Guest AngelPup Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hi all. For those who are or have used FortiFlora or other probiotics to reduce/eliminate diarrhea, how long did it take for you to notice an improvement, if any? Did your dog have gas when first starting a probiotic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RMarie Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 We started Fortiflora almost 3 months ago. The first day or so James's poops went from pudding to liquid. We almost quit, but by day 3 or so we had tremendous improvement. It shouldn't take too long. Then again, we weren't dealing with hooks, and I know you are. :-/ I'm not sure what results you'd see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaFlaca Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 I've given Wendy FortiFlora (on her vet's advice) since day one (5 years ago). It has worked very well to eliminate excess gas and help firm up poops. Quote Irene ~ Owned and Operated by Jenny (Jenny Rocks ~ 11/24/17) ~ JRo, Jenny from the Track Lola (AMF Won't Forget ~ 04/29/15 -07/22/19) - My girl. I'll always love you. Wendy (Lost Footing ~ 12/11/05 - 08/18/17) ~ Forever in our hearts. "I am yours, you are mine". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gemma Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 Fortiflora is my go-to when a foster is having stomach issues. I find that it usually helps firm things up within 24 hrs. When Peyton had some weird stomach issues a few months ago (now thankfully resolved), he was on Fortiflora for just over a month and it helped tremendously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Clawsandpaws Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 I found that fortiflora helped almost instantly, basically in one or two poops it was perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 Ok, thanks everyone. My observation so far is very similar to RMarie. He went from pudding to almost liquid. Was very gassy yesterday, but I'm not noticing any gas today. He had two small liquid poops this morning before I went to work, but later this afternoon his poop was almost perfect. The last one, however, was back to pudding. I'll give it a few more days and see. I'm sure the hookworms are complicating things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 Just thought of a couple more questions... I'm sure it depends on the dog and the particular issue he's having, but probiotics don't usually have to be given permanently, correct? If Brady does improve with daily dosing, I'll start to wean him off the fortiflora after the hookworms are gone and everything is back to normal (whatever that may be). Worse case, I'll always have to give it to him. I'm just wondering where do you typically purchase it? I made the mistake of getting it at my vet's office and it was $50!! That's much more than the monthly cost of dog food--CRAZY! Also, if Brady needs another round of Flagyl, would using a probiotic at the same time be a waste of time and money? I was thinking if I add the fortiflora to his breakfast and give him the antiobiotic after dinner, that would hopefully work? That's probably a question for the vet, but just wondering if anyone has experience using a probiotic while treating with antibiotic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Zizi Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 We get our fortiflora from PSC pets probiotic smart.com it is 20.00 there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 Wow, that's quite the difference in price! Thanks for the tip. The jury is still out on the Fortiflora for Brady--not noticing an improvement at all, but he does have hookworms, so.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OPointyDog Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 Fortiflora has flavorings and things in it - if it turns out that your dog has food sensitivities, then you might need to try a brand without flavors. Our Zoe gets Fortiflora every day. It keeps the gas away, and encourages her to eat her food. I put half a packet on her food in the morning and again in the evening, and get it wet so that it forms a broth and coats the food. She loves it. I had previously been giving her yogurt and was getting pudding poop, and finally figured out she is lactose intolerant. I am a slow learner! I buy it through amazon - you can get 3 boxes for around $50, so that's 90 packets for the price you paid for 30. Our vet also charges a fortune for them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted June 22, 2013 Share Posted June 22, 2013 If your dog has hooks, I'm not sure how much the Fortiflora is going to help. I'm a big fan of the product although you can find other high quality products (some with a winder range of probiotics) for less money. But probiotics help restore gut flora. I think it's not a bad idea to give it, especially once the hooks are cleared out to get thigns back in proper working order so to speak, but I wouldn't expect it to stop the hook symptoms in the interim. Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 22, 2013 Share Posted June 22, 2013 Thanks OPD and NM. The vet called me yesterday to check on Brady and I filled her in on everything--worse poops than ever... We're back on the Flagyl for another 14 day treatment (started last night) and bland diet which I started this morning. She said the hooks really do a lot of damage to the intestines and the damaged/inflamed areas can't digest food properly--hense the pudding poop. The thinks at this point, the bland diet and Flagyl (antibiotic with anti-inflamation properties) would help more than the FortiFlora, but didn't think it could hurt to continue using it. I think the Flagyl is working since he hasn't gone poop yet and had been going at least two or three times by this time of the day. She wants to take it one step at a time and see how he does once his gut is healed and he's rid of the hookworms. If he still has diarrhea then, it may be a dietary change is in need or he might have SIBO caused by an enzyme deficiency...but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. So far, though, I don't think it's the food, since the anti-biotics seem to be doing the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Are you actually deworming? Lengthy doses of Panacur 3 weeks apart? Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 23, 2013 Share Posted June 23, 2013 Yes, we're treating w/Panacur two weeks apart (fourth round starting on Thursday). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest driser Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 We used Fortiflora for a spell, but didn't have the results we were looking for. When we switched to Proflora we found the right probiotic of our GH! And it's a chewable that our GH lives for! Even when he's been on antibiotic we just double up on the Proflora and it holds his bowels steady (pick-up-able) we get it from entirelypets.com http://www.entirelypets.com/proflora-probiotic-soft-chews-60-count.html?mr:trackingCode=C4E1A08D-3363-E111-9D2A-001517B188A2&mr:referralID=NA&mr:adType=pla&mr:ad=26780448910&mr:keyword=&mr:match=&mr:filter=48174645190&origin=pla&gclid=COT9xf-2gLgCFYSf4AodSAEAaQ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AngelPup Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 Great! Thanks for the tip. I'm not noticing ANY improvement with the FortiFlora, but there is also no improvement with the bland diet OR the Flagyl now either... I think we're really going to have to wait until his hookworms are gone and his gut heals before we'll see any lasting results with anything. Making another call to the vet tomorrow as his poop is terrible again and I'm not sure if hookworm eggs are visible to the naked eye, but there are an aweful lot of little white specs in his poop... UGH!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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