Loose Vs Firm Stools?

[Guest SusanP]

As I continue my quest for firm, neat, easy-to-pick up dog poop, I got to wondering: Are firm, easily picked-up stools better for the dog or just for those of us who pick up after them? I mean, many humans are trying to eat more fiber and *avoid* hard stools. Is it possible that the optimum doggy stool is rather soft, however inconvenient that might be for the human picking up after them? Are we barking up the wrong tree?

[RobinM]

All 3 of my hounds have NOT easy to pick up 100% poops. They are a bit on the soft side. Their diet consists of proplan 2x a day with the missing link added 1x a day. Sometimes I'll add a bit of pumpkin but that doesn't change anything. It's soft. Not loose or runny, just soft.

[Guest KennelMom]

You want firm stools b/c passing them helps keep their anal glands properly expressed. But, just like people, you don't want them too hard or it will make it difficult for the dog to have a movement without a lot of straining.

[Guest PiagetsMom]

Piaget's vary.....sometimes they're very good, sometimes soft. I've decided not to worry - she likes her food, eats well, and seems fine.

 

The only thing I've heard that firm stools benefit (other than us people who have to pick them up) is in helping to keep the anal glands from having to be expressed.

[Guest Heep]

Phoenix Star had hard, pebble-like stool when we first got her. We marvelled at how easy it was to clean up. Then we found out she had hookworms! After the intial worming, her stool was formed, but squishier; like my other two bebes. So sometimes squishier = good!

 

I figure if it's good for throwing, it's the right consistancy

 

 

[MarcR]

I figure if it's good for throwing, it's the right consistancy

 

And here I thought that was only a figure of speech

[Guest Heep]

I figure if it's good for throwing, it's the right consistancy

 

And here I thought that was only a figure of speech

 

 

Oh come on! Like you've never considered saving a bag in your glove compartment to hurl at whichever moron just cut you off, talking on his/her cell while driving, and doing 30 mph in the passing lane in a 65 mph zone.

 

Yes, I'm from Jersey

[Jiffer]

The way I see it, if they are having no difficulty passing and they have no anal gland problems, then their poops are fine.

[MarcR]

I figure if it's good for throwing, it's the right consistancy

 

And here I thought that was only a figure of speech

 

 

Oh come on! Like you've never considered saving a bag in your glove compartment to hurl at whichever moron just cut you off, talking on his/her cell while driving, and doing 30 mph in the passing lane in a 65 mph zone.

 

Yes, I'm from Jersey

 

On the advice of my attourney, I respectfully invoke my fifth ammendment rights. I'm from Jersey, too

[Guest Ola]

I think formed stool is ideal for both dogs and humans. It shouldn't been too firm or constipated, but also shouldn't be liquid or squishy. I believe it's the colon that extracts moisture from the stool, isn't it? If it's too "moist" coming out then either something internal is not working correctly, or something about the food (or it's volume) is causing the output to come out sooner than it should (and so it's not having enough time to extract the moisture).

[Guest mandm]

Mine acts "perkier" when he is pooping firm. This leads me to believe that firm poop is healthier. And when my dog has soft poop, he tries to hide it by pooping in foliage or bushes, like he knows something is wrong with it.

[Guest SquanHound]

Well we start off really firm and by poop #3 we are squishy so I figure we are ok

 

 

[NeylasMom]

I know dogs aren't people, but I would imagine there is likely some discomfort with really soft or near runny stools. I know how I feel when things aren't coming out properly...

[Ragsysmum]

As I continue my quest for firm, neat, easy-to-pick up dog poop, I got to wondering: Are firm, easily picked-up stools better for the dog or just for those of us who pick up after them? I mean, many humans are trying to eat more fiber and *avoid* hard stools. Is it possible that the optimum doggy stool is rather soft, however inconvenient that might be for the human picking up after them? Are we barking up the wrong tree?

 

To be honest, I do think there is a lot of truth in your comments here. I'm in the UK and we seem to worry far less about how firm poops are.....it is rarely mention on UK dog boards and rarely a topic of discussion amongst my local area dog walkers. As long as the dog seems comfortable and happy, there is no anal gland problem and no signs of ill-health in any other way, I think we tend to accept what we get! Certainly the second and third poops on a walk are always much softer/looser than the first for my current hound as for some of the rescue dogs of other breeds I have had, but all the dogs have been fit and healthy so it hasn't been a worry. I do think pick-up has a lot to do with the concerns and the stress over it all transfers to the hound and makes the situation worse. The subsequent vet trip increases the stress, the medication usually prescribed probably upsets the system still more and the vicious circle continues.

[Guest Greensleeves]

Ha! Finally!! Yes, I have LONG thought that the GT obsession with "perfect poop" was way, way over-the-top (and we're going back to discussions in 2000 when I first joined). The last straw for me was the photographic chart somebody posted of what dog poop "should" look like.

 

Here's the thing. Dogs, like humans, are mammals. Our diets are different (um, one might hope ), but the actual systems function pretty much the same. And, in humans, what's "normal" can vary dramatically--so I'm sure it's the same for dogs. I remember reading once that "normal" for humans can vary from going once or twice A WEEK to several times per day--and consistency can vary depending on diet, stress, etc.

 

I think the thing to remember is that there are far more important determinations about the quality of your dogs' food... than what it looks like coming OUT.

[Greytlady94]