Gus needs to bulk up his stool - help?

[Stub]

If you saw my post in the med section about antibiotics then you know Gus had extremely full and possibly infected anal glands when we went to the vet yesterday. His stool on the (very rich) 'co-op mince' raw meat is mostly soft-serve consistency, which I didn't worry about until I noticed him licking his bum. Then it dawned on me that hey, he needs solid stools to properly work those anal glands. I'm pretty poor right now, business is extremely slow and I have over 100 lbs of the raw grind downstairs in the freezer. I can't afford to go out and buy something else. I have in the past tried adding extra bone to his meals in the form of chicken backs, but Gus apparently has an extremely sensitive system, and sharp bits of bone were coming out in his stool. I can't really afford to buy a meat grinder right now either, although I think I would like to get one when business (hopefully) picks up in summer and I have more disposable income. At that time I could grind up the backs and add them to the mince he's already on.

So here is what I was thinking to do in the meanwhile: add something to his food, like oatmeal or brown rice, just to give it bulk and hopefully make his stools solid. However, conventional wisdom says not to feed cooked and raw in the same meal. Part of me says just go buy some high quality kibble and let him eat that until I can buy a grinder. But oh, that strains my heart to think about. Gus has been raw his entire life except for an abortive kibble attempt for a few weeks last summer. I got Orijen at the time and it was too rich and he had soft stools on it as well. If my purpose in the rice or oatmeal is simply to add bulk and I am not relying on it for any vitamin or other content, then I think I could do it. I know he will get some calories from it though and may need to reduce his meat portion. So I would add a vitamin supplement as well I think.

Opinions??

 

[Kisaq]

I thought feeding raw and cooked at the same time was what was wrong... and if you fed some cooked and some raw at different times of the day it would be ok?

If so, I'd go with pumpkin. Plan ol' mashed pumpkin.

Or ... if you want to stick with raw, and if he'll eat it: roasted peanuts in the shell. No salt. Not much... just a tablespoon/day. You could mash them up in a food processor too.

 

[Stub]

I thought of that but a meal of meat and later a meal of... rice? It didn't sound very healthy! .

People keep telling me pumpkin but I just can't wrap my brain around how it would firm up THIS bad of stool, especially as you only use like a tablespoon or two per meal.

I was thinking I could use oatmeal and just not cook it. Just plain old fashioned rolled oats. It would be like SoJos then. Soak it overnight in water so it's edible but not cooked. Maybe???

 

[TysonCheeto]

I know bananas in humans can help this issue....the kids Dr always told me to give bananas when they had issues like that, I'm not sure if it works the same in dogs???? Just a thought !

 

[Kisaq]

I thought of that but a meal of meat and later a meal of... rice? It didn't sound very healthy! .

People keep telling me pumpkin but I just can't wrap my brain around how it would firm up THIS bad of stool, especially as you only use like a tablespoon or two per meal.

I was thinking I could use oatmeal and just not cook it. Just plain old fashioned rolled oats. It would be like SoJos then. Soak it overnight in water so it's edible but not cooked. Maybe???

I see no reason why you couldn't soak oatmeal overnight. I've never tried it. Maybe put boiling water in there to soak over night, so it's not really cooked but it will seep better?

 

[whiskers]

I think the raw and cooked thing is more anecdotal than anything. Some dogs are fine with it, some aren't. ...doubtful that it's actually gonna cause salmonella or something, but yeah some dogs are probably gonna get an upset stomach from the combo. My dogs are kibble fed but they get raw treats and I pay no mind to how close it is to their meals. And when I do bland diets, I cook the rice but many times leave the meat raw.

I would try it. He probably wouldn't need a ton. The pumpkin could work too, they really don't need much of it, too much causes diarrhea...fiber is a funny thing .

 

[Stub]

I'm starting to think that as well. I don't know if there are any scientific studies on raw feeding, much less the effects of feeding raw with a little cooked filler. Most people want less fillers in their dogs food! Gus just happens to need SOMETHING. . Anyway I cooked some brown rice yesterday and gave him about 1/2 cup with his raw supper and there seem to have been no ill effects. No gas or stomach upset. Haven't seen a stool yet to see if it helped at all, but will be walking him in a bit. I don't think he really *liked* the brown rice, he ate more slowly than normal, like he was trying to figure out what this was. But since his raw is a mince I mixed it up well so he could not pick and choose. haha!

What about intestinal bacteria? Could a lack of those have an impact on stool consistency? I know antibiotics can give some dogs stomach upset or diarrhea but is that just the medication or is it because it is killing all the bacteria? Gus had his belly freezer burnt a month or so ago and I gave him some goats milk for awhile with his meals to help replenish those. But perhaps it was not enough. After this course of antibiotics is over I think I will do a good round of pre- and probiotics too and see if that helps at all.

My poor boy!

 

[Stub]

So, brown rice is not the answer.... We took a walk and he pooped and it was at least formed, if still pretty soft. I thought, "yay, it's working!" But then a few minutes later he pooped again and here came the rice - totally undigested, and with that slimy mucus they get if their gut is irritated. By the end of the walk he was pooping pure mucus, with a vile yellow color that was so runny he had to get in the bathtub when we got home. Wet wipes were just not doing the job! Not sure how much of the mucus is related to undigested rice, or is a reaction to the antibiotics. But clearly the rice cannot help if it is totally undigested. So, next I am going to try oatmeal. If that doesn't work I think I will probably try Wellness low fat kibble. (because he is getting plenty of fat in the raw mince) Perhaps one meal of kibble and one meat meal per day. If he has at least one solid poop per day that should work his anal glands, right? I hope??

 

[Kisaq]

Aww... Poor Gus. :(
That does not sound good at all.

Have you told the vet about this? I assume the usual parasite tests were done? So it's not giardia or something of that nature.

Gosh...

Try pumpkin - you might be surprised. It's not the same as grains like rice. Oatmeal could cause the same problem as the rice... :(

And YES to the probiotics.

 

[Stub]

No, the vile yellow mucus is not his normal loose stool. I'm pretty sure that's from the antibiotics. Not worried about that. I'll try the oatmeal and if it does not digest either perhaps i'll try the pumpkin before going to kibble. Luckily I have bought small amounts of everything just to try!