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Old February 14th, 2009, 10:57 AM
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Unhappy Chase is feeling icky - Any advice?

Chase has had some pretty awful diarrhea for the past four days. He's had three accidents in the house, which he never normally does. He managed to spray a wall with it, and also dribbled on the carpet. It's really terrible :sad:

The weird thing is that he is otherwise fine. He's drinking lots, has a good appetitie, and playing like normal. No concerns at all aside from the runs.

The dogs eat the regular adult Orijen and they started a new bag of it about 5 days before he got the runs. They ate a bag of Orijen 6 Fish priot to that because the store was out of the regular. Kailey's poop has been kind of soft the past two days but nothing like what Chase is experiencing and I don't think they are related. I fasted him for a day and have been feeding him small amounts of Wellness and/or EVO canned mixed with some plain pasta I had on hand. That usually works just fine for him but not this time. I gave him a small amount of Pepto yesterday out of desperation, but I don't really like to give that to dogs.

Also when it started happening we were at hubby's parents house and I worry he may have gotten into something in their backyard....but Kailey is usually the one to get into trouble like that. She also has a notoriously sensitive tummy and Chase rarely has problems like this, so it's weird that he's sick and not her.

So what do you guys think?

- At what point should I go to the vet? He is perfectly fine in all other respects...

- I have some slippery elm on hand. Does that work for dogs as well as cats?

- Is it likely just a bug that will run it's course?

- Does anyone think it could be a new chicken or turkey sensitivity? I wonder if he's having issues after eating the fish formula for a month. Or has anyone heard of recent issues with Orijen food?

I'm going to go and get more pumpkin and rice to feed him today. Might also get a small bag of Orijen fish and see if a bit of that is okay for him.

he's feeling better by the end of the weekend....otherwise I think we'll be making a vet visit that we really can't afford. In the meantime we're watching him closely for any sign he's feeling worse or getting dehydrated.
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Old February 14th, 2009, 11:18 AM
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Slippery elm should work, but I don't have any experience with dosage. I think if it's already been 4 days of misery, and he's not better tomorrow, getting him in on Monday might be a good idea. Sometimes they kick it themselves, but if you fasted him and he didn't get better, than it might be a bacterial infection.

If the cost of the visit is a problem, do you think your vet would allow you to just bring in a stool sample, at least initially? That might be cheaper and you might be lucky and get a diagnosis just from that!
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Old February 14th, 2009, 11:51 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hazelrunpack View Post
If the cost of the visit is a problem, do you think your vet would allow you to just bring in a stool sample, at least initially? That might be cheaper and you might be lucky and get a diagnosis just from that!
That's an excellent idea hazel....as long as he continues to present with no other symptoms I don't see any reason for him to be SEEN by a vet. I don't feel like his health is at imminent risk.....but I know it could be if this keeps up. I'll call them Monday a.m. if he's still having issues and ask if we can try that.

Anyone know the slippery elm dosage for a 55 lb. dog??? The capsules I have are 400 mg.
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Old February 14th, 2009, 12:03 PM
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I usually buy it loose and give aprox. 1 tsp. with each meal (so 3 times a day). I have used gel caps and given 2 at a time, but that was years ago so I can't recall the dosage. My dogs are 49 and 58lbs respectively.

In cases of really bad diarrhea, I mix 1/2 to 1 tsp with a little bit of water and feed it every 4 hours or so. My two will just lick it off my hand, but you could mix it with a bit of yogurt or something if yours isn't too excited about eating pink paste

Slippery elm is a very safe herb though, so unless you're planning on giving cups of it for weeks in a row, you don't need to be stressed about exact dosage.
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Old February 14th, 2009, 01:03 PM
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Thanks pitgrrl!
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Chase (Friendly Resident Wigglebum) - Border Collie/Lab/Shepherd X
Kailey (Misunderstood Gentle Beauty) - GSD & foster failure #1
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Heidi - RIP my sweet baby girl
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Old February 14th, 2009, 03:23 PM
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CRAP!!! Now Kailey has the runs!
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Chase (Friendly Resident Wigglebum) - Border Collie/Lab/Shepherd X
Kailey (Misunderstood Gentle Beauty) - GSD & foster failure #1
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Heidi - RIP my sweet baby girl
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Old February 14th, 2009, 04:28 PM
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Oh no... but maybe better on one hand that they both have it, now it's more likely that they have a bug or got into something icky, rather than poor Chase being sick.

I wish I could give you some definitive advice but, i've gone through more runs in the past while with Molly than anyone would want to know about and the reasons can be sooooooooo many and soooooooooo varied. Four days is a pretty long time to have to suffer, both you and the doggies, I think a vet visit will be well worth the cash if things don't improve. Chicken, rice, pumpkin and yogurt diet are worth trying out for a bit. My vet said no problem giving dogs pepto... but it doesn't always do much and the dose for dogs is much higher than humans (ack... I can't find my notes on how much to give, maybe you could just call the vet and ask that, usually they don't mind giving that kinda info to regular customers). Slippery elm is good, even if it doesn't help the runs it will make their tummies feel better.
... and... make sure they keep drinking... if they aren't or start vomiting, get to the vet real soon.
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Old February 14th, 2009, 05:22 PM
Diamondsmum Diamondsmum is offline
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Hmmm the sounds like what Ford Girl's Dazy got recently.

I think Dazy was on antibiotics (bacteria infection I believe)
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Old February 14th, 2009, 05:49 PM
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Occasionally two dogs housed closely together will get sympathy symptoms for one another. Of course, this may not be the case, but pay close attention to the second dog's diarrhea (I know, ick...) and compare it with the first.

Also, a one day fast is really not a fast (my guys only get fed once a day, so technically, they're fasted every day!) and I would recommend a two or three day fast for liquid diarrhea. I would also be giving slippery elm, some yogurt (just a wee bit) and personally I prefer Immodium to pepto (less additives and the dosage is less - a half human dose for a dog that size should be sufficient).

In addition, when you do re-introduce food don't do canned food. Boiled chicken and overcooked rice, barley or my favourite-oatmeal. Small, small meals frequently throughout the day, and add a wee bit of pumpkin and a small slice of banana.

Keep a VERY close eye on his stool for any signs of blood - that's a vet trip ASAP. If the diarrhea continues, it's possible they've contracted a bacteria or a parasite and both should be tested. If they've been in to the vets within the last 6-10 months and you have a fairly good relationship it shouldn't be a problem to just do a fecal. If you DO end up having to go to the vet and money is a concern, PM me and I'll point you in the right direction.

Keep us posted!
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Old February 14th, 2009, 05:57 PM
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Oh, no! Kailey, too? Welcome to hazel's world...

It could be something they're picking up in the yard. Have you recently had a thaw there, Chase_Mom?

Imodium works great, but you have to be careful--there are certain types of bacterial infections that you don't want to use Imodium for. It's better to have the bacteria flowing out than to trap them in the gut. So check with a vet first before starting them on it. I think the one that we've been warned about in the past is campyllobactor...but to be truthful, we've had so much stuff lately that's it's hard to remember...
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