symptoms of IBD. The thing is, just like in the case of actual wars being fought between countries, these clashes and brawls in your dog’s gut can be avoided.

Many years ago I heard a lecture by a veterinarian highly re- nowned for his research in the field of Irritable Bowel Disease. Experience had taught me that questions asked privately were often times more candidly answered. That’s why I discreetly asked, “Why do you think we’re seeing an epidemic rise in IBD?” He replied, “We’re vaccinating them with the same stuff we’re feeding them.” That was almost 20 years ago

Why would the stuff in vaccinations cause IBD? You may already be familiar with the fact that vaccines contain chicken embryo and bovine serum. During vaccination, these food proteins are in- troduced into the body along with the other vaccine components. A dog’s immune system identifies all of these vaccine components as enemies, and, far as the immune system is concerned, when any enemy shows its ugly face, it’s time for battle. IBD in our dogs comes about when the battlefield is in the gut.

SIGNS OF WAR: THE SOLDIERS SET UP BASE CAMP

When a dog has IBD, the soldiers (inflammatory cells) infiltrate the intestinal walls and set up base camp. In the trenches are the regiments made up of different types of white blood cells such as lymphocytes, plasmacytes, eosinophils, and sometimes neutro- phils. After many battles, the intestinal walls become thickened and nutrients are not absorbed as well. This collateral damage within the walls of the intestine commonly results in symptoms such as diarrhea, mucous or blood in the stool, vomiting and weight loss.

THREE-LETTER AGENCIES: IgA AND IgM

In governments, three-letter agencies like the CIA and FBI pro- vide intelligence services identifying enemies. The immune sys- tem uses immunoglobulins, also known as antibodies, to identify enemies: three-letter agencies protecting your dog’s body.

Special immunogloblins live in your dog’s digestive tract. The immunoglobulins IgA and IgM serve as the gut’s intelligence service by identifying enemies. They initiate the battle in the gut by calling in the regiments: the eosinophils and plasmacytes. This starts the battle of food intolerance or food sensitivity, battles that can easily escalate to the War of IBD.

It’s important to know that food intolerances and sensitivities cause a delayed response in the intestine. In other words, your dog can eat the offending food on Monday and the reaction can occur much later in the week.

Most dogs are fed the same thing day after day, and this repetition tends to actually create food intolerances and sensitivities. It’s pretty typical for a dog parent to sigh in relief, if not jump for joy, when a food that agrees with a dog with IBD is finally found. Unfortunately they then feed that food day after day, greatly increasing the chance of later developing a reaction to that same food!

The post What ‘IS’ IBD or IBS? first appeared on Natural Remedies for Dog Allergies.