Bloody/Loose Stools..

[Clavin]

I know there are a lot of past threads on the subject but almost too many to sort through.

Clavin has had very loose and at times I believe bloody stools for about three weeks now. During that period there have been slight improvements but very few if any "normal looking" stools. I tried going the chicken and rice route for a couple of days with basically no improvement. I have gone the medication route (Metronidazole) also with no improvement. I am home all day so I know he did not get into any trash. This did start soon after I gave him some hamburger meat but the fact that it has lasted this long would indicate to me that the hamburger meat was/is not the problem.

I know a lot of people feel a "better" grade of kibble will improve the stool but he has been on the same adult kibble for over a year ( he is now 17 months ). This is the first extended bout of bloody and/or loose stools that I have encountered with him.

He is fine otherwise. Full of energy, drinking water, eating normally just can't get the poop to come out "right".

I know three weeks is a long time to go with the same problem but I don't have a whole lot of money to run all sorts of tests. I am planning to schedule a vet appointment next week and bring in a stool sample for analysis but just wanted to make sure there was nothing else I should try before seeing his vet.

Any suggestions as always would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Gatorblu]

Try boiled chicken and potatoes (I use sweet potatoes) As for ruling out the hamburger, you can only do that if others had it and didn't get sick. Some strains of bacteria are resistent to antibiotics and can last a long time. But as long as this has lasted I would definitely see a vet. Thor recently had an extended bout of diarrhea and it was from pancreatitis.

 

[whiskers]

You definitely want a fecal exam done... bacteria and parasites need to be ruled out.

However I will say that Juno recently had a very similar problem. 3 weeks of diarrhea, sometimes bloody, fecal exams always came up normal, hamburger/rice diet and Metronidazole yielded no improvements. Switched her over to a limited ingredient, grain-free diet and the problem cleared right up. Her poop is awesome now, haha. She had been on her previous diet for over 6 months with no issues, so I really wasn't expecting a diet change to make a difference... but, it did.

 

[Clavin]

Update

Just got back from the vet. Brought in a fecal and they will have the results on Monday. Clavin checked out fine otherwise. Vet doesn't feel it is pancreatitis since he is not vomiting or is lethargic.

Almost hoping it is a parasite so we can get some meds in him to knock it out. Vet did state that some dogs do develop food allergies so your dog can be fine on a given food for an extended period of time and all of a sudden the same food starts causing irritation which can lead to extended periods of loose stools. This was something that I did not know. I guess I was also not giving the Metronidazole for a long enough period of time. Vet stated she usually likes to use for a 10 day period but she suggested we just wait for the results in two days.

We will see. Thanks again for the responses/suggestions.

Boxers Rule !!!

 

[whiskers]

I guess I was also not giving the Metronidazole for a long enough period of time. Vet stated she usually likes to use for a 10 day period but she suggested we just wait for the results in two days.

How long were you using it? When Juno was on it we were given enough for 14 days, but when we hadn't seen ANY improvement after 5 days, we were told that normally you'll start to see some change by then, and so then the vet recommended that we try changing foods.

I guess stomach sensitivities are pretty common in boxers, so wouldn't be shocking if that ends up being the case here!

 

[Clavin]

I only gave it to him for a few days. In the past that was all the time it took to settle down his stomach. I've always had success in the past with my other Boxers and Metronidazole.

I should be getting the fecal results some time today. I am anxious to see what they show so I can get this resolved. In the meantime I am looking into other kibbles that might be better for him.

 

[RVsBoxer]

Switched her over to a limited ingredient, grain-free diet and the problem cleared right up.

Whiskers can I ask the name of the food you switched too? Wilson is having the same issues! :(

Thanks,

 

[jjjem]

I had a very similar problem with my dog that included really loose poops that just poured out of him along with drastic weight loss, sometimes he even had a little bloody stool. We thought he had colitis, then a parasite, then we even tried medication. After lots of tests, we finally figured out that he couldn't handle food with lots of grains and he needed a food that wasn't too rich. After trying a dozen foods, we finally found Canidae with no grain and he could barely handle that. So then we started giving it to him with a cup of rice and 1/4 of a cup of 1% cottage cheese per meal. He finally had normal poops, but if he gets into any kind of other food his poops get bad again, so we have to keep a close eye on him when human food is involved. I don't know if this strategy will work for you, but I was hoping to give you hope that even when you think there is no solution, something will come along.
Good luck.

 

[Clavin]

I just changed Clavin's kibble from the Costco Kirkland brand to Canidae All Stages. It seems like with the Canidae people either love it or hate it but I haven't read reviews for any one kibble ( no matter how expensive ) where everyone felt the same way or got the same results.

So far his stools continue to be a mess and this is getting really frustrating now after a month straight with only slight improvements here and there over the last 30 day period.
If this food change doesn't resolve the problem I'm not sure what the next step should be. Do I continue to try different kibbles hoping that I will find the "magical" one? I guess I could have the vet do a blood panel to see if anything shows up there but I have a feeling everything will come back negative just as the fecal results showed.

Oh well we keep plugging away. Thank god for the garden hose !

 

[EAO76]

I just changed Clavin's kibble from the Costco Kirkland brand to Canidae All Stages. It seems like with the Canidae people either love it or hate it but I haven't read reviews for any one kibble ( no matter how expensive ) where everyone felt the same way or got the same results.

So far his stools continue to be a mess and this is getting really frustrating now after a month straight with only slight improvements here and there over the last 30 day period.
If this food change doesn't resolve the problem I'm not sure what the next step should be. Do I continue to try different kibbles hoping that I will find the "magical" one? I guess I could have the vet do a blood panel to see if anything shows up there but I have a feeling everything will come back negative just as the fecal results showed.

Oh well we keep plugging away. Thank god for the garden hose !

Canidae probably wont help. It isn't a limited ingredient food (and probably has some of the same ingredients that your kirkland food had). If you suspect its from the food then your better off with a duck & potato type formula (like Natural Balance Brand...there are other allergy formulas too but that one is easy to find as its sold at petco). You need something that only has a few ingredients & that is completely different than your previous food. Also it helps to feed a diet of just plain boiled & mashed russet potatoes for a few days (to totally settle his system) and then SLOWLY add the kibble in to the potatoes over several days.