There are so many diets and food options out there for your dog. If your dog is not prone to tummy problems then it’s a lot easier and less stressful in selecting his or her food. You always want to make sure though that it’s a balanced diet and they are eating healthy foods.

When you have a dog that is prone to Gut issues then it becomes trickier to find the right diet so we can manage any potential flare ups.                              

I have added a calculator on the website that may assist you when trying to work out the percentage of fat in a particular pet food brand. I know when I was doing this for Marlo it was difficult as I did not realise that you also need to take into consideration the DMB (Dry Matter Basis) and how to remove the water/moisture content from foods when you are checking to see what the fat content of a food is or comparing wet food vs dry/Kibble food.

Dry Matter Basis (DMB) removes the water from the equation. When foods are considered on a dry matter basis, they can be directly compared to one another. So other words, a canned food with 78% water can now be compared to a dry food that contains 11% water or two wet foods with different amounts of moisture using the following equation:

There is alot of information online that you can do your own research on how to work out fat content on various pet foods if you are feeding wet canned food or kibble. From my experience kibble is very hard for dogs to digest, you can soften them in water or bone broth prior to feeding but for me it did not look appetising once it was made soft and Marlo refused to eat it that way.

Foods difficult for dogs to digest

• Soybeans
• Beans
• Peas
• Spoiled food 

A dog’s diet needs to be easily digestible especially with dogs that do have tummy issues. Excessive gas can be a symptom of hard to digest foods such as, abdominal pain, mild bloating of their stomach, excessive rumbling from the abdomen and of course gas being expelled sometimes with or without smell but in Marlo’s case the smell was overpowering, that’s when I knew we were in for another major flare.

Of course, its not my intention here to tell anyone what to feed their pet as every dog is different and what works for one does not mean it will be right for another. I can only provide information on what worked in my experience. When Marlo’s Pancreatitis towards the end was really bad I ended up boiling beef mince, I made sure I bought the lowest fat content. Unfortunately Marlo was allergic to poultry

I found Woolworths sold mince that had the heart tick of approval which had less fat content. I guess you could buy a piece of steak and get it minced, that would work as well . I then added steamed pumpkin, spinach and zucchini and from time to time I topped it off with a scrambled egg and I tried a very small amount of rice or oats but he was not a fan and usually left those bits in his bowl. I also steamed white fish which was a favourite of his.

There are other better options for protein then beef, for instance Turkey, chicken and from all the research I have made, rabbit and venison are very good but here in Australia we don’t have access to these as easily as the mainstream protein products.

I also made bone broth ice cubes which he loved, just to try and keep his fluids up as he used to love his water but during a chronic flare up he would not even tolerate water.

A lot of people home cook for their babies which I think is a great idea if you have the time and as long as you ensure that it’s a balanced diet. Again, there are lots of recipe ideas on the web .

One of the reasons I have set up the Pet Parents Community Facebook page is so that you can join the group and share your stories and photos of your dogs and let us know how you manage their tummy issues, what works and what doesn’t work. Don’t forget its not about telling people what they should or shouldn’t do but rather share information and experiences and especially if you do home cooked meals, what are your recipes. Does anyone make their own low fat treats? I would love for you to share your recipes.

I look forward to meeting you all on Marlo’s Pet Parents Community Facebook Group.

Don’t forget….you are not alone when having to manage your dog with tummy issues.

Marlo’s tip: When working out the exact fat % from a food label, best to contact manufacturer and ask for the maximum crude fat % contained, as labels may only display the minimum % of fat and that would make a big difference when you do your calculations.