# 10month old V w/loose stools - help me I am losing my mind!



## ivyvizsla (Jul 24, 2011)

I have a wonderful V who has been having chronic loose stools for about 2.5 weeks now. I did the usually recc'd chicken/rice/pumpkin mix for 3-5 days and it started to clear up, so then I began mixing his food back in in small amounts. Back to loose stools. 

I thought it was the food (we are feeding Purina ONE selects wheat/corn free dry puppy), but now that he is back on his chicken/rice/pumpkin mix it is still loose. We pulled all treats, I have been making dehydrated sweet potato treats as his only source of reward.

Can someone help me towards an option? I can't feed him adult since he is still growing, but he is negative for worms and even the dietary fortiflora/active culture additives have not cured it. Looking to help my V since he is otherwise healthy and rambunctious like his breed. : )


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

We used Purina One until our vet said we should switch. She said it is essentially identical to regular Purina & not worth the extra money. She said that if we really wanted to boost our pups nutrition to switch to Purina Pro.

We switched her 30 days ago and her loose stools have disappeared (she's 10 1/2 months old). 

Additionally, she's put on some weight (she was painfully thin before) and her coat is much shinier. I know someone with an older Black Lab pup who had identical results.


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## redrover (Mar 17, 2011)

Food allergy? My dog was on Purina Pro Plan from the breeder, but what I highly suspect is a chicken allergy resulted in consistently loose stools (along with some other allergy symptoms). This is based on my own diagnosis, of course, after doing some elimination. When I switched him to a fish-based food, his stools firmed up and he became much more regular.

ETA: Chicken allergies are not uncommon at all, which is surprising, since it's usually the main protein in a lot of foods. If chicken is the culprit, it would explain why your chicken/rice/pumpkin mix is not working.


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## born36 (Jun 28, 2011)

I agree sounds like your pup has an allergy. I would switch to a hypoallergenic food and continue to give them mashed sweet potato in every meal for awhile.


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## kristen (Oct 18, 2011)

These are some good foods that are very ingredient based (meaning they dont contain tons of different meats, one is chicken, one is fish etc. so you can easily eliminate certain things from his diet to see if it has any effect)
Fromm, Acana, Orijen or Taste of the Wild. 
We're currently on Taste of the Wild Bison & Venison Puppy (orange bag) which Odin hasnt had an allergic reaction to so far (hes a sensitive skin guy) and his appetite and digestion have improved, which is a bonus to us!


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## ivyvizsla (Jul 24, 2011)

*wow. what a difference a day makes!*

I've been doing elimination for 3 weeks. Did chicken and rice, chicken and sweet potato or pumpkin, then switched to lean beef and rice, beef and potato/pumpkin. No luck whatsoever. I even just fed him his regular food again the other night to see if there was a difference. There was not. My suspicion is a grain allergy of sorts, and he wasn't on the potato diet long enough to see the grain allergy play out. 

I switched him yesterday to the Taste of the Wild puppy bison/venison mix with a small sweet potato. He scarfed it down like nothing I have ever seen before. I gave him a little chicken to supplement as a treat later. 

This morning? Firm stools. Just like magic. 

Looks like for now we'll stick to the TTOW food and then from there see. I also hear Purina makes a grain free/allergy food for adult dogs that has salmon in it - he might like that as well...whatever makes him happy! : )

Thanks for the suggestions guys!


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## threefsh (Apr 25, 2011)

Taste of the Wild is the BEST! We still supplement Riley's food with sweet potato, green beans, chicken, and other fun stuff (all grain-free of course). I'm so glad you found something that worked.


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## kristen (Oct 18, 2011)

Glad you found what works! We're really happy with Taste of the Wild as well (he loves it and it smells so good I'm tempted to try it!)


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## finch (Sep 19, 2011)

We also feed Taste of the Wild for our 3 dogs. We have one with a grain and chicken allergy, so this is a great choice. We feed Honest Kitchen on occasion to switch ut up and all grain-free treats as well.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Oh I do symposize, it is such a worry. I had this problem with my pup and did the same as you - chicken or fish and rice which vastly improved his stools, but I wanted him on a good quality kibble.

I posted a help message on the forum "Puppy with Soft Stools" - I had a lot of very good advise. I ended up by putting him on ACANA Pacifica (Fish and Vegetables) grain free. You need to start at about 50grams plus some fresh fish or meat and stay on that for a few days and then gradually increment it over 5 - 10days. My puppy is grain intolerant and the ACANA and Taste of the Wild( which so many members recommend) are grain free. Gradually little by little his poohs improved and now he is completley normal. It really is trial and error, but maybe avoid chicken.

Good Luck.


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## rebecca (Aug 20, 2011)

I have just dealt with this issue with mine! Was a worry at first as I was trying to make him gain weight and yet it just kept coming out the other end!
At first I put him on the rice/chicken diet, seems ok then added biscuit and was back to square one. After a few weeks of experimenting I have taken rice out of his diet and at the moment, he seems to be ok *touch wood*


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Rebecca, that is really interesting that you had to take rice out of your V's diet. Last week I was chatting to our vet about diet and saying how Boris was not digesting rice and so I was avoiding feeds with grain, and he was saying that brown rice is indigestible to dogs because of the husk. What I find amazing is the amount of dog kibble that you see - chicken or fish and brown rice. You can't tell me or maybe you can - that manufacturers remove all the husks. 

Ivyvizsla - I have the pup who had the loose stools. All is well now - and by adding raw meat Boris is putting on weight and is looking really well now. So if you can bear to try some raw meat it will improve his stool and put weight on.


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## polkan (Dec 29, 2011)

This was put together by vet students, but a short and good summary on food allergies, including how to figure out which ingredient is causing allergy (elimination trial) and remembering to eliminate potential other conditions that may appear similar to food allergy.

http://cvm.msu.edu/hospital/services/nutrition-support-service-1/client-education/canine-food-allergies

A friend of mine had her dog on a prescription "elimination trial" diet and found out she's totally fine with corn but doesn't tolerate brown rice well.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

*Try LID (limited ingredients) kibble*. Most quality brands will have this option. We used Blue and Natural balance.
It's the type of kibble originally designed for fussy zoo animals. 

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_Lately, we have been feeding Sam raw. He can polish off half a chicken in one sitting. No weight bearing bones, though (I read those may splinter) _


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## rebecca (Aug 20, 2011)

hotmischeif- I know, I have been looking more into what's in the kibble I'm feeding him and alot of the first ingredient is grain/wheat ect. But what I don't understand is, he can digest that, but not the plain rice I was feeding him. Sorry for the detail but I could see bits of undigested rice in his poo.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Rebecca, how do you know your dog is digesting wheat, maize and the other grains that are used to bulk out kibble??? It is used in a powdered form so when it comes out the other end I am not sure what you are looking for........ to me the answer is in the quantity and consistency of the poo (sorry that sounds awful). With a lot of kibbles a dog will pass several soft stools a day, basicly because their body isn't digesting it. Compared to a dog on a meat diet who will generally pass two smaller stools a day - which indicates to me he is utisiling his food better.

This feed subject is really a mine field and you are doing the right thing by looking into all the different feeds. I do think it is a matter of trial and error as to what suits your dog. Have a look at Orijen, Acana & Taste of the Wild (all grain free). Orijen was too high in protein for my boy so I use Acana and raw, but alot of forum member use these kibbles and speak very highly of them.

Food for though


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## rebecca (Aug 20, 2011)

hotmischief - Yes I have noticed that his poos are much bigger. I'm also feeding him on a combination of kibble/raw and feeding green tripe along with his kibble. I'm also going to try him on TOTW as heard a lot of good reviews, or Blue Buffalo as well and I'mm have a look into the others you've suggested 
What are the quantities you're feeding your dog on? I'm feeding mine on 3 cups of Purina Lamb with Rice, plus green tripe square 20 x 20cm which was recommend to my by the breeder. I'm actually trying to get him to gain weight.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Rebecca = sounds like your doing okay to me. I don't know anything about Purina but TOTW is very popular, just difficult to get in the UK (only one supplier). 

As for quantities we have been winging it a bit due to the fact he has been rather thin. We have cut it back now as he is just about right. Yesterday when we went to pick up more Acana and raw, there was a man in the shop who was really knowledgeable on nutrition - so we really quizzed him. 

He liked the idea that we were feeding the ACANA with the raw for the pup as he would get any vitamins that he wasn't getting in the raw. He recommended a ratio of 1/4 kibble to 3/4 raw = if that helps. However, he said you must never feed kibble that swells with raw meat. The Acana & Orijen don't swell and I suspect TOTW would be OK.

How long have you been feeding your current diet? We feed our Dane 2 of those blocks of tripe ( 454g each) plus a small amount of kibble but he weighs in at 160lbs. Tripe is great for putting on weight plus highly nitrous. He passes 2 very small poos daily which amazes me when I see what comes out of smaller dogs.

I think if I were feeding your dog I would cut out the Purina and feed just raw and vegetables (don't forget to remove the skins on carrots otherwise they don't digest the carrots). That way you can see whether his stools improve without the Purina - then later on when you have decided which kibble you want to go with, if at all, you can start to slowly add the kibble.

Keep me posted on your progress.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Sorry Rebecca - quantities. My boy is only 15 weeks so no comparison, but I work on 8%( for raw and kibble) of his body wieght fed in the ratios I gave you in the earlier post. If you are feeding only raw you can feed 10% of body weight. Apparently when a dog is fully grown you should only feed 3% of their body weight.

BUT... like people you must go on how your dog looks. Some people eat like horses and are as thin as a rake and others eat small amounts and because they have a slow metabolism they still put on weight. There is no hard and fast formula for feeding our dogs or us


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## rebecca (Aug 20, 2011)

Wow thanks hotmischief, that's really helpful info. When I take him for a run around in the fields he's doing at least 4 poos a day.
Mine has been on this diet since he was a pup, but I have just upped the intake. Today I have fed him on one block of tripe, 2 cups of kibble and a bit of lamb as still want to put some weight on him. Tomorrow though, like you suggested I'll cut out the kibble and feed the veggies. If this diet works do you think I should search for a kibble that doesn't have the rice ingredient in, such as TOTW?
Thanks for your advice. I feel the need to post a pic of mine 
Here's a comparison to how he used to be, and his weight now. I couldn't see just how skinny he was until I went to visit the breeder, and to my horror I felt like I has been a bad mum (


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

He's a lovely looking dog Rebecca, and looking at the second picture he doesn't look too thin. At 10 months all his energy has been going into growing and I think you will find that he will now begin to fill out.

If the raw diet suits him (and you), you absolutely do not need to feed kibble. Dogs were a lot healthier before we all started feeding kibble. I am not knocking kibble, as I think if you get the right one for your pup it can certainly give a more balanced diet to fast growing pups like Great Danes.

If you live in the UK have a look at this website

http://www.naturalinstinct.com/

I get Boris's raw from them and it is really good quality meat and in a very convenient form. The marrow bones they sell are great too. They are just a couple of miles from me so I go in and collect it, but they have stockists up and down the country, and they deliver.

Once you cut out the kibble I think you will notice a difference in his poos within a bout 8 -12 hours. Let me know how you get on.

Just had another thought, I would think he is having two meals a day - if you need to up the quantites by much and you are able to - you could put him on to three meals a day for a while so his tummy can digest it a bit better.

Of course your not a bad mum, your doing your best to give him the best diet you can.


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## rebecca (Aug 20, 2011)

Thanks  I think so too but I am biased ;D

Thank you for the link, I'll take a look at it in a minute. Yes, I have put him up to 3 meals a day for the time being, seems to be working much better. I'll try the raw diet over the next couple of days and post his results


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