Carolyn and Sadie's Page

Try not to worry; most likely, she just needs to get a good balance of bacteria restored in the gut. Please keep me posted on how she does. 

The question to me is, why give an antibiotic at all when you don't know if there is an infection present? The vets hand out metronidazole any time a dog has diarrhea, but they shouldn't. It can have serious side effects when used repeatedly or for long terms. Panacur is pretty safe, and there's another drug that works on the GI system, Tylan, which is extremely safe, so if I had to use an antibiotic for an unspecified GI issue, those would be my choices, but I still would want to know what is causing the problem.

A stool specimen at this point won't do you any good, because the drugs would mask anything. 

Proviable has to be ordered on-line. And be sure to give the yogurt/probiotics apart from the meds. Very important.

The problem is that she's going to seem better while she is on the metronidazole, but the minute you stop it, the diarrhea is going to come right back. That's why you really never want to give metro without a very good reason. It destroys all of the good bacteria in the gut which is necessary for proper stool formation along with the bad, and the dog develops a bacterial imbalance that causes chronic diarrhea. Eventually, it can even lead to GI disease, a condition called SIBO or small intestine bacterial overgrowth, which is in turn a contributing factor to the development of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Trust me, you want to avoid that at all costs. 

I don't remember if we've talked about probiotics, but it's absolutely crucial that you get some and start her on it. It will need to be continued for several weeks after the metronidazole is discontinued. I recommend Proviable DC. it must be given at least two hrs apart from the meds and longer is better. In the meantime, use plain unflavored nonfat yogurt, 2-3 TBS twice a day, also apart from the meds.

The sweet potato is important because it adds fiber and bulk to help with stool formation. Please let me know how she does. 

Hi Carolyn,

I thought it would be better to respond to your question apart from Sheeba's discussion, since it's a very different topic and we don't want to cause confusion or "highjack" her post. :) 
I prefer sweet potatoes to rice. A lot more fiber, more nutrients, more digestible, and no grain. You need to feed a 50/50 mixture, and you need to feed about twice the amount that you normally feed of kibble, since it contains only 200 calories per cup (same as chicken and rice). For a 16 lb adult dog, you'd need to feed about 2.25 cups per day. Sadie may have gotten constipated because of the rice, or because she wasn't getting enough food to form stool. :) 
I hope this helps.