What to do for a dog With Diarrhea
Diarrhea is quite a common occurrence in dogs and is usually indicative of something being not quite right in the intestines. It can be quite unpleasant, not just for the dog but for the owner who may have a bit of extra cleaning up to do.
First – Find Out Why Your dog has Diarrhea
There are a lot of causes for Diarrhea, some serious, others not so serious. Following is a list of some of the most frequent causes of diarrhea in a dog.
1. Dogs can be a bit silly about what they eat sometimes and can often be found quaffing down some spoiled food, or a bit of dead road kill they may have discovered while you are exercising them. This sort of intake will upset even the hardiest of stomachs, and will usually result in the dog vomiting and experiencing a bout of diarrhea as the body attempts to discharge the contaminated food stuffs.
2. Changing a dogs diet can cause upset in the stomach while the dog’s digestive system re-adjusts. To avoid this nastiness try introducing the new diet gradually by changing the ratio of new food to old food in the bowl over a period of time.
3. Diarrhea may be evidence of worms, which is more prevalent in young pups. Making sure your dog is regularly treated with an effective wormer should prevent this from happening. Your vet is in the best position to give you recommendations on your particular breed and age of dog.
4. Your pet may be distressed or anxious. Stress is often caused by moving house or you could have changed to a job which may take you away from him more often.
5. A food allergy may be the possible cause of the diarrhea. This is the more likely cause if you also notice your dog scratching their skin and ears more often. Unfortunately a food allergy can be hard to pinpoint and will require careful monitoring and discipline from the owner for a successful outcome.
6. Viral Infection. The Parvovirous is a well known and dreaded virus that can cause extreme and bloody diarrhea in a dog. Other symptoms such as vomiting and depression are another symptom of an infection. Parvovirus can kill a dog but there are also a number of other viruses that are not as severe yet will still cause diarrhea and make your dog very sick.
What to do for a dog With Diarrhea
If your dog is obviously quite sick and shows little interest in the world around him then take him to your vet for examination. If your dog’s condition is caused by something like Parvovirus, they will respond better to early treatments.
Likewise if there is any visible blood in the stool then treatment needs to be undertaken early rather than later.
Some dogs can have diarrhea yet still maintain a visage of health and vitality otherwise. It is still a good idea to monitor your pet over a 24 hour period to see if the condition worsens or the stool starts to harden up.
To give your dog’s intestine time to settle down it is a wise idea to skip their next meal. Gradually re-introduce them to food with 3 or 4 bland meals given to them over the course of a day.
Dehydration is also a danger of diarrhea so encourage your pet to drink plenty of water. You may have to manually re-hydrate the dog if needs be.
One ideal recipe is lean chicken mixed with boiled rice. Treat them for worms as well and if the diarrhea persists for longer than 24 hours then it may be time to visit the vet.
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