My two-year-old Leonberger dog has suffered from bouts of diarrhoea since I brought him home at eight weeks of age. Many of these 'bouts' have been quite serious and the treatment has proved to be expensive due partly to his size. It is also very unpleasant to deal with this problem on a regular basis.
Tests showed that Tallis suffers from an overgrowth of bacteria in the gut and it was suggested eventually that he should take Synbiotic D.C. (Probiotic & Prebiotic powder) administered as one tablet per day.
This I'm glad to say is extremely effective and, as this is a non-prescription medication, the cost is approximately 50p per day per tablet.
However, glancing through 'Healthspan Directory' I noticed that the 'human' equivalent Probiotic costs approximately 13p per tablet, which leads me to wonder is there in fact any difference in these apart from the cost?
I should be very grateful is anybody could inform me as even over one month the saving would be considerable.
Mrs B Newton, Hertford
You could also give him some probiotic yoghurt. The plain one, which has no sugar in it. My dog doesn't actually need it but I give it to her anyway as I eat it myself. She loves it.
ReplyDeleteJulia Lewis
When it comes to prebiotoics and probiotics, you need to take care about what you are using. It may be less of an issue in a dog with a completely healthy gut flora, but your dog has a disrupted flora so could be very sensitive to what you add.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the two companies' websites, the bacteria in both are completely different. The Synbiotic DC product contains a probiotic bacteria called Enterococcus faecium, and if you look at the product fact sheet, you'll see it has an EC license number. The human probiotic by comparison contains three completely different Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacteria lactis, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and also at a different dose from the Synbiotic product.
The Synbiotic product also contains prebiotics which are very helpful for helping your dog's good bacteria flourish. Again, different prebiotics have different effects, so its important to use the right ones to encourage the right bacteria.
In short, there are several differences between the two products, but the Synbiotic product has been designed for companion animals and is working for your dog. The human product may work and save you money, but it may do nothing or it might cause unwanted changes.
Hope this information is helpful.
Best wishes
John Howie
There is probably an underlying problem with the feeding which is causing this problem in the first instance. From a long-term point of view it is better to sort that rather than simply control the symptoms. As you don't mention what you are giving it is not possible to advise on alterations to the existing diet but you would need to stop the supplementation and experiment with her diet to see what suits her, including getting the quantity of food right.
ReplyDeleteThis is something you may not want to do.
I would expect that the condition should respond to a highly digestible, hyperallergenic food fed in small amounts to be effective. We at Burns have a number of foods which should be suitable and we can assist with appropriate advice and guidance.
John Burns BVMS MRCVS
Burns Pet Nutrition