Betty Just Can't Keep Her Poop Together

[jshell]

It's been just over a week since Betty Joan's poop started going runny, which seems to happen each year in the springtime.

 

Last year it went really bad - explosive, pure liquid diarrhea; vomiting; massive weight loss in a short amount of time. Dealt with that for about three weeks, and right when that was looking better, she had some kind of neurological incident that appears to have been vestibular syndrome. Not a fun start to the summer. But through it all, we determined that she was severely lacking in a protein (albumin, I think), which appears to have been fixed by prednisone. And then we did blood pressure test and found that it was really high (off the charts initially), but we've got that down to a manageable level.

 

So this round doesn't seem as bad - no vomiting, no explosive diarrhea, weight seems stable. But it doesn't seem to be getting better. The vet came and checked Betty over on Tuesday and says she appears to be fine. She's on metronidazole and imodium along with her blood pressure meds, and has been put on a mix of wet and dry I/D prescription diet (and Betty seems to HATE the dry I/D and is leaving some of the kibble behind, but eating the wet food just fine). Prior to that we've done no major diet changes in the past few months and have stuck with a pretty restricted/simple diet since last year's trauma, and a good portion of food and treats revolve around "healthy digestion" these days.

 

We're currently in a very high pollen time and the vet said that it's possible for seasonal allergies to contribute to a flare-up of inflammation in her system. I don't know if Betty was diagnosed with full IBD or not, but during last year's big trauma she had an ultrasound done and there was inflammation in the system (I can't remember if it was intestinal or on other organs).

 

I asked this on the nutrition/diet board and didn't get many responses, so I thought I'd try here: has anyone else encountered this kind of seasonal soft poop? One neighbor said her chihuahua goes through something similar each spring. The airborne allergy side is something I had not considered but seems to make sense.

 

My two worries are that this is still going on (although last May's outbreak took 3.5 weeks to get under control, but that was much more severe), and that 2.5 days into the Metronidazole treatment I haven't seen much change except for some loud-ish squeaks and squills from her stomach this morning (not sure if those are 'empty belly' or 'unhappy intestine' sounds; we have spent much of the past year starting the day off playing the game of 'are those sounds coming from my stomach or yours?')..

 

Sorry if this is a bit rambly. I just want my baby to feel better. And really hoping this is not leading into a repeat of last year's troubles (indications seem to indicate that it's not, but daddy is still a worried man).

[Moneypenny]

You mentioned that last year she had low albumin, one of my greys had that many years ago and my vet suggested putting hard boiled egg whites into his food, the whites are very high in albumin. We also used a fish based food (without corn), eliminated corn from any treats (had to bake them myself then not as many pet store options)and he firmed up pretty well. Now his wasn't seasonal, so I don't know if this will help or not, but I feel your pain and wish you luck, give Betty a get well

[jshell]

I gave her that kiss before we went on our evening walk, and behold! Shapes! Granted, they were rather soft shapes, but no liquid. And she just ate her full dinner with a bit more enthusiasm than I've seen in the past couple of days. We willl see what tomorrow brings, but a little less anxiety on my side tonight.

[Batmom]

Haven't had the seasonal experience but hope your girl continues to improve. She's such a babe .

 

 

[jshell]

Bah. Back to chocolate mud and water this morning. I'm starting to blame the sudden switch to I/D diet. Her good poop last night came from a predominantly regular (pedigree healthy digestion) breakfast. Think I'll stick with that and the forta-flora probiotics that we've been taking daily already.

[Guest Roadtripper]

Hi, sorry I have no experience with this, but just wanted to say hello since we're in the same neck of the woods (uh, salt flats).

 

Betty Joan is gorgeous! Hope you get her tummy-troubles sorted out soon.

 

Best wishes,

Amy, Boojum, & Cairo