Tummy Trouble Tips
Digestive upset is a common issues with our furry little companions. Many of us deal with these bouts of tummy troubles quite often. With this being such a common issue, many of us may have protocols or diets that we use regularly to help get them through it. But what really is the best course of action?
Case against “sensitive stomach” Recipes
“Sensitive Stomach” formulas seek to solve one issue, appease pet parents with a quick and easy solution. As with many “therapeutic” diets these formulas are often low quality, expensive, heavily processed, and often not wildly different than other foods of their quality. They may include hydrolized protein, which is just a scientific way to say ultra processed protein that is biologically unrecognizable to your pet’s immune system. They may include Animal Digest, which is a low-quality by-product of the slaughterhouse industry. This ingredient can easily be replaced (and often is) by qualty traceable probiotics which can also be bought seperately and is often included in quality pet food. They may include heavy fiber through starch rich ingredients like rice or soy (or worse grain by-product), which can be mirrored with quality low-starch ingredients like pumpkin which often seen in regular diets. Overall, bagged and packaged products like these tend to rely on pet parents taking convienience over research.
Bland Diets
We’ve all heard and most likely used a bland diet for our pets before. A mountain of white rice and boiled chicken. There is no world where 3x rice and 1x chicken is healthy for our pets. Although this sounds soothing to us, to our carnivorous pet this is far from the case. Aside from grains being biologically inappropriate for our pets, rice isn’t even a great source of fiber. A cup of cooked white rice provides 1.2 g of fiber to the 7 grams in pumpkin puree. Not to mention the amount of starch in rice, which can lead to blood sugar spikes. Rice can also act as an inflammatory food item, exacerbating an already inflammed digestive system. Onto the chicken, which in itself is a common pet food allergin and a common inflammatory food item! Again, not the best when our pets are already dealing with digestive inflammation. If you must feed a protein, turkey is a much safer option being less likely to cause allergies and produce an inflammatory response. It is also a lean meat, which fatty foods can woresn GI issues and exacerbate pancreatitis. For this we recommend roughly 6 oz of lean turkey meat, 1 tbsp pumpkin puree, and 1/8 cup bone broth per 10 lbs Other fiber based supplements may be used such as Wildly Blended’s Gut Feeling, Primal’s Awesome Squash, The Honest Kitchen’s Perfect Form, Green Juju’s Golden Blend.
Fasting
Although it may seem odd, fasting is a quick rememdy to get our pets back on the right track. Fasting is a regular and healthy part of dogs diet and fit perfectly into situations of GI upset. Fasting your dog for 1-2 days can help reduce inflammation and reset their digestive system to a healthy place. If prolonged fasting isn’t to your dogs liking, small bland meals can be fed through fasting period. Bone broth is a good addition to a fast, providing them with stomach soothing collagen and hydrating electrolytes. When selecting bone broth from the store, ensure there is no added salt or alliums (onion and garlic). Homemade bone broth is easy and inexpensive to make.
If your dog’s diarrhea doesn’t resolve in over 48 hours or start acting lethargic, a vet visit is advised. If a bland diet or fast does resolve the digestive upset, you can transition to regular food 24 hours after symptoms have subsided. It is crucial to remember that bland diets are meant for recovery only and should never be fed as a regular or long term diet. CHICKEN AND RICE IS NOT A BALANCED DIET.
