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GI Disorders
GI disorders impair a pets ability to digest and
absorb nutrients. Factors may include:
•Abrupt change in diet
• Dietary indiscretion
• Malabsorption
• Maldigestion
• Allergies
• Cancer
• Parasites
• Infectious agents
• Toxins
• Reactions to medications
Acute gastritis is
usually self limiting.
It is characterized by
vomiting which
resolves in 24 to 48
hours. Possible
causes include
dietary indiscretion
or foreign objects.
Chronic gastritis has
intermittent vomiting over a
period of weeks to months.
Cause is seldom determined.
The inflammatory response
stimulates acid secretion and
damages normal mucosal
barriers.
Small bowel disease
refers to any condition
that affects the small
intestine including
inflammation and
infection. Small bowel
diarrhea is
characterized by large
amounts of stool
passed 3 – 5 times per
day without straining.
Colitis (large bowel disease) may be
caused by food sensitivity, parasites,
infection or pancreatitis.
Management is targeted at correcting the
underlying disease. Dietary changes
depends on which part of the GI tract is
affected.
Color
Likely Cause
Likely Location
Yellowish or greenish Rapid transit
Small bowel
Black, tarry
Upper GI bleeding
Stomach or small
bowel
Red blood or clots
Lower GI bleeding
Colon clots
Pasty, light
Lack of bile
Liver
Large, gray, rancid
Inadequate digestion Small bowel or
absorption
Consistency
Likely Cause
Likely Location
Watery
Rapid transit
Small bowel
Foamy
Bacterial infection
Small bowel
Greasy, often with oily Malabsorption
hair around the anus
Small bowel, pancreas
Glistening or jellylike Constains mucus
Colon
The presence of food can have a positive
effect, triggering a variety of signals that
facilitate digestion and metabolism:
•Secretion of digestive enzymes
• Optimize blood flow to the small intestine
• Delivery of nutrients to cells
• GI cell proliferation
Food can also have a negative effect:
•Undigested food can trigger inflammatory
responses
• Alter GI mobility
• Alter microflora populations
Small bowel disorders:
•Diet should be highly digestible, low in fat and
fiber
• High digestibility facilitates nutrient
absorption and reduces the potential for
diarrhea as large quantities of undigested food
in the gut can cause water retention and trigger
renewed diarrhea.
Protein turnover may be increased so it is
important to maximize absorption. The protein
should contain a sufficient amount of the amino
acid, glutamine, as it is one of the main fuels for
enterocytes
Restricting fat is recommended. Although fat is
easily digestible, the metabolism requires
several steps. Undigested fat that reaches the
colon can be altered by bacteria to produce
toxins that increase mucosal permeability and
alter mobility.
Large bowel disorders:
Patients may benefit for moderate
amounts of soluble and insoluble fiber.
Dietary fiber helps:
•Restore normal intestinal motility
• Dilute concentration of potential toxins
• Bind to excess water
• reestablish normal microflora
populations
• provide energy for colonocytes
Pancreatitis: Dietary fat stimulates the pancreas to
secrete lipase. These digestive enzymes may leak
into the bloodstream causing pain and tissue
damage.
Clinical signs include:
Pyrexia (fever),
Cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat),
Liver damage,
Kidney damage,
Sepsis (infection in the blood),
Peritonitis (inflammation of the lining of the abdominal
cavity).
Owners may notice the following clinical signs:
Vomiting (emesis; usually profuse)
Lack of appetite (inappetence; anorexia; refusal
to eat)
Lack of thirst (refusal to drink)
Weight loss
Weakness
Depression
Lethargy
Diarrhea
Dehydration
Abdominal pain (usually severe and sudden in
onset)
Tucked-up belly (“prayer position”)
Prayer Position
Enteral Nutrition: introducing nutrients to the gut to be
broken down and utilized for energy
Parenteral Nutrition: introducing nutrition to the body,
bypassing the gut. ie. Intraveneous
Fluid therapy will help to combat dehydration and
restore electrolyte imbalances.
Experts recommend enteral nutritional support in all
patients with pancreatitis. EN stabilizes the gut
barrier, improves enterocyte health and immune
function, improves GI motility and prevents
catabolism.
Enteral nutrition can be provided by a variety of feeding
tubes,
including nasogastric (NG) or nasoesophogeal (NE)
tubes, esophogostomy tubes, gastrostomy tubes or
jejunostomy tubes. Jejunostomy tubes bypass the
pancreas and can be used in patients when vomiting
cannot be controlled.
The Gis main function is to digest and absorb
nutrients. It also has a role in defending the
body. The GI represents a first line of defence
against potential pathogens, toxins and
allergens. The GI is the bodys largest immune
system. About 70% of the body’s immune
system is located in the GI tract
The bacteria population is organized into a
complex ecosystem that balances
beneficial and harmful bacteria. The
function of the bacteria is to aid in digestion
and absorption of nutrients, and to prevent
infection. Factors that can upset the
balance between beneficial and harmful
bacteria include:
Disease
Aging
Stress
Drugs
Probiotics: micro-organisms that are introduced into the
gut to ensure healthy bacterial population
Prebiotics: food ingredients that act as nutrition
for existing gut bacteria, promoting healthy
bacteria flora.
Beet pulp, soy beans, fructo-oligosaccharide
(FOS)