[Deanna Lucey]

We picked him up Sunday severely underweight (10kg) and was told he had explosive diarrhea all morning. This only happened once when we got him home and fed him boiled chicken and rice straight away. We have been feeding him this since and his stool was getting firmer, tried adding dry food yesterday but last night and today it was runny again so have taken it out. He is eating 100g chicken, 100g rice (cooked weight) 4x a day, any more and he gets sick. He eats like he has never eaten before so he is hand fed little bits at a time.

His weight has gone up to 13.7kg in 4 days and his energy has improved immensely but does anyone have any other suggestions on how to settle his tummy?

 

[Momto2GSDs]

Hi DL and Welcome!

Did they test for parasites? Giardia, Coccidia?

You could try plain canned pumpkin (NO spices) mixed with his chicken/rice combo.

Also, 2 capsules of Slippery Elm (from a health food store), given 1 hour before feeding could help.

 

[Deanna Lucey]

Hi DL and Welcome!

Did they test for parasites? Giardia, Coccidia?

You could try plain canned pumpkin (NO spices) mixed with his chicken/rice combo.

Also, 2 capsules of Slippery Elm (from a health food store), given 1 hour before feeding could help.

Not been tested for anything yet but I think that will be our next step if we see no improvements within the next few days.
Haven't heard of canned pumpkin before slippery elm is also new to me. I shall look into them thank you

 

[Momto2GSDs]

You're welcome!

Yes, please get him tested asap as he will need medication to clear this up if that is the problem.

 

[Catrinka]

The bland diet of boiled chicken/rice is good for controlling the diarrhea, but it's important to find the cause of it. Has your pup been to your own vet yet? If not, I'd get him checked for internal parasites (worms, coccidia, giardia) or any other issues.

10 kg weight for a 6 month old GSD is very small, so wondering if your rescue pup is skin-and-bones on an average sized frame? Or is he just particularly small overall?

 

[banzai555]

I had a very stressful weeklong bout of diarrhea with my dog last year. I tried everything...slippery elm, bland diet, pumpkin. Her behavior was normal but the diarrhea never improved over an entire week.

Finally got metronidazole and an anti-parasite pill (Panacur, I think?) from the vet. Fixed it overnight. So yes, go to the vet!

 

[Magwart]

Don't even wait -- explosive diarrhea needs meds. Underweight rescue dogs nearly always have worms, and sometimes other problems. The worms steal the nutrition, leading to the weight loss.

I would go get a fecal test today, and ask the vet for a broad dewormer like fenbendazole (sold under the name Panacur in the U.S. but other names internationally), and possibly metronidazole (Flagyl). The usual practice is 3 days of fenbendazole, but we've seen countless times in our U.S.-based breed rescue that 5 days does a better job (5 days of it will also get rid of giardia, which often can't be spotted on a fecal float test, especially when paired with metronidazole).

 

[Buckelke]

Until you can get him tested by the vet ASAP, feed him the pumpkin. I give a serving spoonful after each 'movement'. It can take 24 hours to work, usually by the time the piles are orange they are getting solid. But get to the vet, some of those intestional things can be transfered to people.

 

[EgansMom]

On a different note ...what's this sweeties name and could we have a pic ? So glad he was rescued !

 

[Deanna Lucey]

The bland diet of boiled chicken/rice is good for controlling the diarrhea, but it's important to find the cause of it. Has your pup been to your own vet yet? If not, I'd get him checked for internal parasites (worms, coccidia, giardia) or any other issues.

10 kg weight for a 6 month old GSD is very small, so wondering if your rescue pup is skin-and-bones on an average sized frame? Or is he just particularly small overall?

He does seem quite small but also very boney. He is 12.5kg now so slowly getting there. I will be getting him to a vet this coming week as parasites seem to be what everyone has mentioned so thank you for your reply.

 

[Deanna Lucey]

I had a very stressful weeklong bout of diarrhea with my dog last year. I tried everything...slippery elm, bland diet, pumpkin. Her behavior was normal but the diarrhea never improved over an entire week.

Finally got metronidazole and an anti-parasite pill (Panacur, I think?) from the vet. Fixed it overnight. So yes, go to the vet!

Vet it is. Thank you very much for replying

 

[Deanna Lucey]

Don't even wait -- explosive diarrhea needs meds. Underweight rescue dogs nearly always have worms, and sometimes other problems. The worms steal the nutrition, leading to the weight loss.

I would go get a fecal test today, and ask the vet for a broad dewormer like fenbendazole (sold under the name Panacur in the U.S. but other names internationally), and possibly metronidazole (Flagyl). The usual practice is 3 days of fenbendazole, but we've seen countless times in our U.S.-based breed rescue that 5 days does a better job (5 days of it will also get rid of giardia, which often can't be spotted on a fecal float test, especially when paired with metronidazole).

Thank you very much. I have booked him in for this coming week as he has improved but not 100%

 

[Deanna Lucey]

Until you can get him tested by the vet ASAP, feed him the pumpkin. I give a serving spoonful after each 'movement'. It can take 24 hours to work, usually by the time the piles are orange they are getting solid. But get to the vet, some of those intestional things can be transfered to people.

Yes, will be getting him to the vets soon so will be trying the pumpkin this weekend to see if it helps until then. Thank you

 

[Deanna Lucey]

On a different note ...what's this sweeties name and could we have a pic ? So glad he was rescued !

He's german shepherd x husky and has one blue eye so he's been named Blue Glad to have rescued him. He's an Angel

 

[Magwart]

Is canine dewormer available without a prescription in the UK? It is in some countries. If it is, you might pick up a package for the weekend and follow the directions on the package to see if it helps.

 

[Deanna Lucey]

Is canine dewormer available without a prescription in the UK? It is in some countries. If it is, you might pick up a package for the weekend and follow the directions on the package to see if it helps.

So this is what I've been given for now

 

[Magwart]

That's a really good one! It gets hookworms, whipworms, roundworms, tapeworms -- broad spectrum.