Posted by Pet Honesty on

Why a Probiotic Could Change Your Dog's Life: A Founder Case Study

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Chief has been my bestie since day one. He’s my hiking pal, source of comfort on a bad day and overall adventure buddy.


My dog’s
health and well-being is a huge priority for me so I was pretty outraged and shocked when I started putting together the pieces that FINALLY explained the mysterious and unexplainable health issues he was having.


What I found out blew me away and made me really angry.

What other dog owners are out there are suffering from the same digestive problems issues as Chief that have such a simple solution?” I thought. “How could all of this NOT be common knowledge?”

I hope that by sharing our story, this WILL become more common knowledge and will help other dogs live longer, healthier and more comfortable lives...just like it did for Chief. If your canine is having intestinal issues, acute diarrhea, or any other problems, it may be because of something in your dog’s diet.

Like any good dog owners would, my wife and I trained Chief when he was a puppy by rewarding him with a milk bone treat every time he would obey our commands—kennel up, sit, stay, shake. We were impressed by how quickly he would obey us when rewarded with a treat, so we kept this going for months.


Unfortunately, Chief never had normal bowel movements, but instead always had terrible diarrhea. It was pretty gross for us, and painful for him. We could tell he was uncomfortable and miserable with his digestive problems..


At first, we shrugged it off thinking that it was just him being a puppy and adapting to his food. But after a couple months of keeping him on the same food, removing his milk bone treats from his diet, countless vet visits and even paying the ridiculous prices at the vet for their recommended probiotics for dogs, Chief continued to have all the same issues.

 
The New Information I Learned That Started to Change Things

That’s when I started working at Pet Honesty and got exposed to pet nutrition, the truth behind some of the most common and popular dog food and treats and discovered the wonders of probiotics for dogs.


I was skeptical that a tiny little chew with natural pumpkin, enzymes and probiotics  could actually solve something that vets, prescription meds and diet changes had FAILED to do. It sounded pretty hippie- like to me, but my wife and I were getting desperate and had gone through most of our other options.


We began giving Chief just one or two a day as little rewards/treats.


We couldn’t believe what started happening in my dog’s body!


Almost overnight his digestive issues and chronic diarrhea that had gone on FOR YEARS was completely cleared up! Turns out, all our dog’s body needed was good bacteria and digestive enzymes to help clear up his gastrointestinal issues. On top of that he loved the taste of these little Probiotic Snacks SO much they were able to perform double duty as a treat/reward AND healthy dietary supplement.

He just recently spent a few nights away at my sister’s house while we were out of town and she forgot to give him his Probiotic Chews. When Chief came home I could immediately tell that he hadn’t been taking them and his entire digestive system was out of whack again.


Now we NEVER give Chief milk bones and other cheap “popular” treats and only give him Probiotic Chews.


The change in his energy levels, comfort, bowel movements and overall health has been dramatic.

 

The Truth About Dog Food/Treats

It turns out that Milk-Bones, and several other common dog treats like Beggin’ Strips and T-Bonz, are filled with cheap, harmful and toxic ingredients that are tearing up our dogs’ gastrointestinal tract and causing a ripple effect of issues.


For example, “Sodium Metabisulfite (the preservative in Milk-Bones) is harmful if ingested or inhaled (as in sniffed).  It reacts with WATER and acids (like those in your dog’s stomach) to release toxic sulfur dioxide gas. It can cause life-threatening asthmatic reactions after ingestion as well as gastrointestinal, circulatory and central nervous system problems.   The people who handle this stuff are required to wear hazmat suits and respirators.”


Here’s another sobering find: “Color dyes Yellow #6, Blue #1 and #2, Red #3 and Green #3 are linked with cancer in animal testing are are found in Milk-Bones, Beggin Strips, Beneful Snackin Slices, and T-Bonz.”

 

The Science Behind Why Probiotics Work

After our success story and learning about how common dog treats can wreak havoc on dogs’ internal organs and digestion, I started looking into the science behind probiotics and gut health. Turns out, a simple change in diet can drastically improve a dog’s digestive health. That’s when I learned that all good health (for dogs AND humans) starts in the gut. Canine probiotics are an essential but often overlooked part of a dog’s diet and are really helpful in minimizing a variety of ailments in dogs - from diarrhea to vomiting to allergies to itchy skin and hot spots.

Between the grains and not-so-good for you ingredients in common dog foods and treats and the scraps and weird things our dogs eat out of the trash or in our backyard, their digestive systems are often in pretty bad shape.


Dogs really should be ingesting dog specific strains of probiotics on a daily basis to help heal “leaky gut” syndrome and repopulate the gut with good bacteria to improve digestion, reduce vomiting, upset stomachs and acute diarrhea.


I hear story after story from friends/family members with dogs or from dog owners at the dog park about their pups’ mysterious and undiagnosed struggles with horrible diarrhea, vomiting, constipation and even skin issues, and other GI tract problems. Unfortunately, a lot of these unwanted symptoms stem from a dog’s diet

Almost 100% of the time these dogs have never taken a Probiotic and/or are fed nasty cheap treats that cause bad bacteria in the GI tract. Now that Chief and I have gone through all of this I know the right questions to ask and am always eager to share how cutting out harmful treats and introducing Probiotic Snacks basically made him a new dog!


If you care about your dog’s digestive health, make the switch to nutritional supplements that promote beneficial bacteria in the gut. A probiotic for dogs can work wonders for canines who are suffering from acute diarrhea, loose stools, or any other problems with their intestinal tract. 


Your canine doesn’t have to suffer from digestive problems anymore. Now is the perfect time to get his gastrointestinal tract in order with the right kind of bacteria. Support your pup’s health and well-being by feeding him canine probiotics today! 


Read Other 5-Star Reviews And Success Stories

JERRY M.

purchased Probiotic Snacks

"Our doggo love these probiotics chews. Three of our pups get probiotics: Jack Quigley, our German Shephard has skin problems; Josie....used to get UTI's; our Chihuahua, is prone to skin problems. While on probiotics these three pups no longer have those problems. They love these probiotic snacks. The other probiotics we've used are powder, which I've put on their food, but the 'treat' format is nice."

 

Sources:

https://goodnessgracioustreats.wordpress.com/2010/06/12/where%E2%80%99s-the-beef/

https://gainesfamilyfarmstead.com/blogs/news/why-you-should-avoid-artificial-food-coloring-in-dog-treats

 

Camille Arneberg and her dog
Camille is a co-founder of Pet Honesty and VP of Pup Parent Education. After watching her own family dog suffer from joint issues for years she became passionate about improving dogs' quality of life. With the help of a team of veterinarians and dog nutritionists she now helps educate other dog owners about the small but powerful things they can do to positively impact their dogs' health and wellness! She lives in Austin, TX and loves cuddling puppies, being outside and reading.