# Diarrhea Madness!



## Calico_NC (Oct 11, 2009)

My pup has been having real loose stools for the past 2 days. I took him to the vet for a fecal exam and she said it was no parasites or abnormal bacteria. He eats Purina Puppy Chow Dry. He hasn't been eating as much lately but he's been eating. I don't know if its the food, or what. Either way, whats an acceptable puppy food for a 7 week old pup. Seems like puppy chow isn't doing too good for him.


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## Donna5503 (Mar 13, 2009)

Blue Buffalo is sold at Petsmart or Petco - very good food


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Blue buffalo is awesome I agree. 
I feed Sandy Kirkland puppy food from Costco and that is also an awesome food but MUCH cheaper, so if price is a factor for you than that would also be a good option.
Sandy was on Purina puppy chow when I got her, after I switched to Kirkland her fur became much softer, so different brand of food definately do make a difference. 

Also, stool checks for worms are not the least bit reliable and are always coming back with false negatives. Puppies need to be wormed. All puppies are born with roundworms so you should buy a dewormer for round worms and follow the directions. If your puppy has or has had fleas then he probably also has tapeworm and would need to be wormed for that.


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## Calico_NC (Oct 11, 2009)

SandyPuppy said:


> Blue buffalo is awesome I agree.
> *I feed Sandy Kirkland puppy food from Costco* and that is also an awesome food but MUCH cheaper, so if price is a factor for you than that would also be a good option.
> Sandy was on Purina puppy chow when I got her, after I switched to Kirkland her fur became much softer, so different brand of food definately do make a difference.
> 
> Also, stool checks for worms are not the least bit reliable and are always coming back with false negatives. *Puppies need to be wormed. All puppies are born with roundworms so you should buy a dewormer for round worms and follow the directions. If your puppy has or has had fleas then he probably also has tapeworm and would need to be wormed for that.*


ok thanks for the recommendations. As far as deworming goes, he was dewormed twice with nemex om 9/24 & 10/01 and dewormed for tapeworms on 10/12. So im not sure if its still worms or not. On a side note..them sticking that long fecal scrapper in my dogs rectum seemed kinda cruel..he screamed like a sissy, but i can understand.lol but can puppies eat those canned beef looking entree's? Would i be out of line if i said those things look a little appetizing to me? i kid, i kid...i think


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## poodleholic (Mar 15, 2007)

He needs to be put on a bland diet until his stools firm up. Poach chicken breasts, shred the meat with a fork while still warm, and add it to some steamed white rice. Gradually add his puppy food to the chicken and rice mixture - over a few days.


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## Labsnothers (Oct 10, 2009)

I highly doubt it is the food. I have started a number of puppies on the Purina, and had no trouble with them. Even a gradual change to a new food now could cause more problems. I always suggest sticking to the breeder's puppy chow to 4 months. If the breeder was feeding something else, you may need to go back to it. I don't think there is much difference in foods, but changing foods can cause trouble. 

Could be the deworming, could be something else a puppy found to eat, or the vet may have missed something. The bland diet above may be a good idea. If the puppy doesn't firm up on it, get back with the vet. 

If it does, slowly work the Purina or what the breeder was feeding back in.


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## azh25 (Sep 27, 2009)

Your vet didnt help your much! Call him and ask specifically what tests were done. Their are 2 very different tests done for intestinal bacteria, one @ $20.00 and results are imediate, the 2nd @$90.00 and results take 3/4 days to get back. I had the first one done and it was negative and the vet suggested the more expensive test and it was positive, Girardia. If feeding a new food, it should be done over 4 weeks, 1/4 new to 3/4 old. Normally you stop feeding all together for 24 hours then feed bland, but puppy is too young for that. They become dehydrated very fast, and can die in 48 hours from dehydration. dont ignore it. It cost me $7,000.00 for my lack of knowledge.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Labsnothers said:


> I highly doubt it is the food. I have started a number of puppies on the Purina, and had no trouble with them.


Just because a food works for your dogs doesn't mean it works for every dog.


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## Calico_NC (Oct 11, 2009)

now he seems to be eating very little to nothing at all. Yesterday i saw him cough up what looked to be a porkchop bone. I don't know if it was swallowed or not, but he had brown vomit looking material around his mouth making me think that he swallowed it, but idk.As far as the test, it took about 10 minutes to get back, so im guessing it wasn't the other more expensive test. All together it cost about $39 for the fecal analysis. Now im concerned it's Girardia or something more serious. Does Girardia cause appetite loss and loose liquid like stools?


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## Labsnothers (Oct 10, 2009)

Blockages do. My guess is now the pork chop bone is out, he will settle down. Might not hurt to do the chicken and rice for a few days.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Hopefully it is all out. You might want to take him into the vet to check and make sure.
Scary.
I hope he gets better.


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## maquignon (Oct 21, 2009)

Below is a list of the ingredients of Purina Puppy Chow. I don't think this is an acceptable food for any puppy. It is at the bottom of almost every list of dog food reviews that I have ever seen. Blue Buffalo, Innova, Solid Gold, Taste of the Wild and Wellness are the better brands. If you puppy has diarrhea and has been checked for worms you are probably feeding him too much. 


Whole grain corn, corn gluten meal, chicken by-product meal, whole grain wheat, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), soybean meal, brewers rice, meat and bone meal, barley, beef, sugar, propylene glycol, animal digest, fish oil, tricalcium phosphate, salt, phosphoric acid, dried yeast, sorbic acid (a preservative), potassium chloride, dried carrots, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, dried peas, calcium propionate (a preservative), choline chloride, added color (Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 2), Vitamin E supplement, zinc sulfate, zinc proteinate, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, niacin, manganese proteinate, Vitamin A supplement, calcium carbonate, Vitamin B-12 supplement, DL-Methionine, calcium pantothenate, copper sulfate, copper proteinate, thiamine mononitrate, garlic oil, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin D-3 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), calcium iodate, folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite.
J-4037


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## azh25 (Sep 27, 2009)

Calico, symptoms of Girardia vary with each pup and also resemble many other diseases. But yes, my pup was lithargic, no appetite, vomiting a lot, blood in stool, mucus and blood in vomit, and what I call "projectile poops" 10/12 times a day. I waited 2/3 days before taking him to a vet and he was so dehydrated had to be hospitalizes for 3 days, 2 separate times. It was very difficult to get rid of.
Our favorite foods, timberwolf organics, evo and canidae.


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