Diarrhea! Help!

[Guest Jordan33]

I brought Adrien home on Saturday and now it's Tuesday, and she still has very bad diarrhea every time she poos. In fact, at 3am, or last night it was 1:30am and 5:30am, she finds a spot in the livingroom and lets loose some more, even if we did go out before bedtime and she went outside. Last night she didn't poo before bed for the first time.

 

She was given random canned food along with a grocery bag full of Iams green bag and I was told to mix rice with three cups of green bag dry and a can of food (she's 47 pounds). The day before yesterday I started mixing in her new food when I ran out of the canned stuff she came with. I'm giving her The Honest Kitchen Full grain Turkey dinner. She likes it and eats everything. They also have a supplement to curb diarrhea that I've been giving her, but it's not helping, that I can see.

 

I understand she's still new to the environment and her food changes, and I've been patient. I thought yesterday her poos were getting thicker at least, but not this last time. But this seems to be continuing for a long time. What can I do?

 

I hear pumpkin works? Or is this supposed to carry on for awhile because of all the changes? She's new to the city and I live in a very busy neighborhood where loud noises scare the day lights out of her enough that she tries to escape. Could that be causing this too?

 

I just want her to feel better!

 

Thanks for all the help you can give me!

[JohnF]

This often happens. See if you can get some of the original food and then transition across taking TEN DAYS. If you don't you could have a a month of problematic poops.

The destabilisation of their life from being adopted makes stress hormones which makes then even more prone to diarrhea.

Too much pumpkin makes it worse. Ensure that fresh drinking water is always available. Give Pedialyte if the dog appears 'sad' and dehydrated. If seriously dehydrated see the vet.

[locket]

When we got Jack, he got a full 10 days of rice and boiled chicken and if we tried transitioning, he just reverted to diarrhea. After that, we chose a bag of food (kirkland) and stuck with it and things improved. It's all new to her, maybe try a bland diet to see if things settles? Often trying too much stuff at the same time just worsen things.

Good luck! Make sure she keeps hydrated as John said and don't hesitate to contact your vet if you see anything odd/off.

[GeorgeofNE]

I'm going to suggest you talk to your adoption group.

 

If you live in the city, it's a bit odd they'd send you home with a dog who is fearful of loud noises.

 

That's also WAY too much food for a dog of that size. Unless you didn't mean you're feeding her all of that at once?

 

In comparison, my 64 pound male gets 1 cup of kibble in the AM, and 1 cup of kibble in the PM, with several large Milk Bones during the day as rewards.

 

Your dog does not need canned food, and rice is not a magical cure all.

 

You need to 1) go to the vet and have her stool checked for parasites, and 2) fast the dog for 24 hours, then start her on a diet of plain rice and either boiled chicken meat (no bones, just the meat) or boiled hamburger.

 

Keep her on that for a few days (the vet can give you more guidance on this) and then start her back on the kibble she is used to. Add a bit of warm water to it, and perhaps a SPOON of canned (since you already bought it).

 

Pumpkin can help--but a newly adopted dog with diarrhea really needs to go to the vet.

 

Good luck. We've all been there.

[racindog]

Ditch the canned food. That could very well be what caused it.

I would give a Primal Defense probiotic but any probiotic is prolly better than none. Even a little yogurt would be ok.

Don't feed anything for 12-24 hours-let her insides rest.

I would give kaopectate-quite a bit. At least 4 or 5 tablespoons -squirt down with syringe(learned this from working at the vet school-they used kaopectate by the gallon-it helps coat the gut) at least twice a day and after every loose movement.

When you resume feeding give boiled rice and boiled(canned is ok) chicken-nice white meat-no fatty dark meat in a small-no more than 4-8 ounce quantity). If she appears ok then feed small quantities a couple of times/day for the 1st day or 2. After 2-3 days you can begin adding in a little kibble to the rice/chicken mixture until you gradually are able to switch competely by adding a little more each time.

If she is not greatly improved or gets worse(keep eye on dehydration) go to vet-may need Rx like metronidazole(spelling?) or something.

There is no quick fix that I know of.

JMO-this protocol works well for me. Good luck.

[Guest Jordan33]

Thanks guys! Yes, the canned food is finished up. Will try some of the other suggestions. Thanks!

[Guest asaccamora]

I second the ditching canned food and adding pumpkin. Our girl had loose stools for the first few weeks and we ended up giving her some canned vet prescribed food + probiotic. Since then we have been giving her wellness adult + 2 spoons of pumpkin/meal.

 

From what was explained to me, sometimes canned food has too much protein and makes digesting harder.

[Guest Jordan33]

Pumpkin didn't help, actually. *sigh* we'll get over this eventually.

[greyhoundgang]

Natural ways to treat diarrhea. I like Slippery Elm Gel the best.

 

However, she may be allergic to processed food (kibble) - in particular the grains - i,e. rice.

More info about that here.

[juliemac]

I haven't tried Slippery Elm (yet), but Olewo Carrots are a godsend! Of course it won't work if the issue is worms, but it works so well that I keep it included in my pups' regular diet (one 1# bag goes a LONG way ... you need 1 tbsp of reconstituted carrots in a meal).

 

Good luck!!

[Hubcitypam]

Pumpkin and yogurt nervier did a thing for my finicky stomached Rex. The green bag fed alone did. I went to hell and back with him on pricey foods until I just got fed up. YMMV.

[Guest Jordan33]

Natural ways to treat diarrhea. I like Slippery Elm Gel the best.

 

However, she may be allergic to processed food (kibble) - in particular the grains - i,e. rice.

More info about that here.

Thanks for the links.

 

I think it's time to try fasting her and then going with the chicken and rice meal. And maybe some slippery elm bark. Haven't done that yet. She's already eating dehydrated carrots in her regular meal and not digesting them at all, so I'm not sure Olewo carrots will help.

 

I really don't want to let her eat garbage kibble, so I hope this doesn't come to that. She's so skinny, she's got to put on some weight on top of all this.

 

Sadly, there is no holistic vet near me. But there is one that seems to be very good, with a $1.00 new pet visit coupon! I think I'm going to have to call them tomorrow. The hard part about going to this vet though is the train ride to get there. She's been on the train once before, but talk about a stressful ride for her.

 

*sigh* well, it's now 3am, I've been up for an hour cleaning bedding, carpets, hardwood floors, and my poor doggie's bum this time, and then doing more research. I think it's time for bed.

[greyhoundgang]

I would not give rice. If she does have an allergy to grains, rice will aggravate. Dogs cannot digest whole vegetables. They need to be pulverized. And they don't need a lot of veggies. Protein is key.

funny video about pulverizing veggies for hounds.

 

Additionally, if you have a stressed hound, get some rescue remedy. Stress will also cause diarrhea. Make the GEL with the slippery elm. It will reduce the inflammation of the intestinal lining, which creates the diarrhea.

[Guest AtticusMom]

I agree with a vet check, just in case. And are you interested in feeding raw food? I have fed my greys a commercial raw food diet for quite a while, and they seem to thrive on it. Poops that bounce off the curb, so to speak.

[Guest Rufus]

Nothing seemed to work for my guy until I switched him to raw. Dryness of the morning poopin' seems to be entirely a function of how much fresh, raw bone he's eaten.

[Guest Jordan33]

She's doing much better! Scrambled eggs and rice did the trick yesterday. Today we switched to boiled chicken, rice, and green beans. Tomorrow we see the vet and we'll see what the professional opinion is. She's got so much energy today, she's been bouncing around and flinging her stuffies all over! Amazing!

[Guest Jordan33]

She's still doing well! We went to the vet this morning and had a good check up. The bland food is working for her and over a week, I'll add in her regular food to switch permanently to the Honest Kitchen dehydrated meals. She weighed in at 54 pounds, 7 more than was recorded a month ago, but she does need to gain a lot more, so she'll be eating three times a day for awhile.

 

It's just a relief to have the diarrhea gone. Phew!

[EllenEveBaz]

she's been bouncing around and flinging her stuffies all over! Amazing!

Happy dog!

 

Be careful about switching foods a lot until her tummy is permanently settled down. Although I guess that eggs and chicken count as the same protein. If no one's suggested it yet, when you feed rice, it's best for their digestion if you overcook it.

 

Tangential story -- my Eve climbed on a counter to get to a 5-lb bag of raw rice. I called the vet in a panic. He said it would probably do her no harm, but that I should be glad it was a Friday and I'd be home over the weekend. Diarrhea doesn't begin to describe it. My back yard looked like a rice paddy.

[Guest Jordan33]

Happy dog!

 

Be careful about switching foods a lot until her tummy is permanently settled down. Although I guess that eggs and chicken count as the same protein. If no one's suggested it yet, when you feed rice, it's best for their digestion if you overcook it.

 

Tangential story -- my Eve climbed on a counter to get to a 5-lb bag of raw rice. I called the vet in a panic. He said it would probably do her no harm, but that I should be glad it was a Friday and I'd be home over the weekend. Diarrhea doesn't begin to describe it. My back yard looked like a rice paddy.

Oh dear!

 

My biggest concern now is her need to sniff the things on the stove! Earlier today, for the first time, she put her paws up on the counter to try to reach her lunch that was cooling out of her reach. Sadly, she will likely never understand the need to keep away from hot things and the need to let food cool a bit before eating it!

[sobesmom]

Oh dear!

 

My biggest concern now is her need to sniff the things on the stove! Earlier today, for the first time, she put her paws up on the counter to try to reach her lunch that was cooling out of her reach. Sadly, she will likely never understand the need to keep away from hot things and the need to let food cool a bit before eating it!

Ah - that's called "counter surfing" and it's a different issue. And we have help for that! Most of us have been there - done that. Start a new post for that one in T&B. She can, and will learn to not do that. It's easier to deal with than poo issues.

[dixidoll]

I have a question about the chicken and rice. What is the difference if you bake or boil,the chicken breast ? Baking without the skin.boiling without the skin. Fat removed both ways.it always says boiled.

[sobesmom]

I have a question about the chicken and rice. What is the difference if you bake or boil,the chicken breast ? Baking without the skin.boiling without the skin. Fat removed both ways.it always says boiled.

There's no difference that I can think of. Boiling is usually quicker so most people do that. Crockpots work just fine, too.

[Guest katie_dog]

I read about the idea of adding canned pumpkin to the meals and that has really helped with my dog Katie's poops. She had the soft serve poop for like a month. I started adding the pumpkin to her meals and now she has regular firm poops (makes cleanup much easier). It seemed to help almost immediately, within the first day or two. Thank you so much everyone for that tip.

[lukasmom]

Try Olewo carrots, helps calm the digestive tract and firm up the poop. Lots of info here on Greytalk from people it has helped.