My dog has diarrhea. What should I do?

Question

Yesterday and now today, my dog has had diarrhea. She never goes inside the house but now she has been waiting until I leave the room to go with this diarrhea. She's an eight year old Border Collie mix. What should I do? I called the vet and am going to make an appointment today once I know when I can get there but is there anything I should do now? I'm nervous about her but she seems to be acting fine, other than the diarrhea. The vet didn't tell me anything I should do when I called. I just want to do whatever is best to make sure she is okay before I can get to the vet.

Answer 1

Hi there I am a Veterinarian Technician and hope to help!! I am sorry to hear about your sick pup! Unfortunately, at one time or another every dog will have diarrhea. What I would recommend is to collect a same of the diarrhea and bring it into your Vet tomorrow for a fecal exam for parasites. This should cost you about $16 and only takes about 20 minutes (a "normal" solid fecal takes 10 minutes, any loose stool should be run for 20). That way you can rule out any intestinal parasites. Most likely even if your dog does not have any parasites your Vet will prescribe Metronidazole which will help to get rid of the diarrhea.

In the mean time I would advise you to fast your dog for a full 24 hours. Your dog needs a full 24 hours of no food to rid the body of the diarrhea. No food, no bones, no treats, no toys from which pieces can be swallowed. HOWEVER, offer plenty of cold water (frequently!) to keep your dog hydrated.

Once you have fasted your dog for the full 24 hours then you should feed a bland diet. You can either purchase i/d prescription food from your Vet, or (if you don't mind cooking!) you can boil either chicken and rice or hamberg and rice. It is very important that you rinse off all the fat before boiling and please do not add seasoning or anything extra (that will cause diarrhea! you want to keep it as "bland" as possible! Trust me, I have seen everything!).

You are going to feed small frequent meals of the bland diet. About 1/3 of a cup 6 times daily. Again, make sure your baby is drinking plenty of water. I still would limit any bones (especially rawhides or anything similar) so you give your dogs stomach a little rest.

Feed the bland diet until your dog has a solid stool (if you are feeding the bland diet while giving your dog Metronidazole- do not expect any bowel movements for 3-7 days! So, don't panic if your dog does not poop for several days. That is to be expected on the prescription.). IF you are still seeing diarrhea on the bland diet then it is even more important to bring a fecal sample into the Vet (if you haven't done so already).

Here are some questions your Vet is going to want to know:
1) When did the diarrhea start?
2) Did you change anything in his/her diet? ie- new food, new bone, new treats, etc.
3) Did he/she get into something he/she should not have?
4) On heartworm prevention year round?
5) Any vomiting?
6) Eating/drinking/acting like normal?
7) And of course they are going to want to see the fecal sample!

Hope this helps!! Let me know how she is doing and if I can help you more.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Dog Has Diarrhea

Answer 4

When a dog has diarrhea, their bowels get irritated and they cannot stop the diarrhea on their own most of the time. Here is what my vet recommends for my three Labradors when they have diarrhea:

1. No food for two meals. This gives the bowels a chance to recover. The dog will not starve, although they will be hungry. This is usually a necessary step to get their bowels to stop being inflamed.

2. Rice alone for two meals.

3. Rice mixed with kibble, adding more kibble and less rice each time for several days.

4. Go back to kibble.

Dog sometimes just get upset stomachs. It does not mean you should change their food, unless they are getting upset stomachs a lot. It does not mean that they have worms, especially if your dog is an inside dog and well cared for.

ETA: a poster below is correct, and I forgot, that when you go to the vet, you should plan to bring a stool sample with you.

Answer 5

Hopefully you will be able to get into the vets right away. In the meantime you might consider with holding food for 24hours. If you don't wish to with hold food for that long try skipping a meal or two. Then give your pet a bland diet. This can consist of either boiled hamburger or chicken and rice. 1/3 of the diet consisting of the meat source and 2/3 rice or other grain such as pasta. Try adding a tablespoon or two of pumpkin. Pumpkin works quickly to alleviate diarrhea plus most dogs love the flavor. In place of water offer pedalyte to ensure your dog does not become dehydrated. Keep feeding the bland diet for a couple of days after the diarrea clears up or until your vet advises you.

Answer 6

My 9yr. old husky got diarrhea when I brought him home from a kennel. He was there for 10days & they said he was fine. He ate
their Iams food instead of Wellness that he gets at home so could the change have brought this on? I am giving him boiled rice w boiled
chicken in small amounts along with small ice cubes in a little water. Can he have Pepto Bismol and plain yogurt? I heard this from a person who fosters dogs regularly. Today he seems much better & has not had any diarrhea but I will continue to not give him any food, or treats. Any suggestions are welcomed!

Answer 7

You can always call the vet back and ask what you should do in the meantime, this would be your best bet. Try to get an appointment by thursday, diarrhoea should not go longer than 48 hours without being treated really.

A vet would probably advise witholding food (but not water) for 24 hours and then slowly reintroducing a bland diet like chicken and rice - either that, or just feeding small and frequent amount of chicken and rice from now until the appointment.

Chalice

Answer 8

My 7 lb. long-haired toy chihuahua was sick over Thanksgiving and as of this morning was actually getting worse; almost constant diarrhea, a bit of vomiting of foamy substance and absolutely no desire for food or water. Well as it turns out she has a doggie flu, picked up from a friend's dog (who is now on his way to the vet). She was given an antibiotic to be taken twice/day plus some kind of antibiotic mushy dog food to mix with her kibble. She still wants nothing to do with food. I'm praying by tomorrow she will be hungry. He said NOT to force food but gave me an eye dropper to be sure she gets enough water to stay hydrated. $125 later, and I can't afford it right now, my doggies will soon be on the mend and if my electric gets shut off, too bad. I'll fix it somehow. The vet said if doggie flu is left untreated the dog could die in a manner of days, mainly from dehydration. So don't mess around, if your dog has diarrhea, go to the vet asap! Best of luck to all!

Answer 9

Take a stool specimen to the Vet and make sure they have no parasites first off. Then my Vet usually recommends not feeding them for 24 hours. When you start them back on food, it should be a bland diet. Baby food etc. You can also make your own with rice and chicken, or rice and hamburger. Feed that to them for at least 2-3 days (small frequent meals) and slowly introduce their food back in. I just went through this at home with my black lab. Maybe there is a virus going around. Also Two Pepto tablets will help. I put my dogs pills in big marshmallows. I squish it right in the middle of the marshmallow, and they eat them right up. They're easy on the digestive tract too.

Answer 10

You are doing the right thing to take your dog to the vet. There is many reasons why your dog could be having diarrhea. Your dog could have possibly contracted a parasite if it has been around other dogs, or it could be possible that your dog ate some rat or gopher poison. My dog had the same problem, and the vet said it could be from rat poison. There is also the possibility that it could be from old age. I hope this helps and all goes well!