Intestinal Dog Diseases

Video Transcript

"Let's talk about intestinal diseases in dogs. There are many diseases that infect the intestines, both the small and large intestines, in dogs. So the first thing is obvious, and that is there has to be a diagnosis made of what type of intestinal disease your dog has. So your veterinarian can help you with that, to determine what's going on. The most common ways to diagnose intestinal disease is history, which is what food the animal is eating, what it's been eating over the last couple of weeks, any changes... that sort of thing. Age plays a role, and also fecal samples and physical exa can help that. There are many different diseases, such as parasites, especially in young dogs and puppies. Foreign bodies, things that they ingest, food intolerance, pancolitis, things that can be caused from stress, and people food. Things like that can very commonly cause intestinal disease, and so again, the first thing is to find out what that disease is. There are foods for a lot of intestinal diseases that might help. Specifically, bland foods that are easier to digest, so the intestines have an easier time to deal with that. But check with your veterinarian first to find out what kind of disease that your dog may be having."