Puppy has diarrhea?

BetterThanThou

I got a new puppy about 3 weeks ago, an Alaskan Malamute, initially, I decided to feed him Real Nature dry food. I weaned him off the food he was being fed originally, over the course of 5 days, initially with only a small amount of Real Nature, and then gradually increasing over the 5 days. His stool gradually worsened, at first it was soft, I stayed on the Real Nature for 2 weeks(including the 5 days where I mixed the original food), it got to the point where his stool was watery, so I switched him to James Wellbeloved, I've had him on that the last 5 days, but that hasn't shown any improvement. I didn't wean him from the Real Nature to James Wellbeloved, as the Real Nature seemed to upset his stomach enough anyway, I'm not sure if that was a wise decision. I've decided to call a vet tomorrow, but I'd like to hear any suggestions anyone else has. Right now he's 14 weeks old.

odckdo

The vet is the best bet.

There is some good advice on the Burns website for dogs if they have digestive problems. This applies to dogs - not sure about a pup - maybe see what the vet says tomorrow.

http://burnspet.co.uk/petcare/burns-pet-nutrition-advice/digestive-problems.html

tk123

You've changed over too fast both times - it's pretty normal for a dog to get an upset tummy like this especially with a food that contains cereals. I personally wouldn't bother going to the vet if it was one of mine unless I wasn't getting anywhere in a few days or the dog seemed lethargic. I'd fast him then feed for the rest of the evening and starting tomorrow give him small amounts of chicken and rice/potato often - so a couple of tablespoons and if there's no poo explosion after say 2 hours another couple of spoons. Once his poo goes back to normal wean him back on to dry food SLOWLY - like over 2 weeks. Make sure he's still drinking though so he doesn't get dehydrated.

Pretzill

puppies can go downhill fast. make sure he's drinking lots. our pup had pretty bad tummy when we got him - burns was well tolerated and it cleared up quickly - a visit to the vet may be needed if it goes on for a few days
are you worming him?

sparky63

Have to agree with tk123 on the advice he offered. Boil up some chicken and rice as said, make enough for a couple of days and store it in the fridge in tubberware. I'd be inclined to feed this for about 2 weeks, to let his stomach settle before even trying any other dry food.

After 2 weeks i'd mix very small amounts with the chicken and rice mix, if his stools stay solid i'd reduce a little at a time the mix while increasing the dry food. If the chicken and rice is inconvenient, you can get cans of i/d canine from your vet. Its for gastrointestinal health.

Plopli

I would be inclined to go with tk123 & all advice but if I understand correctly your initial message, the poor boy is now for more than 2 weeks with diarrhea.

If my understanding is correct, I would still go to the vet to be sure he's not getting to dehydrated.
So long with diarrhea would be very hard on him.

Otherwise, fast him for few meal (I'll say skip a meal, maybe 2 if you are on 3 meal a day), then boiled chicken and rice as advised and then very slow change to a good quality dry food.

Keep him with fresh water at all time, eventually proposing him with water in your hand to encourage him to drink.

Dehydration is your worst enemy at this point.

BetterThanThou

Thanks for the replies, I rang my vet and he suggested pretty much what's been said in this thread, and he said if he gets any worse or hasn't improved in a week or two to bring him in. Diarrhea probably wasn't the right word, he doesn't poop much, it's only that when he does it was very runny. I fasted him for a day and then tried to feed him rice and chicken and all the suggested foods, I couldn't get him to eat them so I gave in and gave him dog food, I've already seen great improvements, while it's not great, it's a huge improvement over what it was, so hopefully it keeps improving. Luckily dehydration doesn't seem like it'll be an issue, he drinks a good bit and shows no signs of it.

tk123

BetterThanThou wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, I rang my vet and he suggested pretty much what's been said in this thread, and he said if he gets any worse or hasn't improved in a week or two to bring him in. Diarrhea probably wasn't the right word, he doesn't poop much, it's only that when he does it was very runny. I fasted him for a day and then tried to feed him rice and chicken and all the suggested foods, I couldn't get him to eat them so I gave in and gave him dog food, I've already seen great improvements, while it's not great, it's a huge improvement over what it was, so hopefully it keeps improving.

Do you mean wet food? There's plenty of good quality ones if that's what suits the pup better. Naturediet/Rocco/Lukullus/Rinti are all good quality ones from zooplus - compare prices on zooplus.ie/.de/.co.uk I feed my pup wet food and raw meat - I tend to stick to nature diet and rocco junior

BetterThanThou

tk123 wrote: »

Do you mean wet food? There's plenty of good quality ones if that's what suits the pup better. Naturediet/Rocco/Lukullus/Rinti are all good quality ones from zooplus - compare prices on zooplus.ie/.de/.co.uk I feed my pup wet food and raw meat - I tend to stick to nature diet and rocco junior

I just put him back on the dry food that I was feeding him in the first place. He seems to be the opposite of most dogs, he's picky, but unlike most dogs, he'd rather dog food than human food.