[Calipso]

I gave my 12wo a can of food straight w/o the kibbles after her first trip to doggy kindergarten. Today, she's got watery stools. It looks like the food went straight thru her. I'm assuming that the stress of the school and the change of food were a bad combination. The good news is that she's very alert, hungry, active, and drinking well.

Her first trip to the vet at 8 weeks showed that she had giardia. She received treatment, but I'm wondering if it's come back. She's due for her second round of shots this week, so she's going back to the vet.

In the mean time, has anyone actually gotten their dog to take something like pepto-bismal to help quiet their gut?

 

[doreenf]

Give her stomach a rest for 24 hours, then give some boiled hamburger and rice.

 

[Lynnemd]

I have that in my vet e.r. kit but this thread reminds me that I need to look up the proper doses. I would not give it to a puppy w/o checking with my vet first.
Any diet change can be hard on a GSDs system, much less a puppy. I would let her tummy rest and then give her a light meal of rice with either her kibble or some meat mixed in. If she's not better by tomorrow, do call your vet. The little guys don't have that much weight to lose.

 

[DHau]

Is it safe to get the next round of puppy shots when she is dealing with Giardia?

 

[The Stig]

Hi Calipso,

I had given my pup a tbsp of Pepto mixed with 2 tbsp of plain pumpkin to soothe her stomach. I have since switched to Imodine, since easier to medicate.

If your pup refuses to touch the mixture, add a small amount of boiled chicken & broth. That is what I did, although the general rule is to withold food. I give this 3-4 times a day, nothing else. I also offer Pedialyte to my pup when she has the runs, since these little guys dehydrate quickly.

As for the Giardia, I can't offer any wisdom but I personally will not do it till I know she is in perfect health.

Good luck.

 

[Calipso]

The stools are looking better today, but still wet. At least they look like stools now. She seems perfectly happy and active otherwise. I think I'm going to repeat the worm test with the vet. I suspect she re-infected herself.

 

[The Stig]

Hi Calipso,

Not sure if I am being redundent here, but you can just drop off a stool sample at your vet's office to run a fecal flotation. Tha way you don't have to pay for the vet visit.

I just did that for my pup because I thought I saw a longish thin something in her poop. Came out negative, so it was probably undigested chicken skin or something.

 

[Calipso]

She needs to go to the vet anyway. Time for second round of shots.

The last stool of the day was a mix of normal poo and pudding, so I'm thinking that whatever is bothering her will pass.

 

[Cooper&me]

After treating her for Giardia did you get a negative test? Sometimes it takes several treatments.

Make sure you pick up her stools as she could get reinfested from them.

My vet said to use either Keopectate, Pepto or Imodium. What worked best was Pumpkin.

 

[Calipso]

I'm going to get her retested as a precaution. I go out twice a day and pick up poo. With 4 dogs, it gets messy in hurry if you don't.

 

[Calipso]

Well the results are in: Giardia (again) and as an added bonus, tapeworms. Just goes to show that you shouldn't assume that your problem is fixed even with a course of medication. When in doubt, retest.