HELP!!! Alex has..............

PattyInAK · September 19, 2010, 04:22:06 PM

.........some real mooshy poops. I'm trying to tighten him up with brown rice. Any suggestions????????
Thankfully the little trooper has always made it to his puppy pad.

PattyInAK · September 19, 2010, 04:30:43 PM

Found this great info on the internet.............
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker
Hi there I am a Veterinarian Technician and hope to help!! I am sorry to hear about your sick pup! Unfortunately, at one time or another every dog will have diarrhea. What I would recommend is to collect a same of the diarrhea and bring it into your Vet tomorrow for a fecal exam for parasites. This should cost you about $16 and only takes about 20 minutes (a "normal" solid fecal takes 10 minutes, any loose stool should be run for 20). That way you can rule out any intestinal parasites. Most likely even if your dog does not have any parasites your Vet will prescribe Metronidazole which will help to get rid of the diarrhea.

In the mean time I would advise you to fast your dog for a full 24 hours. Your dog needs a full 24 hours of no food to rid the body of the diarrhea. No food, no bones, no treats, no toys from which pieces can be swallowed. HOWEVER, offer plenty of cold water (frequently!) to keep your dog hydrated.

Once you have fasted your dog for the full 24 hours then you should feed a bland diet. You can either purchase i/d prescription food from your Vet, or (if you don't mind cooking!) you can boil either chicken and rice or hamberg and rice. It is very important that you rinse off all the fat before boiling and please do not add seasoning or anything extra (that will cause diarrhea! you want to keep it as "bland" as possible! Trust me, I have seen everything!).

You are going to feed small frequent meals of the bland diet. About 1/3 of a cup 6 times daily. Again, make sure your baby is drinking plenty of water. I still would limit any bones (especially rawhides or anything similar) so you give your dogs stomach a little rest.

Feed the bland diet until your dog has a solid stool (if you are feeding the bland diet while giving your dog Metronidazole- do not expect any bowel movements for 3-7 days! So, don't panic if your dog does not poop for several days. That is to be expected on the prescription.). IF you are still seeing diarrhea on the bland diet then it is even more important to bring a fecal sample into the Vet (if you haven't done so already).

Here are some questions your Vet is going to want to know:
1) When did the diarrhea start?
2) Did you change anything in his/her diet? ie- new food, new bone, new treats, etc.
3) Did he/she get into something he/she should not have?
4) On heartworm prevention year round?
5) Any vomiting?
6) Eating/drinking/acting like normal?
7) And of course they are going to want to see the fecal sample!

Source(s):
Veterinarian Technician, personal experience!!

PattyInAK · September 19, 2010, 04:40:24 PM

OK.....Alex's 24-hour fast has begun, and unfortunately Willy has to go along for the ride. Wish us luck.

Kathleen · September 19, 2010, 05:47:48 PM

Canned pumpkin works great too-just a couple teaspoons in his regular food when you're done fasting him. The fiber helps solidify what comes out. Unfortunately, it's been super hard to find in the grocery stores-it was a bad pumpkin crop last year so I think they've run out. Thank goodness pumpkin season is here again.

peterparker · September 19, 2010, 05:51:00 PM

oh how | know the trots.
Last time Parker was sick, probably from eating bird dropping it cost us big time.
If he starts to vomit you may want to consider taking him to the vet. Also watch out for bloat.
Also keep him dehydrated. Little guys get dehydrated really fast.
When Parker was so ill in July, we had to feed him water with a syringe as he refused to drink.
We could squirt the syringe full of water and sometime pedialite into him. He didn't mind that so much.
Hope he is feeling better soon.

David C. · September 19, 2010, 06:10:49 PM

Max-angel was a notorious scavenger, as was Rudy-angel to a lesser extent. They both had tummy troubles often enough that it got to the point with my vet that he wouldn't even need to see them, he would just prescribe the Metrozinadole, and that would always clear them up.

Both Zs tend to scavenge, too, but they seem to have a bit more intestinal fortitude. Also, the scavenging selection is a lot more limited in our backyard than it was when we used to live in the condo.

BonniesMom · September 19, 2010, 07:59:30 PM

Smoochie rays to Alex. Poor guy and POOR WILLIE TOO! Hope our boy is feeling better soon.

Barb · September 19, 2010, 08:03:24 PM

Oh nos for Alex !! And Willy too...having to do what brother does.

Sadly, we have a real pumpkin shortage around here, but I have always tried that first. Did he get into anything? And hey, the article you posted is great !

Keep us posted !

Dee Dee and Hallie · September 19, 2010, 08:53:20 PM

I was going to suggest pumpkin too but we also have been out of pumpkin for months. I hope he clears up soon tummy problems are no fun with these kids!

papbouv · September 19, 2010, 09:24:48 PM

Canned pumpkin straight not the pumpkin pie filling also if you have some left over put it in a plastic bag put it in the freezer,its like gold anymore hard to find.
Dehydration can be really bad in young pups/dogs so make sure he stays hydrated,instead of brown rice use white rice it would be more bland the brown rice might contribute to loose stools since it has more fiber in it than the white rice.
Rays and Hugs to Alex hope he feels better soon.
My input is from having dogs about 45 years.

Spanish Teckels · September 20, 2010, 01:54:40 AM

Poor Alex and poor you. If you can get Metrozinadole easily without a special visit to the vet it should help quickly. Pumpkin does help and there is no such thing as canned in Spain (or indeed in Europe in general) so I buy butternut squash and roast it in the oven till soft, cut into cubes or spoon it out and freeze in ice cube trays. Once frozen I take the cubes out and store in the freezer in freezer bags. Great for soup for us and great for poopy doggies too.
Willy must be the bestest brother around to share a fast to get Alex better, well done!

PattyInAK · September 20, 2010, 11:33:33 AM

Thanks to all of you for your input and great suggestions. I do have canned pumpkin! Will give that a try once the fasting period is over. 5.5 more hours to go! So far the boys haven't been bugging me for food, I hope I can hold out until 3pm to feed them. :xfinger:
After I thought about it, I think Alex may have gotten into some fish that we put out for the raven. We kept the raven food up and away from where the dogs could get to it but maybe a few scraps fell on the ground.

papbouv · September 20, 2010, 12:31:41 PM

Be Super careful if it is Salmon fish some in the north caught wild can kill a dog will see if i can find the article on it and post it here.

Dee Dee and Hallie · September 20, 2010, 12:45:56 PM

You are so good Patty! I never make it thru the fasting period.

I always give in way before it's time. LOL.
I wonder if he did get into the fish, that would explain it. Fred got salmon sickness once and he was one sick puppy, I will never know how he got it he was always on leash and in sight of me and I never saw him get any fish on our walks which is the only place he could have gotten it. Does Alex seem to be feeling bad? Has he pooped since? If it were salmon sickness you'd probably know by now, Fred was very lethargic and weak and wouldn't eat or get up. Yes Papbouv wouldn't you know we'd be "lucky" enough to live in the part of the country that has deadly fish for dogs! :thinik:

PattyInAK · September 20, 2010, 12:57:56 PM

Quote from: papbouv on September 20, 2010, 12:31:41 PM
Be Super careful if it is Salmon fish some in the north caught wild can kill a dog will see if i can find the article on it and post it here.

It was lake trout

papbouv · September 20, 2010, 12:59:50 PM

Found the article on Doberman talk from where I found it on the Internet so copied it over again put it on the health area here and sent a copy to Patty. If any one want to copy it to keep for there own just pass it around.

PattyInAK · September 20, 2010, 01:00:13 PM

Alex is A-OK otherwise......energetic, tail-wagging, etc. He hasn't pooped today but he also hasn't eaten since 3pm yesterday. I wonder if yogurt would help straighten out the good bacteria in his system.

Barb · September 20, 2010, 06:16:02 PM

Yogurt with the acidopholus (I am sure it is misspelled - LOL ) should help his tummy and digestive track !!! Glad no more squirts !

PattyInAK · September 20, 2010, 10:43:22 PM

Yes, I know about acidopho-whatever, it balances out the digestive tract. Willy and Alex will be on a diet of yogurt and pumpkin for a couple of days.