Ask the French Bulldog Experts - Gassy French Bulldog with Diarrhea
admin June 8th, 2008
Since the writer sent this email to all of our experts, we’ve let all of them answer it. Hopefully, one of us will be able to help!
A question about a lethargic Frenchie with stomach problems -
My French bulldog is 7 years old. a couple of months ago we noticed he became extremely gassy, drive you out of the room, every other minute gas- way more than his normal Gas which we were use to.
We thought we should change his food. He was on Beneful- lamb. I thought maybe the formula had changed and we should try something without grains. Anyway we have changed his food a couple of times now with no help, it has never gotten better, only gotten worse and he has had diarrhea almost the entire two months.
He was normally 30 pounds now he is 26 lbs. I took him to the vet and they did a stool and blood work test, nothing wrong he says, just low protein from the diarrhea. He put him on 1/2 tablet of Metronidazole 2 times a day ( 250 mg) .
I have him on Dick Van pattens Natural Balance Potato & Duck Limited ingredient formula- Grain Free, now for about a week- and the gas is making me nauseous, it is constant all day. We did not gradually change him, since the other food was producing the same results, Dr. said just to switch it.
He is still playful with a wet nose and good energy, but I am very worried. I really just need to find the right diet for him but don’t know what else to try. I am worried so many diet changes has really messed him up.
Can you help with some suggestions. I really need to get some weight on him his ribs are showing.
Dr. Lori writes -
I would suggest having his pancreatic function checked as there are some pancreatic issues that can cause these symptoms. This is a special blood test which must be sent to Texas and the dog must be fasted for 18 hours before hand. While not common in frenchies, it is sometimes diagnosed and is worth checking. You may also consider a fecal culture to be sure there isn’t an unusual and/or hard to detect bacteria or organism causing the gas and diarrhea.
If those all come back normal, you may want to consider endoscopy/colonoscopy with biopsies. Frenchies can have a gastroenteritis due to Helicobacter and can be treated with heavy duty antibiotics, which can only be detected with biopsies.
Food wise, you may try a completely hypoallergenic diet such as Hills Z/D Ultra or Purina HA, or a veterinary prescribed intestinal diet such as Eukanuba Low Residue, Purina EN or Hills I/D.
Lastly, if you haven’t tried probiotics, that could be an excellent idea as well, and certainly is the cheapest option.
Lori Hunt, DVM
Carol writes -
I’ll ask some obvious questions -
Have they done a stool sample?
Does he still have diahrrea, or is it over?
If he still has diarrhea, I’d assume he has a bug - coccidia, or giardia, or something similar. Another possibility would be low grade pancreatitis, especially if the diahrrea has even been slimy or bloody. Ask your vet if they tested for parasites and/or pancreatitis (Dr. Lori has outlined this in detail above - follow her instructions on doing so).
If they did so, and the tests were negative, try switching him to a grain free RAW formula. You can either make your own, or purchase frozen patties from a local, higher end pet supply store.
In the meantime, try an elimination diet -
Lightly boiled ground chicken
Lightly steamed white rice
Canned (spice free - NOT PIE FILLING!) pumpkin
Mix in a 2/1/1 ratio, feed until his stool firms up, then slowly introduce his new raw diet. Do NOT begin changing him over until his stool is firm, or your vet gives you a concrete diagnosis.
Good luck!
Carol
Pat writes -
Interesting problem… and I am going assume that he had not been on any antibiotics before the gas started?
The food you are using seems to be a good one… (I use a high protein/high fat chicken and rice)
What I would suggest is a probiotic… you can start with plain yogurt or buttermilk… the thing I’m thinking is that for some reason the good bacteria in his gut are not there which means he is not processing his foods properly…
A tablespoon of buttermilk or yogurt on his food twice a day - you can also order Liquid Dispersable DogZymes from Nature’s Farmacy 800-733-4981 - it is a good product reasonably priced and has a shelf life of 2 years…. very simple to use.
You said that you had blood work done? were the liver enzymes at normal levels?
You might also give him 1 teaspoon of canned pumpkin (NOT pie mix) just plain pumpkin. it helps with bowel problems..
Please feel free to keep in touch with me and let us know what happens..
Good luck
Pat
(editor’s note: We’ll post a follow up to this if and when we get it, as we’d all really like to know if this little guy starts to improve)
