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My puppy had diarrhea, now constipated, lethargic, not drinking. What to do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Male | unneutered | 2 months and 20 days old | 15 lbs

Benzo has had diarrhea for two days now with NO blood. I have taken away his puppy food, and made him rice and chicken, which he has happily eaten. However now he is not drinking any water (he usually drinks a lot of water), and when he tried to poop right now, he was very constipated, and had a hair stuck in one of his poops. He is usually very active, but for the past two days has been sleeping more, and is really only active when we go outside. What could be going on with my puppy?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Megan, DVM, CVA

Veterinarian

Published on December 10th, 2017

Poor Benzo! Sometimes after they have diarrhea it takes a little while to build up a full bowel movement so he could be straining simply because he has the urgency to go but there isn’t much there. On the other hand, with the hair he could be constipated. Either way fiber will be beneficial. You can give him 1/4 teaspoon of canned pumpkin twice a day to help balance his GI tract. If the chicken and rice, has any chicken broth or water in it then that could be why he is having decrease water consumption. If not, you could certainly add some water to his meal to help him drink more water. I am concerned that he is more lethargic. Since he is so small, I would have your vet take a look at him to assess his hydration and make sure he doesn’t have any parasites or anything more serious going on like parvo. Your vet will be able to give him some fluids if needed and prescribe his some medicine to help make him feel better. I hope this helps and he feels better really soon.

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    I'm sorry that Benzo isn't doing well at the moment! It is normal for a dog to appear constipation after having a bout of diarrhea. It's not that he's constipated, it's simply that he has passed all the feces and doesn't have anything else to pass at the moment. It could also be that he is suffering from a foreign body which would lead him to not pass feces and become lethargic. It's also concerning that he is not drinking any water, which will lead to dehydration. Because I can't see him in person to say for sure what is going on with him, the best thing for him is to have him seen by a vet first thing in the morning. I would rush him into an ER vet tonight if he starts vomiting, becomes very lethargic, and/or you see any blood in his feces. I hope this helps and he feels better soon!

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