Guest Grauhund Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Hi everyone, I am just wanting a bit of advice or suggestions as to what this could be........from anyone who may have had something similar with their Grey. I have a ten year old Grey bitch who over the past few months has had persistant diarrhoea. Yes....she has been to the Vet about it ,they said she had a stomach bug of some description and put her on anti biotics and a dry food specifically for digestive upsets. For a while she seemed to come good on the food and after the antibiotics . Her poop was firmer but not as firm as I would like to see it , then the diarrhoea started again. I have changed diets (gradually of course) several times over the past months but it doesn't matter what I feed her she still has the diarrhoea. In herself she seems well...she is bright eyed ,has loads of energy ,lovely coat and is eating ok and if I were to say anything not quite good about her,it would be she is a little thinner than I like ,so I currently have her on a Grey food which is higher in nutrients to try and keep the weight on her. So....has anyone experienced this type of problem with their Greyhound/s......and if so, could you shed some light on the problem for me. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartdogs Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 My group has a foster like this he now eats Solid Gold wix frozen Bil-Jac mixed in and is doing much better. If he gets stressed at all the D comes back. We also went thru the meds & all types of foods before finding this comb worked the best. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Grauhund Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Thanks Heartdogs, sorry.....forgot to say I am in Australia and we don't have those foods unfortunately......cos they sound good ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest maryjo79 Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 I'm assuming you've checked for worms and for things like giardia.... they can cause persistent diarrhea. We dealt with this with Spud and eventually switched to raw because he was losing too much weight on the kibble. How does she do with a home cooked meal? What is the major protein source in the kibble? It could be a food allergy or intolerance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burpdog Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Are you changing the protein source when you change foods? Have you tried giving her acidolphillus pills? Quote Diane & The Senior Gang Burpdog Biscuits Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovinggreysslp Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 I agree with Diane that acidolphillus pills or plain yogurt are well worth trying. If blood work is fine, adding canned pumpkin (plain not pie filler) sometimes will help firm stools. I would keep a log of what foods you have tried and how she reacted to them. You will also want to eliminate treats until you can get her system settled. It may also be helpful to watch her when she is outside to see if she is eating anything in your yard which may be upsetting her system. One of our hounds has to be muzzled outside because he was eating inappropriate items and triggering digestive flares. Best of luck as you work through this with your girl. Quote Cosmo (Fuzz Face Cosmos), Holmes (He's a Dream), Boomer (USS Baby Boomer), Ella and missing our angels Clay (Red Clay), Train (Nite Train), Trip (Bock's Teddy Bear),Larry (Bohemian Frigid) and Jimmy (Bohemian Raw) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Mine will probably not be a popular reply, but it is what worked for me. Rex was tested and fecaled within an inch of his life and nothing showed up. For months and months I tried everything for his runny poos -- Natural Balance, Natures Recipe, Wellness, Californial Natural...novel proteins, etc. -- the only food that worked for him was Iams, which you can get in AU. Not the best food on paper, but it has a patented high level of beet pulp which is a probiotic and also helps regulate the water in the intestines. I only tried it because I was so frustrated I just tossed it in the cart as it sat next to the $1+ a pound foods as sort of a protest. If you or someone you know has horses you can also add beeet pulp to any dog food directly. Or just buy a bag of Iams and donate it to your shelter if it doesn't work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bambiscuit Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 OMG I'm going through the EXACT same THING !! So if anyone else has anything to say to help, I'd love to hear it too We did the antibiotics and bland diet, Bambi got better... slowly started adding in her food again, she got a little worse. The same cycle went on for a couple weeks. And then suddenly it got worse all over again, we were up every 40 minutes in the middle of the night, taking her out with squirty, mucousy results (sorry for being so descriptive). Back on the superbland diet, and another sample to the vet. Once again, they didn't find anything and said that she checked out fine... After nearly a week on boiled chicken, rice and potatoes things are firming up again, but the mucous is still there. She has lost some weight, but otherwise seems like the same lovely pup we've always had... So I completely feel your pain right now. Here's sending you some positive thoughts for both our hounds! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 (edited) If dog hasn't been wormed lately, it's always worth doing two rounds of Panacur even if stool checks clean. Panacur kills giardia, too. Next, if the antibiotics given were metronidazole and dog was better while on them, keep giving them for a time. Metronidazole has both antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties; most dogs tolerate it very well. If it's helping, I'd keep giving it for at least 3 weeks and probably longer, while you transition from bland diet to regular food. (You can give it for months without causing problems -- it's not like prednisone, NSAIDs, etc.) If you haven't tried metronidazole yet, worth doing. Edited May 25, 2007 by Batmom Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ola Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 My grey had very soft (I called it "soft serve", like the ice cream, LOL) stools for months. It would vary between squishy and almost liquid. This was not fun for me, because we live in an apartment building which means each time he goes I have to pick it up. Ever tried picking up liquid from grass? NOT fun! It got to the point where I would hover with the bag ready, and as soon as he started to squat, I would lean in and try to catch the poop in the bag before it hit the grass. I love my boy, but this wasn't my idea of a good time. Then we switched to a raw diet (mainly to clean up his teeth) and almost like magic his stools got firm, and small. I was amazed the first time he pooped on a hill and it rolled down (doesn't take much to amuse me, right?). I know a few people from Australia on another board and I got the impression that feeding raw is more accepted there than in North America. I would definitely give it a try, especially since all the stomach upsets are probably making it hard for her to get all the nutrients out of the food (which is probably why she's thin). We've got lots of threads about feeding raw in the Food forum, maybe you'd like to read them over and see if it's something that would work for you. Me, I can tell you, I'll never go back after seeing the alternative. There are other items you can add to the diet like beet pulp (leftover from sugar beet processing), which is also in some dog foods but you can purchase separately. Also pumpkin (or really any squash) that here we usually get canned but you could cook up yourself. Both of these have lots of fiber and can help to firm stools. In my opinion, they are more of a bandaid than a solution, but it can help get you over the initial crisis at least while you look into other options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 If dog hasn't been wormed lately, it's always worth doing two rounds of Panacur even if stool checks clean. Panacur kills giardia, too. Next, if the antibiotics given were metronidazole and dog was better while on them, keep giving them for a time. Metronidazole has both antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties; most dogs tolerate it very well. If it's helping, I'd keep giving it for at least 3 weeks and probably longer, while you transition from bland diet to regular food. (You can give it for months without causing problems -- it's not like prednisone, NSAIDs, etc.) If you haven't tried metronidazole yet, worth doing. I agree on all counts. Doesn't seem like food is likely to be the culprit if this came out of nowhere at age 10. Sounds like worms or another parasite/bacteria to me. The change in foods could be exacerbating the problem - sometimes when you have persistant diarrhea, the intestines get inflamed and they need some time to calm down even after you've eliminated the source. I would feed something she will find easy to digest until she's had a couple of weeks to recover. Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 If dog hasn't been wormed lately, it's always worth doing two rounds of Panacur even if stool checks clean. Panacur kills giardia, too. Next, if the antibiotics given were metronidazole and dog was better while on them, keep giving them for a time. Metronidazole has both antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties; most dogs tolerate it very well. If it's helping, I'd keep giving it for at least 3 weeks and probably longer, while you transition from bland diet to regular food. (You can give it for months without causing problems -- it's not like prednisone, NSAIDs, etc.) If you haven't tried metronidazole yet, worth doing. :nod Completely agree. Beet pulp is also worth trying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Grauhund Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 To everyone.........a big thank you for all your replies and help... it is very much appreciated....and it is great to be able to ask other 'Grey' folk who have had or are having similar problems. I have taken note of everything in your replies and I will give each a go ....at least until something works. I will also be back to the Vet and be asking for 'Metronidazole". Give me a couple of weeks but I will definately get back to you all to let you know how it is all going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.