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Dogs, like people, can be afflicted with stomach problems, including indigestion, diarrhea, and gas. Although severe or prolonged symptoms should always be treated by a veterinarian, minor cases of stomach upset or diarrhea can be cared for at home with “people” medications that are safe for dogs. If symptoms persist or if you’ve never given a food or medication mentioned below to your dog, call your veterinarian.
Common Symptoms of Dogs with Diarrhea
Dogs with diarrhea show a number of symptoms including loose stools, vomiting, lethargy, and abdominal pain. Usually, dogs with diarrhea would undergo a loss of appetite. This can, at times, lead to weight loss. Many dogs would also vomit every time they are fed.
However, if your dog gets diarrhea due to another disease, he would display a wider set of symptoms. If you see any signs of dehydration or illness, then make sure you try dog antidiarrheals and call the vet as soon as possible.
Krista Williams, DVM believes that the conservative approach for healing mild diarrhea is a better option. In this approach, you should avoid medications and allow the body to heal naturally.
For this, you’ll need to fast your dog for 8-12 hours. Try that your dog gets no food at all during this time because it would either end up in doggie runs or your dog would puke. So, complete fasting is the right way to go here.
Also, you need to understand that in dog diarrhea, your pooch is not retaining enough water in his body. That’s why most of it leaves with his poo. Now, this may lead to dehydration so you need to offer fresh drinking water to your dog during this time. Make sure it’s clean water that you’ll be happy to drink yourself.
After 12 hours of fasting, if your dog’s situation improves, you can start feeding him. Traditionally, vets recommend feeding boiled white rice to dogs along with a protein source like chicken. Just make sure you completely debone it and remove the skin. Many diarrheas are simply caused by a lack of fiber in the dog’s diet.
This meal should be very small, allowing your pooch to adjust. If your dog’s stomach holds up, allow him to feed on this same diet regularly every couple of hours. Slowly, increase the feeding size and the interval between feedings until your dog returns to his original feeding times.
Antidiarrheals are used to heal diarrhea in dogs. There are lots of natural, medicinal, and therapeutic types of antidiarrheals. Dogs get diarrhea when there’s an imbalance of the good and bad bugs in their guts. Usually, dog antidiarrheals help restabilize your dog’s gut microbiome and microbiota.
With that said, the type of antidiarrheal you use for your dog depends on a lot of factors. Many antidiarrheals just help the dog’s natural mechanism to take its course and fight diarrhea. However, many others actively fight dog diarrhea and try to reduce it.
But which product should you go with when looking for an anti diarrhea for dogs? Well, that depends on what you’re comfortable with and what your vet recommends. Some antidiarrheals have mild, natural ingredients while others use harsh chemicals. Don’t use the latter unless your vet recommends you to.
At times, diarrhea in dogs can get really bad (and smelly). In such situations, our first instinct as dog owners is to get it on a safe dog diarrhea medicine. In this section, we’re going to explain what medication is used for diarrhea in dogs. We’ll also go into its possible side effects and dosage of each.
However, a word of caution: this article does not serve as a substitute for a veterinary suggestion. Which anti-diarrhea drugs for dogs you use depends highly on the type and severity of diarrhea as well as your dog’s medical history. Always consult your vet before using any medicinal antidiarrheals for dogs.
Imodium for dogs is one of the most common antidiarrheal medicines. It is the brand name of Loperamide, a drug that slows down the passage of food in the dog’s gut. It also increases water absorption for the body. The result is a firmer stool. Slowing the food down also allows the dog more time to absorb nutrients and water.
With that said, Imodium can even be dangerous for mutts. It might sound useful to slow down the food, thereby inhibiting bowel movements. However, excessive bowel movements can even be useful for the body in certain types of diarrhea. These include diarrhea from bacterial infections or toxins. Pooping is often the body’s way of removing those bacteria and toxins. So, if Imodium reduces the poop, that can have an adverse effect on your dog’s health.
A word of caution: never give Imodium to pregnant and nursing dogs as well as pups and old pooches. You’d also want to keep it away from dogs with kidney diseases.
Before giving Imodium to your dog, consult with your veterinarian. In that visit, make sure you ask questions like, “How much Imodium can I give my dog”. The suggested amount can vary from case to case. However, Jennifer Coates, DVM, maintains that a dosage of 0.1 mg of Imodium per kg of a dog’s weight is typical.
With that in mind, make sure you study the concentration of Imodium in the medicine you’re using. Imodium tablets are a lot stronger and have about 2 mg of the drug while liquid Imodium is milder and usually contains 1 mg per 5 mL of the liquid.
Pepto-Bismol is the brand name of the medication bismuth subsalicylate. It’s a human medication used for general stomach problems like diarrhea and heartburn. Not to mention, you can also use it as a dog antidiarrheal.
However, Dr. Jerry Klein, the AKC’S Chief Veterinary Officer, says that he rarely suggests this medication for dog diarrhea. That’s because this medication might cause gastric bleeding.
As a safer substitute, he recommends Corrective Suspension that contains bismuth subsalicylate but is primarily for dogs. If you absolutely must use Pepto-Bismol, Dr. Jerry Klein suggests 1 teaspoon per 10 lbs. Give your dog another dose within 6-8 hours and if diarrhea still doesn’t get better, then contact your vet. Ideally, you would prefer diarrhea medicine for dogs rather than one for humans.
You should never use Pepto-Bismol for pregnant and nursing dogs. Also, it’s dangerous for dogs with bleeding disorders.
This is another dog antidiarrheal that vets recommend. Although it’s not approved by the FDA for pet use, it’s normal for vets to prescribe it. Pepcid-AC, or Famotidine, is actually an acid neutralizer. So, it’s great for dogs that have an acidic stomach (acid reflux).
Dr. Debra Primovic recommends about 0.25-0.5 milligram per pound of Pepcid-AC for dogs. She further recommends giving the next dose 12 to 24 hours after the initial one and continuing these doses for 3-5 days.
As with all the other antidiarrheal medications in this article, avoid using them for pregnant or nursing dogs. Also, dogs with kidney, heart, or liver diseases shouldn’t use this medicine.
Bland Diet
While not the most exciting diet for your dog, a bland diet is often recommended by veterinarians as a way to ease diarrhea and bring the dog’s tummy back to normal. This kind of feeding includes food low in fat and fiber to help your pet form a solid stool.
Some of the bland-friendly ingredients include meals made with boiled meat, bone broth, cottage cheese, pumpkin puree, or white rice on top of other foods that are easy on the tummy. The taste will not be as great as their regular food, but your doggy will thank you for that once the call of nature becomes less frequent and problematic.
My dog had diarrhea THIS Fixed it FAST!
Being a dog parent can be challenging, particularly if your buddy is feeling sick. As much as you’d love your dog to tell you what the problem is, this isn’t going to happen.
When it comes to dog diarrhea, its telltale signs are easy to spot from the beginning, unlike pain, which dogs are very good at hiding from the owner.
Diarrhea is actually one of the most common problems in dogs besides pain, lethargy, and refusing food.
While accidental diarrhea can happen due to many reasons — from indigestion to ingesting a foreign body to bacterial infections — prolonged episodes may herald a serious health problem.
Part of being a health-conscious dog parent is recognizing the negative changes and acting on tackling them right away.
In this article, we’ll focus on dog diarrhea and its many potential remedies, from conventional methods to holistic options.