[ybiaw]

Can I give my dog yogurt with her food to help combat yeast?

I'm pretty sure she's got a yeast infection going on in her ear - she's going to the vet for a checkup this week so I'll have them take a look then, too....but just wondering if A) that will help get rid of it and B) if it can be fed as maintenance to keep it from flaring up again.

Thoughts?

[BuddyRoo]

You can feed your dog yogurt.

Won't likely help with a yeast infection in her ear though.

She's going to need ear cleaning and meds and moving forward probably an ear drying treatment that you can use weekly or after any swimming/bathing.

Another consideration is that ear infections in dogs are often closely tied to food allergies.

[JB]

I hope you can feed yogurt - ours would be dead if you couldn't

Recurring ear issues is a reason to evaluate the diet for a cure, instead of constantly being in reaction mode What is she eating now?

[ybiaw]

I just adopted her so I'm not sure if its a reoccuring thing or if it's just from a not-so-great environment and benign neglect.

She's currently getting 2cups/day (1 in AM/1 in PM) of Purina One Chicken & Rice. I want to change her over to something of better quality as soon as this bag is done.

Thanks for the input!

[Crackerdog]

My dogs get plain yogurt once a day. I don't know if it does anything but they like it.

[wendy]

it's good for some digestive tract issues- because it has probiotics in it- but it won't do anything for ear infections. I wouldn't feed it "just because", or on a regular, daily basis- many dogs don't tolerate dairy well, and dairy can promote inflammatory states.

[KnKShowmom]

I just adopted her so I'm not sure if its a reoccuring thing or if it's just from a not-so-great environment and benign neglect.

She's currently getting 2cups/day (1 in AM/1 in PM) of Purina One Chicken & Rice. I want to change her over to something of better quality as soon as this bag is done.

Thanks for the input!

One of our labs has food allergies - would constantly scratch her ears/shake her head to the point it was keeping me awake at night. No amount of ear cleaning would help, Benedryl only offered temporary relief.

Once we checked out the food connection we started eliminating things from her diet - beef, then chicken, then grain. Ended up with Taste of the Wild Pacific formula (salmon and sweet potato) and it really helped.

If you decide to go this route, be careful about reading the ingredients - a lot of dog foods contain chicken broth, even if its not a chicken based food.

[FalseImpression]

Do not change your food suddenly. Do it gradually by slowly decreasing the amount of old food vs new food. And I just heard a program on the radio yesterday stating that No, you can't feed yogurt to dogs as they are lactose intolerant... that's news to me. My dog never got a full yogurt serving but he sure likes to lick the container. Same with the empty ice cream container! Did not notice any reaction either!

[Simkie]

it's good for some digestive tract issues- because it has probiotics in it

IF it has probiotics in it! So many yogurts don't these days. I think everyone knows to look at the package to confirm what they have contains active cultures, but if not--here's your notice!

[ybiaw]

Well, after a terrible and somewhat frightening night full of sudden onset honking and barfing, Little Missy and I moved up our vet appointment and went in today. She's got Kennel Cough. And yeast in her ear, as I suspected. So we've got drops from the doctor, and yadda yadda yadda...

And come on, give me a little credit, I know how to wean a dog from one food to another.

[jcotton]

If you feel that you need to get a better flora in your new dog's digestive tract, you should feed probiotic instead of yogurt.

Conklin's Fastrack is one probiotic. There are other brands. Look on line or go to a health food store, some feedstore's sell 'probiotics for animals' (equines, bovines,, porcines, k-9's and poultry).

[beowulf]

Agreed with Jcotton: probiotics are not that much more expensive than feeding human grade yogurt everyday.. and are a lot more effective. There are many horse probiotics that have a product marketed for dogs too (we can do our shopping in all one place!)

Are you still on Purina One? It's funny - I've fed my dogs everything from Blue Buffalo, Taste of the Wild, and Natural Balance - and they have done best on Purina One.. I have one that has weight gain issues, and she's done so WELL on Purina One (she's finally got some meat between her ribs). Not sure why, as it's not a very *high end* food.. but they sure seem to like it. I supplement their food every once in a while with a more quality dog food (usually Taste of the Wild) but they turn their noses up if it's not Purina One!

How is her yeast infection in the ear going? Poor pooch.. Glad to see you picked up a pup!

[ybiaw]

The ear is much better, thanks!

And yeah - the shelter that I got her from had her on Pedigree. I actually like the P1 so far and may keep her on it. She seems to love it.

[Foxtrot's]

Regarding yogurt - our daughter's Boxer has a really bad gas problem (it's a breed characteristic it seems). Daily yogurt has helped the problem considerably! I presume they use live culture yog. (is there any other kind?)

We can watch tv as a family again.

[mht]

Regarding yogurt - our daughter's Boxer has a really bad gas problem (it's a breed characteristic it seems). Daily yogurt has helped the problem considerably! I presume they use live culture yog. (is there any other kind?)

We can watch tv as a family again.

Yes, there ARE other kinds of yogourt. Some companies 'kill off' the yogourt culture when the desired pH has been reached. This prevents the culture from continuing to work, as the longer a culture multiplies, the 'tarter' the yogourt becomes, and some people don't like the taste of it. Be sure to read the label, so you know which you are getting.

[JB]

Making your own yogurt isn't too difficult