# Pooping a lot!!



## Fifaworldcup (Dec 30, 2009)

Hi everyone! I'm new here and I have a question.

My dog is 3 years old and she's some kind of terrier/shepherd mix. I've had her since she was 6 months old. The shelter was feeding her Purina Pro Plan dog food and when I took her to the vet after I adopted her, he told me that she had an ear infection and that it could be caused by her food. He said Pro Plan is low quality with lots of fillers and allergens. She was also pooping about 5 times a day on Pro Plan. The vet said it's probably because she's still young and pooping a lot.

He recommended Natural Balance for her and we switched. No more itches, no more ear infections but still about 4 poops a day. She was getting about 1.25 cup a day (she's about 30 lbs). She was on this for 5 months.

At more than 1 year old, she was still pooping 4 times a day and I decided to try a different food, Innova. She stayed on this for about a year, 4 poops a day. Otherwise she did very well on it.

Then the vet suggested we try grain free because he checked her and said she didn't have IBS or any kind of parasites/stomach problems. Then comes the Orijen.

She's been on Orijen for about a year now, still 3-4 poops a day. I'm feeding her 1 cup a day. I know I'm not overfeeding because she's a 4 on the body conditioning score and the vet said she can gain about 2 pounds. We've tried adding yogurt, probiotic pills, pumpkin, no difference. Also feeding 1 time a day, 2 times or 3 times makes no differences either. Still 4 poops. The poop is firm and shaped, not loose or anything.

Why is she pooping so much on a good quality food??

PS she doesn't get treats.


----------



## Kina_A (Jun 8, 2009)

Has he always been on the same protein? Or has a certain protein always been in the different foods you have been feeding him? 

Maybe he could have have an intolerance to a certain protein that is in his food ie lets say chicken which could be causing him to defecate so much. 

Are his stools firm?

Had you had an allergy test done on him?


----------



## bmdmom (Nov 15, 2009)

Sorry I have no ideas for you, but I've been going through the same situation with my Berner pup. He is 7 months old and has been a frequent pooper since we got him at 8 1/2 weeks. 

He also had constant loose stool/diarrhea issues for months. He has always been on high quaility foods, and we've tried different brands/protein sources/grainfree, etc and he still has 5 bowel movements a day. Luckily, the loose stool has been pretty much resolved...he has firm poo 75% of the time, which is A LOT better than before. We have tried plenty of different medications, probiotics, dewormers, pumpkin, yogurt. He's been to several different vets and has been tested for everything!! We recently had him seen by a internal medicine specialist and he had an ultrasound, blood tests, fecal tests..all results normal. Since I wanted to hold off on the Rx diet (because of nasty ingredients and price) they told me to give him Metamucil and a new probiotic to try for a week. It really helped firm him up but he still poops way too much!!

He is now on Eagle Pack Holistic LB Adult and gets his fiber and prEbiotics with each meal. The prebiotics (FOS) are supposed to help with digestion as well as lessen the frequency of BM's...so far no reduction in number of poops, but his stool looks much healthier. He gets 5 1/2 cups split into 2 meals. We have run out of ideas!! His breeder thinks he will grow out of it...hopefully she's right! If you find a solution, please let me know


----------



## Fifaworldcup (Dec 30, 2009)

Kina_A said:


> Has he always been on the same protein? Or has a certain protein always been in the different foods you have been feeding him?
> 
> Maybe he could have have an intolerance to a certain protein that is in his food ie lets say chicken which could be causing him to defecate so much.
> 
> ...


She was on PP chicken, NB lamb, Innova red meat and Orijen fish...

She did get an allergy test but results were she doesn't have allergies. Her poops are nice and firm and she never has diarrhea.


----------



## Kina_A (Jun 8, 2009)

Wow, I really don't know what else could be wrong.


----------



## Shell (Oct 19, 2009)

This may be a stupid question but--- if the vet says she is healthy, then does it matter that she poops 4 times a day? I mean, yes, normally it would be something to look into which it sounds like you did a good job of vet checks and food trials. But at this point, so what?


----------



## railNtrailcowgrl (Jul 24, 2008)

I agree with Shell. If she's healthy and her stools are looking good I wouldn't be too worried about it. 

I too have a frequent pooper, 14lbs JratT eats about 1/2c food/day plus what ever hubby sneaks her,  and if made to hold it she'll poop only 2-3, but normally 3-4. Once in the AM (7ish) after breakfast, once around Noon when I wake up, then once at night when hubby gets home (5ish) before dinner, and sometimes before bed (11ish).


----------



## Michiyo-Fir (Jul 25, 2009)

I think some dogs just don't digest as well and poops more. It's not really a big deal. Most likely you have to take the dog out about 3-4 times a day to pee anyways so might as well take that time for her to poop?


----------

