Ask the expert.. Nov-Dec-2013

Dr KG Umesh (MVSc, MSc (UK)) is a Postgraduate in Clinical Medicine. He is working for WALTHAM as Regional Associate for South Asia.
Mephy
Q: We feed dry food to our six years old kitty. Recently, she has started passing a lot of gas. Please advice.
–Prerna, Ahmedabad
Dr KG Umesh: Most of the gas that forms in the intestine comes from air swallowed during eating or through panting. Some gases are formed from bacterial fermentation of poorly digested carbohydrate or fibre in the colon. Also, malodorous gas may be generated by metabolic disturbances in the breakdown of food components or diseases of large intestine particularly colon. While it’s a natural part of your cat’s digestive process, the tendency to pass gas increases as your cat ages. There are a number of ways you can help decrease your cat’s intestinal gas: check your cat food label. Many cat foods contain soy, which can be hard to digest. Cut out table scraps. Therapy is directed toward feeding suitable diet with adequate fibre, reducing gas surface-active tension, reducing intestinal bacterial colonisation, and improving gut motility. The combination of yucca schidigera, zinc acetate or charcoal may help to reduce malodour of flatus in pets as shown in a study at Waltham. Please take him to your vet to rule out medical causes, if any.
 
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