Soft stool caused by food?

Post Reply
User avatar
DeLo727
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 156
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2015 4:15 pm
Location: Wilmington, NY

Soft stool caused by food?

Post by DeLo727 » Fri Dec 04, 2015 8:18 pm

I am wondering if I'm going overboard by changing my pups food so early. I've been dealing with soft stool with the little guy since I got him. He is a French Britt and he's about four months old now. He's been sick a couple times with this or that but we've been past those humps for a little while. My vet has run a menagerie of tests on him in the last couple months and nothing has come up to indicate a good reason for soft stool. She thought based on the negative tests maybe it was possible food was passing through his system very quickly and not getting the chance to absorb enough water. While he was sick I was giving him some pumpkin to help out and it didn't seem to make much of a difference. He shows no sign of infections and no temperature concerns. His weight is progressing as expected and on target. He appears healthy and his demeanor is excellent.
I'm feeding him Diamond small breed puppy because that's what the breeder had him on and suggested I continue. Now that that food is up I made a switch to chicken puppy formula Pro Plan Focus. Has anybody else had issues like this?

User avatar
Garrison
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1213
Joined: Tue Sep 06, 2011 5:29 pm
Location: Winchester CA

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by Garrison » Fri Dec 04, 2015 10:48 pm

Try cutting his food back a bit. I would worry about what the pup looks like more then what comes out of him looks like.
“Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.”
- Mark Twain-

User avatar
Sharon
GDF Junkie
Posts: 9113
Joined: Fri May 09, 2008 4:46 pm
Location: Ontario,Canada

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by Sharon » Sat Dec 05, 2015 4:58 pm

How slowly did you make the switch?
" We are more than our gender, skin color, class, sexuality or age; we are unlimited potential, and can not be defined by one label." quote A. Bartlett

shags
GDF Junkie
Posts: 2717
Joined: Wed Jan 02, 2008 4:57 pm

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by shags » Sat Dec 05, 2015 9:23 pm

x2 on cutting back. You might have to cut back considerably for a day or two, then slowly add more ration. IME the higher fat, higher protein dogfoods can be pretty picky as to amount fed/ stool firmness.
And remember the recommended amount to feed printed on the bag is a guideline, not a rule.

dr tim
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 121
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2011 12:50 pm
Location: marquette, michigan

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by dr tim » Sun Dec 06, 2015 9:38 am

Rule of thumb I use with any soft stool issue like you describe to discern between overfeeding and not being able to "handle" a certain food, i.e., something in the food causes the dog to react poorly to the diet leading to soft stool is this; Reduce the food by half for 3 days and see if the stools get solid. If they do most likely you were overfeeding by a bit so then gradually increase the amount fed to maintain ideal body weight and still have solid stools(solid stools tend to indicate proper digestion in most cases). If the stools still are soft after reducing the amount fed for 3 days then there is an ingredient, how it is processed or otherwise in said food that just doesn't jive for that dog. Then it is time to try another food.

If the dog has watery stools, poor appetite, not good body condition, is vomiting then it might be more than just overfeeding or a food intolerance and seeking a vet's help would be indicated.

User avatar
DeLo727
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 156
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2015 4:15 pm
Location: Wilmington, NY

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by DeLo727 » Tue Dec 08, 2015 12:03 am

Thanks guys, I talked to the vet a few times about this over the last two or three weeks and it seems like we are on the same page about the switch. Im doing the switch slowly. I just bought the bag and had about 25% of the old food left. I mixed that 25% with the top 50% of the new bag and thats how I am introducing the new food.
As far as overfeeding, I'm not convinced thats the case. Its not that I don't want to take advice from here but I would like to post this response and possibly hear what you have to say before my next move.
It seems like Im hitting target weight and the puppy eats voraciously. I only feed 1cup, twice a day. Previously he was on a half cup three times a day and we slowly cut out the lunch time feeding over the last week. There is no change is stool consistancy from that.
Is it possible he's underfed? 2 cups a day seems petty adequate for a 14lb dog and he seems to be satisfied at the end of each bowl. Im a little worried about cutting back and underfeeding him and catching it too late making him uncomfortable. How would I know before I start to see visual signs?

shags
GDF Junkie
Posts: 2717
Joined: Wed Jan 02, 2008 4:57 pm

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by shags » Tue Dec 08, 2015 5:03 am

You only have to cut back for a couple three days. Your pup may be a little hungry but he won't starve in that time. If his stools firm up, then you increase his ration bit by bit. The whole idea is to let his system get used to that food, not to shut it down entirely.
For comparison, two of my dogs weigh about 50 pounds, and they get 2 cups once a day. My big guy is 65-66 pounds and gets 2 1/2. My 20 pound terrier is fed about 2/3 cup once a day. They get a handful of kibble or a biscuit as a treat in the morning. They are all in good weight.
I would worry less about him being uncomfortable on a little less food and more about his digestive distress. It's an easy fix and easily adjusted.

dr tim
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 121
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2011 12:50 pm
Location: marquette, michigan

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by dr tim » Tue Dec 08, 2015 1:42 pm

Have to agree with Shags here, 2 cups total a day for a 14 lb pup seems like a bit much. Your call how to proceed, of course.

polmaise
GDF Junkie
Posts: 2689
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2012 2:08 pm
Location: Scotland

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by polmaise » Tue Dec 08, 2015 2:47 pm

DeLo727 wrote:I am wondering if I'm going overboard by changing my pups food so early. I've been dealing with soft stool with the little guy since I got him. He is a French Britt and he's about four months old now. He's been sick a couple times with this or that but we've been past those humps for a little while. My vet has run a menagerie of tests on him in the last couple months and nothing has come up to indicate a good reason for soft stool. She thought based on the negative tests maybe it was possible food was passing through his system very quickly and not getting the chance to absorb enough water. While he was sick I was giving him some pumpkin to help out and it didn't seem to make much of a difference. He shows no sign of infections and no temperature concerns. His weight is progressing as expected and on target. He appears healthy and his demeanor is excellent.
I'm feeding him Diamond small breed puppy because that's what the breeder had him on and suggested I continue. Now that that food is up I made a switch to chicken puppy formula Pro Plan Focus. Has anybody else had issues like this?
Boiled egg is a great binder!..
Over here a company sells 'Chappie' which is tinned Boiled egg and cereal and costs buttons. ..When you go to the vet they prescribe a more expensive brand which is actually 'boiled egg and cereal' and costs 10 times more . But after 3 days the 'young pup' is fine so it really does work well no matter your purse.

User avatar
DeLo727
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 156
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2015 4:15 pm
Location: Wilmington, NY

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by DeLo727 » Tue Dec 08, 2015 10:37 pm

thanks guys. I appreciate the input

Montana
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 112
Joined: Sun Feb 19, 2012 10:24 am
Location: Montana

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by Montana » Fri Dec 11, 2015 9:54 am

I'm having the same problem with one of my dogs, so I understand your frustration and concern. I've done everything I can think of with my dog. The vet has checked stool samples, of course, he did bloodwork and a complete workup. We even tried a round of antibiotics for digestive problems. Nothing. I've tried 4 different dog food formulas, have tried adding probiotics, cut back on his daily ration, etc. Nothing seems to really help. His stools aren't liquid...they are just very soft and mushy....not well formed like a normal stool. When I take him out for exercise he poops every couple of minutes for the first 15 minutes or so. Other than the mushy stools he's fine... plenty of energy, his coat and overall condition is fine, etc., but the mushy stools are a problem..... very messy when I clean his kennel run and I'm afraid to have him in the house for any length of time as I'm worried he'll have an accident. Right now I have him on a lamb/rice formula dog chow. I really don't know what else to try....... He was fine when I brought him home at about 9 weeks of age. This started when he was about 6 months old.

User avatar
terrym
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 200
Joined: Sun Jun 19, 2011 9:13 pm
Location: Bradford, Ontario

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by terrym » Fri Dec 11, 2015 2:44 pm

My 5 yr old Brittany doesn't eat much more than 2 cups a day of quality grain free kibble. I tried him on PP and could never get a solid stool. Grain free solved it for him.

User avatar
DeLo727
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 156
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2015 4:15 pm
Location: Wilmington, NY

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by DeLo727 » Wed Dec 16, 2015 1:40 am

Well, It appears that the reduced portions are starting to get things under control.
But only after I found out a funny but disturbing fact. It turns out, when I am not home, my lady is still feeding him three times a day! I spoke with her about this when we cut out his lunch feeding as a baby but apparently that didn't sink in. I had a rare day off today and I thought I heard him getting into something in the kitchen so I went to take a look. There is my lady standing over him watching him eat... I asked her what she was doing and she looked at me like I was stupid "Im feeding the dog."
Anyways, now that we've got that under control his stool has gotten harder and that was just two days ago.

User avatar
PntrRookie
GDF Junkie
Posts: 1870
Joined: Wed Jun 07, 2006 2:41 pm
Location: SE Wisconsin

Re: Soft stool caused by food?

Post by PntrRookie » Wed Dec 16, 2015 7:12 am

When ALL else fails try this... Colostrum Supplement. It is a powdered bovine milk supplement.

https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.htm ... 5056941669

I had the SAME issues with a setter and was told this by a nutritionist - it works! And they LOVE it. Just sprinkle a tablespoon on food each day.

I found it at a local TSC or Farm n Fleet (obviously online too)

Post Reply