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Ask the Expert on SIBO and Diet

May 16th, 2009

The Question:

Name: Kathy Beth Moraino
Pets species and breed: Canine – border collie/retriever
Pets age and weight: 1.5 years/60lbs
Pets health status: Excellent
Are they spayed or neutered? Yes
Brand of food: Taste of the Wild and a raw food diet
Animal owned for: 1 year

“I was inquiring about a premium dog food recommendation. My dog has SIBO. He has done well on a raw dog food diet and on does best on a kibble that is venison. I feed him kibble in the morning and raw meat/organs/bone at night. I feed the kibble just to make sure he is getting all the vitamins and minerals he needs. He was originally eating Wellness Venison but rejected it after a month. He liked Taste of the Wild Venison and bison at first, but then rejected it after a month. I was wondering if you could recommend a brand of food for him. Pre-made raw food is too expensive to feed all my dogs. Thank you.”

The Answer:

“Thanks for your question Kathy.  I am glad you are supplementing the raw dog food diet with a well balanced dog food to provide your dog the right nutrient profile.

It is important to choose a dog food with high QUALITY ingredients.  Poor quality proteins (rendered meats/meals/some by-products) are less digestible than real muscle meat and these poor quality proteins are often associated with adverse food reactions (diarrhea, stomach upset, etc).

Another ingredient to watch for is fillers.  Fillers are usually carbohydrates like corn and rice that are added to a food to “fill” up the bag and add calories.  It is cheaper for pet food companies to use these fillers than other types of carbohydrates and protein.  When included in dog foods (in excess) these fillers can have negative metabolic effects and often contribute to obesity in pets.

In addition to these things, I choose dog foods based on a number of factors, including:

• Recognizable ingredients.  Real meat (no by-products) and real vegetables when I read the label and look inside the food.
• Natural foods–by definition means they cannot contain artificial dyes, colors or preservatives
• Alternate carbohydrate sources like sweet potato

The food you have been feeding (Taste of the Wild High Prairie Canine Formula) contains bison, venison, lamb/chicken/fish meals, and potato/sweet potatoes so I know what ingredients he seems to do okay on.   A couple of names you might try include:

• Evo 95% Venison Canned Dog Food
• Nature’s Variety Instinct Venison

If your dog continues to reject each new diet that you provide, you should see your veterinarian.  Many dogs with SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) actually have an underlying inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) condition that may require medication to treat.  See my article at http://www.halopets.com/pet-education/pet-articles/Inflammatory-Bowel-Disease-in-Dogs.html to learn more about IBD in dogs.”

Hope this helps.
Dr. Donna Spector

Tags: Dick van Pattens Natural Balance LID, Diet, Eukanuba Naturally Wild New Zealand Venison and Potato, Evo, IBD, inflammatory bowel disease, SIBD, small intestinal bacteria overgrowth
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