Canine Diarrhea: Simple Ways For Your Dog To Feel Better

According to surveys by the national Veterinary group, canine diarrhea is the third most common problem they treat in their offices. If your pup has ever had this issue, you know how much your day is changed around. Canine stomach problems may results from an overgrowth of bacteria in their digestive system or intestinal tract, or they may simply be due to excessive feeding and dietary indiscretion. More serious causes include bloat and even stomach cancer.

If your dog’s problems are mild and he is not vomiting or showing lack of appetite, you might be able to handle everything yourself. We’ve got some tips you might find helpful if your dog has loose bowel movements. But if your little dog is vomiting or showing blood in his feces, you need to put him in the car and drive directly to the vet’s office.

But sometimes stomach problems and loose bowels are just side effects from diet changes, super snacking or digging through the trash in the kitchen. Other causes could be due to parasites like worms that can make harmful bacteria grow in your dog’s stomach and intestines.

If you see worms in your dog’s feces, either spaghetti looking or rice like in appearance, you can get an OTC de-wormer medicine and this might just do the trick. But, some parasites like Giardia are not easily treated by pet owners. This will result in continuous stomach problems and further loose bowel movements. In such cases, you need to bring samples of fresh stool to the vet for further checking and verification so appropriate medicines can be administered.

Its possible that you can handle mild stomach problems just by withholding food from your pet for a day. This is with the assumption that everything else with your dog except the loose bowel movement is normal and there are no unusual symptoms being exhibited.

After the 24-hour fast, feed your dog with a prepared meal of boiled chicken or hamburger with all the fat drained off in a preparation mixed with boiled white rice. Give your dog small portions of food 5 or 6 times a day until his bowels are normal and the stool turns firm again. In some cases, vets would recommend the addition of small quantities of yogurt to the diet to add beneficial bacteria into their digestive system.