Canine Colitis

What is a sign of canine colitis?

My dog Benson is 1 1/2 years old, mixed large breed, almost 90
pounds at his maximum, part German Shepherd and another
large breed in there. The problem started 2 months ago
with diarrhea.

Any advice anyone could give would be more than
appreciated. I am very worried about my dog.

Response 1:

I hope Benson's doing better by now. Maybe you've already done this, but when you switch foods, do you do it gradually? My collie had a problem similar to Benson's (although not quite as serious) -- no parasites, nothing unusual except the diarrhea -- the vet figured "colitis" and prescribed antibiotics.

My dog's diarrhea started about the time I switched him over to a
completely different food overnight (and gave him way too many "Pupperoni"
treats and liver treats). It took about 2 weeks for his stomach to settle
down. Ever since, I've been very careful about treats and I always feed him
the same food.

So, maybe it's not so much what you're feeding him, but that his
system needs time to get used to new food.

I apologize if this asks for info which has already been
posted but the problem is new to my dog.

Benson is 1 1/2 years old, mixed large breed, almost 90
pounds at his maximum, part German Shepherd and another
large breed in there. The problem started 2 months ago
with diarrhea. He was eating Hills Science
Diet maintenance dog food (and only that - he does not get
any other food). At first we thought it was a food
allergy, put him on chicken and rice for about a month,
tried other dogs foods, nothing helped. I brought in a
stool sample to the vet (while the dog was on plain
chicken and rice). The vet found no blood, mucous,
parasites, etc... He did find undigested food, so Benson
was put on pancreatic enzymes for a week to aid digestion
and Lamb and Rice dog food. This medication did not help.
The dog had lost approximately 22 pounds at this point.
The enzymes did not help. Next, the vet tested his blood,
which yielded normal results, and cultured the stool,
which yielded normal bacteria and no parasites. The dog
was put on antibiotics for 5 days - this did not help.
Next Benson was put on medication against colitis, which
helped for 2 days before the problem returned. The vet
then prescribed cortisone with the colitis medication -
this also did not help. Now Benson is on imodium - an
anti-diarrhetic. He has not lost any more weight but he
also not gained any. He is still on Lamb and Rice dog
food but the vet has recommended that I switch him to a
low fat dog food by Waltham.

Any advice anyone could give would be more than
appreciated. I am very worried about my dog.

I, too, had similar problems with my Yorkie. She was 2 1/2 years old when
the diarrhea started. Took her to 3 different vets, all diagnosed severe
colitis, all prescribed different medicines, all recommended a special
Hills SD canned food. Nothing helped - it just got worse! It got to the
point where we felt we were losing her - her diarrhea was 'filled' with
blood and heavy mucus, her colon growled & groaned and then she'd have an
uncontrollable diarrhea attack before she could even take 2 steps to get
to the door to go outside. Many nights, her colon sounds would wake me up
and we would both run to the door as fast as we could so I could let her
out, but she just couldn't make it in time. She was going steadily
downhill and was nothing but skin and bones. No vet could help. My
cousin raises Rottweilers and suggested we try Max dog food (dry -
chicken,rice,lamb mix, very little fillers) in the purple bag. She loved
the food and within 5 days, she was back to normal. Some friends had an
older cat that had developed severe diarrhea. No medicine had ever helped
him either. They bought a bag of the Max for Cats and had the same
results. They swore it was miracle food. You might want to buy a small
bag and give it a try. Of course, you still will have to watch the kind
of treats you give. Some just aren't good for a dog with colitis. It's
been 10 years now and the only time she has trouble with diarrhea is when
we feed her the wrong treaties. Incidentally, our younger Yorkie eats it
too and loves it also! Hope it helps! Let me know how things are
going.