# Probiotic recommendations for sensitive stomach?



## Girlnotboy (May 28, 2014)

I'm looking for probiotic recommendations for my toy poodle who has a sensitive stomach. It seems she can only tolerate Blue Buffalo grain-free dry food with tiny amounts of canned food as topper. Higher-quality grain-free dry food like Acana and Merrick cause diarrhea. Even Acana limited ingredient causes problems. She's definitely grain-intolerant. She loves plain white rice, but boiled chicken and rice, which is frequently suggested for GI upset, seems to worsen it. The vet prescribed Forti Flora a few times, and while I didn't notice any untoward effects, I'm very skeptical of the quality and of any probiotic that doesn't need to be refrigerated. Suggestions much appreciated. Thanks.


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

How old and how big is your toy? Many dogs react poorly to chicken. A lot of foods simply have too much protein for tiny toys. I keep to foods with no grain and lower protein. Misha does best on Kangaroo, but can tolerate duck and rabbit. As for Forti-Flora, I have heard only good things. I would stay away from anything high fat.


----------



## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

N2Mischief said:


> How old and how big is your toy? Many dogs react poorly to chicken. A lot of foods simply have too much protein for tiny toys. I keep to foods with no grain and lower protein. Misha does best on Kangaroo, but can tolerate duck and rabbit. As for Forti-Flora, I have heard only good things. I would stay away from anything high fat.


I agree with Mischief.... high protein content is not tolerated by many dogs and chicken is also a meat that many are allergic to. Almost all dog foods seem to have chicken fat listed somewhere on the label, so be aware of that also.

I've been using a kibble called Vet's Choice Healthy Extensions Allergix (Buffalo & Whitefish) formula it is grain free and meant for both allergy sensitive dogs, and dogs with sensitive stomachs. It also contains probiotics. Molly doesn't have chicken allergies, and I just prefer grain free 'just in case'. Take a look at their website I think you might like what you read about it!

P.S. I order from Chewys or Petflow...it's less expensive there!


----------



## Girlnotboy (May 28, 2014)

Thanks to both for your comments. She's 20 months and weighs about 3 lbs. Oddly, one of the only proteins that doesn't cause diarrhea is chicken. Duck and especially rabbit cause diarrhea. So does pork and venison to a lesser degree. She has variable results with lamb. She won't eat fish-based kibble, so I gave her canned mackerel (she went crazy when I opened it for me to eat :act-up, which she loved, but her stomach did not. Strange because I thought rabbit and venison were kind of lean although I know duck is very rich and fatty. I haven't seen kangaroo kibble. Which brand do you use? Perhaps I can order it. Thanks also for the info on FortiFlora. Maybe I'll buy some online. The Bloom I have been feeding her has probiotics and it too doesn't need refrigeration. But I had read probiotics must be refrigerated to ensure potency.

So...if some toys can't tolerate high protein content, which seems to be the case with mine, how can they tolerate raw? Isn't that even more protein content? Or is it more water?


----------



## georgiapeach (Oct 9, 2009)

I've had good luck with Now Small Breed Grain Free: Small Breed Adult Dog Food | Petcurean NOW No Grain Dog Food. It's turkey based, with moderate protein and fat levels. It does have small amounts of other proteins further down the list (fish, duck), but maybe not enough to cause your dog a problem. It also has pre and probiotics in it. The kibble size is teeny-tiny, which might appeal to your little one. It's the only kibble Sunny would eat when we first adopted him. 

I have a boxer with a sensitive tummy, and I add Mercola Digestive Enzymes for Pets to each meal. It's made a world of difference for him. Here's a video explaining them: Pet Digestive Enzymes | Pet Digestive Health. I get them at Vitamin Shoppe in the pet section, but you can also order them online.


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

California Natural Kangaroo and Red Lentil. Not as high quality but also works well for Misha is Natural Balance LID Kangaroo. I keep Musha to 21 percent protein or less or she vomits often.


----------



## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

Prostora, which I got from my vet, but also ordered online is pricey but it made a huge difference when Tangee was having stomach problems. Maybe you would not need it forever?


----------



## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I keep Proviable and/or FortiFlora on hand. Both are great probiotics.


----------



## PoodleFoster (May 25, 2013)

Hi
I use plain yogurt from Walmart to add probiotics. I have an 11 - 12 year old toy poodle who had a severe case of tooth root abcess. He was on antibiotics for 30 days. That is a LONG time to be on antibiotic, so I have been adding the yogurt to his food 2x a day. Works great for him. He has had no gastric upset or adverse effects from the prolonged antibiotics. (I feed a grain free food)
This is a foster dog. 
This was recommended to me by a poodle breeder/rescue person of 50 years experience. She has never steered me wrong.
Hope this helps


----------



## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

Love the results from Honest Kitchen Bloom! I also feed Honest Kitchen foods. Sometimes my dogs get loose stools and they straighten out with the bloom, so only use it when they need it


----------



## Girlnotboy (May 28, 2014)

Hello everyone, and thanks again for all the responses. I decided on Wholistic dog pre and probiotics because it was the only one I could find locally. It doesn't have the enterococcus probiotic, though. I'll have to order the other recommendations online if this doesn't help. Yoki had diarrhea again after 2 days without Bloom (which has added probiotics). Coincidence? Maybe. Sometimes she has diarrhea from dewormers, and I did give her dewormer around that time. But I'm trying this hoping she'll feel better on it. Poor girl always has a guilty look on her face when she doesn't have perfect poops or makes messy poops that require extra cleanup. It's like she knows and is saying sorry!

The bigger problem is that I can't find a protein that she can tolerate AND that she is NOT allergic to. She can tolerate chicken well (chicken-based kibble, canned chicken, boiled fresh chicken, chicken broth, really any chicken that has no fat or skin) produces firm poops, but I'm almost certain it's contributing to her skin allergies. She's constantly biting, licking, chewing on her paw pads and has licked both knees clean of hair. How is it possible that a protein can be well-digested but cause so much skin diseases? I think I'm going to have to order the kangaroo kibble and hope it works because our trials of other proteins have not been successful.


----------

