Efficacy and Tolerance of Two Low-Carbohydrate Diets in Large Adult Dogs with Digestive Sensitivity: A Randomized, Cross-Over, Blinded Evaluation

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy and gastrointestinal tolerance of a new dry low carbohydrate diet, Sensitive Digest Adult Dog (SENSI) formulated for adult dogs with sensitive digestive systems in comparison with the Adult Dog Large and Medium (ADULT) diet from the same VeterinarytM HPM range. Methods: Dogs with digestive sensitivity were included in a two-period, twosequence crossover study. They were randomly divided into two groups being fed, after a 4-day diet transition, exclusively and successively with each of the two tested diets over a 28-day period. Digestive parameters were evaluated by owners, through online multiple-choice questionnaires, on D0, D7, D28 and D56. Sign and Mc Nemar’s tests were used to perform intra- and inter-group comparisons (α=0.05). Results: One hundred and twenty-one client-owned adult dogs completed the study. Both diets improved daily defecation frequency, faecal score, odour and volume, and flatulence frequency in comparison with the normal diet of the dog. Significant differences (p<0.01) were observed as soon as 7 days after the change of diet. SENSI continued to upgrade digestive parameters after a 28-day feeding period with ADULT, with significant differences for faecal volume (p<0.05). When ADULT was administered after SENSI, the digestive parameters, except defecation frequency, were degraded, and this was significant for faecal consistency (p<0.001). No side effect was reported by the owners. Both diets were rated as highly palatable by owners, and preferred to the usual diets by about 50% of the dogs. Over 79% of owners were satisfied by the test diets, the satisfaction rate and mean score being however significantly higher with SENSI. Conclusion: ADULT and SENSI were both well tolerated and improved digestive parameters in dogs with digestive sensitivity. On few parameters, the improvement was significantly higher with SENSI compared to ADULT. It was concluded that SENSI represents a valuable alternative to ADULT in dogs with sensitive digestive systems.