Fiber

Question
QUESTION: I have a 8 yr. old Chow mix. He is having problems with his anal glands draining on their own and getting infected. I was reading up on nutrition for my dog and was wondering if a high fiber diet might work? And I was also wondering if Fibersure could be added to his dog food, Purina One, and if so, how much. My dog was neutered 3 days ago because of a hormone issue or that is what the vet thinks. My dog stays outside when I am not home and he's in and out when I am here. I was considering buying Science Diet, Natures Best but then I read about peas, different veggies and Fibersure for fiber.

ANSWER: Kathy, yes, you can add Fibersure to your dog's food without hurting him, however, it could simply be that you need to consider a better food. Both Purina and Science Diet contain corn, which can cause large, softer stools. That can make it difficult for the anal glands to express on their own during a bowel movement. I would suggest that you take a look at my dog food web page at http://dogfoods.angelfire.com. I strongly believe that putting him on a better diet will help to firm up his stools and help stop the anal gland problems.



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Kristen, I had to go to town yesterday and being that it was Sunday, my choice of where to buy dog food was limited and he was out. I wrote down some of the thing to avoid in dog food and I came up with NaturalLife with Lamb. We only have one feed store in our area and I will be going there to check out some more variety's. Off the top of ur head and knowing my dogs situation.........can u just suggest one that u would buy for a 8 yr. old with a sensitive stomach and anal gland issues. Thanks again for all ur help.

Answer
Hi again, Kathy. I just did a quick search on Natural Life dog food, and this is what I found - http://www.nlpp.com/lamadermdog.htm - is >>this<< what you bought?? If so, then it's a better food than Purina ONE or Science Diet, but I wouldn't consider it to be a premium food. It has only one instance of meat (lamb meal), contains sorghum as the 4th ingredient, generic 'poultry fat,' and menadione. It's okay for now, but it's not a food I'd recommend keeping him on.


What makes you think he has a sensitive stomach? I need to know his 'symptoms.' I think his trouble with the anal glands will clear up once he's been on a good food for a few weeks, but you can add plain, canned pumpkin to his food to help firm up his stools a bit, in the meantime. A tablespoon with each meal should be sufficient. Plain pumpkin can be used for diarrhea OR constipation, so it's good to keep some on hand in case you ever need it.