Recurring Diarrhea

[Guest vezzerina]

I am a new greyhound mom (and loving it). Lyca has never had very solid stools, but after making the new mom mistake of giving her steak (I am SO sorry) she had bad diarrhea all night (I took her out every 1.5 hours) and very soft all week. We went to the vet, got injections to calm her GI and antibiotics, and things went back to normal. It's been over a week since all of this, and we aren't quite through the antibiotic pills she gets twice a day (6 more days), but yesterday she was acting unusually moody (staying in her crate, acting fearful for no reason) and this morning her second poop was more diarrhea...

 

I am very upset. I want to make little Lyca better. Ever since her recovery her appetite has come back with a vengeance and this morning she only ate half her breakfast before her walk. When we came back (post D) she almost finished it. What could it be? I only gave her 2 cups dry food and a can of wet food (both Science Diet, what she has always eaten) and 3 tsp vita derm (as usual). Yesterday for her dinner I put some plain rice from the day before (made esp. for her) along with the wet and dry foods... Could it be that? Second day rice?

 

Do all greyhounds have sensitive stomachs?

 

Thanks! This is my first time posting btu I have been an avid reader since Lyca first came home!

[Guest RobinAZ]

I am glad you asked this question because I am a new greyhound mom also and my baby has had very soft stools ever since I adopted her (1 week ago). I figured it was the change in food and water. Her stools aren't runny like water, just very soft and unformed. I noticed my grand-greyhound (my daughter's) is like that often too. So I am anxious to see what the answer to your question is.

[Guest SusanP]

We have always used Iams Low Residue kibble from a vet to firm up stubbor or very loose stools. It has worked well for us. Greyhounds, overall, seem prone to loose stools. Usually a few days on it is enough.

Edited November 8, 2009 by SusanP

[GeorgeofNE]

That's more than twice as much food as I feed my dog. IMHO, if you are seriously giving her TWO CUPS of kibble AND a can of dog food, you're overfeeding her by a signficant amount. It could be she simply cannot handle all that food.

 

I'd personally fast her for 24 hours, then start with boiled rice and some chicken, then ease her back into her regular diet but maybe 1.5 cups of kibble and a heaping spoon of wet food?

[Guest Lovemyhound]

That's more than twice as much food as I feed my dog. IMHO, if you are seriously giving her TWO CUPS of kibble AND a can of dog food, you're overfeeding her by a signficant amount. It could be she simply cannot handle all that food.

I agree - that's a LOT of food. Suggest to cut back to about 1 1/2 cups total per meal.

 

Do all greyhounds have sensitive stomachs?

I would say - Most do.

 

Every greyhound tends to find their comfort zone with diet, I believe, and to vary too far from that regular diet is asking for trouble. Good suggestion to fast for a little while, then slowly re-introduce a bland diet (boiled chicken, rice). Hopefully just a couple days or so of that will help settle her tummy. Then slowly start to add in her kibble until you've eliminated the chicken and rice. Sometimes the kibble itself is the problem - there are many threads here on GT regarding everyone's preferred kibble brand. You may need to try a couple before you find the "right one" for your pup. Personally, my pups have all done very well on Verus Menhaden Fish and Potato - do a search here to find what other folks are feeding.

 

Treats. Rule in my house - none of my "kids" get table scraps for treats (the steak). Give good high quality treats/snacks such as raw turkey necks, dried sweet potatoes, carrots, dried liver snacks...

 

OH, and one last trick of the greyhound trade!!! -- Add a spoonful of canned pumpkin to meals to help firm up the poops! Do NOT get the canned pumpkin which is pre-flavored pie filling - only 100% canned pure pumpkin.

 

and finally, Congratulations on bringing home your new pup and WELCOME TO GT!!

 

[Guest SusanP]

My hounds average about 4 cups of dry kibble a day, but depending on the brand (I feed Diamond senior), amounts recommended may vary.

[Guest scfilby]

That's more than twice as much food as I feed my dog. IMHO, if you are seriously giving her TWO CUPS of kibble AND a can of dog food, you're overfeeding her by a signficant amount. It could be she simply cannot handle all that food.

 

I'd personally fast her for 24 hours, then start with boiled rice and some chicken, then ease her back into her regular diet but maybe 1.5 cups of kibble and a heaping spoon of wet food?

 

The antibiotics can also be playing a part. Greys can have sensitive tummies. Switching foods here always leads to loose stools for awhile. Our boy gets loose even from car rides.

 

I would finish the meds and stick with a good quality kibble, about 1.5 cups per feeding with some water and a tablespoon of caned as a mix in. Don't mix in anything else for a week or so after the meds are done.

[macoduck]

I wouldn't add the pumpkin right away as sometimes it can have the reverse affect (at least on my dogs it did). Try a teaspoon of yogurt to help restore natural colon culture instead.

Edited November 8, 2009 by macoduck

[Guest Energy11]

I guess I am lucky. With the exception of Cari, who HATES food, and is totally picky, mine had "cast iron stomachs!" No problems with any types of foods, but I stick with the good stuff, adding yogurt and pumpkin daily.

[Guest LindsaySF]

It could be the antibiotics. I would add some yogurt and/or other probiotics.

 

If the diarrhea continues after the AB's are done I would look at feeding a new food. (Science Diet has a lot of fillers). I would also deworm her with some Panacur.

 

Is Vita Derm an oil? If so I would stop using it for now. Oil supplements can sometimes give them soft stool.

 

 

[Guest vezzerina]

Wow. Thank you for all the replies! I think I will fast her tonight, then start the bland diet I had her on while she was really sick again.

 

I had the feeling that I was feeding her too much! I was just following orders. But perhaps one cup of kibble and one can of food is enough. I want her to put on some weight (all her ribs are still showing) but not too much.

 

Lyca also loves pumpkin but to a point. If I offer it too many days in a row she gives me a look like I am crazy.

 

I am so glad that there is greyhound forum for us! Thanks everyone!

 

 

[EllenEveBaz]

Welcome to you and Lyca. Don't beat yourself up about giving her steak -- very minor.

 

There are many reasons why Lyca could have soft stools and diarrhea, and there might be different reasons for the two. Maybe concentrate on getting over the diarrhea, and then start investigating the loose stools?

 

In addition to giving meds, what did your vet say about it? It sounds like s/he thought it might be a bug she picked up. Were there any tests, like for worms (ewww)? Sometimes, even after a dog has been wormed once, they linger on. Or there could be another kind of worm (ewww).

 

When a dog has diarrhea, I fast the dog for as far up to 24 hours as I can stand it (usually I cave before then), and then I offer bland food as suggested above -- pasta boiled with skinless chicken, or rice cooked with defatted hamburger. Mostly pasta or rice, with just a little meat to get them to eat it. Then I transition back to regular food, as suggested above. Maybe you could stop giving the vitamins and the canned food (probably higher in fat than the kibble?) while she's recovering? My guess is the rice didn't hurt Lyca's sytem. There are some rare rice intolerances, but usually, white rice is given as a bland food to help calm down the intestinal system. (Most of my dogs can't digest brown rice.)

 

Offer lots of water (or low sodium broth, if they don't want water) when a dog has diarrhea, so they don't get dehydrated.

 

Now, the loose stools -- How long have you had her? Sometimes it takes a while for dogs' stress levels after a big change to level out, and stress can affect the tummy.

 

The too-much-food sounds like a possibility. All the kibble she can eat, canned food, steak -- Lyca must think she's in dog food heaven! How much are you giving her compared to the recommendations on the food? Plus, each dog's metabolism is different. I feed my dogs less than the recommended amount and they maintain their weights -- we don't have the most energetic of lifestyles.

 

Two of my greys have had stomachs that could digest a battleship, and three have had varying degrees of sensitivity. It may take a lot of cautiously trying different foods and add-ins. As long as she seems happy and healthy otherwise, it's probably not too urgent of a problem.

 

Hoping you and Lyca get some sleep tonight.

 

 

[Sighthounds4me]

I would think it is the antibiotics. I know I personally often have GI upset when I am on antibiotics...

 

I would try reducing the amount of food daily, as others suggested. My Greyhound, Naples, gets about 4 cups of food daily, split into two meals. That is a lot for many Greyhounds, but she is active, running a lot. Her metabolism is still very high, though she is almost 10. In your case, you could probably do 3 cups of food daily, split into two meals, with one heaping tablespoon of canned.

 

I would also look into a probiotic. If you have a good farm and fleet store near you, check out the horse and/or cattle section for a probiotic powder that you can use. We use one called Probios, which we buy from the horse section of our local farm and fleet store. It works VERY well, and is quite inexpensive!

 

The reason I suggest probiotics is because when antibiotics are given, they kill the good bacteria in the gut, as well as the bad. We need to replace them, or risk the GI problems you describe.

 

And I agree with Lindsay ^ when she suggests a different food, and eliminating the oil...

[Guest vezzerina]

Yeah, that makes sense about the antibiotic being hard on her tummy. When she was REALLY sick (after the steak) and lost her appetite completely, I made the mistake of giving her her AB pill on an empty stomach- expecting her to eat right after, but then she didn't! That was the one time she vomited...

 

I'll also cut out the oil at least for now and see if I can slowly reintroduce it but keep it to 1tsp instead of 3. Her fur is growing back so nicely on her rump (she has a bald "kennel butt") and I thought it might be the oil that is helping?

[Sighthounds4me]

The oil might be helping with the hair growth. But it might be the fact that she's on a higher fat/lower protein diet than she had at the track, too.

 

If you are interested in a non-oil supplement, I can give you a suggestion. But at this point, I would let her settle in, run a curry comb, hound glove or "Zoom Groom" over her daily, and play wait and see. She may do just fine without any supplements.

[Guest MZH]

Perhaps she's got an allergy to one of the contents in the SD?

 

Our Graham had pudding poops since a couple of days after we got him. (He was OK the first day or two.) He was on Pro plan chicken and rice at the adoption kennel. I didn't realize that, though, and bought the same brand but in lamb and rice. Big mistake; his gut doesn't tolerate lamb!!

 

Once I figured that out I put him back on chicken and rice and his poops actually got form. We also treated a case of tapes a couple months later, which may or may not have anything to do with poop form.

[ahicks51]

Maybe I missed it in the above discussion- but what brand of dry food is she being fed?

 

Also- one suggestion: if she's getting antibiotics, you might consider adding Fortiflora, which is a probiotic produced by Purina.

[Guest Trentsmom]

My Trent has always had the pudding poop. For his first 6 months I would freakishly watch him "go" and get excited if it had any firmness to it at all...lol. I was on a mission to get him to have 'solids'. He happens to have a corn allergy,which is a popular dog food ingredient and apparently lots of dogs are sensitive to grain. So I switched to a corn free food. Currently I feed Canidae; however, if I give him just one thing out of the norm it could set him off and we're back to pudding for a few days. I also add the plain yogurt and probiotices (Great Life Enzyme Powder). My vet said some dogs just always have soft stool, and once underlying illness is ruled out, it's nothing to worry about.

I agree to go bland and then slowly reintroduce the kibble. Once you find a treat that doesn't upset, just stick with it. My greys both happen to like fruits like apples and bananas. Maybe one of those will be good for yours as well (once you get the tummy back under control).

Good Luck

[Guest mandm]

I only gave her 2 cups dry food and a can of wet food (both Science Diet, what she has always eaten) and 3 tsp vita derm (as usual).

 

If she is newly retired, then Sci Diet is not what she has always eaten. While racing, she likely ate a diet of mostly raw beef with some kibble mixed in. So, much more meat and much less carbs than what she is getting from commercial dog food alone. With my first mushy poop greyhound, I had very good results trying to mimic the racetrack diet. I asked my greyhound's trainer if the dog had similar problems while racing. The trainer replied " no problems whatsoever -- why don't you try putting the dog back on the racing diet?" I followed that advice and it worked great. I mixed meat (which I cooked back then, now I feed it raw) about 50/50 with high protein kibble, and had great results.

 

But even before adjusting the diet, I would seriously consider worms as the culprit, assuming she is newly retired. I'd worm her with Panacur, 2 or 3 rounds, with or without a positive fecal.

 

And the Vita-derm, I assume that is to shine up the coat?, I'd stop that right away. Oils, especially processed oils derived from plants, seem to not sit very well on many greyhounds' sensitive stomachs.

 

Sounds like maybe she is too thin and maybe needs to gain. So maybe she needs the amount you were originally feeding her. I have found that's it's more effective to feed more frequent meals, rather than feeding fewer larger meals. I had to get 10 lbs on my greyhound, so I fed him 4 meals per day. Each meal contained half the recommended daily amount of food for maintenance of a healthy dog. So he was, in effect, getting twice the recommended maintenance amount per day. It took several months to get the 10 lbs on him. When he started getting close to goal weight, I reduced meals to 3 per day, and then to twice per day when he was well established at a healthy weight.

 

Do you know what the healthy weight range for your greyhound is? Whoever you adopted her from might have said. If not, racing weight can give you an idea, though racing weight + say, 5lbs is not necessarily a foolproof method of determining healthy weight.

[Guest vezzerina]

Hey everyone,

 

Just an update. It seems like the Vita-derm was bad news. I have cut it out now. I have also cut Lyca's food in half (1 cup dry and 1/2 can wet per meal, with occasional additives such as half a sweet potato or boiled egg or tuna) and she seems to be doing great. I hope I don't see any weight loss... I was enjoying watching those ribs disappear under healthy flesh. But as long as she doesn't lose any weight I am happy to have her gain weight slowly.

 

Lyca's racing weight was 56 lbs, and she the last time she was at the vet she weighed 58 lbs (after a week of diarrhea mind you).

 

She was eating Science Diet at Friends of Greyhounds for the 2 weeks she was there before I took her home. She seems to like it. The bowl is licked clean every meal now.

 

She has regained her old energy too. A big run in the park today (which resulted in a clumsy bump into a park bench, ouch)

[Wonder]

I personally wouldn't give can, wet food

Mine get 2 cups of kibble in the morning and 2 cups at night

If they are being picky I might mix in 1 tbs of wet but I think a can would give them the runs

[IndyandHollyluv]

Welcome and congratulations on Lyca's adoption!

 

Whoa, lots of info here to assimilate. After so many owners have learned the hard way, I think it's natural to want to share what one has learned so that others can be spared such misery - or expense.

 

I am now a fan of keeping life relatively simple for my hounds. It seems too much variation and "yummy extras" results in nothing but blowouts and vomit.

 

As mandm mentioned, I might also suggest fecal checks for parasites if you haven't done that. When I adopted my first hound, Indy, he had hookworms, then roundworms, then tapeworms, as well as giardia -- which gave him squirty liquid poo. And due to the cyclical nature of parasite development, one fecal check may not be enough. Anyway took about 3-4 months to get Indy cleared up. I thought food was the culprit when in fact much of his problem was due to parasites.

 

Also, as you probably know there are many wonderful foods for dogs with sensitive tummies - you may want to read some labels. I happen to feed Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin & Stomach with some Pinnacle Trout & Sweet Potato mixed in. Fish-based products work pretty well for sensitive dogs.

 

I introduce new kibble very s-l-o-w-l-y, like over the course of a month, each week adding a bit more.

 

Another suggestion: skip products with wheat, corn, and soy. Such ingredients can be very problematic for sensitive puppers. Chicken can also pose a problem for some dogs.

 

You'll figure it out. And the weight gain will come in time. Good luck!