Caring for canine colitis

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What is colitis?

Simply put, colitis is an inflammation of the colon.

What and where is the colon?

The colon is another name for the large or lower intestine.

As food travels through the dog's body, most of it is absorbed and used by the body as fuel or is stored at fat. The remaining food, composed mainly of indigestible fibers, enters the colon.

There are three functions of the colon: storing stool, absorbing water, and further digestion of unabsorbed nutrients. The colon's bacteria count is approximately ten times denser than the bacteria in the small intestine. The bacteria take the left-over fibers and break them down into three bio-chemicals: acetate, propionate, and butyrate. These nourish the cells of the colon (which have a life expectancy rate of one week), and control the ph balance so that the toxins that are excreted will not be reabsorbed as well as producing gasses and pigments used in creating stools.

What are symptoms of colitis?

Since your dog can't tell you what it's feeling, you must rely on visible and tangible signs to gauge it's health. A major obvious symptom of colitis is diarrhea. To properly classify and treat colitis related diarrhea, it must be determined whether the problem is in the small intestine (which is the more serious of the two) or in the large intestine. The following characteristics are commonly found in diarrheas of the large intestine:

• They have nothing to do with weight loss
• They often involve straining and a sense of sudden urgency
• Fresh blood can often be found in the stool
• The presence of slime or mucus is often observed
• Stools often start normal and finish loose
• The stool is often gooey or slimy as opposed to watery

While your veterinarian can make a diagnosis of colitis based on the above symptoms, treatment depends on the nature of the diarrhea. Is it acute (i.e., has it appeared suddenly), chronic (ongoing for several weeks), or episodic (recurring time after time)?

Sudden (acute) colitis

If your dog suddenly develops colitis, it is probably induced by stress, such as boarding, moving, severe weather or some other change in lifestyle, or it could be from a dietary indiscretion, such as emptying the garbage can, too may treats or a sudden change in diet. These cases can usually be cleared up with proper medication and/or diet  [Continued]

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