pets disease

The second factor to contend with is secondary bacterial invasion. Normally, the intestines are inhabited by billions of bacteria that peacefully reside there without causing any problems whatsoever. In fact, the very presence of these non-disease-causing bacteria actually helps prevent the growth of pathogenic, or disease-causing, bacteria within the intestinal setting. However, if disease strikes the small or large intestine, these “friendly” bacteria can be wiped out, allowing pathogenic ones to proliferate and cause disease themselves. If the inflammation persists, or if an intestinal perforation occurs, these and any other bacteria within the intestines can leak out of the gut and even gain entrance into the bloodstream, causing a life-threatening systemic infection and shock.
For these reasons, it is obvious that antibiotics become very important in the treatment of moderate to severe cases of gastroenteritis, even if the original cause is nonbacterial in origin.