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Puppy has diarrhea after deworming. Should I be concerned or fast?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Hi. I have a 6 week old puppy. He was dewormed on thursday. He has been having diarrhea. Besides that there are no other symptoms. Still very energetic. Still eating. Its not dark in color and no blood presented. Should i be concerned? Should i withhold food for 24hrs and give him some white rice tomorrow to help his stomach settle?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on January 21st, 2020

Poor pup! The diarrhea could be due to many conditions including eating something he shouldn’t have, bacterial over growth, parasites, the medication or even organ disease. If the diarrhea has continued beyond 24 hours, I recommend to have him examined by the veterinarian. With continued diarrhea, there are often bacterial shifts in the gut that will make matters worse regardless of the initial cause. Make sure to bring in a sample of fresh stool. The doctor will check him for parasites and bacterial over growth. Puppies can have trouble regulating their blood sugar so they should not be fasted very long. In general, I don't recommend to fast puppies at all. Some times a bland diet can help and then a slow, gradual introduction to the normal food can be done. A bland diet can consist of 25% boiled white meat chicken and 75% boiled white rice. This should all be plain. again though, because the diarrhea has lasted almost 5 days, with the bacterial shifts, I recommend to have him examined by the veterinarian. I hope your pup starts feeling better quickly! Please feel free to post any additional questions.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 8th, 2017

    If the puppy has a lot of intestinal worms, it can cause continuing diarrhea. It could also be caused by a GI illness. I can give you a home remedy to try to see if that helps his diarrhea. Withhold food for 12-24 hours, then feed a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days. Then slowly add back in his normal diet. If the diarrhea continues on the bland diet, then I would have him seen by a vet. He will need another deworming treatment two weeks after the first to kill all the worms.

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 1st, 2017

    You can see some diarrhea after a deworming treatment, and it's typically caused by the dead worms moving through his intestinal system. It could also be due to the sudden change in diet, as sudden changes in diet leads to GI upset. It's good that he is active, eating, and drinking, but you can try a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days then slowly add back in Remi's normal diet to see if that helps with the diarrhea.

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