10 month old Doberman with daily diarrhea - Doberman Forum : Doberman Breed Dog Forums

BrunoBoy · 01-12-2012, 03:18 PM

Hey everyone! New member here. I've had my Doberman since he was 7 weeks old. He's had the runs pretty much every day and has always had horrible gas since the day I brought him home. First the vets thought he had
Parvo when he went in for his first shots and I told them of his explosive diarrhea. Thank god it wasn't parvo but they suggested a fecal test. We did 3 of them a few weeks apart and they found nothing. The last one being the most comprehensive fecal test they could do. The Diarrhea continued and I finally went to a specialist a few weeks later. They did 2 additional fecal tests @ about $300 each and found nothing at all. He's basically had all tests done and the next step was to sedate him and do an endoscopy and colonoscopy. I have not done this yet because I thought it could be his food.

I originally started him on great life no grain buffalo and then put him on chicken and rice at the specialists suggestion. He was on that for over a month and still had horrible diarrhea. I decided to try a different great life and switched to chicken no grain and still the same issues. He's now on blue buffalo chicken and brown rice but just started that about 2days ago.

I have no idea what to do at this point. I can keep switching his food but this is a nightmare! Can you imagine house training a puppy with explosive diarrhea? Luckily he's potty trained now but this issue still needs to be addressed. I'm hoping maybe some of you have Been down the same road and can suggest some alternate methods/foods I should try. He's currently 10 months and 77 pounds and still steadily gaining weight but I'd love to see some solid poops out of this guy. I have 2 other dogs as well so I'd prefer to feed them all the same thing. The other two are mutts and seemingly bulletproof! All my purebred dogs have had issue after issue it's absolutely ludicrous at this point! Thanks for your time any advice/input is greatly appreciated.

LindaH · 01-12-2012, 03:41 PM

You know I would give this food a try because of it's different and limited ingredients. I feed the regular Instinct and am very satisfied with it. I have recommended regular Instinct several times on this forum and have had a couple members get back with me to tell me it worked for their dog.

If the limited ingredient one works, you might try moving up to a regular Instinct food. Start out with a small bag to see it it will work for you.

Do you gradually introduce new foods to your dog, using the 1/4 new food to 3/4 old for three days, then 1/2 new to 1/2 old for three days and finally 3/4 new food to 1/4 old before switching totally over???

ironwoodbostons_81 · 01-12-2012, 03:47 PM

I took classes on pet nutrition and I am also a licensed Vet Tech. Try this:

I know you are going grain free which is good. Try a dog food that has pumpkin in it. Try Natures Recipe grain free chicken, sweet potato and pumpkin. I usually don't recommend a specific dog food, but in this case I will. It's decent food and it is a bit pricey, but WAY worth the money. The pumpkin has a lot of fiber. Also, buy a can of pureed pumpkin at the market and add a tablespoon 2 times a day until he firms up. He will firm up within 2 days.
Also, transition the food little by little and add pumpkin to his food or just give it to him straight off the spoon while you are transitioning to the new food as well.
Best of luck! Feel free to E-Mail me if you need anymore info.

Cynthia

alwayshadpets · 01-12-2012, 04:10 PM

Tamora had issues with what I would call cow piles as a puppy. took me until she was older to fine a food that agreed. First thing I had to do was find a protein she never had, (main ingredient _I used lamb) a starch (I used sweet potato) and a small amount of veg. ((i used peas) I cooked at first and this was all she got for 6 weeks, no supplements, etc. Treats could be apple, carrots, a special cookie treat (from the vets with basicly no additives)

She had the best poop ever and very small.

I than after around 3 months tried a pre-made raw (Natures Variety) I use lamb, but venison also works..
A lot of any chicken does not work for her at all.

I really think she has problems with the additives that are put in kibble.
She is now 5 and we have no problems like we did in her early pup years. Best poop you ever saw and small.

No smell and no gas either.

LindaH · 01-12-2012, 07:56 PM

Well, I see I forgot to put the link in. Google Natures Variety Instinct and look up the Limited Ingredient Turkey at the NVI site. Hope this helps. NVI is one of the few foods my allergy boy can eat.

mmctaq · 01-12-2012, 08:49 PM

In your estimation, how is your pup's weight and body condition? Could you maybe post a couple of photos of him standing... one from the side, on from above?

Not saying that this will apply to your dog, but some years ago a friend of mine was about ready to euthanize a young GSD bitch for whom proper food could not be found. Hailey was a rack of bones, would eat her food and then go lie in her bed and wait for the pain, explosive liquid diarrhea multiple times every night. As a last-ditch thing, my friend agreed to try her on raw food. What she has found is that it is not a certain grain or a certain componant, it is ANY starchy carbohydrate. There is obviously something wrong with the dog, but it is several years later now and she is healthy as long as she doesn't get even a tiny bit of what she shouldn't.

I would like to see photos, if you can...

Fraulein · 01-12-2012, 10:39 PM

Hello! Great information on this thread. I was also thinking pumpkin as a way to stabilize the stool until you figure out what is the cause of this problem. That is what I use for my dogs when they start to have soft stool. Normally after I start to give them new kind of treats in too big a quantity, like dry liver...

You can get pumpkin in can in the pie filling and dessert section of your grocery store. Make sure you take the natural one and not the sweetened one.

As for the cause of the diarrhea, I also concur about some reaction with the kind of food you been using. It could also be the water. It happened to my dogs once when I was visiting a family member. I brought my dogs with me. I live in the countryside and I have a well for my water, so there are no chlorine in my water. When I arrived to my cousin's house, I gave my dogs water from the tap without thinking much about it. A couple of hours later, my dogs had explosive diarhea...what a mess. The cousin was not very please either....

Since then I always bring water from my place when I visit somewhere. Maybe it is that. You could try to give your dog bottled water, or fill out a big jar with tap water, leave the lid off and keep the jar on the shelf for a couple of days. This is normally enough for the chlorine to evaporate from the water.

Good luck. I hope you find what is causing your dog to suffer like that.

BrunoBoy · 01-13-2012, 12:04 AM

Here is Bruno everybody. Thanks so much for the input, I'll reply in about an hour because I have to run.I can't believe it took me so long to figure out how to post these damn things!! LOL sorry for the large size.
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ddvv · 01-13-2012, 09:18 AM

I had to "hose" Brie's poop until I put her on Innova adult then I could finally "pick it up".

**MeadowCat** · 01-13-2012, 10:12 AM

Has your vet considered treating for giardia even though stool screenings are clear? Giardia can be notoriously hard to find on screenings and yet still be present. Treatment is usually Panacur and Metro.

Shelly · 01-13-2012, 10:30 AM

try adding a probiotic. I swear by Omega Alpha's "probiotic 8"

butcherfour · 01-13-2012, 11:00 AM

I had almost an exact replica of your experience for my 3yo's first 1 1/2 years. Countless vet visits and fecals, many different foods from expensive to super-cheap and still multiple nasty diarrhea piles per day. My solution was the one no one really wants to hear = RAW. It's a pain in the ass but it was the solution and has remained the solution for the past year and a half.

I have come to the conclusion that Dobermans (and Boxers, Danes, and a few other breeds) just have extremely sensitive digestive systems and cannot handle much. Not like my Lab who can eat anything from Walmart brand kibble to cat poop and have not one problem, however, she eats RAW too.

Good Luck on your search. I hope you find a food that works. Diarrhea sucks.

Hooligan · 01-13-2012, 12:26 PM

The common ingredient in all the foods you listed is chicken — and some dogs can be sensitive to chicken. Why not try a limited-ingredient, grain-free food that includes no chicken and see if this improves things? If it does, you can gradually start introducing more variety to his diet as he gets older and his digestive tract settles down.

mmctaq · 01-13-2012, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hooligan

The common ingredient in all the foods you listed is chicken

First thing I thought to check, as well. The Great Life grainless buffalo food does not contain chicken.

Dave_L · 01-13-2012, 12:54 PM

The curly tail is so cute.

I had brief issues with my puppy on and off for a little bit with diarrhea. Turns out it was from the treats I was giving her. As soon as I stopped with the treats her poop became hard again.

After a while of that I tried giving her some peanut butter....bad idea.

Then after a while I tried giving her a small piece of cheese...bad idea.

I'm afraid to give her anything that's not her regular food!

reddobes · 01-13-2012, 01:08 PM

The other thing I would consider is a GI panel to Texas A&M (to rule out EPI, SIBO, cobalamin deficiency).

LindaH · 01-13-2012, 01:20 PM

He is a cute boy and such a typical dober boy expression of "whatcha gonna do now", pic 3. He looks in decent weight to me.

I see he is all natural, I just love the all natural dobes.

Okay, I can now give you the link I meant to include yesterday. This food has very limited ingredients and there is just not much to react to, if is problem is a sensitivity or allergy.

Nature's Variety Instinct: Limited Ingredient Diet: Turkey Meal Formula for dogs | Nature's Variety

One single protein and one hypoallergenic starch
For sensitive stomachs caused by food allergies
Exclusive green tea antioxidant coating for great taste and nutrition
Grain-free, gluten-free, allergy formula
Perfect kibble size for small to large dogs
Complete and balanced for all life stages and all breeds

Ingredients

Turkey Meal, Tapioca, Canola Oil, Peas, Natural Flavor, Montmorillonite Clay, Coconut Oil, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid, Biotin, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Carotene, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Sea Salt, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide), Dried Green Tea, Mixed Tocopherols with Citric Acid (a natural preservative), Rosemary Extract. Visit the Ingredient Glossary to learn about each ingredient. http://www.naturesvariety.com/ingredients/list

BrunoBoy · 01-20-2012, 03:22 AM

Thank you all so much for your input. Unfortunately my Internet stopped working and it took my ISP this whole time to figure out what was going on.

Bruno has been doing ok. I ended up switching his food to blue buffalo chicken and rice formula. It seems to have helped. He doesn't have gas anymore but still has "mudpie" poops. The poop is also a different color. More brown now as opposed to more green. I plan on switching foods 2 months at a a time until I find one that works. I definitely do not just throw him onto a new food as the gas and diarrhea he'd have would be unbearable! Of course I gradually introduce his food usually half the old food and half new food for the first 2 weeks then gradually change completely to the new food. I also don't give him any treats whatsoever. None. I'm Used to spoiling the hell out of my dogs but with this dog there's seemingly no margin for error. His stomach seems to be extremely sensitive to any changes in diet. Believe me when I say he's had all tests possible performed. Probably more than once.

The specialists he sees know how devoted I am to my dogs. Before bruno the king of my castle was a beautiful blue nose pit bull. He was diagnosed with lymphoma a few days after his 6 th birthday. And I did everything I possibly could to save him. Unfortunately after weekly trips to Davis for his chemo and numerous surgeries he didn't make it. 6 months and $35k later I made the decision to put my baby to sleep a few days after MY birthday becuase he was done fighting his battle.

Getting bruno was the best thing that has happened to me in a long time. The constant diarrhea was quite a nuisance but at the rate he's growing it seems to not be that much of a problem. We put him through 4 separate rounds of antibiotics but nothing really helped. The last one was panacur. At this point I figured all the medication he was taking could not possibly be good for him. Especially when the specialist told me of the possible side effects involving joint issues later In life because of the panacur. After that I kind of just learned to live with his diarrhea and he didn't really seem to mind it anyways. He's the most active dog I've ever owned. Hes Never ever lethargic so how unhealthy could he be? I would like to try raw food but my main concern is if he were to catch some sort of bug from it there's no way I would know. He has diarrhea anyways so it'd be difficult to determine whether it was just him or something that actually needs medical attention. I still feel bad for the fella but I have no clue where to go fro here. The next step the specialist wanted to do was an endoscopy and colonoscopy. Besides the fact that it's really expensive, I asked what they'd be able to determine from this procedure and they told me they wouldn't be able to really tell me anything but that they wanted to see how bad the inflammation was in his stomach, In the meantime I'm just trying to find a food that works. If I can do that and his stools can become firm I would be ecstatic. Once again thank you all for your input. He's been on blue for about the last 3 weeks. If by 6-7 things aren't changed I will def be looking for a new brand of food to feed. I'll keep you guys posted. Thanks again everybody

Sage · 01-21-2012, 09:50 PM

I would add probiotics to build up the healthy bacteria in his digestive tract. I use Natures Farmacy Probiotic Max and have been very pleased with it. It is also very cost effective compared to some others I have used in the past.

Hank · 01-22-2012, 10:29 AM

Hank had a very sensitive digestion. Poor thing came from the pound and had diarrhea pretty much the first 6 months we had him :/

IMO you switching foods around so much probably isn't helping. We would have to sllooooowly change foods, talking 2-3 kibble pieces differences, not quarters difference.

He couldn't have any red meat AT ALL. Red meat = instant liquid poos
He was on a only poultry/fish food.
You should maybe try getting away from the chicken and trying venison, duck, bison or fish limited ingredient food if chicken seems to be causing it.

rainddobes · 01-22-2012, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeadowCat

Has your vet considered treating for giardia even though stool screenings are clear? Giardia can be notoriously hard to find on screenings and yet still be present. Treatment is usually Panacur and Metro.

I was also going to suggest the giardia test

Luvbirds · 01-23-2012, 06:35 AM

I had a similar issue with my first boy Petey, I tried everything to no avail, vet visits, medications, food changes, I switched him to raw when he was 20 weeks old, and his problem ended. I think your boys weight is fine for his frame, he doesn't look too thin.

BrunoBoy · 11-02-2012, 02:02 PM

Once again thank you all for your input. Bruno is now about 1 yr and 7 months old and still growing. His current weight is 92 pounds which I'm very content with. His bowel movements are still back and forth between runny and solid but so long as he's healthy it's just a minor nuisance.

smudgeid · 11-02-2012, 05:28 PM

I agree with the people who recommended pumpkin. You can get it in fairly large tins - usually fairly near the pie filling. (Don't buy pie filling, you want pure pumpkin.)

Try a tin - a tablespoon or two a day added to the food you are using - and see if it helps him be more consistant.
Kate

stryker2 · 11-02-2012, 09:01 PM

For sure add some pumpkin. Try the Probiotic also Coconut Oil (only certified Organic).