Rescue GSD with EPI

[Ghgsdr]

Hello

We have a dog in our rescue with EPI. We had him before and had him balanced before he was adopted 4 years ago. He is not balanced now and I cant figure out what I am missing. We know he doesnt do well on peas and the best protein for him is fish so he is on Purina one salmon and cod. He is taking B12 pills, on the 8 enzyme and tylan powder. He is doing better and he is pooping out less and it is firmer but I am missing something. It still smells and is a yellow color. Any ideas what I am missing? He keeps trying to eat his poop, which is not helping. Thanks for any advice.

[jilbert57]

Hi Lisa and welcome to you and your pup. Sometimes as dogs age we find that upping the enzymes by a smidge helps.
What ratio of enzymes to kibble are you using with the 8x?
Also there is a possibility the rice or corn in the food or another carbohydrate is interfering with the enzymes.
Maybe try keeping everything the same and just upping the enzymes per meal a little?

Jill

[Olesia711]

the yellowish poo sure sounds like his SID (small intestinal dysbiosis) is out of whack...

Jill suggested exactly what i was going to suggest.... it is possible that he simply needs a pinch more enzymes with his meals. THis often happens with some EPI dogs, as they age, they no longer process food as efficiently as they did when their body was a wee bit younger and we often see this happen around the 4th or 5th year.
If you can let us know the ratio of the enzymes per food that you are giving, we can hopefully be of more helps in this regard,

I also looked up purina one salmon.... and "IF" i was looking at the correct one, my guess is that all the grain & carbs in this food could be what ultimately caused the SID to get out of control right now and once you change the food source, he may not need extra enzymes............

Is this the correct food?
https://www.chewy.com/purina-one-plus-adult-skin-coat/dp/37688

If so....you will want to change the food... (let us know so we can help you with some suggestions)
If not.... please let us know what the first 7 ingredients actually are so that we can see if this might be the underlying problem

[Ghgsdr]

Hello

I am doing 1 tsp of pancreatin 8x for 2 cup of food. The first 6 ingredients are Salmon, rice, poultry by product, corn gluten meal, whole grain fish meal and beef fat preserved with mixed tocopherols. Next ingredient is dried egg product. He is on the performance 30/20 Purina if that helps. Thanks for the help.

[Olesia711]

thank you so much for your response..

i suspect it is the food... so... give me a little time to research food.. but in the meantime,
for 2 cups of food per meal with 1 tsp of 8x, that may (or may not) be on the low end for this amount of food.... the next thing i would do is increase the enzymes by 1/2 tsp more per meal of 2 cups of food. WATCH the poos to see if this helps or not and please let us know.

In the meantime... give me today to check into a different food..... i do suspect this food has a lot to do with the problem.

Also.... how much does he weigh and how much Tylan are you giving him? Are you giving him the Tylan twice a day with breakfast and dinner? This is important.

[Olesia711]

if he can handle beef and or chicken, try a small bag of

Castor & Pollux Pristine
https://www.chewy.com/castor-pollux-pristine-grain-free/dp/178443

No peas/salmon flavored:
Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Salmon & Sweet Potato Recipe Dry Dog Food
https://www.chewy.com/natural-balance-limited-ingredient/dp/264438?utm_id=401625961&msclkid=31901829cd8a19efb72a7ca032864617&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Shopping_EC_All_C_Core%20Food_High%20Margin_Brand&utm_term=4585100933867113&utm_content=Natural%20Balance

Although this has garbanzo and peas in it... it is the 6th and 7th ingredient.... try the smallest bag possible for a few days (1 week) to see if this works or not
Nature's Recipe Grain-Free Salmon, Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Recipe Dry Dog Food
https://www.chewy.com/natures-recipe-grain-free-salmon/dp/36660

[Ghgsdr]

Hello

I have upped his enzyme by 1/2 teaspoon. He was getting 1/8 teaspoon at dinner of Tylan powder every day but just moved to every other day. He does not do great on chicken and have wondered if the by product in his current food is not helping.

Lisa

[Olesia711]

thanks for increasing the enzymes.... let us know after a couple of days if this improves things in ANY way.

Also.... the Tylan...... after you ascertain if the increased enzymes help.... what you need to do is give the Tylan TWICE a day with food (breakfast and dinner)

If the once a day was a maintenance dose, then once a day is fine... BUT... if the Tylan is needed to help straighten out an out-of-control dysbiosis (SID/SIBO)... then once a day is way underdosing and usually does not yield any improvement.......................... from what you are seeing in this dog, i strongly recommend increasing the Tylan to twice a day for 45 days.

[Jean]

Good orning from the UK

If there is poultry by products it will be chicken , and you say this is not tolerated well

Can you tell us how heavy he is

this is the Tylan doseage chart

https://epi4dogs.com/antibiotics/

maybe put him on the doseage for his weight for a while twice daily, at least 8 hours apart, probaby nearer 12 apart

Rice can also cause issues ,nd if there are bad bugs in the gut they will effectively kill the b12 reserve he has, and they need b12 to digest food, and has to have the intrinsic factor built in

have a look for grain free, pea free, rice free, chicken and its by products free, I know its hard, I had 10 years of it, Kara couldne tolerate chicken in dog food or its by products, we went for lamb based food

let us know, and record everything you do and its results


Jean

[Olesia711]

Just checking in ... how is Altuve doing?