Loose stools

[Sebastian=]

Hi,

This is my first post since I have joined but I have had plenty of questions answered by reading other posts, which I appreciate.

My question is, I switched Sebastians food almost 3 weeks ago but he still has loose stools. His stools vary from being formed (very rare) to thickened nonformed piles.

I am currently feeding him Wellness 5 mix for puppies. He was eating Eukanuba until I found out it was bad for him.

I got Sebastian at 8 weeks old. His breeder was feeding him a high protein dry kibble mix that was homemade mixed with a tablespoon of canned dogfood. Sebastian's breeder gave me some of the kibble to take home and told me to start mixing it with Purina Proplan for Puppys. We transitioned him over to the Proplan with a tablespoon of the canned dog food of which he ate for approximately 4wks. Except for the canned food which we stopped after a few days. Sebastians stools were very soft and mostly unformed.

His Vet visits have been fine but I decided that maybe we should try another food because of his soft stools. I was told Eukanuba was better but his stools after 2 weeks were still soft and on occassion liquid.

I decided to start researching dogfood on the web and found this website. I also used the website that rates the dogfood and found that the Eukanuba was no better for my puppy. This is also how I decided on the Wellness 5 mix for puppies.

What next? How long should I wait before deciding that the Wellness is not going to work for him? Any suggestions. I realize his food has been switched alot but for good reason and lack of inexperience on my part. I'm new to owning any kind of pet and appreciate any help.

Thanks
Sebastians Mommy
Red Brindle Boxer
Born 08/14/2009
Cropped tail, Floppy ears

 

[sriley]

I have had the same problem with my boys. They were first on Royal Canin. Their stools were fine, but I wanted to put them on a better quality food, so I switched to Orijen Large Breed Puppy. While on Orijen, their stools were consistently a thick, gooey, unformed mess. After patiently waiting for close to 2 months for firmer stools, I switched to Taste of the Wild (Wetlands formula) and both pups have had regular, firm stools since the switch. I'm no expert on dog food and there's only an 8% difference in protein content between Orijen and TOTW, but I figure Orijen's higher protein content had something to do with the loose stools.

Did you mix the different types of kibble together while you were transitioning? If so, and if you haven't noticed any improvement, perhaps it's time to try something else. Again, I'm no expert on kibble, but I would expect some improvement over the course of 3 weeks. I wonder if your boy has a food allergy. I've read plenty on BW about dogs who have food allergies to chicken and other specific ingredients. Good luck! Keep us posted.

 

[dsmit]

I had the same problem with Tyson when I first got him. His stools started to keep form when I switched him to a limited ingredient food (Natural Balance Sweet potato and fish). His stools would soften when I put him on a chicken based diet. For the last 3 months, Tyson has been on Orijen 6 Fish which has done wonders for him. I have not had soft stools in 2 months. I also feed him a digestive enzyme which helps. Maybe your puppy does not do well on a chicken based diet. The limited ingredient diet helped me find the problem to his soft stools.

 

[Sebastian=]

Thank you for your responses. I did notice after posting that Sebastian has only been on the Wellness 5 mix for Puppys for 2 weeks. So, I think I will give him one more week. Although, I'm not too confident waiting will make a difference.

I researched some alternative foods to try, in case the Wellness does not work out. I think I will probably try the Taste of the Wild Wetlands. I really liked the ingredients on this particular one and it also looks like one I can find fairly easy. It will be interesting to see how he does on a grain free.

Sebastian just turned 17 weeks and he weighs 27.2lbs. I think he looks good. His coat looks good and he is a bundle of energy. He is very gassy though. I expect that goes along with the soft stools. His stools also aren't as large as they were before and he isn't having them as often.

Owner of Sebastian
Born 08/14/2009 Red Brindle, docked and floppy

 

[KellyJay]

In reagrds to your original post we had the EXACT same problem. Eukanuba does have awful ratings and it does have corn in it which I have read here is not good. After a few weeks of Wellness puppy dry food our puppy is doing much better Good luck I am sure he will come around.

 

[Sebastian=]

Loose Stools Update

Well, Sebastian is doing much better now. We switched him to Taste of the Wild Pacific. Eliminating all grain and poultry from his diet.

He is having very normal stools harder than he's ever had. I am pleased. But he still has soft stools frequently. No diarrhea though. He is having less stools during the day than before also. He probably has 3-4 stools a day which is way less than before. His stools are also of a lesser volume than before which is good.

I know he reacts to stress and maybe that's why he has softer stools sometimes, I don't know. I took a stool speciman in to have it evaluated because some of his stools had blood in them recently before Christmas. The vet did not find any parasites or bacteria in his stool speciman. The vet told me he probably had colititis related to stress. My boys were home to visit at this time and they do not have pets in their homes and they don't like Sebastian because he likes to jump and lick and bark I think he senses that they don't like him. The colitis cleared up without intervention, thank goodness.

My other thought about the possible cause of loose/soft stools is that he practically inhales his food, LOL!!! He eats about 3 cups of food a day spread out to about 5 hours apart. When I fill his dish for his feeding, he eats it so fast it is gone in about 1-2minutes tops. I was feeding him 3 1/2 cups a day but cut back hoping it would change his loose stool situation. I really don't want to give him any less because he already thinks he's hungry all the time. Sebastian is now 20 weeks old and weighs 29.2 lbs. I think he lost a little weight around Christmas.

I have changed his treats too because of the loose stool problems. I only give him freeze dried liver treats/100% beef and he doesn't get them everyday either.

Since Sebastian is better I normally wouldn't obsess so much about a couple of instances of soft stools except that when he has an episode he can't hold it and if he's in his kennel he has an accident, bleh.

If anyone has any other tips or comments please let me know, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

Owner of Sebastian
August 14, 2009 Brindle, docked and floppy