Senior dog has watery diarrhea on meds. Should I be worried?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Female | spayed | 11 years and 6 months old | 90 lbs
Summe my senior 11 yr old lab has been coughing and now watery diarrhea since last night. She is on antibiotics for bacteria and steroids to make her lumps smaller and on lasix to take out fluids in her lungs. Now vet said to give her probiotics and metrodinazole. For her diarrhea which is urgently alarming me. What do I do?
2 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on October 15th, 2017
It is hard to say if the diarrhea is related to Summer’s respiratory issues or not. If it was parasites causing the problem, they certainly could be related. Also, sometimes certain antibiotics can upset the gut flora (the normal bacteria in the gut) and can cause diarrhea. Regardless of the cause of the diarrhea, starting Summer on metronidazole and a probiotic is a good idea. This is the typical treatment for diarrhea. I can understand that having your dog on two different antibiotics can be concerning but sometimes it is necessary. Metronidazole is great for diarrhea because it specifically targets the type of bacteria that overgrows causing the diarrhea. At this point I would recommend continuing the current therapy your vet prescribed. The diarrhea should start to resolve in 3-5 days. If this is not the case you may want to have a recheck at your vet. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
-
Published on January 10th, 2020
I would still give him his pills, but give him just enough food to give the pills-- use something bland such as white bread to hide the pills in. I cannot directly tell you to give the metronidazole, as I am not the dr who prescribed it, and a valid "veterinarian-client-patient" relationship is needed in order for me to direct you regarding medications. Having said that, you can call the vet who prescribed it previously and run it by them; I suspect they may suggest you go ahead and start the metronidazole while fasting if there's been some bloody diarrhea. Again, you can give it with a little bland food. After 24 hours, when you start feeding him again, feed a bland diet such as boiled chicken and white rice for a few days. If he's not improving in 2-3 days or if any additional symptoms develop (vomiting, lethargy, etc) please take him to a vet if at all possible. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
We recently took my puppy to the emergency room for diarrhea. Everything came out clear & they prescribed metronidazole for 10 days. After 10 days her wet stool came back. Our vet told us to finish the meds & prescribed new food because she thinks it
Hi! Beau's been having loose stool for 3 weeks and is on metronidazole for a week already but diarrhea's worsen. Could that be the side effect of the med-- how would I know if the med is working? He's also on 2.5mg of prednisolone every other day for
My labrador has very watery stools with a week.my vet says its a bug and she is on second course of antibiotics.she in great form eating drinkinking playing.she poos at usual times but it runny.i thought antibioyicd should b working by noe
My dog had diarrhea for three days last week, he tested negative for parasites. Was put on antibiotics and bland diet. Has extremely soft stool. What else could this be? How can I get his stool back to normal?
My senior Boston Terrier had diarrhea tonight at 5 pm, he ate his food tonight but I could feel him shivering in bed at 1:50 am, took him out and he still has diarrhea, he's drinking water now. He appetite was off last week which is not like him so
Dog started vomiting and diarrhea. Inj. of Cerenia 20 ml resolved vomiting but now diarrhea continuing - no solids just wet diarrhea - light brown but slightly darker now - but no obvious blood. Not eaten 30 hours. Drinks normal, no excessive. Wa
15 year old mix breed, has had diarrhea with some bloody stool for 2 days, he usually takes gabapentin and galiprant for spinal arthritis. He also has metrodinozole from a previous similar situation. Should he fast for a full day and skip the meds or
My puppy is just getting off metronidazole after 10 days for diarrhea. Her stool this morning was soft. she was on the medicine she only pooped a total of 3 times it was solid. I asked earlier & I was told to see my vet again because it could be som
My dog is on Famotidine, Sucralfate and Metronidazole to help treat bloody poop he had from Rimadyl. He developed diarrhea this morning after being on the new set of medicine for 36 hours. Is this a side effect of the new medicine and is there anythi
Dehydration, diarrhea. No worms found, bacteria infection. Metronidazole prescribed, broad spectrum wormer.. Dog won't eat dry food wetted down but does eat canned. Dr said this drug can cause diarrhea but he already had it so you may not see improve
Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.
