I have a 10 wk. and 3 day old Sheltie. The breeder was feeding her Prism puppy food. I looked it up and it looks like crap. She gave me a baggie full of the prism for transition, which I started slowly mixing with Origin. Within two days she started with VERY mushy and frequent stools. (her stools were fine on the Prism junk). Took her to the vet for well puppy visit/shots. Took stool sample but it tested fine. Vet said to try boiled hambuger and rice for a few days. Didn't help. Then the vet gave us Hills I.D. (crap, I know, but wanted the problem to stop) Still didn't help. Now I see drops of blood in her stool. I don't know what to do. She eats EXTREMELY well and is VERY active and puppy like. Any ideas????? Please help.
Puppy Poo Problems
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They should have checked for those. The blood in the stool is the only part that kinda worries me. Soft stool wise...its a big difference between Prism and Orijen so her body is probably just adjusting, so its ok. Long as it isn't diarrhea and doesnt last too long. Gotta be careful with puppies. Good luck to you both.
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Don't do hamberger for her. I would suggest that you try to get her onto the Orijin and just watch her stools. What Orijin were you feeding? Was it chicken, fish...? I would assume that is was the puppy formula, but maybe she just needs time to get used to some of the ingredients. Give her a full month to get used to the food before doing ANY switchin' or 'fixin'. If you start her on the Orijin again and she goes back to softer stools, just watch her. If it stays as diarrhea and blood. Take her in and maybe have them give you something like Imodium. You might just need to settel her stomach enough for her to be able to get used to the new, high quality food.
Good luck!
Ok, here's the latest....thanks so much for the replies so far. Today, she's not herself. Not as playful and sleeping more. I called the vet. They had tested (on June 30th) for giardia and coccidia. (at the time she had very mush stools, but no visible blood). The test was fine. They still feel it is a digestive upset type of thing, but they prescribed Metroniadazole (Flagyl, I believe) and sold us some more crap (Iams Veterinary Formula- Intestinal Low-Residue). It is certainly my goal to get her back on Origen, but I do now feel that a very bland diet is necessary for the time-being. Especially since her behavior is different today, and I fear she has lost weight. It seems to hurt to defacate now, as she jumps and licks at herself. I'm sure she's sore from going too frequently in small amounts. Also, I'm sure you can appreciate the house training problems associated with this. (I spent 4 hours steam cleaning carpets). Poor thing, she is such a good girl and SO sweet. She just can't hold it at all now.
So, the vet wanted her to have not eaten for 6 hours before giving her her first dose of meds., then I will give her a little bit of Iams. I sure hope this helps. If it does, I'll need your help deciding when to start transitioning back to Origen. I feel like I have a newborn baby again!
So, the vet wanted her to have not eaten for 6 hours before giving her her first dose of meds., then I will give her a little bit of Iams. I sure hope this helps. If it does, I'll need your help deciding when to start transitioning back to Origen. I feel like I have a newborn baby again!
I would go with boiled chicken and sticky rice for a day or two. Very small amounts throughout the day. Her stools should improve on this food. Then reintroduce a kibble very very slowly - maybe a tablespoon each meal. Then two tablespoons a few days later. Pups do not recover quickly from intetinal distress. i would also look into some nzymes - the antibiotics will eliminate the good bacteria in herdigestive track. i would try Bac Pac nzymes. Make sure the pup gets plenty of fluids. Gatoraid is helpful and most pups will drink it.
No treats either.
It is probably time to retest for giardia and coccidia. Especially if it has been a month since the last test.
I hate Metron and refuse to give it to my dogs. It is often described for doga with runny stools just in case thereis some sort of bacteria causing it. The Metron can have some terrible side effects.
Good luck. Is the pup up-to-date on her Parvo vacines? If not, I would test for that also.
No treats either.
It is probably time to retest for giardia and coccidia. Especially if it has been a month since the last test.
I hate Metron and refuse to give it to my dogs. It is often described for doga with runny stools just in case thereis some sort of bacteria causing it. The Metron can have some terrible side effects.
Good luck. Is the pup up-to-date on her Parvo vacines? If not, I would test for that also.
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I was just going to suggest that you go with the chicken instead of the burger but I see that Doc beat me to it!
That should be a great 'bland diet' for her and then maybe you can start from square one!
Good luck and keep up posted!
That should be a great 'bland diet' for her and then maybe you can start from square one!
Good luck and keep up posted!
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I agree, with this. Find some supplements for her to help her digest a little better. They shouldn't be a permanent thing, but at least till she is feeling better.
Only after about a week, start with small amounts of kibble.
My dogs will actually steat my Gatoraid bottles and carry them off to chew on the bottle and drink the contents... Guess thats what I get for letting them try it one!
I would try to see if they have something more like Imodium rather then use Metronidazol. You can ask your vet what a recomended dose would be of the kind that you can get from the local drug store. You would only be using it for a couple of days and everything should go back to 'regular puppy poo'!
Hehe, Doc, did you get a little excited here? You started running your words together!
All of a sudden, her stools went form mushy and bloody to perfect. Could it have been that one dose of the Metro? She had two doses so far. Should I continue? She would not touch the Iams dry stuff the vet sold us, and they took it back. I got her 2 more cans of the Hills i.d.. What I'm thinking is to give her another full day of just the Hills, and tomorrow start very gradually incorporating the Orijen. Does this sound o.k.? I'm starting to have a problem with something though. If a food is supposedly so good for them (Orijen), why to dogs have such a hard time transitioning to it??? Especially a puppy who hasn't been on ANYTHING for very long??? I absolutely want the best for my pets, but have to wonder......how do we ever really know what that is? Oh, she is also on Bene Bac. Would this be the enzymes a pp had mentioned? She LOVES this stuff!
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Well, puppies have sensitive tummys, and if the mother wasn't fed appropriate species food like a higher protein no grain kibble then you need to transition slowly to stop what happened earlier. Take it slow, I would try to get her off the Med the vet gave you as soon as possible, it's awful. Good Luck!
Can you tell me what is bad about the med? It was prescribed for 6 days and she had it 2. Should I just stop? She is doing great today, BTW! I'm afraid that if I stop, it will come back. Like human antibiotics, they say that just because the symptoms stop, you should still continue the full course, or it may come right back????
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I understand this concern, as I've had it before myself! Usually the "hard time" is the process their body is taking to detox themselves from the junk they've been fed (or that the mother was fed, in this case perhaps) and cleansing their systems as the new more appropriate diet flows through.
We know what the best is because we know a few things.
1. Dogs (canines) all come from wolves origionally. Granted the many any breeds are hundreds of generations away from what we think of when we think "wolf" their digestive systems are just the same.
2. Canines are carnivores, and therefore get every bit of nutrition they need from an animal source, wether it be muscle meat, organs, or bones.
3. Grains, mostly corn and wheat, are the main cause of diet allergens for dogs.
From knowing and understanding these three basic concepts, we can conclude that a diet high in meat, and low in plant matter and grain (if any) is what is best for their digestive health.
Following that, you're feeding a food that follows this diet more closely than other kibbles, therefore making it superior.
Hope that makes sense.
As for the problems you're having with the puppy, there's always the option of going raw. But that topic belongs in another section.
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