Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Diet changes and treatment results in dogs with chronic gut disease
By Rodrigues, Sofia D et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2025·Veterinary Teaching Hospital·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Association of Diet With Treatment Response in Dogs With Chronic Enteropathy: A Retrospective Multicenter Study.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with chronic gastrointestinal issues (naïve chronic enteropathy) were switched to a special hydrolyzed protein diet to see if it would help their symptoms. After four weeks, 88% of the dogs on this diet showed improvement in their stool consistency, indicating better digestive health. For dogs that didn't respond to initial treatments (non-responsive enteropathy), switching to a different diet also helped, with 69% showing improvement in their overall condition. These findings suggest that specific dietary changes can significantly benefit dogs with these digestive problems.
People also search for: dog chronic diarrhea diet · hydrolyzed protein diet for dogs · dog inflammatory bowel disease treatment
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Hydrolyzed protein diets are commonly used in the first-line approach to the treatment of dogs with naïve-chronic enteropathy (naïve-CE). OBJECTIVES: To characterize the responses of naïve-CE dogs transitioned to a hydrolyzed diet and to assess the efficacy of an additional dietary trial in dogs with NRE. ANIMALS: Eighty-one dogs with naïve-CE and 23 dogs with NRE. METHODS: Retrospective multicenter cohort study including dogs with CE presented to three referral centers from April 2018 to December 2021. Naïve-CE and NRE cases transitioned to hydrolyzed and alternative diets, respectively, were selected, and medical records were reviewed. Clinical response before and 4 weeks after dietary transitions (with or without concurrent therapeutic adjustments) was assessed based on stool-consistency score or Canine Inflammatory Bowel Disease Activity Index (CIBDAI) total score in naïve and NRE cases, respectively. RESULTS: The transition into a hydrolyzed diet was the only therapeutic change in 20% (16/81). Of these, 88% (14/16) had a decreased stool-consistency score (p < 0.001). From the 23 NRE cases, the transition to an alternative diet was the sole therapeutic adjustment in 70% (16/23). Of these, the total CIBDAI score declined in 69% (11/23; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: This study supports the need to feed a hydrolyzed diet in naïve CE cases. In cases classified as NRE, an additional transition into an alternative dietary trial seems beneficial.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40326642/