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Runny stool... Need some opinions

9K views 42 replies 23 participants last post by  J_Brown 
#1 ·
My 6 mo old BLF has had runny/soft stool for at least a month now. I took her to the vet a couple weeks ago and had her checked out. She tested negative for parasites and Giardia. The vet said the rash she had on her underside was a bacterial infection and gave her some antibiotic which lasted about a week. She also gave a brown paste for the diarrhea. Well the rash seems to have gotten a little better but hasn't gone away. And the runny stool actually got worse as she progressed through the medication. I started giving her yogurt and pumpkin and the stool seemed to firm up a bit, but she's pooping an awful lot in my opinion. She is a petite girl, at only 38 pounds right now. I've been feeding her 1 cup of Blue Buffalo large breed puppy 3 times per day. And she's pooping at least 3 times per day, each time it's the equivalent of a cup or so, give or take. When she poops it just seems like a lot of poop coming out of her.

What are your thoughts about this? Could 3 cups of food be too much for her? She has a very athletic build, thin and slender, but no ribs showing even when wet. Could the antibiotic have killed off all of her good intestinal bacteria and now we have to build the cultures back up? Should I switch to a different brand of food? She seems really healthy and happy, and her coat is shiny as can be.

I don't know... I'm really thinking about trying a different vet. The one I took her to recently really didn't give me any answers at all, and really couldn't relate to me or her being a hunting dog. What do you guys think?
 
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#2 ·
Does she have access to free "food" stuff she should not eat when in the yard? She is a lab and they will eat anything.
Antobotics can often cause the poops. Is she still on an antibotic today? Needs to be evaluated by a Vet.
3 cups of feed a day sounds about right.
Might try a different brand, switch her over in a few days, not all at once. Talk with your vet about sensitive stomach feeds.
Take her back to the vet but sounds like a new vet might be in order. Waiting a couple weeks sounds sort of long for a F/U in my opinion. Any vet that can't relate to me and my hunting dogs is not my vet.
Is she working or down sick? Sounds like she is Ok at the moment.
Keep us posted. Don
 
#4 ·
Does she have access to free "food" stuff she should not eat when in the yard? She is a lab and they will eat anything. No, not really. I keep the yard pretty clean and clear of "food" stuff.
Antobotics can often cause the poops. Is she still on an antibotic today? Needs to be evaluated by a Vet.
3 cups of feed a day sounds about right. She is off the antibiotics now.
Might try a different brand, switch her over in a few days, not all at once. Talk with your vet about sensitive stomach feeds.
Take her back to the vet but sounds like a new vet might be in order. Waiting a couple weeks sounds sort of long for a F/U in my opinion. Any vet that can't relate to me and my hunting dogs is not my vet. Sorry... what does F/U stand for? I'd get her back to the vet sooner but things are really hectic right now. Wife and I are in the process of moving and new jobs.
Is she working or down sick? Sounds like she is Ok at the moment. She never acts like anything is wrong with her... Always appears happy and healthy.
Keep us posted. Don
Thank you for your insight.
 
#5 ·
I just started the pumpkin a few days ago and the soft stool has been going on for a month or so. Actually there's been a slight improvement since feeding the pumpkin. I only give her about a tablespoon each time.

The food smells normal and it's pretty fresh. I keep it in a container that's sealed up pretty good.
 
#6 ·
Giardia is pretty hard to catch in a fecal, and pretty common in dogs. I would talk to your vet about treating her for it even though the fecal is negative.
Have seen that help several times, including with my boy.
 
#10 ·
My pup was on the thin side so I tried to increase the amount of food I was feeding him but that only resulted in loose stools. I then switched back to what the breeders initially fed the litter (ProPlan) and he has done really well since - body has filled out and has firm stools.
 
#16 ·
my pup had same problem with Blue buffalo. he had several spouts of bad diarreha consistent soft stools. Samething, vet said no worms or bacteria. His stool seemed to get a lot better on the Rx dog food called ID but once he was returned back on BB it was soft again.

We got sick of it and just made a total switch to Taste of the wild bison puppy food and his stool is great now! very formed and hard and he seems to love his food.


I know BB is supposed to be a good food but I spoke with another lab owner who had almost the exact same problem as me and she said to switch foods asap.

Our vet said it wasn't the food, but after switching my pup's GI tract is finally in check.
 
#17 ·
If it's something simple, say the particular food, make any changes slowly and give the dog time to adjust to the change. When changing food for example, I might mix old food and new in a ratio of say 3:1 for a couple of days...then even portions for a couple of days....then 1:3. Most dogs you don't need to take this time but yours has shown a sensitivity to something that needs to be taken into account. Depending on the quality of the food, 3 cups a day sounds a bit much. My 35-40 pound adults eat 1 1/2 cups of Eukanuba Performance for reference. You may simply be pushing too much food into the gut so that it doesn't have time to fully digest it.

One thing that must be considered with prolonged cases of stool problems....exocrine pancreatic insufficiency(EPI). She's a bit young to have developed this but...

Did you take a stool sample to the vet? In all cases like this, a plastic baggie should accompany the dog. EPI is marked by a sort of grayish stool color. Another symptom of EPI is stool eating. The stool may be runny or firm depending on whether there's an accompanying (secondary) intestinal infection. Just to be sure, take the sample to the vet and ask if it could be EPI. EPI is not likely but should be ruled out.
 
#20 ·
Been dealing with a runny stool for 2 weeks now. Dog was on Loyall Professional at the trainer but I switched to the Loyall active adult when I got him home but cant seem to get rid of the runny stools. Any ideas? Should I put him back on the professional? Had him checked at the vet and everything is good with the stool just runs loose. Was soft serve for the last week then went to complete loose over weekend and back to soft serve this morning.
 
#22 ·
Pumpkin works great for lose stools or constipation. Just pure canned pumpkin not anything with sugar or or added ingredients. I keep several cans on my dog truck for such problems while I'm on the road. I just cut back for one feeding to 1/2 ration & add 1/2 can of pumpkin. You should see immediate results. If still loose cut back food by 1/2 again & add 1/2 can of pumpkin. Cheap & natural - and it works.
 
#26 ·
I guess nobody has to ask about step NUMBER 2...
 
#27 ·
You probably now need a "wipeout" mark. :)
 
#29 ·
What about metronidazole? Just took my pup to the vet Friday for suspected Giardia. The vet and I knew she was exposed to it, but he couldn't see anything on the slide. He decided to treat anyway with Metronidazole. A client of mine had her dog test positive for it last week and her vet also prescribed the same thing. No Panacur prescribed, though I did ask if he was going to give pup a worming agent -he said no.

What interested me is that he said some dogs build up an immunity to it in varying degrees. We live in a wet coastal area with lots of cows and pasture and cow ponds and creeks. Giardia is prevalent. My vet, who has lived and practiced here for 20 plus years said he estimates that at least half of all local dogs have it, but with little detrimental effects due to an immunity to it.

I had never heard this before.
 
#31 ·
I had the same problem with my pup and she also did the panacur and had her on a bland diet during the treatment. She gave me a few suggestions on dog foods such as hypo-allergenic foods (trout & sweet potato or venison & sweet potato) I did have her on lamb & rice but switched her to chicken and rice(grain-free) . I had read that some labs have a sensitivity to lamb. Not sure how true that is but she eventually did firm up. Good luck.
 
#32 · (Edited)
He had been treated with metronidazole (for giardia) for a few weeks, and stayed firm only as long as he was on it. There is some speculation that giardia has become pretty well resistant to metronidazole. The panacur totally knocked it out, and I'm pleased to say 5 years later...still no more issues!
The thing with giardia is that it seems to exist in a low level, and their poop is normal, until something changes like different treats, different water, stress from a test, etc. Then it blossoms and you get the loose stuff again. that's why intermittent diarrhea is sort of a classic symptom of giardia.
 
#33 ·
So since I brought him home the stools have been loose but nothing showed up with the test should I go ahead and have them treat him for giardia or just try something different. Vet said let him fast for 24 hours and then feed him again instead of twice a day like I have been. Really stumped on what to do????
 
#34 ·
1. Make sure he is not eating dog poop. That will do it. and nothing can be found on testing.
Its not going to hurt anything to just treat for coccidia and/or giardia. I dont see how cutting his food back is going to help, other than making him thin.
Its frustrating- a lot of clients come in wiht the complaint of their dog with soft stools- monitor whats going in (ie- no poop, etc...) and that often clears it up while they are here. Worst comes to worst, change his diet and see what happens. Not much more frustrating than a dog with loose stools.
I just had one guy in the vet, who developed WATERY diarrhea. Absolutely no other signs of illness. they did a fecal, didnt see any parasite, did a snap test for giardia, nothing. Did find YEAST in his stool. Treating with antibiotics and anti yeast Rx. within two doses his stool has been normal.
Not assuming thats it with your dog but it was so unusual , just another thing to think about...
 
#35 ·
yeah its frustrating because he is eating and drinking fine doesnt act like he feels bad or has an upset stomach but just has loose runny stools. Probably more so to do with changing his food and just bringing him home 2 weeks ago so may be a little stress added there. Dogs attitude is great along with appetite just concerned with the stool issue.
 
#37 ·
Rash could be a reaction to topical flea/tick meds. It will start to get better then flair up again after the next months treatment.

loose stools - could be overfeeding. feeding multiple times a day verses once may help. also going from the large breed kibble to regular will make a difference. don't know why but it does.
 
#41 ·
You may be onto something with the flea/tick med causing the rash. The vet-prescribed antibiotic didn't seem to have any effect on the rash. However, she should have been given her round of Pet Armor this week (so she's toward the end of the last dose) but I didn't give it to her yet... and the rash appears to be clearing up. Yesterday I ordered a Scalibor flea/tick collar and will be giving that a try instead of the topical products.

In regards to Betty's stool... that seems to be getting better as well. I cut her back to 2.5 cups of food per day, and have also been adding yogurt and pumpkin during each feeding. I've seen a major improvement in her bowel movements.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and advice.
 
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