Poo not solid?

DogzRule1996 · Post by **DogzRule1996** » Wed Jul 01, 2009 12:54 pm

Our six month old golden retriever pup's waste is never solid. My mom says it is literally MUD. We feed him Kirkland's puppy food, two cups a day, one in the morning and one at night. He poops twice a day, but they all turn out as mud. After reading some other people's problems, it states that yogurt may help. Can someone tell me if that will and other ideas such as another food or something?

maximoo · Post by **maximoo** » Wed Jul 01, 2009 1:17 pm

You just switched to kirkland didn't you? Optimally you should gradually chg over slowly 25% new food 75% old food,for a few days, then 50/50, then 75% new/25% old and finally all new food. The chg over shld occur over a wk and a half- 2 wks. But if you haven't and he's out of old food you may just have to wait a few days to see if poo firms up. It should look like tootsie rolls not mud. If after a week there's no improvement then maybe that's not the food for him. Also what kind of treats is he getting? Do you give rawhide? Rawhide can cause intestinal disturbances.

Was his poo normal prior to chging him over to kirkland? If it wasn't then it might not be the food. He might need a trip to the vet to determine best food for him. He may just have a sensitive system.

DogzRule1996 · Post by **DogzRule1996** » Wed Jul 01, 2009 1:23 pm

It was always like mud no matter what food what food we give him. We did give him rawhide ONCE the VERY first day we got him, but he didn't like it and left it alone, so we threw the whole bag away.

cruisintigger · Post by **cruisintigger** » Tue Jul 07, 2009 3:48 pm

Dogz - we are in the same boat. 15 week old Golden. From day one (at 8 weeks) poop has always been very runny, or pudding consistency. She was first on the breeder's dog food. Since we can't get that in our area, we weaned her onto Nature's Recipe for Large Breed Puppies. Had to mix a bit of wet in with to initially get her to eat dry. Then we got the probiotics from our vet. Supposed to get one 'packet' on her food a day. No change in poop. Then he put her on a week of intestinal antibiotics. No change. Since she was only getting about a tablespoon of wet per meal, eliminated that since I know that can cause loose poops. No change. Now we are about 4-5 days in on a prescription food: http://www.hillspet.com/hillspet/produc ... 4441760640

Unfortunately, I still don't see a huge difference. Yes, some are more formed than others, but still not completely solid.

Haven't talked to the vet yet about what is the next step, although he did say for a high energy puppy at this age, its not uncommon. But I wish there was a more definitive answer...I wonder about the long term effects of something like this. Not to mention I would like to pick it up without having to get out the hose to rinse the grass each time.

DogzRule1996 · Post by **DogzRule1996** » Tue Jul 07, 2009 4:33 pm

We've cut down on his food to about 1-1 1/2 cups each day. His poop is getting a bit better.

ckranz · Post by **ckranz** » Wed Jul 08, 2009 12:50 am

Add 1-2 tablespoons of canned (unsweetend) pumpkin. If stools are still too loose add a little more pumpkin until solid.

Diet aside another big factor in stool consistency is stress. If your dogs are contantly stressed (excited and anxious stressors) stools will also be looser. Stools in my back yard are always solid firm, yet at the DP they are significantly looser.

mselisabs · Post by **mselisabs** » Tue Sep 29, 2009 10:31 am

ckranz has got it - pumpkin can really help. Also, do you notice any other itching, paw licking, etc? Goldens can have a tendency for food allergies (esp chicken) which can cause a runny stool (of course, among MANY other things.)

DogzRule1996 · Post by **DogzRule1996** » Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:07 pm

No licking, nothing. Just occasional runny stool.