Quite Gassy!!!

[ernstlaurie]

I have never in my life had a bouv with so much gas. My bouv smells up my whole house every day. You would think she had an accident, but I search and there is nothing....just a stinky bouv. Thoughts? She does eat poop - I try to pick it all up but she still manages to find some. I have tried tainting it with hot sauce, no luck.
Should I worry about illness?
Thanks

[Mike]

You aren't alone, that's for sure. There have been times when one of our Bouvs could clear out a stadium, let alone a room.

Does she have gas all the time or does it just seem to happen for a day or two and then it clears up? Do you feed her any people food, like pizza, boiled eggs (eggs are good but can produce a lot of gas), beans (beans are good too, but again, what they do to humans they can do to dogs) or other high fiber/protien foods? Besides the recycled organic material, does she get to graze on grass or other vegitable matter, very much?

I don't know if it means anything is wrong, Bouvs seem to have a very good reputation for passing gas. Sue should have some more info and if she has time before she leaves on a trip over the next few days, maybe she will pop in. Other wise it might be Sunday night before she will get a chance to respond. Or maybe someone else will have a few ideas for you besides having lots of cross ventalation in the house.

Mike

[Sarah Alling]

Bouv's do have a reputation for being a bit aromatic. That being said, I have found that it depends what I'm feeding them as to how much gas they produce. In my experience, foods that are corn & wheat based (look at the ingredients on the package--if corn or wheat product is in first 2 or 3 ingredients, it makes up most of the food) produce the most gas in my dogs. And, when I switched them to a raw diet (long story--but only one of my 3 is on raw diet at the moment), not only do I get no gas, I get much less poop to pick up, as they utilize most of the food instead of depositing it in the back yard. AND, even better, they don't seem to eat each other's poop as much! (I have some incredibly fast poop eaters too
But for kibble diet, check on the corn & wheeat amount in the food.

[ernstlaurie]

Thanks for insight - I thought the same thing with diet, so I am in the proces of switching her (SLOWLY) to a new food. I have had people mention if there is yucca or acidophlus that could help. This gas is all the time. As a matter of fact I am sitting in my office with a fan on to keep the venilation up or I think I may pass out from the fumes. I have never in my life owned a bouv with quite an aroma. Good grief....good thing I love her!!!

[Sue]

Other things to consider...

People who overfeed their dogs usually end up with more gas;

Do you walk your dog to move the debris out of their system after meals? That ought to help relieve the green air problem too.

Dogs with parasites are usually gassy. If you have not dewormed your dog in a while, it might be a good idea. Fenbendazole is a good choice since it eliminates most parasites and has a wide margin of safety. Panacur or Safeguard are brands you can get at the local feed store or order from KV Vet, Valley Vet, etc.... check the livestock products. I like the liquid suspension since it's the easiest to dose and is the best value. For folks with just a dog or two, look for the "goat pack" which is 125 mls. That will deworm two adult Bouviers. If you have more large dogs, the liter bottle is a better value.

If you need help figuring out the canine dosage, write me privately.

Cheers,
Sue