Why is my dog having loose stool and straining to poop on walks?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Australian Shepherd | Female | spayed | 2 years old | 40 lbs
My dog is having loose poops, and when we go out for a walk attempts to poop multiple times with not a lot of success. She still does her morning poop and is pooping, but she tries so many times when we are outside.
2 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on June 21st, 2023
It sounds like Sheila may be suffering some GI distress. If this has been ongoing for a while, it would be best to bring her into your vet for a full exam to rule out issues such as parasites, constipation, GI inflammation, food allergies, or issues such as blocked anal glands, etc. Until you can get to the vet, you can try offering a bland diet of boiled rice and chicken to help settle her stomach, but it is best to bring her into your vet if her symptoms continue.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
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Published on August 4th, 2018
This is likely due to the excitement of the walk. As long as she is behaving normally and defecates normally at all other times, there is likely no cause for concern. Keep an eye on her though. If it persists, submit a stool sample to your veterinarian and consider having Dove examined.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Health & Wellbeing
My GSD is groaning while trying to defecate. Any stool that comes out is loose.
For severe constipation, your pet should be seen by a vet. Loose stool may be the only thing that is capable of getting around the hard stool built up. Hard stool building up in the colon stretches it out of shape, and it also causes stretching of the muscles around the anus, causing perianal hernias that trap the collected feces, effectively making a plug. Your pet may need more than one enema and even manual extraction of the feces in order to relieve this episode. To help avoid this in the future, you can add Miralax to the food. Miralax is a very gentle, easy to give treatment for constipation, available over the counter at any pharmacy. The dose of Miralax is 1 tsp per 50 lbs mixed in with food once a day. You can also add a tablespoon of vegetable or olive oil to his food once daily, or add a couple of teaspoons of canned pumpkin (not pie filling) to his food daily.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My 8 year old puggle had pretty bad diarrhea a few days ago. I switched her to a bland diet on Wednesday evening (rice and ground beef) and she is no longer having to go as frequently and the poop is way more solid. However it is still not as hard as
Hello and welcome to Boop by Petco. Diarrhea resolving can take a few days, so it is normal that it isn't as solid as normal. The straining however isn't normal. I would recommend checking to make sure around her anus looks ok (no bleeding or wounds), and if you can feel under her anus at the 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock positions, does it feel like hard marbles are under the skin. If this is the case she could have full anal glands which can be making her uncomfortable in her back end. This would require a vet visit to empty them before they burst. Otherwise, as long as she is eating/playing, I would just monitor her to see if the behaviour continues. If she is still straining tomorrow I would take Riley to the vet to make sure she isn't constipated, but it might just be a one-off episode. If her next poop is normal without straining then I wouldn't worry about it. Best of luck with Riley!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dog defecated in the house a day and a half ago. Afterwards he has tried to go, but can never get much out. The stools are mostly liquid and there isn't enough to pick up. He often wakes me up to go out, but doesn't pass anything. He is eating som
Poor guy. It sounds like your pet Shiro has a bout of colitis (inflammation of the colon) which can often be caused by intestinal parasites. I would highly recommend having him seen by your vet soon for a fecal exam and medications to help resolve his colitis. Only antibiotics can help resolve this in most cases, which has to be prescribed by your vet. Until you can get him seen you can start a probiotic with him, such as Culturelle over the counter or Fortiflora. This can help with some of the inflammation by restoring the good intestinal flora. I hope that your furry friend Shiro feels better soon! Best of luck and take care.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My 2 year old bloodhound has diarrhea and is having a hard time going #2. She yelps when she strains to use the bathroom.. I just don't know what to do
Poor Gigi! This is really common with diarrhea. I would try to feed her a little plain boiled chicken and rice to see if this settles her tummy. If she is continuing to strain and have diarrhea, I would have your vet take a look at her. Your vet will likely want to check a fecal and possibly start her on some medicine to help the diarrhea and decrease the urgency to go to the bathroom. I Hope this helps.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
Good evening. My dog has NOT had a normal bowl movement for two days. He has NEVER had ANY problems. He will strain and a small bit of diarrhea will come out. He eats w/o any issue. The amount that comes out is no where near the amount he intake
Hi ! The symptoms you describe indicate some kind of colitis, or inflammation of the the colon. However if your dog has been eating properly, and he has passed a small amount of feaces compared to what he has been eating, I would be worried that there is something else possibly wrong like an obstruction or partial obstruction in his Gastro-Intestinal tract. Could he have eaten something that could have caused this ? Keeping this in mind, I would recommend that you have him checked over. Your vet might decide to check a feacal sample or do some imaging just to exclude the possibility of an obstruction. Please let us know if there is anything else we can help you with ! Thank you for using Boop by Petco !
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Food & Nutrition
I found her xmas 2015 Since been put on diet and mild heart meds Seems cinstipatwd yet stools too soft Tries frequently. Small poops Always hungry 3 days running Washing her bum daiky. Seems raw PLEASE HELP
I’m sorry to hear Pompom isn’t feeling well. If she is straining to poop but her stools are soft, it may be that she’s got some colitis (inflammation in her colon). Another concern would be a mass or tumor in her colon. I would recommend that you have your vet examine her. They may recommend a fecal exam, possibly some blood work or X-rays. An abdominal ultrasound (sonogram of the belly) may also help determine what’s going on. Even if you aren’t financially able to approve diagnostics, your vet will probably be able to prescribe some medication to help make her feel better. As far as something soothing for the skin on her bum, I would recommend a wound healing ointment made for dogs, you can likely find at PetCo or another pet store. Another option would be A and D ointment —the brown ointment, NOT the cream as it contains zinc oxide. . DO NOT USE A PRODUCT CONTAINING ZINC OXIDE (often in diaper rash creams). Again, my best recommendation would be to get her in to your vet as s
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My 1 year old dog has had loose stool and now constipation for a week he also has gas but he is acting completely normal eating and drinking normal with high energy what could be wrong with him?
Based on your description, Wade may have a condition called colitis. This is an inflammation in the large intestine most often caused by a change in diet, eating something they are not used to or a stressful event. It can be secondary to many other things. It often results in diarrhea/loose stools and straining to defecate. If he's acting normal otherwise, you can start by withholding food for 12-24 hours, then introducing a bland diet of plain boiled chicken and white rice. You can also add some canned pumpkin puree as the fiber can help to firm up the stools. As long as the stools normalize, you can then start mixing in his regular dog food. If the diarrhea continues despite these things, I would recommend taking him to a veterinarian for an exam. They will most likely recommend a fecal exam to look for parasites and sometimes when colitis doesn't resolve on it's own, they are treated with an antibiotic.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My 7 year old female mastiff mix has been having trouble pooping (only a small amount in the last 20 hours). She has tried many times. She has not been able to keep water down since last night either. She still wants to eat a little food and of cours
It sounds like Ellie could have diarrhea and that's why she's straining. She could also be constipated but it's not common in dogs. Since she's also vomiting I recommend taking Ellie to the vet to find the cause. They can check for constipation or diarrhea and treat the cause. Good luck and kisses to Ellie!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dogs stool is a light brown to medium brown, is he okay? It used to be darker and I haven't changed foods, but I do give him more carrots. He also seems to take multiple trips outside to poo, eventually he does go. Could I give him pumpkin to help
Those could be initial signs of a gastrointestinal upset, possibly the first signs of diarrhoea. As a first approach I would recommend to start feeding with a bland diet based on boiled chicken and rice in small portion every 6 hours for the following 48hours. Then gradually reintroduce the normal diet over 5 days. I would definitively recommend a veterinary check up if the signs persist or you notice diarrhoea, vomiting, lethargy or inappetence. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dog ...she is a Pitbull breed Past two days she is suffering from loose stools what what I do ? Is it a serious problem?
Common causes of diarrhea in dogs includes dietary intolerance or indiscretion, food allergy, intestinal parasites, GI blockage, gastroenteritis, bacterial or viral infection, IBD, pancreatitis, among others. You can try a bland diet of cooked white rice and boiled chicken, a dewormer, and adding probiotics. If Ainjuu develops vomiting or lethargy, you should call your vet.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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