On again off again.. loose poops.

[Elizabeth]

When I got Sophie last November she was on Science Diet. She liked it, ate and pooped like clockwork. I did not want to add any additional stress on her, but now that she has recovered from her eye surgery and we have had her for 9 months I switched to her to taste of the wild- prairie- she loved it when Abby's mom brought her a sample, and she didn't seem to have any problems. I switched it over slowly and noticed a bit more gas. Then, a week after switching, she developed loose stool for two days. I called the vet and he suggested Pepto Bismal; I followed his instructions and within a day it cleared up. For a week or two she has been fine. Then, I came home today and she was crying in her kennel full of diarrhea again- poor girl. Although there was some formed stool in her kennel. it was mostly diarrhea.

I have been staying away from rawhides and bones thinking maybe that was the cause, but now I am wondering if it's the food. She tolerated the Science Diet and pooped twice a day like clockwork for 9 months. Since starting her on Taste of the Wild, she has had this on again off again diarrhea.

I know the Science Diet food is not rated very high, and I really wanted to get her on something more nutritious for her, but she has lost a pound and a half or two pounds since switching her over and I'm just not sure if this is working.

My vet thought that there was nothing wrong with the Science Diet and thinks that it is a good balanced food, but understood and supported the idea of a more natural food if that was what I wanted to do.

Any suggestions about what you would do or food that you have had good experience with?

[Elizabeth]

I should add to this that in May or so she tested negative for all parasites so I'm pretty sure that's not a concern. I did bust her eating a couple acorns a couple days ago.. we have them all over our yard.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

It could be the acorns and that you were not catching her eating them, can you try and put her in an area where they are cleared and she can't get them, keep her on the food for a few more weeks and see if that helps, if the diarrhea comes back try putting some sweet potato on her food for a few weeks, if this does not help and your sure she is not getting into anything, I like Fromm dog foods...here is a link for them..you can check them out. You can check out all the kinds of food they have.

http://www.frommfamily.com/

[Elizabeth]

We do have acorns all over- i could try to rake them up really good. I am just so sick of poop! I don't want to needlessly change her food all around, but I don't want her to loose weight or feel miserable either. She had normal poops for a week- I would think that if it was the food then she wouldn't have normal poop for a week or so at a time. i am trying to convince myself that it is the acorns or something else. Ugh.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

I really think some dogs get a form of Colitis on and off through out their lives. They get into all kinds of things which can upset their intestine's and bowls. I found this article on it and hope this also helps some, kinda sounds like what you are going through.....First I would stick her back on the bland diet, than start her back slowly on her food...try her for a few weeks but be certain she is not getting into anything...if she starts with the poops again, I would slowly switch her food to Fromm and try the sweet potato. My son has an Americal Bulldog who is very very prone to all kinds of Colon problems, he is also on TOTW food and is doing great on it, but he will get so bad he poops straight blood, if he gets into anything that he does not eat on a regular basis. A golden trainer and breeder turned me onto Fromm when I purchased Hannah and loved it ever since.... Found the article below...hope this helps some

http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/colitis.html

[Adrianne Matzkin]

My yard is also filled with acorns and both doodles chew on them even tho I repremand them for it.
I had Smantha on TOTW and she did not do well on it. Major gas and very loose poops! Swtiched her the Fromm's - no problems. I also have a supplement called 'Rx Clay' which I use when her poops are less then perfect. It is 'helps regulate bowel function and promotes normal stools'. As her poops got better I weaned her off it and only use it now when necessary. I am no vet and do not promote this product - I am just sharing with you what I use.

[Tammy & Gracie]

Daily, I also use a little probiotic powder on Gracies food. I think that is always a good idea with no downfalls. Also, try adding a few tablespoons of canned pumpkin to her food. Gracie gets that occasionally and really likes it, just make sure to buy "no suger added".

[Elizabeth]

Sophie gets sick on most people food, which isn't a bad thing.but the vet assistant thought pumpkin might make it worse as they use that for constipation- i've read online that people have used it for both diarrhea and constipation- which I find interesting.

I know that acorns have a lot of tannic acid and can cause diarrhea, vomitting, upset stomach and intestinal blockages. So, maybet that is the culprit. i can't remember if there were acorns on the ground when she had diarrhea the last time.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Some dogs just seem to need rice in the formula to firm up the poop. TOTW, while it is an excellent food, is totally grain-free.
Some high-quality kibbles that do contain rice and other healthy grains (but not corn or wheat) include Fromm's Four-Star line, Canidae, and Nature's Variety Prairie line.
The crap dog foods like Science Diet contain fillers which do act as binders and make the stool very firm. You may never get that kind of consistency again with the healthier foods, but I think it's an excellent trade-off to trade the preservatives, chemicals, by-products, cheap grains, and unhealthy fats in exchange for poop that is a bit softer. However, diarrhea & weight loss is obviously not acceptable. Sometimes it just takes some time to find the right food for your dog's digestive system and for the dog to adjust to a new diet. We have probably had about 10 discussions in the Food Group on this same problem within the last month or two.
And of course, if it's the acorns, which sounds very possible, problem solved! Sophie, stop eating acorns!

[Elizabeth]

That is exactly how I feel, I want her to be on a better food! I guess I'll hang in there for awhile longer. If she continues to have diarrhea.. should I go back to the Science Diet or just try another food?

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Don't go back to the SD, Liz. Try one with rice in it. Pumpkin is used for tummy troubles, and can be used for both diarrhea and constipation. Sweet Potato is another good binder.

[Adrianne Matzkin]

Thanks Lynne, I got involved with the 3 doods that I posted before I finished. I always have pumpkin and plain yogurt for them. I give them yogurt several times a week, sweet potato almost every night and pumpkin when necessary.

[Elizabeth]

I want to be clear on the fact that I just thought it was interesting it could be used for both. have heard many people do that, after all, pumkin is high in fiber if I am not mistaken. Denise (and abby) have told me about using pumpkin too. I am not sure why the vet asistant thinks it's better for constipation than diarrhea. I wasn't knocking your idea- I am just leary about using any people food as Sophie has not tolerated it in the past. I did however try the vets reccomendation of using Pepto Bismal and it worked like a charm but it was not fun giving it to her- she HATES it. So I may not be doing that again lol...

If taste of the wild continues to be a problem for her I will look into the others mentioned above. I really hate cycling through dog food, and it makes it especially hard having a dog that seems to be a bit sensitive. Some dogs can eat anything, but I have to switch everything over slowly with her. I will see which dog foods mentioned they carry around this area and/or through fetch delivers..

I absolutely don't want to feed her foods with uneccessary chemicals and fillers if I can avoid it, that's why I wanted to switch her to Tast of the Wild.. I can't let her loose weight, so I'm going to have to figure it out. If her body seems to be happiest with a certain food I suppose that is something to consider- even if it doesn't make me happy. I hope I figure it out sooner rather than later.