German Shepherds Forum banner

White Flakes on Poop?

12K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  NancyJ 
#1 ·
Alright, this poop is baffling me...

Koda is 6 months old and 15 days ago, she was diagnosed with giardia. The vet gave her 21 days worth of Metronidazole and sent us on our way. After about a week of the Metro, Koda was still having really loose stools. I called the vet and they explained that the antibiotics could be really rough on a dog's digestive system and told me to try feeding her rice and chicken with a probiotic supplement. That worked wonders. I'd never seen Koda with such awesome (dry, firm) poops. But then I noticed some occassional white flakes on her poop. They weren't moving and didn't look like worms - they looked more like white fish food flakes stuck to the outside of her stool. When I pulled the stool apart, there was nothing on the inside. It was all brown, consistent, and normal looking. I live in an apartment building and pick up her waste immediately so I know it didn't come from something on the ground.

Have any of you seen anything like this? The only white things she's been eating are rice and Digesteze rawhides. If it was food causing the white flakes, wouldn't it be throughout the poop? Maybe it's pieces of giardia-damaged intestine shedding? Other parasites? I plan on bringing it up to the vet when we go in for her post-giardia follow up, but figured I'd see if anyone here has had experience with it. Thanks!
 
See less See more
#3 ·
Thanks. Tapeworms are definitely a possibility. She hasn't been itching or showing any signs of fleas (she also gets her K9 Advantix religiously on the first of every month to keep them away) but that doesn't mean much. She also had a fit of vomiting over the weekend which from my Google search could be tapeworms. I didn't see anything but white, foamy bile in the vomit, but again that doesn't mean much. The vet didn't say anything about tapeworms when I took her in for the vomiting. He gave her a shot of Cerenia and told me to bring her back if the vomiting didn't stop. She was a brand new dog after the shot - was bouncing around like she'd never been sick.

Next time I get a glimpse of the mystery poop, I'll bag it up and take it to the vet. The white stuff didn't look like the descriptions online, but the vet is the only one who can really give a definite yes or no. Poor Koda just can't catch a break lately. :( I was hoping you guys would tell me you see it all the time and is normal.
 
#5 ·
If not tapeworms- which what you are describing does not sound like worms-looks like fish food flakes. Still would recommend bringing in a stool sample. I can drop one off at my vet without paying a office visit- of course if there are creepy crawlies then I would have to bring him in.

My next thought...what are you feeding? Perhaps it's the food.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the replies. I just got done talking to my neighbor and he said his wife's cats (who are let outdoors on occasion) have had white stuff on their poop recently as well - his vet said they were tapeworms. The more I look into it, the more I think you guys may be onto something. I'm so glad I posted my question on here. It gives me a starting point for when I talk to the vet.

Courtney, she's been getting a rice/pumpkin/cooked chicken mix for the past 10 days or so. Every time I try to start adding kibble (Nature's Recipe Grain Free) back into her diet, her poop gets and stays runny again until we go back to pure chicken/rice/pumpkin. :(

On a side note though, she did get a raw chicken wing tonight and thought it was the greatest thing EVER! :) When she was done with it, she ambushed me on the couch with loads of nasty chicken kisses like I just solved world hunger or something. :wub: Her evening poop looked good, so raw may be in her future...but that can be a topic for another thread. Since tonight was the first time she's ever eaten raw, that can't be the culprit.
 
#8 ·
ok here is something you can do give your dog coconut oil. it is a natural antibiotic and it kills parasites. it make symptomatic dogs with giardia asymptomatic.
Coconut oil may provide an effective defense against many troublesome parasites including giardia. Like bacteria and fungi, giardia can’t stand up against MCFA found in coconut oil.

Research has confirmed the effectiveness of MCFA in destroying giardia and possibly other protozoa.5,6,7 By using coconut oil and other coconut products every day, you may be able to destroy giardia before it can establish a toehold.

The recommended dose is pretty easy; just give a teaspoon of coconut oil per 10 pounds of dog, or you can give a table spoon per 30 pounds. Start with about 1/4 the recommended dosage and build up to the recommended level over 3-4 weeks, as sometimes flu-like symptoms can appear if you hurried it right away.

Benefits of Coconut Oil For Dogs | The Dogington Post
check out this page. and read more about it.
i have done extensive research on this for my puppy since giving my puppy the coconut oil (which she has been on for about a week and a half) she has gained four pounds. she was under weight when we got her and she wasnt gaining weight. she is now 10 weeks old and she is about 15 pounds. before this she was around maybe 9 or 10 pounds. please look into this for your puppy it works.
 
#10 ·
My pup had weird white things in her poop a while back. The white things almost looked like the thin white watermelon seeds. Turned out to be the rice. It seriously freaked me out. Cut out the rice for a couple days and see what happens. I use sweet potato instead of rice now.
 
#12 ·
I think it is fine to look into a raw diet but introducing raw, particularly chicken, while a dog is taking metronidazole for a giardia infection sounds like asking for trouble. I would get past this current situation before making any dietary changes.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top