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Does This Sound Like Giardia To You?


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5 am Wednesday diarrhea starts. Pure liquid, asking to go out every 1-5 hours. This continues, with lessening quantity as it progresses until around 10 am the following day (so 24+ hrs). We skip dinner Wednesday evening (she's raw fed so only gets one meal per day).

 

Thursday afternoon when I got home from work she seemed to be doing much better so I canceled the vet appt I had set up. Gave her some coconut water since I was concerned she wasn't drinking much, then dinner of boiled chicken, pumpkin and metamucil.

 

Same thing for breakfast Friday then went to work. Friday afternoon, of course too late to get her into the vet after all she backslides a little so I spoke with the vet right before they closed and started her on Metranidazole that evening, 250 mg 2x/day (This is Skye, my mix so she's only 33 lbs).

 

Since then, she's been doing okay. Intermittent grass eating, vomited grass in a bit of water one time (I added in Zantac 2x/day after that), but otherwise no vomiting, not having accidents or requesting to go out outside of our normal walks, but stool is only formed in the gelatinous sense and a bit mucousy and orange (she's actually not going frequently). She's not drinking much on her own, but she is getting liquid through her meals (we've switched to crock pot chicken w/broth and white potatoes) and I'm occasionally giving her dilute coconut water to be safe because she loves to drink it.

 

Never at any point any tenderness to her abdomen, never any straining to poop, peeing normally, no fever, she's generally herself if a bit more lethargic at times, but still happy to full on wrestle with the other dogs, take walks, bark at our neighbor's dogs, etc. :P

 

Other things to note - one week prior to this starting we went for a hike at a nearby Wildlife Refuge and she was off lead playing in the lake a lot (and presumably drinking water). Also, the night before it started, she picked up and ate something on a walk, probably a chicken bone or similar (something she's done many a time without ill effect).

 

I was initially thinking whatever she ate upset her stomach, but because of the timing and presentation I'm thinking it's most likely giardia, but am curious what others think.

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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."

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To be completely honest, Ryder had it, and I wouldn't have known that he did. Yes he had runny stool, but I guessed it was due to being in a new transition from the kennel to our home, excitement, anxious, etc. We caught it during a routine exam - run of the mill test when we get a new houndie.

 

The sucky thing about it is you have to treat all the dogs in the home, because of how contagious it can be. Others I'm sure would be able to shed some other insight.

Proudly owned by:
10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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It is strongly possible. Giardia is very common in lakes, creeks, standing puddles of water, birdbaths, and raw food. I'd suggest taking a fresh fecal sample to your vet for a fecal test (possibly ELISA test). After giardia infection, it takes 5 to 12 days to be detected in the stool.

 

Please make every effort to avoid letting her stool seep into dirt. Giardia can live outside it's host for many months, and can infect humans also. Bleach kills it on surfaces. The longer a dog is infected, the harder it is to treat the dog, not to mention the internal damage the dog suffers.

 

If anyone is interested, my favorite hound potty area material is tumbled playground bark because I can immediately scoop up the bark along with the stool, keeping the dirt free of parasites. Careful management, including fostering new hounds, we haven't had a yard parasite problem in years. Our potty area is sectioned off and not large enough for hounds to run, otherwise I wouldn't use this bark. This bark is less likely to have splinters, but the bark is small.

Edited by 3greytjoys
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Have had dogs with giardia over the years. Keeva recently had a very bad case of it, bloody diarrhea, vomiting and very lethargic. One thing that always seems to happen when I have had dogs with giardia is very bad gas, a horrible smell that is different than regular dog gas. Hope your girl is feeling better soon.

Linda, Jack and Keeva

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sounds like it but only your vet will confirm or give you another diagnosis. skye is a smallish dog, so don't wait to make sure what ever is bothering his gut is under control. they do dehydrate quickly. i know you are a raw feeder but in a situation like this plain old over cooked rice and some boiled beef- if he will eat it is the easiest for the tummy. as to the amount of zantax and coconut water....i personally wouldn't give either. coconut water is not as great as the claims are, it really doesn't replace or replenish electrolytes. zantax will reduce acid production if the patient has GERD. 2xs a day, isn't that a lot for a small dog?? if the pup needs electrolytes then hydration by the vet will do the trick. i went thru giardia w/ felix as a pup. along w/ stinky stool were cramps. he used to try to eat and cramp up, roach back and in distress.

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Hmm, well there is no gas to speak of. Can anyone try to describe this giardia poop smell to me? :P I haven't noticed anything specific, so maybe I'm wrong. Or perhaps you don't always have the smell? :dunno

 

i know you are a raw feeder but in a situation like this plain old over cooked rice and some boiled beef- if he will eat it is the easiest for the tummy. as to the amount of zantax and coconut water....i personally wouldn't give either. coconut water is not as great as the claims are, it really doesn't replace or replenish electrolytes. zantax will reduce acid production if the patient has GERD. 2xs a day, isn't that a lot for a small dog??

She's already been eating a bland diet as I mentioned above, we're doing white potatoes instead of rice because she didn't tolerate grains well before she was raw fed. I'm giving her a quarter of a Zantac twice a day, which seems appropriate for her weight (she's a medium dog at about 33 lbs,my 10 lb cat gets 1/8 of a tablet twice daily per my vet's instructions). The diluted coconut water is just to encourage her to drink because again, she likes the taste, not because I've read any great claims about it. Again, there aren't any signs that she's dehydrated, I was just erring on the side of caution.

 

 

We are seeing gradual improvement, I was just curious because I was mulling over dosing her with Panacur like EnzaFerrari suggested. I suppose it could also have just been a really bad bug, or again something with the bone she ate, but the timing and the "severity" of it made me think giardia. :dunno

gallery_12662_3351_862.jpg

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."

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well, you posted zantax 2xs a day, not the amount- one never knows! whew, ....

 

giardia stool has a strong, sweet, sickening smell. that's the best way i can describe it.i remember the color being BRIGHT yellow- but it could have been the kibble he was on at the time.

 

there is an old formula out there, someone who uses an old time hollistic vet told me about it- boiled turnips, white and sweet potato, diluted chicken broth(very little). mash it together and it helps w/ binding the pup.i found rice as effective so i stopped cooking it. you might like this combo.

 

there is something around, not running like wild fire from dog to dog but it causes gastro upset. felix had it, my friend's older dane did as well.they weren't in contact w/ each other and the other dogs living w/ each were not affected. the symptoms were: awful stomach cramps, lethargy, some had vomiting, cow poops- liquid puddles. it passed on it's own, the dane needed antispasmodic meds and id diet($$$ for a dane!)both did not run a fever, it lasted 1/2 a week for both. we, my friend and i wondered what they may have eaten, something seasonal or poop from a feral animal.

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just wondering how skye was doing. as i had mentioned felix went thru a bout of something gut wise. intense cramping and lethargy and obviously in pain. but it subsided in 3 days and concluded w/ loose poops(no smell)....then...2 weeks later the same symptoms reappeared. off to the vet thinking giardia or something else he could have picked up- eggs matured, same cramping. i didn't say anything and out of my vet's mouth..."well he must of got into some feces on his walks and most likely picked up a parasite- most likely giardia." dh's mouth dropped and said, "that's exactly what she(referring to me) said this morning". 5 days of panacur and 5 days of tylan powder should kill what ever is festering.

 

watch skye and see if his episode repeats itself and when...just curious.

 

oh, yes felix does have stinky gas, but what greyhound doesn't?

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Stool sample to vet ASAP to rule out giardia.

 

I don't wait around when poop is liquid. I also don't hesitate to do a check for suspected giardia. It is very nasty and can be asymptomatic for ages before you get to the liquid stinky poop stage. Also, it is highly contagious and humans can pick it up easily too.

Gillian
Caesar (Black Caesarfire) and Olly (Oregon) the Galgo

 

Still missing: Nell (spaniel mix) 1982-1997, Boudicca (JRT) 1986- 2004, and the greys P's Catwalk 2001-2008, Murphy Peabody (we failed fostering) 1998-2010 and Pilgrim (Blazing Leia) 2003-2016,

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just wondering how skye was doing. as i had mentioned felix went thru a bout of something gut wise. intense cramping and lethargy and obviously in pain. but it subsided in 3 days and concluded w/ loose poops(no smell)....then...2 weeks later the same symptoms reappeared. off to the vet thinking giardia or something else he could have picked up- eggs matured, same cramping. i didn't say anything and out of my vet's mouth..."well he must of got into some feces on his walks and most likely picked up a parasite- most likely giardia." dh's mouth dropped and said, "that's exactly what she(referring to me) said this morning". 5 days of panacur and 5 days of tylan powder should kill what ever is festering.

 

watch skye and see if his episode repeats itself and when...just curious.

 

oh, yes felix does have stinky gas, but what greyhound doesn't?

Thanks for checking in. Good timing too as she actually seemed to he improving steadily and then today we backslid majorly. No urgent need to go out, but when she does go, its liquid. She finished her Flagyl last night, which to me, points to Giardia or something similar again. Unfortunately we're at a cabin in the middle of nowhere until Monday. I did pack Panacur just in case so I started that tonight. Obviously unless she seems completely better we will get into the vet immediately when we get back.

 

Oh, i should mention, she's not a greyhound. But none of my dogs typically have gas, thank you raw diet. ;)

Edited by NeylasMom

gallery_12662_3351_862.jpg

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."

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