One of our two mutts seems to have developed a somewhat sensitive stomach. Has been a periodic issue for some time; vet isn't concerned just recommended we start including a probiotic with her food (already had them on a high quality grain-free food). Anyone have a recommendation for a brand they've used in the past?

There have been a couple of times our vet wanted us to give ours a probiotic. He supplied it and it was made by Purina, IIRC.

Answers brand or Primal brand raw goats milk. All the probiotics your dogs need.

I have to keep my eye on this thread.

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by 10-7 leo:
There have been a couple of times our vet wanted us to give ours a probiotic. He supplied it and it was made by Purina, IIRC.

We did Purina FortiFlora for a while when our dogs were getting frequent diarrhea. It's super easy, it comes in a box of 30 little packets, each day just tear the packet open and sprinkle on their food.

It seemed to be helpful and the dogs seemed to like how it tasted and would really go after it and lick their bowls after they ate all the food.

https://www.proplanveterinaryd...lora-dog-probiotics/

It isn't really a probiotic, but we gave "SeaMeal," a seaweed based nutritional supplement, to our dogs for a while. Not sure how helpful it was but they seemed to like it. They were more enthusiastic about their food when we put the SeaMeal on vs. when we didn't.

https://www.solidgoldpet.com/product/seameal/

Also not a probiotic, but when our dogs start having softer poops, we sprinkle some dried pumpkin powder on their food and it seems to fix it right up. This is the one we are using now, not all the time, but just when the poop starts getting soft:

http://digginyourdog.com/firm-up-4oz-description.html

The instructions say to mix it with water before adding it to the dog food but our dogs are perfectly happy with the dry powder sprinkled on their food.

Out of curiosity, what is the main protein source of the grain free food that you’re feeding your dogs? If it’s either beef or chicken try switching to a different protein source and see how it goes.

Beef and chicken are the two leading protein sources in dog foods that cause digestive issues, mainly because of allergies.

A lot of people have success with salmon as a main protein source. Some other ones that are inexpensive are pork and lamb. A good protein source is rabbit, but it is usually expensive.

Don’t be afraid to change up foods. The more proteins they eat the less sensitive their stomachs become. Feeding our pets the same thing day in and day out are what causes digestive issues in the first place. Think about it, if you were to eat nothing but hamburgers every meal for months on end and then you switch all of the sudden to something else like spaghetti....welll guess what your stomach is gonna do? See my point?

Our dogs get different proteins every meal and they don’t have any issues whatsoever. It might only be two proteins for a week but it gets mixed up quite frequently. Breakfast and dinner are rarely ever the same food, ever.

But regardless, try to get some raw goats milk and see how it goes.

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A lot of people have success with salmon as a main protein source.

But what a stinky breath, I know.

My wife drinks Lifeway brand Keifer daily & gives our Beagle some in his bowl.

I tried a variety over the years with my dog. Finally settled on Hyperbiotics Pro-Pets.

SigM4, I sent you an email.

Proviable-DC is what our vet recommended. We order them from Chewy’s. No side effect and they seem to help.

vanilla kiefer every day. all 3 hounds like it.

We use Animal Essentials plant enzymes & probiotics. Then when we asked our breeder what he suggested, it was the same that we had already been using.

We have an Australian Shepherd that can sometimes have a sensitive stomach. She likes the fish and salmon based-foods and we stick to those as they have given the best results.
(She will be 6 this month).

My wife got Vetri Science Labs Vetri Mega Probiotic (120 capsule size). They seem to help (by the solid appearance of her yard logs)- we don't give them on a regular basis...

I apologize in advance for a lengthy story.

Spark the Wonderdog chose us in 2009. He is a rescue from Animal Friends in Pittsburgh. 2 years later he had a near death experience which I attribute to chicken jerky from China. After 3 days in the Emergency clinic he came home.

The first take was prescription food ordered from the vet. The theory is that the food is consistent. Spark, my wife and I disagree, we saw variations.

Fortunately we live about 2 miles from a healthy pet store. We talked to them and settled on Wholistic Pet Organics Digest-All probiotics/prebiotics. All food is from Nature's Logic and we augment with Metamucil.

He had a few relapses the first two years but had been fine ever since. YMMV but I am convinced that my now healthy 11 year old best friend is with us because of the food and supplements. Not inexpensive but I am happy to be in a position to give him what he needs.