How to Stop Your Boston Terrier from Farting


Each breed of dog has its own little quirk that makes the experience of being with that dog unique. Chihuahuas are territorial and very protective of their friends. And Boston Terriers well… they fart. They fart a lot.

Boston Terriers really do fart more than other breeds of dog. I’m sure I speak for all Boston owners when I say that we still love them, farts and all. Of course, there are times when it wouldn’t be ideal to have a gassy dog hanging around.

How to Stop Your Boston Terrier from Farting. Boston Terrier Flatulence. Boston Terrier Society.
Living with Bella is like living with a 50-year-old man. She farts and snores in her sleep.

In this article, we’ll learn a little more about why exactly your Boston Terrier farts and what strategies you can employ to minimize their gas.

How to Stop Your Boston Terrier from Farting

To stop your Boston Terrier from farting you will want to ensure they get at least 30 minutes of exercise daily. Limit the amount of human food you give them. Change their diet to one with fewer carbohydrates.

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Do Boston terriers really fart that much?

Yep! This is not just a myth, they really are predisposed to be more flatulent than other dogs. This is a trait shared by a lot of brachycephalic dogs. Their shorter, broader skull seems to affect the way that food is digested, and that ends up causing more flatulence. Also, their shorter nose causes them to swallow more air while eating. More air took in means more air needs to come out.

We must begin with this simple understanding, that even very healthy Bostons will still be prone to farting. Some techniques can minimize this issue, but nothing will make it go away completely. Your dog is not sick just because they seem to have a lot of gas.

Why do Boston’s fart so much?

The main factor that sets apart the flatulence issue in Bostons is the presence of the brachycephalic face. That being said, there are lots of other factors that contribute to flatulence in dogs and which might be at play for your specific dog.

Swallowing Air

One such factor is the way your dog eats their food. Dogs who quickly gobble down their food tend to swallow some air along with each bite. This air can work its way through the digestive tract and come out as flatulence later on.

Carbohydrates and Food Change

Your dog’s diet can inadvertently cause gas in several different ways. A diet that contains a lot of carbohydrates that the dog can’t digest will lead to more gas and will affect your dog’s stool in different ways. Your dog also tends to get used to whatever your main feed is, and any changes to that diet can bring on a spell of more gas.

Food Allergies

Also, dogs with food allergies will have gassier compared to a dog with non-food allergies. Bella, my Boston Terrier, has a sensitivity to grains. We switched her to a salmon dog food. The switch to salmon not only helped her irritated skin but her gassiness as well.

Eating Human Food or Worse

Finally, we should note that while this breed is prone to gassiness, that does not mean you should just ignore your dog’s farts. Flatulence can still be a sign of a severe issue like irritable bowel syndrome, or a signal that your dog has eaten something it shouldn’t have. Make sure you understand what your dog’s baseline flatulence looks like so you can tell when something has gone wrong. 

Now that we know a little more about what causes these farts let’s think about ways we might approach decreasing your dog’s flatulence.

OK, so what is wrong with MY dog specifically?

That’s a more complicated question to answer. It is almost certainly one of the things I’ve already mentioned, but figuring out what precisely is going on will take some veterinary expertise and knowledge about your dog specifically.

Keep track of your dog’s diet, bowel movements, and flatulence over time. If you notice changes, even when those changes seem to be for the better, make a note of them and try to correlate them to changes in the diet and environment. 

If at some point you’re seeing increases in your dog’s farting or changes in the character of those farts, you’ll want to speak to a vet or dietary specialist right away. This might be the sign of developing gastrointestinal (GI) disease, and if that’s the case, you’ll need to act quickly to take care of the issue. Of course, it could also be the sign of one of the benign problems we’ve talked about already change in diet, consumption of carbs, or eating human food scraps.

Knowing when your dog is sick and when your dog is just acting natural is an integral part of being a dog owner. You’ll need to either identify or eliminate the possibility of a specific disease before you start considering changes to your dog’s diet.

Does diet have any impact on my dog’s flatulence?

Of course, it does! Your gas is undoubtedly impacted by the food you eat, and your dog is absolutely no different. Even though we know that Bostons are more prone to flatulence because of their body shape, that does not mean that we’re simply resigned to the fact that they’ll be farting all the time. There are lots of concrete steps, including changes to the diet, that can have an impact on your dog’s gas.

The number one thing Emily and I stopped doing was to give Bella our food scrapes. It seems to be that the more human food we gave Bella the gasser she became. Human food to Bostons other than fruits and vegetables is a great way to limit the gas. Just don’t give them too many vegetables.

Check out this article I wrote on, “Human Food Safe For Your Boston Terrier To Eat.” It is funny what you can and can’t feed a dog. In the article, I mention goat milk. If you want to reduce gas, I would take it easy on the goat’s milk.

Is there a special diet to stop the farting?

How to Stop Your Boston Terrier from Farting. Boston Terrier Flatulence. Boston Terrier Society.
Limit the amount of human food you give your Boston. Fruits and vegetables are ok.

The short answer is yes, you can find a diet that works for your dog to decrease flatulence. You’ll find, though, that landing on the right diet depends a lot on your unique dog. It’ll require a process of figuring out what works and what doesn’t.

If you want to make changes in your dog’s diet, and you’ve already ruled out the presence of acute GI diseases, you’ll want to start them on bland food. This diet should deliver lots of soluble fiber, which helps soothe irritated bowels and generally makes your dog more regular. You’ll want to use a protein that does not contain much fat, as the fat can be a big problem for flatulent dogs, Salmon works great for Bella. 

A good bland meal for your dog would be something like ground turkey, canned pumpkin, and some sort of starch like mashed sweet potatoes. A diet like this will be excellent for a short amount of time, but you do not want your dog to have such a limited range of foods for long.

As you look ahead to your dog’s long-term diet, you’ll want to find something that sticks to these principles while including all the nutrients your dog’s needs. Look for a food that is low in fat and carbohydrates and contains lots of soluble fiber to keep your dog regular.

This process will inevitably involve some trial and error. You’ll need to figure out what works for your dog. It’s possible your dog just doesn’t agree with canned food, or with dry food, or with fresh food. Follow your dog’s lead, and the perfect diet will be achieved.

Specifically What Emily and I Did To Limit The Gas

To help Bella with her gas as well as her food allergy was two things. First, we changed her diet to Salmon, Blue Buffalo Salmon. Check out pricing on Amazon as well as re-occurring delivery, Blue Buffalo Dog Food. Switching to this dog food has been a game-changer. The next step we took was to feed her plain yogurt to try to give her gut some healthy probiotics. This has seemed to help. But we still do have gas, but it is not an everyday occurrence now. 

We fed Bella the yogurt for about one month. Just a spoon full daily. Today, I give her my yogurt cup once I’m done eating. This way, she can clean out the yogurt cup, so I can recycle, and she gets just a little bit of yogurt.

Does exercise help with flatulence?

Yes! Making sure your dog has plenty of time to run around and get their heart rate going is one of the best ways to cut down on excessive farting.

When your dog is out burning calories, they get a whole host of physical benefits. Their cardiovascular system will get stronger, and their GI system will be pushed to digest all the food your dog eats fully. There are lots of reasons to make sure your dog is exercising, and this is only one of them.

Check out my article on, “How Much Exercise Do Boston Terriers Need.”

What other steps should I take?

One mechanical issue that can contribute to excessive farting is a lack of opportunities to poop. The more that your dog is forced to hold in their bowel movements, the more their GI system will be under stress and in need of letting off pressure.

Make sure that you understand how often your dog wants to poop on their own. Try to spend a whole day where your dog has free access to the back yard, and see how often they go off on their own to do their business. You might find that the frequency of your outdoor trips is too low, and that could be contributing to your dog’s farting. Bella goes once in the morning, then another in the evening.

Finally, you might notice that your dog eats very quickly and aggressively, which can lead to them swallowing a lot of air with their food. You can help cut down on this air to a certain extent. Your dog will tend to eat more calmly if they have a secluded, quiet area in which to eat their meals.

Do as much as you can to cut down on the stress your dog might feel in association with their mealtime. You might do all of this and not see a noticeable change in your dog’s eating technique, but it could mean the difference between being very flatulent and not. 

Final thoughts…

Personally, I would love Bella, my Boston Terrier, even if she only rolled around on the ground and farted. But for plenty of reasons you might decide that it’s worth it to take some steps to help alleviate this issue with your dog. If you decide you want to cut down on the flatulence, you have plenty of healthy options to help lessen the problem. 

And once again, the techniques Emily and I used did not eliminate the gas it just made it happen less often and less severe (Less Stinky!!!!)

Give Your Boston Terrier Exactly What They Want! 

A totally customized box of themed toys and treats for your Boston every month. Plans start as little as $22.00 per month. 

Start by going to the BarkBox website and entering your Boston’s name, weight, breed, birthday, allergies, and email.

No worries! If your Boston isn’t 100% happy with their BarkBox, they’ll work with you to make it right. 

No muss, no fuss, no disappointed pups.

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References

Donnie Gardner

Donnie Gardner is the owner of the Boston Terrier Society. He has been raising Bella the Boston since 2010. He resides in Kansas with his wife, daughter, and Bella. His favorite activities are hanging out with family, traveling, running (but has bad knees), and reading non-fiction books.

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