Is my Great Dane with IBD in pain from her uncontrolled diarrhea?

I would recommend calling your vet. They should be able to prescribe a different pain medication that may not upset her GI tract so much or they can give you medication to help treat the diarrhea and that will help her tolerate the meds better. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

This sounds like he’s in pain. He could have back pain from a bulging intervertebral disc, or be constipated, or have hip pain. This sounds serious so I recommend a veterinary exam soon. With bloat they look bloated and they go from fine to very distressed in a few hours and then it’s life threatening. If this has been going on longer without a swollen abdomen then bloat is less likely. Regardless, he’s in pain and needs veterinary care. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your dog.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Bellamie. If the pain medications are not helping her situation, then I worry about a primary gastrointestinal tract disease. I recommend a full blood panel. Values such as cholesterol and albumin can be affected by chronic gastrointestinal disease. I would also do a GI specific blood panel that measures cobalamin, folate, TLI and PLI levels. These are vitamins involved in digestion and pancreatic values. From there, an abdominal ultrasound by a veterinary radiologist may be needed. A prescription diet trial could be beneficial as well. I hope this information helps!

If you have not done a good trial already, I would recommend a diet such as Royal Canin Ultamino and feed this for at least 4 weeks and see if this makes a differencr. If after the diet trial there is no difference, I would recommend adding in a probiotic such as Purina fortiflora which can be found online or at your local pet store. If the diarrhea is still there, I would recommend an abdominal ultrasound. If this is inflammatory bowel disease, Bonnie may need to be on drugs such as Budesonide and Azathioprine. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Hi and thank you for your post on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! One of the most common side effects of pain medications used in dogs can be vomiting and/or diarrhea. There can be other causes for diarrhea as well such as parasites, bacterial or viral infections, IBD, food allergy, or organ dysfunction, so I would talk to your veterinarian if the diarrhea becomes more frequent or gets worse. Sometimes plain canned pumpkin (not the pie filling) in the food can help with transient diarrhea. You may try that and see if it gets any better. I hope this helps and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Gastric upset, or gastroenteritis, can be caused by many different things including toxins, raw meat, bones, bacterial infections, viral infections, or simply a food that doesn't agree with the body. Other possible causes include IBD, food allergies, and cancers in the gut. If she has a bit of diarrhea and GI upset, but is otherwise normal, eating/drinking well, and has good energy, then she likely just ate something that upset her stomach. I recommend that you feed her a bland diet of boiled/boneless/skinless chicken breast and boiled rice, in small frequent meals for the next 3 days. After this re-introduce a good quality kibble. If the diarrhea gets bloody, she stops eating, is vomiting, or weak and lethargic, then bring her to the vet for bloodwork and x-rays. Best of luck with Daisy! I hope she feels better soon!

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.