Watery Diarrhea and Weight loss

[ScoreWin]

I’m worried about my 7 year old Winston! In early July, he started having frequent diarrhea - including lots of panting, decreased interest in food, middle of the night emergencies, etc. We started giving him a little pumpkin and monitoring his food closely. He has a history of anxiety and we had just moved- so attributed to that. After about 3 weeks of this, we took him in to the vet. They did blood work (normal) and sent us home with Flagyl. He completed the full course of those meds and nothing changed- in fact things started to get worse with pure liquid coming out (rather than the loose soft serve he had before). 

We returned to to the vet, and they did x-rays (which appeared normal.) He lost 5 pounds in 3 weeks. Sent us home with probiotics and told me to feed him a bland diet of boiled chicken and rice. It’s been 3 days of that and we haven’t seen any improvements. 

Have others gone through something like this? What else can I do? I’m really worried about his weight loss especially. He is looking VERY skinny. 

[cleptogrey]

new vet/return vet visit ASAP! talk to your adoption group for a referral or back to your vet tomorrow first thing.

i don't think going to an e-vet will make a difference in anything except your bank account. tests need to be run and that takes time. not all e-vets are wonderful. i might be wrong, the decision is yours. 

there are so many variables, were stool tested as well? also each vet has their choice of drugs/regimes to battle this. TYLAN powder vs. FLAGYL, etc, probiotics etc.... could be just about anything. skip the pumpkin, over cooked white rice and a low fat protein (chicken or turkey- 20% max. just for taste) and back to the vet. something is brewing! fingers crossed that you find relief for your pup.

worms, IBD, pancreatitis, who knows what. good luck

[Remolacha]

I agree, need a return vet visit or new vet. X-ray won't show a lot of soft tissue things, he probably needs an ultrsound and different tests. You have done all the standard things, time to search further. Good luck!

[MaryJane]

Do not feed chicken - many dogs are allergic to that protein. Switch to lean hamburger - 90% and see if that helps after a few days. You can also try a fish like tilapia. Also, cook up some oatmeal and give about 2 to 3 tablespoons.

[ScoreWin]

Thanks all! I did bring a stool sample to my first vet visit but he said it wasn’t necessary to test it at the time. I should have pushed harder then. Think I may need to go to a different vet at this point- as our current one doesn’t seem as concerned as I am. 

[cleptogrey]

3 hours ago, MaryJane said:

Do not feed chicken - many dogs are allergic to that protein. Switch to lean hamburger - 90% and see if that helps after a few days. You can also try a fish like tilapia. Also, cook up some oatmeal and give about 2 to 3 tablespoons.

ground turkey? tilapia is loaded w/ antibiotics- garbage farm bred fish that should cost $.99 per pound. if you go w/ lean hamburger it's probably cheaper to use your food processor and grind up cheap london broil- it's lean and often just $1.99- 2.99 per pound. lean ground beef is $$$ around here! oatmeal always gives my dogs the runs. remember white rice- you can throw in a box of low sodium chicken or beef broth as part of the water. the rice will have more flavor.

[Remolacha]

White rice (cooked very “wet”), runny oatmeal, mushy pasta, different dogs like/do well on different things, just make sure which ever you use is over cooked and mushy. Helps add water which he will need, diarrhea makes them dehydrated and easier to digest. 

Sorry if I am repeating the obvious, but not everyone knows this stuff

[greysmom]

Testing for hookworm and giardia should have been the very first thing that was done.  If it's parasites, none of the other things are going to help.

Edited August 19, 2019 by greysmom

[tbhounds]

Agreed with the above post-stool check and prophylactic de-wormer should be the first course of action.  I love to give a good probiotic-nutramax makes a wonderful product called Proviable.  I would also highly recommend trying Hills W/D food-it’s extremely high in fiber and low in fat.  The fiber will slow the gi tract down and the low fat will allow the pancreas to settle.  Fat is very hard to digest.

I would then recommend seeing an internal medicine vet-your hound may have IBD.

[Time4ANap]

Given that it started after the move, once you've ruled out parasites or hookworms, it could also be stress-colitis.  We had similar tummy issues with Rocket for years before the vet said that was the only diagnosis left since the occurrences were so random. .  We ended up ultimately changing food about once a year as foods would just time-out with him and the diarrhea would come back.  He had far fewer issues once the diagnosis was made, and we had him on Tylan along with some Olewo Carrots mixed in his food. 

Pumpkin sometimes makes things worse, so I would lose that if it didn't help. 

Our go-to for a bland diet has always been Evanger's Organic Cooked Chicken (it's a canned dog food with nothing in it but chicken and a little guar gum as a stabilizer).  it seemed to be easier to digest than home-cooked chicken or ground beef. I'd mix the Evanger's with way over cooked mushy rice or pasta, and now pretty much use pasta all the time instead of rice if we need bland food. Petunia and Rocket both really liked overcooked elbow macaroni. If things started firming up after a day or two, I would then add scrambled eggs to the mix until we got formed stools and slowly work back on to regular food.  It may also help to feed 4 smaller meals per day instead of loading him up in 2 meals. 

As you can see, everyone has their different ways of doing things, so it may take a little trial and error to find the right combination for your hound. 

Should you need probiotics, the Rx Zyme and RxBiotic products work very well and can be purchased on Amazon. 

[cleptogrey]

On 8/18/2019 at 10:28 AM, MaryJane said:

DANG- CAN'T GET RID OF THIS BOX!!!! 

ANY WORD FROM THE VET YET?  also, i swear by RX VITAMIN clay- found on amazon.

annie had colitis, due to heat and stress. events were not for her- and one grapehound  was close to 100 degrees. camping and vending were just too much. it took 4-6 months to get her back to normal and wean her off of FLAGYL. she lost 10#s instantly! that's a lot- but gained it back slowly.

[ScoreWin]

Thanks all! We are headed to the vet this afternoon. At our very first visit about a month ago, I brought a stool sample but was told it was unlikely to be worms, since they don't have hookworm in California. I am new to the area, so I believed them at the time and they didn't test it.

He's been on the bland diet for nearly five days (mostly just overcooked white rice, plus probiotics once a day) and his stool is coming out bright orange and the consistency of hot coffee. Generally has an appetite, but is a little lethargic and still has some urgency to go to the bathroom. We live in an apartment building, but thankfully he is good about letting us know when he needs to go out.

While it may have started as anxiety, it is unlikely that he is still experiencing it. He's been resilient with changes before and I work from home so he is rarely alone (a trigger for him in the past). Will see what the vet says today. Very appreciative of all of the suggestions here! 

[tbhounds]

Orange stool sounds EPI.

https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/health/exocrine-pancreatic-insufficiency-in-dogs/

[ScoreWin]

Thanks all for your suggestions. We went to the vet on Tuesday and he exhibited signs of pain in his abdomen. Also, he had lost another 3 pounds (which brings our total to 8 in the last month). Rather than do further tests there, they recommended that we get an ultrasound ASAP. We did so on Wednesday, and our worst possible fears came true. There was a large cancerous mass wrapped around his colon (7x9 cm) and enlarged lymph nodes. The doctors said we could do further exploratory tests and consider chemo...but in the best case scenario it would buy us a few months... and he is already so weak.

We had to say goodbye to our baby yesterday and we are totally and completely heartbroken / devastated. He was only 7 years old...and it all happened so suddenly. I never thought at the beginning of this week that we wouldn't have him by Friday. Give your houndies an extra hug today. 

[greysmom]

I'm so sorry that Winston had to leave you and your family.   It's never easy, but these sudden losses are really hard.  {{{hugs}}}

[Remolacha]

I am so sorry you didn’t have a better outcome  

[FiveRoooooers]

I am so sorry. Have been following and hoping for a better outcome for your good boy. Two years ago, Paddy Mayhem also left at 7 yo. Winston will be in good company at the Bridge. You guys take good care of yourselves.

[BatterseaBrindl]

[ramonaghan]

I'm so sorry for your sudden loss. You did everything you could for your sweet boy. Rest well, Winston.

[cleptogrey]

So so sorry on the loss of your pup. It's  devastating loosing a young dog. I just lost a nearly 5 year old to  lymphoma. You are in shock, I know all too well.

[MP_the4pack]

I'm so so very sorry. Seven is much too young. And so sudden.

[EllenEveBaz]

I am so sorry about the loss of your beautiful boy.    You did everything you could for Winston -- nothing could have changed things.  He knew every minute he was with you that he was loved.  

[greytpups]

I’m so sorry for your loss so young and so quickly.