Loose stool and looser stool

[luke4275]

I got my pup 6 weeks ago.. The first day home the stool was normal.. great.. I did a slow change over from breeder costco food to royal canin gsh pup food.. the stool went from firm to loose and sometimes pudding.. I reduced the qty and no real help. I switched over to taste of the wild pup salmon and no help as well.. all changes done over a one week time.. I've added some rice just to see and no real help.. when he dumps. the first dump is loose and the second time right after that it is very loose like pudding.. My vet suggested to change to another food.. I know that taste of the wild is grain free and now they are brand new with pup formula. any ideas? I added a bit of yogurt as well..any ideas as to why and what to do? thanks

[onyx'girl]

Have you had fecal tests run to rule out parasites? Changing a puppy's food constantly can cause some digestive upset. Rice isn't going to firm up the poop. I would add pure pumpkin(not the pie filling but canned pumpkin)
I think your pup may have coccidia or giardia ~common in baby pups and can be dangerous if left untreated.

[chelle]

Originally Posted by luke4275

I got my pup 6 weeks ago.. The first day home the stool was normal.. great.. I did a slow change over from breeder costco food to royal canin gsh pup food.. the stool went from firm to loose and sometimes pudding.. I reduced the qty and no real help. I switched over to taste of the wild pup salmon and no help as well.. all changes done over a one week time.. I've added some rice just to see and no real help.. when he dumps. the first dump is loose and the second time right after that it is very loose like pudding.. My vet suggested to change to another food.. I know that taste of the wild is grain free and now they are brand new with pup formula. any ideas? I added a bit of yogurt as well..any ideas as to why and what to do? thanks

I can't suggest anything, really, but can sympathize. Been dealing with this on and off for some time.

Pumpkin is more effective, I think, than yogurt. Plain, canned pumpkin, like the poster above said. It has helped us. I consider it a bandaid as I try to find the best food for him for best poops.

I've heard people say TOTW puppy isn't the best option, as the calcium levels and protein are not the best, as it is a puppy formula and not a large breed puppy formula .... please double check this, as I'm not sure.

In my own experience, only a week to switch over wasn't enough. It took me three weeks to get mine from a crappy Purina puppy chow to Innova LPB. THREE WEEKS. Partly due to me moving too fast and having to do the chicken and rice w/ pumpkin combo and start completely over. Now I'm changing again, as I really feel I've given the food plenty long to "take" and it isn't working. I'm going v-e-r-y sloooowwww after the last fiasco.

I also recently started adding a probiotic to the food. That's only been a week or a little less ago, so can't say if that's helping, but it is something to consider.

Good luck!!!!!!!!! It's frustrating, I know!

[skphotoimages]

I don't have a real answer except to tell you what helped us. I read somewhere that overfeeding can cause loose stool. When we brought our GSD home at 9 weeks he got 1 cup 3 times a day at 11 weeks I tried upping the amount and then came the loose stools followed by really drippy stools. I went back to 1 cup and the problem went away. 2 weeks later I tried upping the amount again and his stools did the loose drippy thing. He's 15 weeks now and I still can't up the amount or he has stool issues. He looks great though..not too thin, so I'm just going with the 1 cup 3x a day even though he'd eat 3 or 4 times that if I let him.

[mebully21]

put the pup back on the breeders food.. if you are going to switch user a food that isnt so high in protein, as some dogs cant handle richer foods...

try merrick, canidae, natural balance, something middle ground instead of high rich food like royal canin or TOTW...

and when doing a switch do it over a 2 week time ...

boiled white rice will help firm up the poop, or have your vet give you flagyl

has the pup been dewormed? if not, 3 dewormings 2 weeks apart for each might be in order if the pup has parasites..

[mebully21]

chelle, the innova is richer, so your dog might not be able to handle the richer food. i have noticed most dogs cant handle innova, TOTW, royal canin, or any of the richer foods... most dogs handle the middle road foods better..

[caninecrazy]

Aso Ark Naturals makes a product called gentle digest which is a mix of pre and probiotics. It is made for dogs that are having issues due to food, illness, medication etc and I always keep a bottle at my house for times the stools get out of control. Also with my new pup I have noticed if she eats too many treats in a day her stools are runny when I get her home after work, if she has no treats and just her food all day in small spaced out meals she is fine.