Crohn's disease and raw feeding

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JudyN
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Crohn's disease and raw feeding

Post by JudyN »

I met a lovely young Irish terrier with Crohn's disease this morning. I chatted to the owner for some time (as Jasper had stolen the IT's ball :roll: ) and of course diet was mentioned. She had wondered about raw feeding but if he eats the wrong thing it can take 4 weeks before the effects are obvious, so is understandably reluctant. Just out of curiosity really (as she needs to be guided by her vet, not some random person she meets on the recreation ground :wink: ), I wondered if anyone had any experience of raw feeding dogs with Crohn's disease and whether it can be as good as, or better than, the prescribed diet?
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
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Nettle
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Re: Crohn's disease and raw feeding

Post by Nettle »

Sorry no experience but would be very interested in what anyone else has to say.
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

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rnor1120
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Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2011 9:35 pm
Location: USA

Re: Crohn's disease and raw feeding

Post by rnor1120 »

By Crohn's, do you mean inflammatory bowel disease? We don't have a "Crohn's disease" in the vet world, but we do recognize IBD, or food intolerance. Most often, the dog is intolerant of the protein source (IE chicken, beef, etc), but there are a rare few who have issues with wheat, corn, preservatives, etc. I have very few canine patients with suspected IBD (official diagnosis involves surgical biopsy, and food trials are much less invasive). Most of my patients are on a prescription veterinary food and do very, very well. One patient has been through multiple diet trials and failed each diet he was put on (before coming to my vet clinic). His owner purchased a store-bought "raw" diet (bologna loaf) and the dog's diarrhea cleared up immediately; she tried kibble again, and his explosive diarrhea returned. She can't afford surgery or ultrasounds, so I prescribed a home-cooked diet because I'm suspicious a preservative or something in kibble causes his issues (I can't recommend raw diets, that's a whole other discussion). I'm anxious to see how he does. I can post updates if there is interest.

So in short, it depends on the patient and what causes IBD flare ups. If the kibble works, great. If it doesn't, experiment with home-prepared meals.
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