Sound familiar? We’re hoping to find direction in possible conditions to investigate with our vet. Bodi is a 3.5 y/o chocolate field lab. Ideal weight. Decently active(ball in backyard and doggie daycare 1+ times per week). STOOL ISSUES: Since he was a puppy. Stool is the most consistent it’s been, but he used to have runny stool daily. Always seemed to strain a bit when he goes. Diarrhea is always VERY pungent. I’ve had at least one dog my whole life and NEVER smelled anything like this. GAS: He will fill an entire room. This isn’t an over-dramatization and, once again, I’ve owned at least one dog at all times through my life. It’s VERY strongly scented. Sometimes we’ll leave the house and come back to the whole house smelling like his gas. DIET: He’s eaten Science Diet since 9 weeks old. He is ideal weight. He eats only 1.5 cups twice a day(3 cups daily). When I fed more his vet told me to cut back because he was getting a bit pudgy. He also eats grass, bamboo leaves, plants out of the concrete cracks like a freaking goat. Not just sometimes, always. He’s the copraphasia poster child(he eats lots of poop). He eats his own here and his daycare said they have to beat him to picking up the poop of other dogs. He always seems SUPER hungry, but he’s a lab so I don’t think too much about this. WATER INTAKE: I consistently have people mention his water intake being absurdly high. He has a water bowl with a 4 gallon(I believe) tank on it. It NEVER lasts more than 3-4 days and it’s not his only water source. I really mean people, even ones we aren’t close with, mention the amount A LOT! Other notes: - he’s been tested for parasites MANY times - his urine is always diluted at the yearly tests - when he’s been on antibiotics in the past it did stop the diarrhea. Once on a 2-3 week stint he did have a few bouts(but I missed like one day two different times in there) - he’s had the prescription fiber and it didn’t seem to help - I worry he may not be absorbing proper nutrition… because of the poop and plant eating. Any ideas?
Would you consider trying him on a raw diet? It's an easy way to see if his issues are diet related. I used to have a boy with terrible digestive issues and tried all sorts of different dog foods. I remember on a trip up to Scotland we had to pull over and get out the car more than once when he farted! We eventually tried him on raw and it was problem solved. I have all 10 of mine on raw now. There are two normal sized ceramic bowls outside for their water and one inside. Between 10 of them, they might empty half each bowl per day. When I have kibble fed dogs come to stay, they can easily empty 3 dishes of water on their own each day.
