Mystery Diarrhea

[KickReturn]

My 7 year old sweet boy Honor has the oddest diarrhea. About once every two weeks (sometimes just a week will pass, sometime three) he will have a well formed but larger then normal bowel movement with a a bit of mucus coating, followed within an hour by diarrhea the consistency of paint - so quite runny. Bowel movements that follow, usually the next day are completely normal.

 

I have now done two fecals and they both came up clean.

 

The vet has him on Purina Pro Plan EN Gastroenteric. Despite the high corn content Honor is doing extremely well. This particular food seems to be low residue and outside of these isolated diarrhea events, his bowel movements are small, firm and well formed. Also for the last two months he has had nothing but this kibble to eliminate food allergies as possibility. However I should also note that this pattern has been present no matter what he eats since his arrival in November.

 

I am perplexed and so is the vet. Any ideas?

Edited May 3, 2017 by KickReturn

[XTRAWLD]

Has he done any strenuous activity prior to the bowel movement? Maybe he was really excitable earlier in the day, or had a really big walk?

[Time4ANap]

Rocket sometimes gets bouts of Stress Colitis. No rhyme or reason for it, but symptoms are fairly similar. Fortunately, it's not as often as your pup, but was before we got it under control.

 

Given the repetitive nature as if it's almost on a regular cycle, I think i would probably de-worm him just in case. A negative fecal doesn't mean much, and a round or two of Panacur can't hurt.

 

We put Rocket on Tylan when everything else that we tried failed. He has done well on it, but every once in a while we still need a food change. It seems like a particular food will work well for a long time, until it doesn't. Currently using Purina Pro Plan Focus Large Breed Adult and it has been great. Other than what I call "the last poop of the day syndrome" when things are sometimes runny after several poops in a row, his output pretty much bounces when it hits the ground using this food. We rarely get the stomach upset since starting the Tylan.

[XTRAWLD]

We put Rocket on Tylan when everything else that we tried failed.

I agree that this has been a god-send for me in the past when I just couldn't resolve D, except I've only used it as necessary and not constantly on it.

Edited May 3, 2017 by XTRAWLD

[KickReturn]

We did a general de-worming (Dopac). But maybe Panacur is the way to go.

 

This is not exercise related. His exercise pattern is very consistent - two big walks per day and no problem most of the time. He has had the diarrhea at times of rest also - once in the middle of the night.

 

Tylan? an antibiotic? This problem is so infrequent I am reluctant to give any medication, but if it can change things around it might be worth a try.

Edited May 3, 2017 by KickReturn

[Time4ANap]

We did a general de-worming (Dopac). But maybe Panacur is the way to go.

 

This is not exercise related. His exercise pattern is very consistent - two big walks per day and no problem most of the time. He has had the diarrhea at times of rest also - once in the middle of the night.

 

Tylan? an antibiotic? This problem is so infrequent I am reluctant to give any medication, but if it can change things around it might be worth a try.

 

Tylan is pretty much the last resort when nothing else works. Most vets are reluctant to use it until they've exhausted all other possibilities. We probably went 2-3 years dealing with intermittent bouts of diarrhea and stomach issues until the vet and the U of IL Vet Med School both concurred that we had exhausted all other treatments and ruled out other causes. i wouldn't use Tylan as a first treatment, but rather after everything else has been ruled out, and only with the approval of the vet treating him.

 

You can get Panacur OTC at most pet products stores or Agricultural Supply Stores. It's most often sold as Safeguard brand, but is made by the same company as Panacur C, just packaged differently for retail. Be sure to get the correct strength for your dog's weight and the correct number of boxes to treat per the instructions.

 

There is also a similar product for Livestock that you don't want to use, so be sure that the packaging is for dogs.

[XTRAWLD]

Actually I just checked the bottle I have. It's called Tylosin (I'm assuming same thing but it might not be?) Dosage was 200mg every 12 hrs for 5 days.