Your Pet On Antibiotics

Antibiotics can take a toll on your pet's body. But let's face it, sometimes they just have to take them! So what can you do to restore your pet's gut to it's normal health and vitality after taking antibiotics? Is there anything you can do during the antibiotic regimen to prevent yeast overgrowth? Yes. In short, you need to rebuild the healthy flora in your pet's gut. What does this mean?

First off, we need to discuss what antibiotics do. The root word "anti-" means "to destroy, kill", or "go against". "Bio" means "life". So an antibiotic is taken to kill life or, to kill bacteria in the body. The problem that arises when taking antibiotics is they kill all bacteria in the body, good and bad. Healthy intestines should be filled with "good guy" bacteria though. These "good guys" can be likened to superheroes: They fight crime (like gas, bloating, and diarrhea), and they keep the bad guys (harmful bacteria like E.Coli) under control! But without the good guys to take care of the intestines and keep them clean and safe, the bad bacteria can flourish and cause a number of health problems- including the most common problem caused by taking antibiotics: Yeast infections.

So how do you prevent yeast infections in pets? (Also known as candida.) The first step you can take is Probiotic supplementation. Probiotics are the exact opposite of antibiotics. "Pro" means "for". And of course "bio" means "life". So by giving your pet probiotics you are actually giving them good, healthy bacteria. These good bacteria infiltrate the intestines, change the pH, and make life uncomfortable for the bad bacteria to live there. So naturally the bad bacteria leave, making the intestines once again healthy and strong.

When your pet is on antibiotics for a specific time period, continue to supplement with probiotics. Of course, given at the same time the antibiotics will kill many of the probiotics off. But you can outsmart the system, and here's how:

While on antibiotics:

Double the probiotic dose: 2 scoops of probiotics for pets per 1 cup of pet food.

After completing the antibiotics: (usually a 10-day course) continue to double the probiotic dose for 2-3 weeks. This will rebuild the health of your pet's gut and help it get into tip top shape! After the 2-3 week period, continue supplementing with probiotics normally, 1 scoop per 1 cup of pet food.

Remember: you want to give your pet probiotics with food. This will help the probiotics to live longer and flourish in the gut. If a probiotic supplement suggests you take it away from food, the product is not stable, and not strong enough to be of benefit in your pet's gut.