Diarrhoea
Causes
The consistency of a horse's or dog's faeces provides important clues to their health. In the horse for instance, the dung should be well formed, moist, shiny and brown - and without a strong, unpleasant odour.
Diarrhoea is not an illness, but a symptom that has various causes, all of which initiate a disturbance of the body's water retention, thereby liquefying the faeces. In cases where you can exclude stress or nutritional errors (i.e. sudden changes, insufficiently dried or spoiled feed, toxins) then the cause of diarrhoea can be bacterial or viral infection. Causal agents are often corona-, adeno-, arteritis-, or rotaviruses. Common pathogenic bacteria are e-coli, salmonella, clostridium, klebsiella or campylobacter bacteria. Other frequent causes are endoparasites, including worms and other intestinal parasites.
Consequences
In many cases, diarrhoea is the body's attempt to wash out toxins. In serious cases, inappetance is accompanied by high fever and apathy. Within a short period of time the animal loses weight and literally dehydrates. Vital electrolytes and proteins are lost. The blood viscosity increases, the red blood cells lose the ability to supply the organs sufficiently with oxygen. In extreme cases the animal expires. Even in moderate cases in which the general wellbeing is only impaired, the condition should be taken very seriously. When the cause of the problem is not eliminated, it can have very serious consequences. Considering the fact that more then eighty percent of the immune cells are located in the intestine, it is obvious that diarrhoea directly weakens the immune system and defence mechanism.
Therapy
The best prophylaxis is to boost the immune system, accompanied by a correct feeding plan, natural care and a rigorous worming program. In serious cases of diarrhoea the first step must be to replenish the body's fluids. A veterinarian needs to assist with the proper infusions. It is also advisable to stop feeding to give the digestive tract the ability to regenerate itself. Nevertheless, the main priority must be to get to the root cause of the problem and eliminate it.
The intestine
Did you know that eighty percent of the immune system is located in the intestines? Therefore an organism only can remain in a balance as long as the gut flora is intact. In a weakened digestive tract, parasites haven an ideal infestation and survival chance. Gladiator PLUS supports the organism in its defence against viruses, bacteria, worms and fungus.
