[Canyx]

When a dog has GI issues one common suggestion is "maybe you got a bad bag of dog food". Although I don't doubt that this can be the case, I'm curious to hear if anyone that has experienced dog GI issues has ever confirmed that a bad bag of food was the cause of the diarrhea. And I don't mean a bad brand or a formula that doesn't suit the dog. I'm referring to situations when the dog was fine on a food generally but the current bag was spoiled, rotten, made the dog sick, etc.

Thanks for your input!

 

[storyist]

Interesting. I've never heard that suggested as a reason for digestive upset. What I hear is speculation as to the dog having eaten some kind of garbage it shouldn't have.

I have had a bad bag of food - noticeable when opened that it was grayish. So that's once in over 50 years I've been on my own and buying for for my own dogs and rescue fosters, but it does't hurt to stay current on dog food recalls.

The primary thing that causes diarrhea in my dogs is stress - change of location or routine, new dog or human in household. I had a couple go rounds with giardia over the years (it's pretty much endemic here in Colorado, most dogs carry it, and stress gives it the upper hand), and one whose digestion just became a problem as she aged. She needed a special diet.

 

[Sanne]

I also have not ever heard of this being a reason for digestive problems. I have never gotten a bad bag myself. 9 times out of 10, stress is what will do it for my dog too. Location change is guaranteed soft stool. I have noticed when I am too obvious about my own stress she will have stool issues too. The other once and a while reason is a visiting family member dropping some kind of food on the floor.

 

[Lillith]

I have never had it happen, no, at least not from something I just purchased. The only place I've heard of that even happening is on Dog Forums, actually. I do think its possible for food to become contaminated, say, from a dirty dog food bowl that hasn't been cleaned in a long time, which may make it seem like the food is causing the problem.