Liquid or excessively soft stools are a fairly common problem in dogs. In most cases it is not a serious disorder and resolves quickly. However, if your dog is having any difficulty recovering and generating solid stool, then you will need to give him some extra help. Be aware of the food you offer them, make sure that the environment is free from sources of stress and you will be able to help your furry friend recover a normal intestinal transit.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Understanding Dog Digestion
Step 1. Understand the difference between diarrhea and soft stools
There is a subtle difference between these two conditions. Soft stools are bulky but have their own shape, so they can be collected with a bag to throw in the trash. Diarrhea has a higher fluid content and usually does not have a definite shape, so it is impossible to pick it up. In addition, dysentery is a symptom of a disease or is a sign that the dog's body is trying to expel possible toxins from the intestine ingested with spoiled food. Soft stools, on the other hand, are not a sign of an infection or disease, but of an inappropriate diet, of poor quality, low in fiber or containing ingredients to which the animal is intolerant.
Step 2. Know what to do in case of diarrhea
A dog suffering from this disorder must be monitored carefully, the owner must follow him outdoors to observe the feces and understand the nature of the gastrointestinal problem. If there are traces of blood, the discharge is very watery or the dog looks sick, then a vet visit is absolutely necessary.
- If the dog shows no other symptoms of discomfort, but only diarrhea, then do not feed him for 24 hours, but provide him with plenty of fresh water. After a day of fasting, start feeding him a "white" diet with cooked chicken meat, boiled white rice (one part chicken and two parts of rice) and continue in this way for 2-3 days, until I have solidify. Follow the directions in this article to maintain a light diet for your dog.
- If the dog suffers from diarrhea for more than 2 days it must be taken to the vet.
Step 3. Understand your pet's food needs
If it shows soft stools and you want to improve its consistency, so that the picking operations are also more bearable, then you need to keep your furry friend in excellent health. A dog needs a diet consisting of highly digestible protein and fiber in order to stay healthy and have normal intestinal transit.
A meat-based diet is certainly the best choice for your furry friend. Dogs can follow a vegetarian or a carnivorous diet. However, they need a high protein intake, which can be achieved even in a vegetarian diet thanks to beans and other legumes. However, be aware that these have a tendency to create flatulence and soft stools. For this reason, if you have decided to have your dog follow a vegetarian lifestyle as well, consider changing your mind and switching to a high-quality meat-based diet
Method 2 of 3: Improving the Dog's Diet
Step 1. Choose a balanced diet
This doesn't always mean that you have to buy high-end products at pet stores. For example, foods that are formulated as pates are very rich in minerals (such as salt) which make them tasty for the most discerning palate (just like a chocolate cake is more inviting than a bean salad, so remember that flavorful and healthy do not always coincide). On the contrary, look for a food that lists among the main ingredients of real "meat" and not "derivatives", "offal" or "mechanically separated" types of meat.
- Choose white (low-fat) meats such as chicken, turkey, rabbit or white fish. Choose those products that contain few ingredients, as they are less likely to be full of preservatives and industrially processed elements, but are instead rich in what we can consider "real food".
- Carbohydrates should come from grains such as rice, wheat, oats, barley and not from soy and its derivatives.
- Although price is not always a guarantee of quality, expect to pay more for a good food than for highly processed and grain-rich ones, as you are paying for better quality and food closer to what you would consider suitable for even men.
Step 2. Establish a lactose-free diet
The only milk suitable for dogs is that of their mother. If you have to feed a very small puppy, then there are breast milk substitutes that rehydrate with water. If you have a very young dog and are forced to feed him formula milk, then you should choose a lactose-free one if you find that his stool is quite soft. Some puppies are born with a deficiency of the lactase enzyme, which is able to break down the main sugar in milk, which is lactose. Puppies that do not have lactase are unable to digest lactose into assimilable sugars. These undigested sugars draw water into the intestine and the puppy produces soft stools.
Step 3. Replace a wet diet with dry food
Remember that wet foods (canned or boiled) contain 75% water, while dry kibble has about 10% moisture. This high percentage of liquid turns into moist and bulky stools. A diet based primarily on kibble has a big impact on stool size (reduces volume) and water content (stool is harder).
- Take the time to adapt your dog to the new diet. It will take at least 4-5 days to gradually insert the dry croquettes into the animal's diet and gradually reduce the moist portion of the original food. This transition period allows the intestinal flora, responsible for good digestion, to adapt to the change.
- High-protein meal plans, such as beef, chicken, and high-protein canned foods, can cause soft stools. The waste products of protein digestion draw water from the intestine.
- Wheat-based dog foods or those that contain high amounts of it are responsible for soft stools.
Step 4. Avoid offering your faithful friend fatty foods that can turn rancid quickly
Don't give him fast food fried food. Usually these foods are cooked in palm oil, which is difficult to digest and goes rancid quickly. Harmful fats form a layer in the intestine that makes the stool watery.
Step 5. Feed the dog a light diet if the problem persists
This consists of rice cooked until soft and pork or lamb that is ground and lean. Have the dog stick to this diet for 5 days and check that the stools solidify. Remember that most of the commercial foods that are designed to improve the intestinal transit of the dog are based on rice because it is a very digestible starch, low in protein and salt.
The foods that promote firmer stool are: Hill's Prescription Diet i / d, Royal Canin Intestinal, Eukanuba, Royal Canin Digestive Low Fat and Hill's Science Diet
Method 3 of 3: Try Alternative Solutions
Step 1. Give your dog some probiotics
Proper gut functioning and digestion rely on the bacterial population living in the gut. If your dog has been on a bad diet for a few days and is suffering from soft stools, then his gut may be overpopulated with "useless" bacteria and he may have lost the normal and desirable balance of gut flora. Supplementing the "good" bacteria can be very helpful in improving digestion and solidifying stool. The bacteria your dog needs are called Enterococcus faecium and are contained in probiotics available without a prescription in powdered products such as Fortiflora. This is a specific probiotic for dogs, it is sold in sachets and you usually have to mix the contents in the dog's food for 5 days.
- Remember that the canine intestinal flora is not the same as that of humans, so probiotics for human use are not useful and in the worst case they contain lactose, which could trigger diarrhea in your four-legged friend.
- You can buy Fortiflora without a veterinarian's prescription even online.
- In general, large breeds are given one bottle a day for 5 days, while small breeds are given half a bottle a day for five days.
Step 2. Supplement your diet with fiber
Some dogs that suffer from soft stools benefit from a high-fiber diet. These absorb excess liquid as if they were sponges and normalize the consistency of the stool, drying the diarrhea and solidifying the excrement. It is also believed that they are able to reduce the risk of colon cancer and help the dog feel full for longer, decreasing the intake of calories if the animal is overweight.
- However, don't overdo it with the things that are good for you either: check the ingredients of the food you give to your faithful friend and make sure that the crude fiber content is around 10%.
- You can supplement its diet with fiber by adding wheat or oat bran. Start with 15g per 10kg of dog weight.
- Also consider giving him some raw fruits and vegetables, but avoid canned vegetables as they are always very high in salt.
Step 3. Make sure your furry friend always has access to plenty of fresh water
Dogs that excrete soft stools need to drink more because they lose a lot of fluids with discharge; for this reason they must always have plenty of drinking water available to replenish the dispersed water. Wash the bowl at least every other day and check that the water is always clean and fresh.
Step 4. Avoid stressful daily activities for the dog
If taking a bath is too emotionally demanding for your friend, then wait and postpone him for a few days to see if the stool solidifies. In some specimens there is a strong correlation between stress and gastrointestinal disorders; in this case you have to reduce anxiety to improve the consistency of the excrement.
- Stress makes the intestinal environment more alkaline (while an acidic environment is beneficial for good bacteria), so digestion becomes complicated and difficult.
- In these cases, reduce the workload that your dog's digestive system has to carry out by offering him a light and easily assimilated diet, such as chicken and white rice.
Step 5. Take your dog to the vet if you can't improve the situation
While soft stools in most cases clear up with a simple change in diet, they could also be a sign of other health problems. If the dog continually suffers from soft stools, even after changing his diet, then a veterinary check-up is essential.
