I read your blog on Beau. It’s just a frustrating illness, because results take awhile. Ozzie is only our Veterinarians 2nd case of puppy strangles in her 30+Yr career. Her first case was just 6 mos. ago on an imported pup. Last night marked 1 wk. on prednisone & antibiotics, we 2 or those days being the double dose increase. Marked improvement over night last night! So thankful. His chops and eye area, have gone way down. And the fever has finally broke! I am thankful for your site Krista.

Could you tell me what you are feeding, what supplements you give and how long the gas has been going on?  How are his/her stools – firm, soft?  When does the gas occur – anytime, or only after meals? If the stools are soft it would be good to have the stool checked for parasites by your local veterinarian.

The quick and easy answer is to begin using probiotics. My favorite is Mitomax, a super probiotic. I have had many animals’ smelly gas clear up while using
this, though sometimes they need to stay on it. Unlike other probiotics, it is
very stable and is ok at the low stomach pH.There is an icon on my home page for it (www.MyHealthyAnimals.com). You could also get other pet probiotics if near a pet health store. (by the way, if you put in your city, we can be more specific in our answers)

The longer answer is to generally improve health. There are 7 keys that can help you do this, with a link on my home page. 

Please let me know a little more and if you have questions about the holistic approach (7 keys to health). 

the small worms you saw were probably tapeworms, whose eggs may not show up on a fecal, so be sure the vet staff saw the worms that you saw. they could also just be fly larvae and not from inside the dogs. 

Tthere are a number of holistic approaches that could stop the gas and even firm up the stools (raw meat diet, other diets, marshmallow root, aloe vera, charcoal, slippery elm, Reiki, flower essences to name a few) and conventional drugs. 

Since this has been a chronic issue, the very best approach will be to address the underlying energetic imbalance (Qi/Vital Force/Pranna) causing them to have a sensitive digestive tract. This is best done by an integrative veterinarian (links at my site – http://www.MyHealthyAnimals.com) who has many options to cure the underlying issues so you will not be dealing with digestive issues for life. 

Health is a journey, and there is not one right approach, so you may need to try different modalities or different practitioners on the path to deep healing. 

In terms of food, I would seriously explore feeding a fresh meat diet. What
are the best diets for people or animals — the most processed or the freshest,
most organic? The best ingredients should be the most
consciously raised – local, organic vegetables, free ranging protein sources.
Dogs and cats have ripping and tearing teeth, bone crunching teeth, no
digestive juices in the mouth, jaws that do not chew, a stomach full of acid
where the food sits for 4-12 hours and a very short transit time in the
intestines. Dogs and cats do not pull out a knife to de-bone their prey and do
not pull out matches to light a fire to cook their meat and vegetables.
Therefore the best diet for dogs and cats is raw meat including raw bones,
pureed raw and cooked vegetables and a few supplements (Calcium if no bones are
eaten is critical). There are many good books to guide you along with integrative veterinarians. Some TCVM (Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine) practitioners will suggest cooking meats or using specific foods as part of their food therapy. 

For processed foods, the Whole Dog Journal publishes a yearly review of the different brands. You want ones using organic sources, even to the point of organic grains being fed to the chicken and the beef not being finished with grains. The GMO and concomitant pesticides/fertilizers are causing a lot of intestinal distress in sensitive dogs. 

Hi Kathy,

There are a few things you can try. Offering other types of toys for her is one suggestion, there are toys that you can put small treats into, and the puppy can roll them along and a treat comes out. They keep them distracted from chewing. Also change up and rotate the toys you have so that they seem “new” and interesting.  

They make commercial sprays you can apply on furniture for this purpose, I’ve also heard people having success with putting hot pepper spray on furniture to deter them. Bitter Apple spray seems to work the best in my opinion (they sell this at most pet supply stores) 

I personally do not like rawhides, primarily because they are easy for a dog to choke on when they becomes slimy, soft and small. So unless you are supervising your puppy when they are using them at all times, I would avoid them.

There are super hard bones (marrow bones) that you can get that most dogs LOVE. They even are some that are filled with peanut butter or other fillings to keep a dogs interest. Try also offering antlers-most dogs go crazy for them and they are sold at most pet supply stores. 

Finally, make sure your puppy is getting lots and lots of exercise and walks outside. This alone will often lesson the problem.

Enjoy your new pup!

~kelly