Pomeranian <3:
Either way I have no idea how that much poop comes out of a 9lbs dog....
I sympathize - I've been there. And we still struggle occasionally.
Both my dogs are between 8 and 9 lbs. One of them has a tendency to voluminous stools. Took me ages to figure out what's causing this.
My
Nutritionist says my dog should be pooping once and maybe twice a day
(3 stool pieces each) with hard/non-foul smelling stool.
I would agree that that sounds like a good average/ideal.
Ha... okay well she poops 2-3 times a day... a LOT each time...
Huge sausages???
I
just changed her diet so I'm like okay just wait it out....
I'm sorry, I've only been here a short time and don't know which food you have been or are feeding?
but gosh
this stuff is nasty!!! And WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?!?! I only feed her
1 cup or less of food each day!!
If the stools are foul-smelling then I would be really concerned. This can point to either a food ingredient really not agreeing with her (like a type of grain, for example); or even some health issue. Also, the large volume is a concern, because it could indicate that she's actually not absorbing the nutrients very well.
As others said: 1 cup sounds like quite a lot (assuming your dog is "moderately" active and not involved in something like agility etc.) - esp. if you're feeding a high-quality food that is nutrient-dense. However, presumably your dog is not overweight? Metabolism is a very individual thing, so she may possibly need that much.
I always look at the calories first. There is wide variation among the dry foods. I'm just looking at the info for California Natural: 511 calories per cup (!). That's very high. Some dry foods only have 330 cal/cup. So that would be the first thing to check.
The general guideline (as per NRC) for dogs of 8-10lbs. weight is around 350 cals. per day for a moderately active dog; less for a couch potato. My dogs actually need less (around 250-300). Some small dogs need more. But 350 is a pretty good and generous target IMHO.
The next thing I would look at is the distribution of protein and carbs and fat in the food. My super-pooper poodle does not handle carbs very efficiently - they simply transform into very bulky stools. Plus grains make his poop really smelly - that unpleasant fecal smell. Whereas on potato-based foods the smell is non-existent. So I would look at amount of carb and type of carb to see whether that is a factor in the quality of the stools.
OTOH, some dogs do not handle a high-protein food easily, and that too can result in unpleasant smelly stools. Once you figure out what is the element that is causing the problem (High carbs? Grain carbs? High protein? Fiber type?) you should be able to find a food that your dog absorbs well and the end waste product is small and smells inoffensive.
The solution for my poopy boy turned out to be finding the ideal ratio between protein and carb for him, plus the right amount and type of fiber. The fiber really helps the gut to process the food much more effectively. Some dogs do well with beet pulp, some with flax, some with tomato pomace ...
Additionally, I give my boy a large helping of a high-strength probiotic every night. That cut the size of his morning poop virtually into half (!). Plus cleaned up any smelliness.
Britta and the fussy toy poodles
