Home Cures for Dog Diarrhea

Dealing with dog diarrhea can be uncomfortable and messy for pet and owner alike. If your dog has diarrhea, you’re likely to want to clear the symptoms up as soon as possible. Severe diarrhea might need veterinary treatment to determine the cause and help replace any fluids your dog has lost. However, if your dog’s diarrhea is mild and it isn’t exhibiting any other symptoms, you might be able to treat it using home remedies.

Probiotics

Probiotics are bacteria that naturally appear in the gut and intestines. The most common is called Lactobacillus acidophilus and can be purchased from health food shops.Giving your dog probiotic supplements will help restore the natural balance of its digestive system, as well as fight off and protect the gut from any bad bacteria. This might help relieve its diarrhea.

Water

Water is crucial for dogs that are suffering from diarrhea. With this condition, a dog can dehydrate very quickly. Therefore, it is important that your dog has a supply of fresh water at all times. You can also add probiotic powder to the water if your dog is unwilling to eat any food. Dehydration can make your dog seriously ill so, if your dog doesn’t want to drink or the diarrhea doesn’t stop within three to four days, seek advice from a vet.

Bland Diet

Your dog might not have much of an appetite if it is suffering from diarrhea. However, it needs to eat to maintain its energy levels and replenish vital nutrients that it may have lost through its diarrhea. Bland food, like a broiled hamburger or cooked chicken and rice, can help settle your dog’s stomach. Your dog’s stomach should settle after three or four days on this diet. However, if the diarrhea continues or your dog is also vomiting, you should seek advice from a vet.

Pepto Bismol

According to online information resource Dog Health Guide, a dog’s diarrhea might be helped by Pepto Bismol. If your dog is sensitive to aspirin, you can give it bismuth subsalicylate (Kaopectate) instead. You can give your dog 0.5 to 1.5 ml of Pepto Bismol per pound of weight every 12 hours, or 0.5 to 1.5ml of bismuth subsalicylate per pound of weight every 4 hours. However, you must check with your vet before giving your dog any medicines meant for humans.

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Sometimes new pet owners are unsure what to do about their dog’s diarrhea. Acute diarrhea starts suddenly and lasts for a few days to a week. Dogs are very prone to diarrhea, and for a pet owner it is helpful to know when to call the vet and when you can safely treat his diarrhea at home.

Call Your Veterinarian if Your Dog Has Any of These Symptoms:

Fever – Fever is often a sign of bacterial or viral infection. These require antibiotics, and require a veterinarian’s care.

Pale gums – Pale or yellow gums are a sign of dehydration, which means the diarrhea is more serious, and your dog needs fluids replaced. Take him to the veterinarian immediately for treatment.

Pain – Regular diarrhea does not normally cause pain, and that is a sign that something else is going on with your dog.

Bloody diarrhea or black, tarry stools – This is a sign or symptom or internal bleeding, and it warrants an immediate trip to the veterinarian. Internal bleeding or blood in the stool is not normal, and can’t be treated at home.

Persistent vomiting – What, exactly, is the difference between persistent vomiting and regular old vomiting? Sometimes dogs eat things that they shouldn’t, and that gives them diarrhea. They may also vomit to rid their body of the foreign substance. If your dog vomits once or twice, and then it stops, that is all right, perfectly normal in fact. If the vomiting continues on, that is persistent vomiting and a trip to the veterinarian is in order.

My dog doesn’t have any of those scary symptoms, he just has diarrhea. How is he behaving? If your dog is eating, playing, and his energy levels seem normal or close to normal (but he’s not lethargic), you can probably safely treat his diarrhea at home.

He’s behaving normally with no other symptoms, how can I stop his diarrhea? Believe it or not, one of the first things you can do to help with your dog’s diarrhea is withhold food and water, thus allowing the intestinal tract to rest. Restricting food and water intake for 12-24 hours can often stop diarrhea completely in your dog. If you do not want to restrict food and water completely, you can cut his food and water in half. When you start feeding him again, feed him a bland diet. There are commercial bland diets available, or you can cook your own at home.

Bland Diet for Dogs:

One third boiled meat (low-fat meat is better, so chicken, turkey, or even boiled ground beef)
Two-thirds rice
2 tablespoons mashed boiled sweet potato or pureed pumpkin
1 tablespoon of yogurt

Things you should not do for your dog’s diarrhea:

Don’t restrict your puppy’s food or water without consulting your veterinarian, and watch carefully for signs of dehydration, especially if he is very young (under 6 months). Puppies are like human babies, and they can dehydrate quickly. Get your puppy immediate medical attention if he becomes lethargic or shows other signs of dehydration.

Don’t give your dog any medications, including over-the-counter human medications unless advised by your veterinarian to do so. You might actually make his diarrhea worse, so no medicine unless the vet says it’s all right.

Dog Diarrhea: How To Quickly Stop It At Home

You have seen this many times; soft, liquidy poop found in a pile on the rug under the kitchen table. In this article I am going to go over the common causes of dog diarrhea, and how it is diagnosed based on the clinical signs. Lastly you will see the more common and most effective at home remedies to be able to stop your dog’s diarrhea fast.

Anything that upsets the digestive tract and results in water not being absorbed produces diarrhea. Some common causes include dietary indiscretion (eating compost), parasites (Giardia or Roundworms), food allergy, infectious causes (Salmonella), inflammatory changes (Inflammatory Bowel Disease; similar to Crohn’s disease in people), and pancreatic abnormalities (Pancreatic insufficiency, common in German Shepherds).

Diarrhea in dogs is categorized as being either small bowel diarrhea ( it originates from the small intestine), or large bowel diarrhea ( it originates from the colon). Small bowel diarrhea is generally large volume, not very frequent, at times with vomiting and weight loss. The causes of small bowel diarrhea are many, from parasites to infectious agents. Large bowel diarrhea signs include frequent bowel movements, straining, with occasional mucous and blood. Most large bowel diarrhea is classified as colitis, being caused by dietary indiscretion.

Severe diarrhea that results in dehydration is a medical emergency and must be dealt with by your veterinarian. If you have a young unvaccinated dog the diarrhea may have an infectious cause; the dog must be examined by a veterinarian. If your pet is still very alert, active and drinking, then try some of the following home remedies.

Stop putting food into your pet for 24 hours (Day 1). This allows the intestines to rest and regenerate. Always have access to plenty of fresh water. After 24 hours, introduce a bland food for the next 24 hours (Day 2). Plain cooked white rice for dogs, feeding equivalent cups of rice as their normal diet. After a day of the bland food mix 1/2 regular diet and 1/2 bland diet (Day 3). By the end of Day 3, they should be back on their normal diet.

Probiotics help restore the natural bacteria in the intestine, normalizing the intestinal immune system. The most effective supplement is Lactobacillus acidophilus – give 1/4 capsule per 10 lbs of body weight twice daily. I advise probiotics for all cases of diarrhea, but purchase them from a reputable source to ensure the probiotics are active.

Pepto-Bismol is an old standby that can be effective for dogs. The dog dose is 1 ml/10 lbs of body weight given three times daily for no more than 7 days. Imodium (Loperamide) can be used with care, avoid giving it to Collie’s or Collie crosses. The dose for dogs is 0.5 mg/10 lbs three times daily (give your 40 lb dog one 2 mg tablet three times daily).

Kaopectate has a newer version that is safer for dogs. It contains attapulgite clay as the active ingredient which binds toxins, decreases the fluid in the intestinal tract and subsequent diarrhea. Dose for dogs: 0.5-1.0 ml per pound by mouth every 4-6 hours. Treatment should only be needed for 1-2 days.

There are a few herbs that I am finding helpful for dog diarrhea. Slippery Elm in the dried form can be helpful for chronic diarrhea, such as inflammatory bowel disease in dogs. The dried herb dose is 20 mg/lb of body weight twice daily. Peppermint helps with intestinal gas and cramping; give 25 mg/lb of body weight twice daily of the dried herb or 1 drop/lb of body weight twice daily of the tincture.

One homeopathic in particular stands out as being especially useful for most cases of diarrhea in dogs. It is called Arsenicum Album, and is my preferred homeopathic remedy for dogs with ‘Garbage Gut’. Dose: 1 30C tab per 20lbs every 2-4 hours.

You now should have a good understanding of what the signs and symptoms of dog diarrhea. You should be able to differentiate between large and small bowel diarrhea, and now know when to seek urgent veterinary care, or try some of my suggested home remedies. Now you have a selection of home remedies to use the next time your dog gets diarrhea, and you can now stop your dog’s diarrhea fast at home.

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Dr Andrew Jones is the author of a NEW Free Ebook, Dog Health Secrets, which gives you over 100 safe, natural and effective at home remedies to solve your dog’s health problems quickly and easily at home. He reveals what Vaccines to AVOID and what to give, The BEST food to feed, plus HOW to save money on veterinary fees. Go to: Dog Health Secrets Book