Abstract: Background: The prevalence of gastrointestinal (GI) disorders in the general owned US dog population is unknown.
Objective: To determine the occurrence and demographic features of GI disease in dogs enrolled in the Dog Aging Project (DAP) Pack
Animals: 33,172 dogs
Methods: Owner-reported GI disorders were extracted from Health Life and Experience Survey (HLES) results for dogs enrolled in DAP between December 2019 and December 2021. Potential risk factors for various GI diseases were identified by means of multivariate logistic regression analysis. Age at diagnosis was used for dogs with GI diseases. Age at the time of HLES completion was used for control dogs.
Results: A total of 13,646 occurrences of GI disorders were reported with 29.2% (9,679) of dogs in the DAP Pack having at least one GI disorder reported. The most commonly reported disorders were infectious diseases (5344, 16.1% of DAP Pack), chronic diarrhea (954, 2.9%), anal sac impactions (829, 2.5%), foreign bodies (795, 2.4%), pancreatitis (680, 2.0%), chronic vomiting (389, 1.2%), acute hemorrhagic diarrhea syndrome (292, 0.9%), and inflammatory bowel disease (406, 1.2%). Dogs with GI disorders were more likely to be neutered (2.427, p < 0.0001), to have a history of being malnourished or underweight (1.598, p < 0.0001), to have received probiotics or over-the-counter GI medications (1.582 and 3.319, respectively, p < 0.0001), or to have a history of being fed primarily canned food (2.388, p < 0.0001).
Clinical Relevance: GI disorders are common owner-reported diagnoses among dogs enrolled in the DAP.
