Upset Tummies in Huskies and Sled Dogs

Huskies and sled dogs often have sensitive digestive systems. They may react badly to many of the common ingredients in cheaper brands of dog food and suffer from upset tummies.

Huskies tend to be better suited to 'kibble' type dry dog foods that wet, tinned foods. Tinned dog food tends to be made of cheap ingredients, such as wheat, that don't agree with husky tummies.

Avoiding Upset Tummies

Upset tummies are common in huskies and sled dogs, particularly in Husky puppies. The first course of action if your dog or puppy is showing any signs of illness should be to consult a vet. Upset tummies may be the first sign of serious illnesses, and should not be left to chance. However, if there is no obvious reason for your puppy or dog to have an ongoing tummy upset, or they experience problems on a regular basis, the cause may well be their diet.

The main diet-related reasons huskies and other sled dogs get upset tummies are:

CHANGING FOODS

Changing food too quickly is a common cause of tummy upsets. If you want to change the type of food you give your husky, malamute or sled dog, you must make sure you change foods SLOWLY.
Changes should be made over the course of a week or more. Start by substituting a very small amount of their food for the new kind. If you feed your husky on kibble, swap just a few biscuits at first, gradually adding more and more until you have switched completely.

FOOD ALLERGIES

Many huskies and sled dogs are sensitive to ingredients found in some dog foods. The main ingredients that cause problems are:

• Wheat
• Gluten
• Dairy
• Soya

This is not to say that every husky or sled dog will react badly to these ingredients, but many do, particularly to wheat. In a few rare cases, Huskies have been known to suffer other food allergies, including chicken, rice, egg and beef. Though uncommon, such allergies do exist, and may be worth keeping in mind if your dog has long term digestive issues with no obvious cause.

If you suspect your husky has a food allergy, the standard course of action is to simplify the dogs diet until its system has stabilized, and then gradually reintroduce foods one by one. Plain boiled rice with boiled chicken breast or scrambled eggs (made without milk), are a good simple starting point for a dog with tummy troubles. After a few days on such a diet, if the dog's tummy has settled, you can start GRADUALLY introducing kibble or other food.

*If your husky still as an upset tummy after a few days on rice and chicken, and your vet can find no obvious explanation, your Husky may have have an allergy to one of these foods. In this case, you could try porridge oats soaked overnight in water, with some tinned salmon. Boiled potatoes are another alternative instead of rice, and can also be mashed up with tinned salmon.*

Stick to one type of food, and aim to gradually switch from rice and chicken/eggs over two weeks (so after 3 days each meal would be about 25% kibble, after 1 week 50% kibble, and 100% kibble at the end of 2 weeks). If your husky gets an upset tummy as you introduce the kibble, go back to the rice diet, give it a couple of days to settle, and start again with a different type of kibble, i.e. one with different ingredients. If a rice-based kibble doesn't agree with your dog, try one of the varieties based on oats or potatoes, such a Burn's Pork & Potato or Oat kibbles.

Brands

Below is a list of brands of kibble that we ourselves, or other owners we know, have found suitable for our own huskies and sled dogs. This list is by no means definitive, and not all of these food will suit all huskies; this is simply aimed at providing suggestions and pointing you in the right direction.

Fish4Dogs Complete Dry Food Contains 55% fish. For this reason, it may be a good choice for dogs that need extra Zinc in their diet. The other main ingredient is potato. It also has added Brewers' Yeast, which provides a good source of B Vitamins. It contains no wheat or gluten which can cause allergies, and no additives or preservatives.

Also available from the Fish4Dogs is a Complete Kibble with Salmon. This also contains 55% fish, and specifically 34% salmon, including salmon oil. This is great for husky's coats and health in general, proving Omega 3 and Vitamin A amongst other things. (You can buy salmon oil seperately to supplement your dog's diet - see here for options).

Burns produce a range of high quality kibble that seems to suit sled dogs and huskies well. The Burns range has been developed by a veterniary surgeon who believes strongly in simple, natural foods to promote health. The range offers kibbles free from Wheat, Gluten, Dairy and Soya, and the various flavors contain fish oils and seaweed, and other vitamins and minerals that suit huskies and sled dogs.

The Burns kibble range is highly digestible and specifically recommended for dogs with digestion issues. It is also suitable for senior dogs. Burns Pork and Potato is free from rice as well as chicken, wheat, gluten, dairy and soya, so is an option for extremely sensitive dogs. Burns Active has been specifically developed for active working dogs, so is perhaps more suitable during the racing season if you do work your huskies regularly.

James Wellbeloved kibble is promoted as completely hypoallergenic, and contains no beef, pork, wheat, gluten, dairy or eggs.

Arden Grange is another hypoallergenic kibble that many husky and sled dog owners find suits their dogs well. Arden Grange Sensitive Ocean Fish and Potato seems to be a good solution for some huskies and sled dogs with very sensitives digestive systems.

The Orijen range of kibble is popular among husky and sled dog owners in the USA and Canada, and has recently become available for purchase in the UK through Amazon.

Treats for Huskies and Sled Dogs

Treats are often the cause behind sudden cases of upset tummies. Many owners feed their huskies and sled dogs with suitable kibble or other diets, but forget that treats are often just as bad, if not worse for huskies than the regular foods that cause them problems. The problem is really common for new owners, who will usually be trying to train their new husky puppy or dog, and feeding them lots of treats.

It is important to make sure that you find some treats that does not upset your dog or puppy. The treats that we have found to be suitable for our own huskies include those from the Fish4Dogs range, Arden Grange treats, Burns dog treats, and James Wellbeloved dog treats.

Remember that if you go to a puppy training class the other dog owners present may try and reward your husky with their own treats. As an owner you have to be really strict with other people - don't let them feed your dog with their treats. Like many other new owners, we were woken in the middle of the night after the first puppy-class we went to, by our husky who was not feeling well at all. She had been fed a whole range of treats by the other owners at the class, and it made her sick all night and the next day.

The lesson is: don't let other people feed your husky - this goes for old ladies in the park with pockets full of dog biscuits too. As sweet as their intentions are, it does not do your husky any favors if it means they get sick afterwards. For young puppies it may only take a couple of cheap dog biscuits to cause tummy upsets.