Puppy Diarrhea

I know proponents of raw diets are pretty adamant about it but if maybe it's just not something this particular dog can handle.I would go back to the food that worked before you started raw.

                                                                           Tena

 This sounds exactly like what I went through with my Aussie pup. Same chronic diarrhea and treatment. Her first stool test did not show anything but the vet ordered a more extensive and expensive test that did come back positive for Giardia. Apparently the cyst can go undetected in a regular stool test. While Metronidazole is an effective treatment, Giardia can reinfect a dog very easily, even by the dog sniffing at the stool. The cyst can live in the stool a long time so it is important to completely remove all infected stools and wipe around the dog's rear end. In the environment only extreme heat or extreme cold will kill the Giardia. My pup did 3 rounds of treatment to no avail. It was impossible to totally clean the ground where she eliminated because it was so liquified. The only relief I got was putting her on a strict rice and boiled chicken diet. When the weather eventually turned cold the problem solved itself. Now this might not be what your dog has but you may want to ask your vet about doing a different test but be prepared for the possibility of reinfection if it is the case.

Giardia tends to be horrifically smelly, not just normal dog poop yuck but I mean totally off the charts OMG smelly. If he is not exhibiting that factor it is doubtful it's the big G Bug. Plus they are stressing when dealing with Giardia. Play levels sink, energy is low and they are not generally in best coat. Since they have done fecals you can rule out parasites. Have the tested for Coxcidiosis? The dogs generally develope it around 2 months old they have very loose stools with heavy mucus , You have to keep an eye on his appetite and water intake as they can seriously dehydrate. There is a simple drug that cures it. The problem is they tend to pick it up in areas there may be birds. From Pigeons to Ducks / Swans the fecal matter is often transferred in to the Mother prior to birth. Although they can get it themselves afterwards. Not all internal parasitical protozoa respond to Metronidzoll and Panacur. Some need both at the same time others need bigger doses. Ironically these meds often create loose stools as well. But there will be no more mucus or blood if they are clearing up after a couple of days. Additionally RAW is a tough diet to balance. My dogs are allowed no Hot Carbs. It is a piece of cake to figure out when something doesn't agree with them. Like Corn. In a Raw Diet it passed , unprocessed right through their system. BUt it is more difficult to figure out the other components. Dogs with Itchy skin and feet are often intolerant of chicken or wheat, dogs with massive gas and loose stools are often intolerant of beef. In our home I can guarantee if I leave too much venison on the deer bones they are given my dogs will have very runny stools. Same with raw Lamb but they can eat the cooked stuff all day long. Sometimes it's as simply as trial and error , but it is far more simple to hire a Doggie nutritionist to sculpt the perfect diet for your dog.Our breed was once given a 7-9 year life span. Now they say 8-10 years. My line lives 12-15 years. We also have a significantly lower amount of the fatty tumors that our line is known to grow as they age....... BTW they all eat a premium Kibble with zero grains and are supplemented with all veggies and protein left overs as long as we avoid the obvious No Nos of Corn, Wheat and Soy with as little Rice of any kind as possible. We rarely have loose stools unless the pack is under deep stress. Best of Luck!

Isn't 5 months a little young for raw?  I'd go back to all regular kibble.

auburn2932

Isn't 5 months a little young for raw?  I'd go back to all regular kibble.

No, 5 months is not too young for raw.  Many breeders now wean their pups directly to raw like all wild canine mothers do.

 

Hphillips

He started having the diarrhea 2 months ago when I started switching him over to a raw diet. ... He is eating Holistic Select as well as taking Probiotics and Digestive Enzymes.

Holistic Select only makes kibble and canned food, so if I am understanding you, your dog is no longer on a raw diet - correct?  What was he eating before you tried raw?

When you fed raw, what were you feeding?  When some owners switch to raw, they include too much fat which gives the dog diarrhea, but that wouldn't continue after stopping the raw diet.

What were the results of using the Panacur?  Did the diarrhea stop while he was on it?  Was he always on it at the same time he was taking Metronidiole?

Have you tried feeding cooked chicken and rice (rice cooked to mush)?  That is not a balanced diet for the long term, but it would help to calm down his digestive tract.

Note - this is what the GreatDaneLady says about giardia.
http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/giardia_protozoa_diarrhea_vomiting_weight-loss..htm
"I can NOT emphasize enough that giardia tests rarely find this parasite, because the cyst cycle of this organism it is next to impossible to find. My vet suggests that one worm for a 7 days with Panacur (based on body weight) - mix in a little canned dog meat, ..., then worm again with Panacur in another 2 weeks (for 7 more days), and they MUST be on a probiotic at the same time.

Like someone else mentioned it is not too young. many breeders who believe strongly in RAW wean puppies straight to it never using a kibble or canned diet. WE begin our pups on it at 8-9 weeks ( they never are allowed to go home before 10 weeks. But we use frozen raw chicken pieces for teething chewies and go on to feed them one of 3 meals a day RAW. We dictate kibble choices and encourage RAW supplementation but do not insist on straight RAW for our line. We enjoy a very long lived line as we restrict Hot Carbs and encourage as much RAW additions as the families are comfortable with. But Zero Corn , Wheat or Soy and as Little Rice as possible. Some Hound Litters are fed by Mom regurgitating, we discourage that as well. IT doesn't hurt the pups but it grosses me out like you wouldn't believe! LOL.......

As soon as he started having diarrhea I switched him back to kibble - holistic Select. He was fin when i got him from the breeder and fin on that diet, except he appeard to be itchy.  I brought him to a holistic ver because he was itchy and the regular vet recommended benadryl.  I didn't like that idea for a long term solution so I figured it was worth getting another opnion. The holistic vert suggested raw and gave me some receipes. I made a few batches with some meet I bought from her and also some I bought  at the grocery store (ground sirloin, brown rice, veggie, bone meal). I ma sur ethere are many thoughts and opinions about raw, but that's not where I'm at at this point. i'd liek to get back there, but I have to resolve the diarrhea first.  He didn't take to  t he new diet so he went back on the Holistic Select. That hasn't made a difference.  He is on the metronidizole but if i take him off it for 1 day he starts up again with the diarrhea. The vet said there can't be any bacteria, etc left nto him to cause this so it must be the antiinflamatory property of the medicine that he is benefiting from. Which is why she is leaning towards a food allergy. I just finf it to be too much of a coincidence that he was fine, I change his diet to raw food (including raw chiken wings) and he quickly gets the diarrehea that won't resolve. He's on the meds now, but I'd like to try somethng else since this doesn't appear to be resolving it.

Thanks!