# Dog is super gassy and is constantly biting/scratching angrily at her butt?



## Kismetkitten (Feb 19, 2012)

I just moved in with my boyfriend recently and we've been having some serious problems with our dog Zoe. She is a rott mix. Our first problem is she has the worst horrible gas! And she does it frequently.. Like.. Eggs, corndogs and mustard.. Not the best smell of fart I must say. Our other problem is she has a nack for constantly itching her butt. Though she usually does it when shes alone or we're not constantly watching her. She knows shes not allowed to do it so she does it mostly when she gets the chance. Even when we are in bed and either about to sleep or are sleeping, she'll take the chance and bite the crap outta her butt until it bleeds all over the bed. She was eating Iams before I had switched her food to a lamb and rice Purina. After switching her food it helped amazingly after about a few months. Then it started up all over again with the bad gas and butt biting.

Do I need to change her food again? Or is this something else? What do you guys usually do to keep your dogs farts at bay?


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## LilasMom (Jan 18, 2012)

Well both Iams and Purina are very low quality foods, so I would suggest switching again. A dog should not regularly have bad gas. I would go to dogfoodadvisor.com and look at the reviews for the Iams and Purina foods you were/are feeding. Next, look through the list of 4 and 5 star foods. I would suggest choosing a grain free food as well.

Also, why is she not allowed to scratch her butt? If she has an itch you shouldn't keep her from scratching it. Can you imagine if you were really itchy and whenever you tried to scratch someone scolded you or reprimanded you?


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## Kismetkitten (Feb 19, 2012)

LilasMom said:


> Well both Iams and Purina are very low quality foods, so I would suggest switching again. A dog should not regularly have bad gas. I would go to dogfoodadvisor.com and look at the reviews for the Iams and Purina foods you were/are feeding. Next, look through the list of 4 and 5 star foods. I would suggest choosing a grain free food as well.
> 
> Also, why is she not allowed to scratch her butt? If she has an itch you shouldn't keep her from scratching it. Can you imagine if you were really itchy and whenever you tried to scratch someone scolded you or reprimanded you?


No no. Shes certainly allowed to scratch her butt. But she doesn't do it normally. Its not some little itch. When she scratches her butt, she always bites it and rubs the fur right off of it and the spot is always really bloody. I wouldn't mind her itching her butt as long as it didn't end in having giant blood spots on the bed from her butt.


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## hast (Aug 17, 2011)

I would definitely change to a better and grain-free food. Poor pup, how very uncomfortable she must be to scratch/bite her butt bloody.
My girl had really bad gas too ... until I changed her over to grain free food. I've always fed her 4 star food, but her tummy doesn't handle grains well.


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## hamandeggs (Aug 11, 2011)

If your dog is scratching until she bleeds, I would recommend a vet trip. I agree that you should get her on a higher-quality grain free food as well. Taste of the Wild is a reasonably-priced and high quality option.


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## Abbylynn (Jul 7, 2011)

I agree with all the above and would also like to mention that she may need her anal glands expressed as well. Leeo has that particular issue and he either scoots, licks or bites at his rear. If it is anal glands and left untreated it can lead to other health issues as well as skin infections. It could be a little bit of everything. Hope she feels better!  I also changed to TOTW grain - free dog food with much better results with Blu Boy and his allergies.


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## Greater Swiss (Jun 7, 2011)

I agree with the above too...especially the vet visit!!!
Switch foods too, though don't depend on your vet for the best advice on food, they are vets, not nutritionists! That said a vet gave me the best advice on dog food: "if your dog is excessively gassey they are on the wrong food, no matter what it is". I think that advice goes for excessive scratching and chewing on itself too. 
Good luck, the search for the right food can be a frustrating one. Check out Dogfood advisor, it can help you find a good quality food.


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## GBrown62 (Nov 28, 2011)

I'd start with a trip to a vet and switching to a grain free food. 
Our rescued pup had the same issues with really runny stool and we found out she had a belly full of worms.
Took about a month and a few hundred dollars to cure her and now she's just fine.


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## luv mi pets (Feb 5, 2012)

A trip to the vet first. This will help rule out if she has fleas or parasites. Some dogs are so allergic one flea bite will send them into a biting frenzy. just remember if you switch her to a grain-free food, the treats also need to be grain-free too. The top three things dog are allergic to is beef, corn and wheat. So No rawhides for your dog. For 2 months really just limit her food intake of different foods. Only feed her the dog food. It is than that you could introduce her to different things. If she has gas, an ahaa moment will occur and you will know what she is allergic to. You may have thought by feeding her the Purina lamb and rice food was a limited ingredient food. Look at the ingredients. Corn-gluten meal and whole grain corn are the 3rd and 4th ingredient. Now to fully understand most people would think that lamb was the number one ingredient, but this may not be so. Things are listed in order by weight. Meat has a lot of water in it, making it heavier than a meal Now they cook the meat. Now the dog food could have more corn than lamb or rice. You may think by buying those dog foods are more expensive but being a better quality you will not have to feed her as much. In the long not that much different, especially if only feeding one dog. Your guests will appreciate the change.


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## momof3 (Nov 24, 2007)

I was the owner of a foster who was farting so bad that if she went outside to play the house still smelled like her farts. I posted on here about it and was given the suggestion to take her off Chicken based food and no soy. So I put her on 4health Salmon/potato and a little plain yogurt daily and its been a week now and let me just say that the gas has almost gone away,not fully but almost and I am thinking if I continue with that food the gas will go away all together. After the vet visit I would consider a no soy,non chicken based food.


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## mashlee08 (Feb 24, 2012)

Your pup may have mild irritable bowel disease(IBD), which is not helped by foods that may set her off(hence the gas), as everyone above said switch to a grain free food or something like hills i/d or nutro sensitive stomach which has a skin and coat guarantee. i think you will find switching her to the right food will also fix her skin issue. Not saying she has IBD but it is quite a common problem that people miss if it is mild. Sometimes you just need to keep switching foods till you find the right one for your dog. However first thing is first, take her to the vet


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## LilasMom (Jan 18, 2012)

mashlee08 said:


> Your pup may have mild irritable bowel disease(IBD), which is not helped by foods that may set her off(hence the gas), as everyone above said switch to a grain free food or something like *hills i/d *or nutro sensitive stomach which has a skin and coat guarantee. i think you will find switching her to the right food will also fix her skin issue. Not saying she has IBD but it is quite a common problem that people miss if it is mild. Sometimes you just need to keep switching foods till you find the right one for your dog. However first thing is first, take her to the vet


Avoid Hills. Very low quality food with not the best ingredients to say the least. Try something like Taste of the Wild.


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## RubyDog (Feb 29, 2012)

I agree with the grain free food. I have my dog on Acana Grasslands and she's doing very well. Could definitely be anal gland issues. Anal glands can even abscess and rupture if not expressed regularly. Plain yogurt with probiotics may be helpful too!
Bottom line is that you should definitely take your pup to the vet.


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