatitis, exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, food sensitivities or as you mentioned cancer. The anti-inflammatory properties of the antibiotic she was on could help even with a tumor in GI tract, but there are so many other causes of diarrhea that would respond as well. I think it is worth pursuing further bloodwork and the ultrasound. If you can get a diagnosis, then a treatment plan can be developed. I hope this information helps!

Hello, and thank you for your question. I'm sorry to hear that Chi has been unwell. If IBD is suspected, we should always try out a limited ingredient hypoallergenic diet (such as rabbit, venison, or kangaroo), for a minimum of 8 weeks with NO other treats or table scraps. However, since Chi's appetite is not the greatest, it will be a challenge to find a hypoallergenic diet that she likes. It sounds like the medications that were prescribed are appropriate for the suspected illness. Carafate is a gastroprotectant that is used to minimize gastric ulcers - it should not worsen diarrhea symptoms. Two other suggestions which I would discuss with your vet: 1) try a different type of anti-diarrhea antibiotic, such as tylosin. 2) consider weekly treatments of vitamin B12, as many dogs with IBD are B12-deficient. 3) try again with steroid therapy such as prednisolone, or try a different immunosuppresant such as cyclosporine. I hope this helps, and that Chi feels better soon.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Nova. A diet change seems like a reasonable next step. I would try a prescription food that has higher fiber such as Purina ProPlan Veterinary Diets EN Fiber Response. If this does not solve the problem, then I would recommend a blood panel to assess pancreatic values as well as cobalamin and folate levels. This are vitamins that are used in digestion. Severe GI will cause changes in these values. She may need an abdominal ultrasound as well. I hope this information helps

I'm glad that Lyla seems to be doing well with her treatment. If the smell seems to be coming from Lyla's skin, I would have your veterinarian do some simple skin tests to see if she has a bacterial or yeast overgrowth that is causing the odor. If so, they might be able to recommend a shampoo that would help with the problem. If they can't find anything on her skin or a source of the odor, I would recommend trying a probiotic and see if that makes a difference. Sometimes when the digestive tract has been abnormal, we need to give the body its good bacteria back in order for everything to get back to normal. Entero TruBenefits is a nice product if your vet doesn't have a recommendation for you. http://www.vrshealth.com/canine-products/?petcoach=1977957 Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Tiny! Even though your other dog handles the food fine doesn't mean that Tiny will. Tiny could have a food allergy causing chronic loose stool. Other possible causes are: pancreatic conditions, inflammatory bowel disease. The easiest thing to do it to change Tiny's food to an OTC novel protein diet. Chicken is the most common allergic protein. Try a venison or all fish diet. You need to give the diet 2-3 months to decide if it worked or not and you may need to try a prescription diet before determining that Tiny doesn't have food allergies. If Tylosin hasn't been tried you can discuss that with your Vet and a probiotic. I like Purina Fortiflora. Inflammatory bowel disease is diagnosed off ultrasound and biopsy. Pancreatic insufficiency is diagnosed from special blood tests (B12, folate, TLI, PLI). I hope this helps and I wish Tiny the best!