Irritable Bowel Disease

[maciesmom]

Woofers - you did what you had to do. I am sure whomever you were gifting this year will totally understand - give cookies instead along with a Thank You from your dog. Our thoughts are all with you in your extraordinary efforts to help your friend.

[Woof Woof Woof!]

Thank you all for your prayers. We can feel them, and they are working.

My dog is doing better this morning. The sub-cu fluids last night helped. Her appetite is coming back slowly. I was able to feed her two small meals of chicken and white potato with a little cooked carrot and spinach this morning. I added a small bit of probiotic and virgin coconut oil for fat. I think the Tylan powder may be working, too. It's a very mild, safe antibiotic that is very useful with colitis and diarrhea in dogs.

We ran tests for whipworm and giardia last night as well as a Spec cPL to test for pancreatitis. So far all the other blood tests and thyroid are normal, except for a little dehydration and a very slight anemia.

I'll post again later after we visit the nutritionist and spend whatever money I have left. :-(

[luvmycat]

You are amazing...keep up the great work! I agree, cookies are always a welcome gift during the holidays, and it is the thought and gesture of giving that is important, not the gift itself or how much it cost. The best gift of all is the health and well-being of your loved ones, your heart is in the right place Woofers, you put your beloved dog above all material things, and Gaia herself is sending love and healing your way because of it! (And so are we!) So glad she is doing better!!!

[Woof Woof Woof!]

Thank you for the kind words, luvmycat.

We talked to the nutritionist and my dog is on a strict diet -- no supplements! I have to measure everything on a scale and keep a food diary. Tonight my dog had her first solid bowel movement in weeks.

Woofers

[maciesmom]

That's a great sign Woofers!

[Woof Woof Woof!]

Originally Posted by maciesmom

That's a great sign Woofers!

Yes, it was beautiful. I went out there with a flashlight to look at it resting there in the snow. I almost got my camera out. It was the perfect stool, like butter.

[World Citizen]

Originally Posted by Woof Woof Woof!

Thank you for the kind words, luvmycat.

We talked to the nutritionist and my dog is on a strict diet -- no supplements! I have to measure everything on a scale and keep a food diary. Tonight my dog had her first solid bowel movement in weeks.

Woofers

That's great news. I'm glad to hear that your dog is better.

What exactly does the nutritionist have your dog eating?

[maciesmom]

A sight to behold I'm sure!

I hope you can get good rest tonight. I can't imagine you've been sleeping very well with all of this worrying. We had a dog with epilepsy a few years ago. I swear I didn't sleep well for 2 years (we finally did have to make that horrible decision). Our girl now so far is healthy but we did have a recent scare (kidneys) and I didn't sleep for 2 weeks worrying about that. They mean so much to us.

[Woof Woof Woof!]

This is for the post looking for information on IBD.

First thing you should now: IBD can ONLY be diagnosed via path examination of tissue samples taken during endoscopy or ab surgery. It cannot be diagnosed on the basis of blood or fecaltesting or imaging, such as x rays or ultrasound. What's more, IBD cannot be diagnosed by trying to "rule out" everything else. This is because IBD has the same or similar symptoms to many other diseases/conditions. For example, the symptoms of IBD can be the same as or similar to exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI), allergies, bacterial overgrowth of the small intestine (SIBO), partial obstruction, parasitic infestations, bacterial or fungal infections, cancer, canine lupus, Addison's disease, tick borne disease (TBD) or gi ulceration to list, just to name a few.

In treating IBD or colitis, you need to go through a series of well documented steps. Each step is meant to eliminate possibilities. They go something like this:

1. Start with a broad-spectrum wormer, such as Panacur, which is effective against giardia as well as most intestinal parasites (roundworms, hookworms, whipworms). Whipworms and giardia can cause symptoms similar to IBD.

2. Rule out pancreatitis with the Spec cPL test.

3. Rule out Addisons disease with a thyroid test.

4. Try an elimination diet to rule out food allergies. An elimination diet sometimes helps dogs with IBD (rather than food allergies) as well, for several possible reasons, including secondary allergy (due to the intestines being permeable because of inflammation), the diet being easier to digest, or because feeding smaller, more frequent meals may be easier on the digestive system. NOTE: My dog is currently on a VERY strict diet of 50% baked chicken (I use breast meat, but if the results come back from the Spec cPL indicating my dog does not have pancreatitis, I will switch to dark meat because it is more nutritious.) and 25% white potato and 25% sweet potato. I feed three meals a day and do this for 10 days. No supplements, no treats, no NOTHING.

5. Try giving antibiotics to see if there is a response. Flagyl (metronidazole) is the one most commonly used, as it also has some modulating effect on the immune system (calming down an autoimmune response) which helps to reduce inflammation, but Tylan (tylosin) is often used as well and is also thought to have a similar effect on autoimmune response and inflammation. NOTE: My dog is on Tylan Powder 2x per day. You can see results in about 24 hours.

6. As a last resort, if all the above have failed to produce adequate improvement, you will need to try using immunosuppressive drugs. Prednisone is what has been used more commonly, but some vets also recommend Budesonide, which may have fewer side effects.

[Woof Woof Woof!]

In case anyone find their way to this thread and needs help, I'm posting a few links below. If you suspect your dog has colitis or IBD, it's important to do your own research. Not all vets understand this problem or know how to treat it. It's up to you to stay on top of things and understand what tests and procedures need to be done. Stay on top of the problem, and these conditions can be managed.

LINKS:

IBD in Dogs

Specific Conditions

Bulldog Health Topics: Colitis