Puppy with Diarrhea

[Mcct]

Hi all. I'm looking for advice about my 5 month old australian labradoodle (she's 35 lbs, will get to be about 45, I'm guessing). She has had several bouts of bad diarrhea that I'm trying to figure out. Fecal samples are clear. The 1st time, the vet gave her metronidazole but I have said no to it since then after learning more about it. Recently, puppy has been eating LA All Stages Grain Free food (after switching her from the LA puppy food after lots of diarrhea). I've been giving her proviable DC probiotics for a few months now, along with Optagest digestive enzyme and a teaspoon of pumpkin with her kibble. She was great for about a month on the new all stages food (LA), but now has terrible diarrhea again. I'm cooking her plain chicken and white potato for now (should I switch to sweet potato or is that too much fiber?) and am continuing with the probiotic and the enzyme. I realize from reading other comments on this board that I should be feeding her more of the homemade food, as it's not equal in nutrition to the kibble. As she comes out of this bout of diarrhea, I'd like to transition her off of LA brand food. Once she normalizes on the home-cooked food and I'm ready to slowly re-introduce kibble, do you think I should just re-introduce a new brand, or go back to her LA food for the transition, then later transition away from the LA food? Any good suggestions of a new kibble for her would be appreciated. Vet mentioned Canidae grain-free, Oso Pure and Natural Balance as some options but I'm not sure what to go with. My pup seems super sensitive so I don't want to play around with her food excessively. What would you do if she was your pup? Thanks so much - I truly appreciate your wisdom and this board. 

[Mcct]

Thanks, again. I'll see how it goes with the Simple. How much of the Simple Turkey + Potato would you recommend feeding a 5 month 35 lbs pup? 

Thanks again - you are super helpful.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Assuming you're feeding twice a day, I'd start with one and a half cups twice a day (total three cups per day) and see how it goes. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

PS: I never take feeding advice from store clerks. If they really knew anything about nutrition, they wouldn't be working for minimum wage, lol. 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

LID formula and VSL #3 is our go-to when Charlie has his digestive issues. It always takes longer than I think it will to get him all the way back to ‘normal.’  Our other two doodles don’t need this much intervention for tummy upsets, but Charlie does. He’s a rescue guy, but came from somewhere in your area and as a puppy may have suffered from this difficult strain of Giardia, leaving him more sensitive overall. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yep. Repeated courses of metronidazole to treat giardia in puppyhood often results in bacterial imbalances in the gut, which leads to chronic stool issues and even serious digestive disease down the road. The importance of a good probiotic given for an extended period cannot be overstated. 

[Mcct]

Karen, I'm sorry to bother you again, but I have not had any luck finding the Wellness Simple Turkey LID locally. I found it online at 1 place, but then a store I spoke to said they heard Wellness is discontinuing it and getting rid of stock. I don't want to get started with a food and have to transition again soon. So, what would be your second choice for kibble for my pup? Natural Balance LID or Canidae or something else? Thanks! Her stools are now good on the homemade food and VSL 3 is in the mix so I'm ready to get her back on kibble.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm fairly certain that the food is not being discontinued. Chewy.com carries it, as well as Amazon, Jet.com, Petflow, and Petco, and there are local suppliers as well. 

I would try one of those. If it really isn;t available to you, we can find something else, but absolutely nothing really compares, IMO.
Try putting your zipcode into this link and see what comes up near you. Otherwise, I gave you 4 onine suppliers above. https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/simple-dogs

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

And Canidae's Pure line would be far, far preferable to Natural Balance, if it comes to that. 

[Mcct]

Hi again. I just wanted to check in to say a big thank you. I followed all of your advice and my pup is doing great. Thanks for your care and time, Karen.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh I'm so glad! Thanks for letting me know! 

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

Yay! Karen helped me through puppy diarrhea trials and tribulations too, and after much worry I'm happy to report she seemed to outgrow it!! Olive is 2 now. We feed her Wellness Simple Solutions and give a pretty regular proviable DC pill - and if ever an occasional mush poo happens, we go to chicken/sweet potato for a few and that seems to clear her right up again. I'm so glad we avoided the antibiotic cycle. Thanks again to Karen.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Glad to help!