Suggestions for curing soft stools

[Yaz]

Hi Everyone;
We've been having a problem with our Saint puppy Guinnness's poops - they've been very soft and mushy from the day we got him three weeks ago. He's been tested for all sorts of parasites and the results are negative, but due to the pot belly he has which the vet says is very fluidy, his poops are consistantly mushy. I've tried switching from the premium large breed puppy food the breeder had him on to another large breed food, but it's only when he had rice mixed with ground beef for a day that his poop had a bit of form to it. The vet does believe it's food sensitivity, and I'm reluctant to shell out more money for tests that even the vet says don't guarentee an answer.
I'm wondering if anyone else has had this problem with their Saint and how they fixed it. I'm going to try another food that's holistic, containing bison and salmon - Solid Gold's wolf puppy for large breeds. If any one has had any experience with this food I'd  love some feedback.

Thanks;

Yaz

[mastiffmommy]

Hi Jaz, I have had dogs forever it seems like, and have done quite a bit of research on dog food, just for my own feeding. Since it is lots and lots of material I have, I will go though some of it later and get back to you, because I am pretty sure I read about special food for giant breeds with sensetive stomachs. One thing you can do in the meantime though, is to give a bit of peptobismuth, you know the pink thing you take yourself when you have an upset stomach, it is totaly harmless and you can either give the liquid, but they have tabs. which I find easier to use. Depending on his weight, dose it as you would a human with similar weight, it it is a food allergy it wont cure it, but until you have found a good way to feed him, it may help the loose stool. Mind you I will go though all my papers and see if I cant find the one I am pretty sure I have on the subject.

Marit

[new2saints]

Bailey also had loose stool when we got her.  We switched puppy foods, and now she has not had a problem.  My vet recommended Science Diet, but after reading alot of posts here, I am not sure this is the best food for her, either.  She will not eat it unless I mix a tablespoon of canned dog food with it.  But, I am afraid to switch food on her again, since she is not having any loose stools, now.  I would like to find something that she will eat not mixed with the canned.  I also read that mixing a bit of pure pumpking (not the pie filling kind) will help with loose stools!

new2saints

[newflvr]

My vet told me about the canned pumpkin (not pie filling!) as well.  She said it's safe and they love it.  I haven't had to use it but I do trust this vet!!!

[Carolyn]

Actually I heard the opposite of pumkin, I heard it could help as a stool eating deterent but made stools loose. I usually will add a little cooked rice if my guys have a problem & have also used peptobismal.
Carolyn

[nickerbokker]

i have not had this problem with angus yet...but in the past with other dogs, i also have used pepto and rice to harden up the stool a lil bit.  works like a charm!

[Sullivan]

I have this same problem with Seamus, he seems to have a sensitive belly.  It was really bad a while ago and we took him to the vet.  As it turns out, the antibiotics he was on caused problems with his insides.  Anyway, the vet gave us a prescription for some type of canned Eukenuba food.  We gave him 4 cans a day for about 5 days.  He loved the food, and it stiffened him right up.  Now he is on Nutro and we kind of want to change it b/c he is eating really lightly now, and we have heard it isn't the best.  Anyway, it works well with him.  His poop gets soft if he eats anything new or weird, but it doesn't last long.  The treats we have found that work the best are nutro and eukenuba.  We got these Mother Hubbard all natural treats, and they were bad news!  You may want to talk to your vet and see if you can get him some really mild food to soften things up first and then see what else you can do.  That has been my experience.  Hope you find something that works!

[Yaz]

Thanks for the input everyone. We did do the Pepto and it did work. But the day we stopped giving it his poops went back to being soft - a bit more formed but the kind you hate to pick up from long grass  . I've put Guinness on Solid Gold's Wolfcub Bison and Salmon large breed food which I think is also helping, but he had HUMONGUS poops on this food - no joke! I'm on a quest to find a dog food that gives him firm poop and I don't need a shovel to pick up with  .

[Greytmom]

Greyhounds have problems with loose stools. I have been cooking my own pumpkin (no canned pumpkin in Australia) and adding cooked rice with it. It seems to have helped my 2 greyhounds. I wish I had pepto here (don't sell it in Australia) because I would have tried that. My vet also said just cooked chicken and rice works wonders for loose stool.

Toni

[Greytmom]

  Hi Tina,

How much Imodium do you use on your dog? I can get that here in Australia and if I have a big problem I might try it on Jessica and Oz. I had Oz on Eukanuba big breed puppy and it did not seem to help him. I put him on the senior formula on a Purina product they sell here called Bonnie. It is not sold in the supermarkets but at the feed stores and comes in a working dogs formula, puppy and senior formula. The puppy is what the breeder had given Oz before we got him. I changed to the senior formula because Oz went from nearly 35 lbs to 44.5 lbs in less than a week last week. The feed store manager said that the senior is better because it is easier to digest than the other and so far his stools have firmed up, it could be a combination of that and adding mashed pumpkin and rice to his homemade dog food I make for him. Greyhounds digestive systems are so fast that everything comes out fast. I guess that is why they have such low body fat.

Toni

[Nicole]

Hi, everyone! I just thought I'd add my two cents here. I was fostering a St. with bad tummy problems and "lava-flow" poops, too. I gave her the pumpkin and it truly did help. I really recommend it.

Also, I feed all of my animals Wysong. Its a really great food, and there isn't anything "extra" in it. So, the poops seem to be nice and firm and not that big, since there isn't much waste. (No fillers or anything) You can order it online, too. Its a little bit expensive, but, I really swear by it. All three of my cats are on it, too, and their litter-box stays pretty darn clean. Check out the website: www.wysong.net

Good luck!

[MagicsMom]

To treat diareah:

Pumpkin, not pie filling.  Couple of TBs.  I recommend keeping pumpkin on hand at all times. Pumpkin strives for balance: good for constipation and anal gland issues as well.

Whole milk Yogurt or Cottage Cheese. Loaded with healthy bacteria for the GI tract.

Rice or Walnut water.  Boil rice/walnuts and use the liquid in the food, couple of TBs

Kiefer, if you want to mess with making it!

Seacure or other fermented white fish. (great for IBD/IBS too!)

[Sullivan]

OH, I'm so glad I read all that!  My question is, how much pumpkin?  On its own or mixed with his food? Also I was considering adding yogart to his food since I think he does need to toughen up his GI tract, but again, how much?  Thank you guys!