Best dog food for flatulence
Flatulence in dogs is usually down to diet — poorly digested ingredients fermenting in the gut, eating too fast, or a sudden food change — and switching to an easily digestible food with a simple ingredients list is often the single most effective thing an owner can do about it.
What actually causes flatulence
Gas is a normal by-product of digestion in every dog, but excessive or particularly smelly flatulence usually points to something not being digested cleanly further up the gut. Highly fermentable ingredients, a diet that is heavy on certain legumes, fillers, or a sudden change of food are the most common everyday causes.
Eating too fast, swallowing a lot of air along with the food, can also produce noticeable gas without anything being wrong with the food itself. A slow feeder tackles this cause directly, separately from anything about the recipe.
What to look for on the label
A food built around a single, easily identified protein and a shorter overall ingredients list tends to be gentler on a dog's gut than one with a long list of fillers and multiple protein sources. Look for recipes marketed as sensitive or easily digestible, which are usually formulated with this in mind.
Highly fermentable ingredients — certain beans, peas and some grains in large quantities — are worth being aware of if your dog's flatulence is a persistent problem rather than an occasional thing. This is about the balance of the recipe rather than any one ingredient being inherently bad.
How to introduce a new food
Any food change, including a switch aimed at reducing flatulence, should be introduced gradually over a week or so, mixing increasing amounts of the new food in with the old. A sudden switch is itself a common cause of gas and loose stools, which can make it hard to tell whether the new food is actually helping.
Give a new food a proper trial of a few weeks before judging it, since a dog's gut takes time to settle onto anything different. If flatulence does not improve, or gets worse, that is worth mentioning to your vet rather than trying food after food.
When it's more than diet
Persistent, severe or suddenly worse flatulence, particularly alongside diarrhoea, vomiting, weight loss or a dog who seems unwell, is worth a vet visit rather than another food change. Diet is the most common cause by far, but it is not the only one.
For most dogs, though, a straightforward switch to an easily digestible, single-protein food, introduced gradually and given a fair trial, resolves the problem without anything more involved being needed.
What we stock
Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.
Forthglade Cold Pressed Small Dog Turkey
Cold-pressed grain-free dry food for small dogs and puppies, built on turkey
£16.99
Harringtons Just 6 Dry Dog Food Lamb
Grain-free lamb dry dog food in 2KG and 12KG sizes, with size-specific formulas
From£13.99
Harringtons Adult Dog Salmon & Potato
Complete salmon and potato dry dog food with 21% protein in a 1.7KG bag
£6.25
Forthglade Cold Pressed Natural Turkey
Cold-pressed turkey kibble for dogs from 2 months, soft enough to mix with water for young pups
£45.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Salmon
Cold-pressed grain-free dry food for dogs, built on fresh and dried salmon
From£16.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Duck
Cold-pressed grain-free duck food with fruit and botanicals, in two bag sizes
From£16.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Chicken
Cold-pressed grain-free chicken food with fruit and botanicals, in three bag sizes
From£16.99
Burns Puppy Junior Original Chicken Rice
A complete puppy and junior food with dried chicken 31% and controlled fat at 15%
From£14.99
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Turkey
A lightly baked complete dry food, 50% turkey, for adult dogs of any breed
From£12.49
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Chicken
A grain-free complete dry food for adult dogs, lightly baked and built on 50% chicken
From£12.49
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Lamb
A lightly baked complete dry food, 50% lamb, for adult dogs of any breed
From£12.49
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Turkey
Grain-free cold-pressed turkey kibble for dogs, gentle on sensitive stomachs
£69.69
Common questions
- Does grain-free food help with dog flatulence?
- Not necessarily — grain is not inherently a cause of flatulence, and some grain-free recipes use ingredients, such as certain legumes, that can be just as fermentable. Look at the overall recipe and ingredient quality rather than assuming grain-free automatically means less gas.
- Can treats cause flatulence even if the main food is fine?
- Yes, treats and table scraps count too, and a dog on an otherwise well-suited food can still have a lot of gas from rich, fatty or unusual treats. If flatulence is a problem, look at everything your dog eats in a day, not just the main meal.
- How long does it take to see if a new food is helping?
- Give any food change at least two to three weeks before judging the result, since a dog's gut needs time to adjust after a switch. Judging too early, particularly during the transition itself, can make a perfectly suitable food look worse than it is.
- Is it normal for dogs to have some flatulence?
- Yes, a small amount of gas is normal for every dog, the same as it is for people. It only becomes worth addressing when it is frequent, unusually strong-smelling, or comes alongside other symptoms like diarrhoea or discomfort.
- Should I speak to my vet about my dog's flatulence?
- If a food change and gradual introduction do not improve things within a few weeks, or your dog shows other symptoms alongside the gas, speak to your vet. Persistent flatulence occasionally points to something beyond diet that is worth ruling out.
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Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.