My dog's yellow diarrhea won't stop. When should I see a vet?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

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  Answered By Dr. Leigh, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on April 3rd, 2017

  She could have an infection, parasite, inflammatory bowel disease, a malabsorption problem, etc. If you can't take her to the vet you could feed her a bland diet, like chicken and white rice, and add a probiotic to her diet and see if that helps. If not, she really needs to be examined by a vet to determine the exact cause and then prescribe medications to help treat the diarrhea.

  

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  Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on September 16th, 2017

  Hello there and thank you for your post! It is possible that Jess is having GI side effects from medication. I would suggest feeding Jess a bland diet as outlined below. If no improvement after 2-3 days, I would bring Jess back to her veterinarian for further treatment. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet.Options 1. Prescription diet (canned or dry) 2. 2 parts cooked rice + 1 part BOILED skinless chicken or hamburger (skim the grease off) 3. 2 parts cooked rice + 1 part cottage cheese The diet should be fed in reduced quantities per feeding with more frequent feedings. After the dog has had normal stools without vomiting for 3 days, the dog can slowly be switched back to his normal DOG FOOD diet over a period of 3 days. Feed sufficient amount to maintain normal body weight. BODY WEIGHT APPROXIMATELY DAILY FEEDING 5 lbs ½ c 10 lbs ¾ c 20 lbs 1 1/3 c 40 lbs 2 1/3 c 60 lbs 3 c 80 lbs 3 ¾ c 100 lbs 4 1/3 c I hope this helps! Please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.

  

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  Answered By Rodrigo Roca, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on August 15th, 2017

  Hello, sorry to hear about Hope. She may require medications to control her diarrhea since the bland diet is not doing much to improve her stools. Medications may include dewormers, antibiotics, and probiotics in conjunction with continuing the bland diet. If the diarrhea does not improve even with those, then Hope may need further diagnostics to rule out a metabolic disease as the primary cause of the diarrhea. I would say that if Hope continues to have the same amount of diarrhea tomorrow, then she should be evaluated by her veterinarian immediately. In the meantime, continue giving her the bland diet only and make sure she has access to plenty of water at all times. Hope this helps.

  

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