Digestive Problems - Collie

Question
My Collie has had a lot of digestive problems and has the following symptons:

dogs will pass gas (flatulence)
stools will be copious, soft or mushy and smelly
diarrhea can be common
there may be an unpleasant odor coming from the mouth-doggy breath
vomiting of a yellowish, watery substance can occur before eating or at any time of the day
vomiting of food just eaten can occur hours later, even during the hours of 2-5 a.m.

I feed her Iams Lamb & Rice wet food.  It this good.  She goes through spurts.  She will do great for about 2 months and then I will have to give her pred tabs and sulfrate (sp?) and then she will do good again for a few months then it's back on the medicine.   

I don't want to get started on the raw diet yet, I would like to try a supplement first.  Is this a good product to try

Answer
Hi Andrea!  It sounds as though your dog may have IBD (Irritable Bowel Disease).  A barium study would decifer whether or not this is the cause.  Your dog will be fed a thick white substance and go through a series of xrays.  The barium will show up on the xrays and will be followed through the digestion process.  IBD causes the intestinal tract to become extremely inflamed.  Steroids like prednisone, will reduce the inflammation, which will cause the symptoms to decrease or vanish.  There is a special diet like Science Diet I/D formula, or Purina Gastro Intestinal Care, that would help combat this inflammation and irritation.  Both foods can be purchased through your veterinarian.  Also, monthly or bi-monthly steroid injections would control the inflammation without having to constantly give the oral medications.  The oral steroid can cause wear and teat on the kidneys and liver over time, so the steroid injections not only last longer, but they are better for the dog compared to long term oral steroids.
I hope this helps and please let me know how she's doing!
Hilary