While diarrhea in dogs can be indicative of a serious condition, more often than not it can be the result of pilfering something from the garbage, or even from your table, that didn't go down so well!
In the case of a puppy diarrhea, it is often the result of overfeeding.
No matter what the cause, the mechanism of diarrhea - however uncomfortable - is usually
helpful in purging a dog's system of whatever is causing the upset.
It's inevitable that at some point your dog or puppy will have a case of the runs that
will cause him to lose interest in his food, become sluggish and often dehydrated.
Aside from these symptoms being caused by a disease, it can be brought on by culprits
you might not suspect, such as milk or potatoes.
While these two culprits are not the most common ones, there are a number of other more well-known causes to consider.
Recognizing that there are different types of diarrhea, the cause of diarrhea in dogs can be be attributable to a number of different triggers such as:
From the above list of triggers, you can probably guess that diarrhea caused by a
virus is a significantly more serious case and one that can cause your dog to
experience severe dehydration and possible damage to the tissues of his intestinal
tract.
Signs that may accompany this type of diarrhea in dogs are: fever, vomiting and abdominal
tenderness or pain - plus the stools will appear more watery. If you see any of the
signs, don't wait to seek professional advice!
If you suspect that worms may be at the heart of the loose stools, one sign is that worms will often make a dog itchy.
So if you see your dog scooting his rear accross the room,
worms may be the reason.
Since there are various kinds of worms, some of which can do
more than just cause diarrhea in dogs,
your vet will want to examine your dog's stool to
identify the type of worm present so that he
can treat it accordingly.
Tapeworms are the most common, but other invaders are
roundworms, whipworms and hookworms.
The bottom line - any diarrhea in dogs that continues into a second day without
showing signs of easing, needs to be reported to the vet. Chronic conditions
can develop from persistent diarrhea and won't get better without your vet's help.
To give your dog's digestive system a chance to recover:
Following the period of fasting, a bland diet can be started with easy-to-digest foods
such as low-fat chicken, or fish with rice, spread out over the day in small
quantities.
When normal normal eliminations return, very gradually resume a normal diet so as not to
cause a recurrence of diarrhea.
While there are no dog diarrhea cures to speak of, because it's
almost impossible to track everything you dog gets into or what may be
brewing that you can't see, here are some
guidelines for what you can do to help prevent episodes of diarrhea:
Since diarrhea in dogs is a fairly common occurrence among pets, dogs (including puppies) will
have bouts of diarrhea throughout their lifetimes for various reasons.
While there
are times when it can be serious, most of the time it will more than likely be of the
type that comes and goes quickly as a result of a dog's adventures into tainted food.
The main thing is to get on top of it right away and if it persists, or you have any
worries about it, get in touch with your vet.
Learning about the symptoms of various dog conditions and their treatment, will
help you be a much more confident dog owner, as well as recognize when your vet's help is needed.
Get yourself a copy of Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs, and you'll be way ahead of the game whenever your dog has a health issue.
In the meantime, you can take a look at this very popular remedy used successfully by many pet parents for dog diarrhea: Olewo Carrots Digestive Non-GMO Supplement, effective dog diarrhea relief.
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