What Causes Fecal Build-Up In A Dog’S Colon?
A properly balanced diet is something that you should always strive to feed your dog, but it becomes increasingly more critical the older your dog gets. This quality of that diet also increases as the dog gets older. The suffering that besets older dogs where each and every degenerative affliction is concerned is usually a direct result of either or both of the following aspects:
• deficiency of nutrients • poor nutritional absorption
There is a consensus among pet authorities as well as veterinarians that additional mineral supplements and vitamins are required as your dog gets older, as well as being fed less of the higher quality pet foods and snacks. Just remember that it is your responsibility as the dog's owner to identify any symptoms of degenerative diseases and see if there is a correlation between the condition and nutritional intake.
Younger dogs have the capability of managing the "lacunae" - small cavities or pits in any anatomical structure - in their diet. However, these lacunae oftentimes breed illnesses in an older dog. Toxemia is a disease that canines are subject to and this basically results when waste becomes present in the dog's body cells. The cells will either malfunction or cease to function altogether whenever waste is present. Whenever a dog suffers from this condition it is usually because we are not feeding them the proper foods, so it is our responsibility as owners to prevent this from happening.
Putrefaction in the colon is the primary cause of most canine ailments and as a dog ages, the colon begins to develop fecal waste rings. Fecal matter will solidify within the dog's colon and the animal's peristalsis (a wave like motion used by the digestive tract to push the food through the system) becomes impaired because of the build-up of fecal matter. Fecal matter rings are likened to tree rings in that they accumulate over time. The older the tree is, the more rings it will have. So to is the case with these fecal matter rings in dogs.
When the dog's peristalsis gets impaired it starts a vicious cycle in that the process is impaired by the accumulation of fecal matter and the impairment of peristalsis results in further accumulation of this fecal matter. Additionally, there is a marked increase in the amount of bacteria present in the colon, and nutrients stop being absorbed through the intestinal walls. The flexure responsible for moving the food from the smaller intestine into the larger one becomes covered with this fecal matter and causes the flexure to jam and stop functioning properly. As a result, your dog's health will decline.
On a side note, but somewhat related to proper digestion of nutrition, it has been documented that dogs' teeth rarely develop cavities because of a harder enamel surface. It has been speculated that the digestion of starches in the dog's diet doesn't begin until it reaches the intestinal tract, whereas it begins in the mouths of humans. This is due to the presence of amylase, an enzyme in human saliva (but not canine) that breaks down starch into sugar.