[golden mowgli]

My dog is 6 months old. He has had gas problems ever since I got him when he was 8 weeks. I fed him purina one for one bag, and it seems like by the end of the bag his gas is not as prevalent/bad, but then I bought him a different type of food because they were out of the purina one puppy large breed the gas was back, bad... i then tried some expensive food-Innova for puppies and the gas was not nearly as bad, but the problem is I just can't afford that stuff. I just switched back to the purina one and the gas is back worse then ever. Like farting at least once every 5 minutes and room clearers. I am with him pretty much all day because he comes to work with me and follows me around all day, and its like I am walking around in a fart cloud, it is almost unbearable. Any suggestions on what I should do? like i said, i am hoping by the end of the bag he is used to it and it stops, but if not are there any other foods i should try? why does this happen and is this normal??? he is laying about 3 feet away from me and has farted at like 3 times in the last 2 minutes!!!! help please

 

[Bob-N-Tash]

Oh I hope someone can help you... but I have tears in my eyes from laughing.
Sorry.

 

[Goldilocks]

This is no laughing matter!!! Our Whippet has always had horrible room clearing gas too. The super premium foods Wellness, Fromm, Orijen, etc. improved things from when the breeder had him on Iams but the only food we have found that lets us live is a semi-good smelling house is a dry kibble called "GO Natural grain free". It's made in Canada by Petcurean. God help us if they ever stop making it. Just 3 weeks ago we tried to put Dallas onto the new Orijen but the gas was awful. I had to drive around to 2 different food supply stores just to find the Go Natural. We really have no idea what sets off his gas but he seems to do better on grain free and lower protein grain free i.e., low to mid 30%'s. The Go Natural food contains more probiotics and digestive enzymes then the other foods around but I have tried adding that stuff on my own with no luck so we really don't know what makes this food work for him but it does.

 

[Bob-N-Tash]

Bumping up... please this poor family needs help. Hoping for some additional good advice before they sign on again.

 

[LuckyPup]

My guess is that you are changing his food too much. Did you transition the food? If not my guess is that once you stick to the food you chose the gas will be ok.

Also what about his stool? Lucky had wicked gas! I mean absolutely the worse!!! Anyways, he was having terrible loose stools and diarehhia. Turned out (after 7 weeks of taking him on and off to the vet and changing foods) that he had giardia.

Hope this helps! Good Luck!

 

[Noey]

I'd see about starting him on a special diet fromt he vet until his stomach issues settle. I'd also see about getting him some probiotics as well. Is his poop normal?

When he eats does he swallow a lot of air. They should not be this ....well farty.

 

[jwemt81]

It sounds like you are changing his food around quite a bit. That is most likely the root of your problem. When you brought him home at 8 weeks, did you continue feeding the same food that the breeder was feeding him? That is very important. The best thing to do is to find one food that he does well on and stick with it. If you do decide to switch to something different, it needs to be done very gradually, usually over a 2-week course by mixing the new food in with the old. You really want to avoid chaging his food unless absolutely necessary. Changing foods too suddenly and quickly can result in quite a bit of digestive upset, which causes gas and loose stools. I would suggest just sticking with one food.

 

[GoldenSail]

I had the same problem See this thread

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/showthread.php?t=60754

 

[fostermom]

My dogs had horrible gas when I fed them Purina One. If he did well on the Innova, it might help you get past the sticker shock to realize that since there are less fillers, you will feed less of it to your dog. Overall, the price is only a few dollars more based on the amount you feed.

 

[asiacat]

our 13 month old lab is on innova and he has horrible gas!!!! maddison is fine but chance just stinks!!! his stools are fine though so who knows....

 

[golden mowgli]

Thanks for the responses. I have stuck with the Purina one and it has gotten a lot better this week. I think the root of the problem is the initial shock to the system when the food is first switched. I had about a quarter bag of the innova and mixed this with the purina one and that didn't help at first. I know it is not recommended to switch foods around on them but I live in a pretty remote part of Colorado and I have to drive a couple hours for grocery shopping and dog food shopping, and sometimes they just don't have the same food in stock. This time I bought 2 bags so hopefully he is fully used to it by then! His stool has always been somewhat loose, not like diarreah loose but just not compact. The night I wrote the thread was by far the worst it has ever been, but he still has more gas then most dogs I think. I'll let you all know how he is doing by the end of those bags. Fostermom, how much less of the Innova should I be feeding then the Purina if I do switch to Innova?

 

[LuckyPup]

I am happy to hear that his gas is getting better! I am sure some people will know some good websites but I believe there are some that sell food and ship for free? Maybe someone can help you with that. Glad your baby is feeling better!

 

[fostermom]

Since he has such a sensitive system, I would mix very little of the Innova into the Purina One to start. Take a full month to switch him over. And then give it at least a month to see whether it agrees with him. Personally, I love California Natural and will recommend it to anyone. It's not too rich for the dogs with sensitive systems and all of my dogs had the best coats ever on it. I am feeding a food that is similar now, but I get it from an independent distributor. You can find most premium foods online and have them delivered if that is easier for you.

 

[golden mowgli]

He is now a year and a few months and the gas is under control, it was definitely happening because of the changes in food. As long as he has the same type of food and I don't switch it up then he is fine!

 

[rus1499]

My retriever is now 12 and has developed horrible gas, every 10 min or so room clearers...not sure what to do, it makes it hard to sleep at night, any ideas would be great !

 

[Brave]

Have there been any changes in the food? Double check the manufacturers websites, sometimes they alter the recipe without publicizing it.


Sent from my iPhone using Petguide.com Free App

 

[Wendy427]

Try adding plain yogurt to their food, a couple of tablespoons each feeding. They need to have the good bacteria restored in their digestive tract. Remember it's PLAIN YOGURT (no sugar, no fruit, no sweeteners, no flavorings, nothing). Also, if you can afford plain Greek yogurt, that would work, too.

 

[bessyrose]

Gassy Retriever - pew

My 2 year old is a twin to your puppy. Is just the retrievers are so much worse? I have a few different breeds in my life and never had dog that can clear a room like this one. I have him on high quality food with no grains and pumpkin. Pumpkin is what many specialist say will help...it is a bit better, but I am currently trying to breath without my nose to stay the same room with him. Sweet dog follows me everywhere. It's awful. I have found no relief, though completely eliminating any people tidbits helps a bit.

 

[Brinkleythegolden]

You may want to look at the UC Davis reports on grain-free. It's causing heart issues, especially in goldens.

 

[Maggie'sVoice]

The Grain Free foods are ones you probably should stay away from currently as they are implicated in the Low Taurine diet related DCM (Dilated Cardiomyopathy). At Least until the finding and recommendations are published.



With that said. Gas normally comes from woo much food (food or treats) in their stomach/system at once, meaning being fed to much or a full feeding and then treats all day/night on top of their meals. Just like for people, too much food at a time will lead to excess gas and loose or runny stools. The reason being their intestines are much shorter then peoples so to much at once in the intestines means it can't digest the food fast enough and proerly so it's gas or runny stools.


Keep a couple things in mind. the bag of food is literally just a guideline. Most dogs only need about 80-90% of the recommended feeding recommendations from the back of the bag. If the dog is gassy or loose, then back the amount of food fed. If you start getting to about 60% or less of the recommended feeding that's not enough food overall so then try bumping it back up to about 75-80% and instead of 2 feedings a day, split that into 3 feedings. That should square that away. While doing this, make sure you've removed any treats to make sure this gets under control. Once it is, then remove some food when adding treats. So say for a training session take a 1/4 of the food away from the daily amount and offer that much in treats. Remember, it's about volume more then anything.


Some thing to remember too. When I give my dog a bully stick (6" stick means a 1/4 of a meal is removed from meal and 12" at least half a meal is offered) I reduce the meal amount to compensate.