Frustrated and Confused... and worried :(

[Gillian]

Poor Maizey has not had an easy go at it these last couple months... we are having some issues, and since it's Saturday and the vet is closed, I thought I'd open it up to discussion:

Background: She's 4 months old.. just got her final vaccinations yesterday... losing teeth as we speak...I have been going back to work this past week (.. hence a new schedule and extra stress on her)... she's had on and off loose stools/firm stools/diahrrea for the last 4 days.. been on chicken and rice for 4 days... had a soft stool this morning... now diahrrea... she's not too lethargic.. drinking plenty and chewing on toys... she also had her first bath today at the groomers (extra stress??)

The Vet did a fecal on her yesterday and there were no worms....

Should I be concerned enough to to the ER?? Or is this stress related... vaccinations...teething... all in one?!? Poor thing..

Also... I've noticed her licking her lips a bit more (not too excessive, but more often I guess).. is that worrisome or am I just a panicky new doodlemommy?!?!

[Adrianne Matzkin]

IMHO and I am no vet - if she seems happy, eating, peeing and pooping, I wouldn't go to the ER vet. It could be all of the above, vaccines and a change in a dogs routine is stressful for them. If she stops eating, drinking, peeing and pooping then I would go to the ER.
Keep us posted!!!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

What about some canned pumpkin (if you can find some) with her food. My vet also recommends Pepto for diahrrea! I think I also agree with Adrianne .... if she seems active and happy, I'd just watch her closely!

[Jennifer Tramell]

I agree - happy, not lethargic, eating, was at the vet yesterday....I'd keep an eye on her but wouldn't worry. It's easy to worry - we just put in hardwood floors and my Webster slides on them from time to time. Every time he does I think "Oh no! Hip displaysia!!!" See, you're not alone but I think we can both relax :-)

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Maizey is a lucky dood to have someone who cares so much about her!!! Tara had lots of digestive issues as a puppy-vomiting, squishy stool, pudding poops etc. Lot's of rice and chicken!! We FINALLY (months!) figured out it was the amount and type of fat in her diet. Chicken fat seems to be especially difficult for her to digest. She has been great since we moderated the fat content of her food. My point being that there can be NUMEROUS things that can throw their little systems off. For what it is worth, I was told once by someone far more knowlegeable then myself that the type of poops to be concerned about are the watery diarrhea type and that the pudding types are not as much a concern and don't necessarily require immediate attention. I would think that any and all of the things you mentioned could have upset her system. I know how frustrating it is when they are so tiny and dependent and you don't know how to help them. It takes time to get to know their little idiosyncrasies. I agree with some of the other contributors who suggested that you monitor her and if she continues to eat, drink and be merry than just give it some time and see if it resolves. The lip licking as you may know can be a sign of stress so it may be a little clue about where she is emotionally.

[katie St Marie]

my non doodle puppy had really bad diarrhea when we got i thought for sure she had worms...and was really worried, same for my neighbor's husky puppy, really watery!! but stool samples came back and no worms for either! i really think it was stress and teething causes diarrhea in human babies so why not puppies? the only thing that helped was metronidazole an antibiotic used for giardia and diarrhea. it took about a week and shes much better, same for the husky. if she still has it on monday i would ask the vet if she could take that it worked for me. and wouldnt hurt to ask

[Leslie, Dexter & Kirby]

Dexter had loose stool on and off many times over the first few months we had him. I would say as long as your doodle is acting normal, eating and drinking I wouldn't be too concerned. You can feed some canned pumpkin or rice. If she changes behavior then I would definitely call a vet. Good luck.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Krista-
I really love the "belonging hold". It sounds like a great "destresser" for humans too! I'm going to give this a try when the Doods (or I) are feeling anxious.

[shelly]

Krista, I never heard of the 'belonging hold', but I LOVE IT! I believe that Tori has anxiety, for what reason - I don't know... mostly when we have people over and in the car.. something not even a thundershirt can even help. Can't wait to try it... Love the idea of the yogurt pops too!

[Gillian]

Thank you all so much. I guess my big question is how long do I continue with the bland diet before worrying? It's been 5 days of it already.... Granted there are still stressors going on but I don't know at which point I should worry... Am I going to be cooking chicken and rice forever??

[katie St Marie]

i didnt have to change her diet....just gave her the antibiotic and continued with the same food and shes been fine tummy settled and stool firmed up no problems after that and i

[katie St Marie]

didnt have to change anything as far as her food

[shelly]

Hi! Tori had a problem with her food there for a while.. I did give her Nutro for sensitive stomachs, but then I read about the recalls on it, and it also had oatmeal, which I think bothered her... since then I tried Nature's Recipe chicken for senitive stomach - easily digested... she loves it and so far... knock wood has been great on it