Guest Jakestheman Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Jake is still having small amounts of diarrhea, hasn't really had much blood if any at all like he was last time. He has lost a couple of pounds due to being on rice and meat for the last 1.5 weeks since this all began. When do I need to take him back to the vet? He still has a healthy appetite, he still enjoys going outside for walks and is happy to see us when we get home and when we take him out he perks up. I'm not seeing any signs of dehydration and his diarrhea is not frequent or large, and there's no vomiting. Do I need to be as worried as I am? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest june Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 I'm a worrier so maybe not the best person to ask. How about if you call your vet and see what they think? june Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopeForHounds Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Have you done a fecal to rule out worms? The reason I ask is I noticed you posted that he had fleas a while back, and tapeworm is spready by fleas. When I first brought Peanut home, she had diahrea off and on. I remembered that she had fleas about a few weeks before I brough her home, so we checked. Sure enough she had worms. We treated them and no more diahrea. I hope it's that simple for Jake. Quote Casual Bling & Hope for HoundsJanet & the hounds Maggie and Allen Missing my baby girl Peanut, old soul Jake, quirky Jet, Mama Grandy and my old Diva Miz Foxy; my angel, my inspiration. You all brought so much into my light, and taught me so much about the power of love, you are with me always.If you get the chance to sit it out or dance.......... I hope you dance! Missing our littlest girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jakestheman Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 foxysmom - we did a fecal culture, is a worm test different then that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhead Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 (edited) A "fecal test" is where the test the stool for worm eggs, and the results are apparent within a half-hour or so. A "fecal culture" is like a urine culture, in that fecal samples are put into dishes to see if any bacteria grow; by counting the number of particular bacteria, they can determine if there are many more than should be present and, thus, whether there is an intestinal bacterial overgrowth. So no, they aren't the same thing. But in your last thread about big-D, I think you said they did a "fecal culture" and thereby ruled out "parasites." I guessed that what you meant then was a fecal test for worms. If it was a culture for bugs, do you know which ones they tested for? Our local lab would only test for three bacteria at a time. They'd test for more, but one had to pay for another set of three. (Ours tested for E. coli, salmonella, and I requested Clostridium perfringens. It turned out to be Clostridium perfringens.) I don't think you're worrying too much. But again, you're hearing that from a worrier. Having taken our dog's yellow soft-serve and big-D too lightly for too long, we wound up with big problems. So I can't in good conscience advise anyone to take things casually. What's also important is that your vet take things seriously. Edited August 24, 2011 by greyhead Quote Mary with Jumper Jack (2/17/11) and angels Shane (PA's Busta Rime, 12/10/02 - 10/14/16) and Spencer (Dutch Laser, 11/25/00 - 3/29/13). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jakestheman Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 we did a test then, they ruled out any worms or parasites. We did not do a culture for bacteria, instead they put him on an antibiotic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhead Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Is he still on the antibiotic or has it run out? Quote Mary with Jumper Jack (2/17/11) and angels Shane (PA's Busta Rime, 12/10/02 - 10/14/16) and Spencer (Dutch Laser, 11/25/00 - 3/29/13). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryJane Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 The bland diet that your dog is on is intended to be easy to digest and while it can sometimes firm up the stool, it does not necessarily do that. You mentioned that your dog has lost weight on this diet -- how much are you feeding because I might suspect that you need to feed more. In the other thread you had on this subject I believe one of the recommendations was to increase fiber - this can help to bind up the material (making it more solid) and easier to pass. I usually give cooked oatmeal (which can be a bit of work) but I know others on the forum had used canned pumpkin (not sweetened). You might also want to check out some of the dog foods that have more fiber -- the "green iams" is one and "Science diet lite" is another. I think the science diet lite has about 10% fiber. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LindsaySF Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 Deworm anyway. Fecal exams are notoriously false negatives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jakestheman Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 jake's poop still has large amounts of mucous in it...like an unsolidified jello. The vet said it's likely the antibiotics weren't a long enough course, and gave us 10 days of probiotics and antibiotics. He said that could explain why he started to get better, the antibiotics ended, and he got worse again. Keep your fingers crossed please 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.