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Acute Intolerance To Food?


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Posting to see if anyone has had a similar experience and can offer any advice...


About 2 weeks ago, our 11 year old Greyhound, Rudy started experiencing the Big "D" all of a sudden. His energy level was normal, but his stomach was clearly off. Rudy has been eating Acana brand (Lamb and Apple variety) for well over a year with great results. We called our vet and he put Rudy on Hill's Prescription Diet W/D for a few days, which cleared up the issue almost immediately. Thinking we may have gotten a bad batch of food, we bought a new bag of Acana and tried again... but the problem has now returned.


Has anyone experienced their Greyhound developing a similar acute intolerance to food? He's an older dog, but he doesn't have a history of sensitive stomach w/ food, so it seems odd. I'm not sure what would explain the sudden onset either. Could it be an allergy? He does have occasional acid reflux/gag reaction (where he looks like he's dry heaving), and we give him Prilosec to keep it at bay.



I figured I'd reach out to see if anyone has had a similar experience, and what was done to help rectify the problem. We're going to call the vet again tomorrow but the immediate plan is to keep him on the Hill's food for the foreseeable future (possibly forever, if he says it's safe). Is it worth trying another Acana variety/are some protein options better for Greyhounds? Thanks in advance!


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I'm dealing with a Greyhound with a history of food sensitivity following an epsiode of gastroenteritis a few years ago, and an acute recurrence at present... most likely from salmonella in bad chicken. She's going to have food related medical problems for a long time ahead unfortunately. I really do urge you to do your utmost not to permit food intolerance issues to come to a crisis point. It really sets them back badly. Don't stop the Prilosec. Perhaps feed probiotics.

 

Possibly Acana may have changed their recipe like TOTW (Diamond) did with their probiotics. My dog would not touch TOTW again. You could ask them if they have changed it? it might be that at 11 your dog can't handle the high levels of protein and needs to go back onto a senior diet.

 

Before fiddling around changing foods at random, have your vet do a full blood count and fecal analysis. (What if your dog has bad worms or even Giardia?) They can palpate the intestines to determine if they are painful too, and order an X-Ray or other tests if necessary. Now you'll have a clear slate to start from.

 

Any change you make with an older dogs food should be gradual.

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I'm dealing with a Greyhound with a history of food sensitivity following an epsiode of gastroenteritis a few years ago, and an acute recurrence at present... most likely from salmonella in bad chicken. She's going to have food related medical problems for a long time ahead unfortunately. I really do urge you to do your utmost not to permit food intolerance issues to come to a crisis point. It really sets them back badly. Don't stop the Prilosec. Perhaps feed probiotics.

 

Possibly Acana may have changed their recipe like TOTW (Diamond) did with their probiotics. My dog would not touch TOTW again. You could ask them if they have changed it? it might be that at 11 your dog can't handle the high levels of protein and needs to go back onto a senior diet.

 

Before fiddling around changing foods at random, have your vet do a full blood count and fecal analysis. (What if your dog has bad worms or even Giardia?) They can palpate the intestines to determine if they are painful too, and order an X-Ray or other tests if necessary. Now you'll have a clear slate to start from.

 

Any change you make with an older dogs food should be gradual.

 

Thanks John! All great points. And sorry to hear about your pup!

 

We reached out to Acana and they didn't mention any changes. The rapid onset and fluctuation (bad diarrhea on Acana, back to normal on Hills, then bad diarrhea again on new bag of Acana) is what confuses me. His bloodwork has always showed higher levels of creatinine, so we've been advised to stay away from high protein options. I think we may keep him on the Hill's for a while until it calms down again, possibly even permanently if that's what the vet recommends... it worked extremely well last time. And then, if advised, we will slowly ease him onto another option.

Edited by Brondon530
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It might be that Arcana has changed the formula - you could try checking with them and see if they will share information. Please note, they may not tell you although, they might be interested that you are having a problem with their product (could be a bad batch).

 

Hope Rudy gets better.

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Remember it's summer and the food could have spoiled in transport. A good pet store will gladly take an opened bag back. I also agree with the comments about a lower protein but you pup could be feeling the weather or picked up something on a walk. Your vet may suggest a round of flagyl that will clear things up. A phone call and a stool sample will help resolve your pup's issues.

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Perhaps compare the ingredients in the Acana and the prescription W/D and see if that helps to figure out why the sudden intolerance.

 

Best of luck!

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It might be that Arcana has changed the formula - you could try checking with them and see if they will share information. Please note, they may not tell you although, they might be interested that you are having a problem with their product (could be a bad batch).

 

Hope Rudy gets better.

Good point - we asked about any recalls, but should see if the formula has changed too. Thanks!

Remember it's summer and the food could have spoiled in transport. A good pet store will gladly take an opened bag back. I also agree with the comments about a lower protein but you pup could be feeling the weather or picked up something on a walk. Your vet may suggest a round of flagyl that will clear things up. A phone call and a stool sample will help resolve your pup's issues.

Thanks! That's what we thought initially too, but he had a reaction to a 2nd bag of food as well. For now, the w/d is working great so we will stick with that. Thanks again!

Perhaps compare the ingredients in the Acana and the prescription W/D and see if that helps to figure out why the sudden intolerance.

 

Best of luck!

Great idea, thanks!

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