Hi All My 7 month old pup has got a poorly tum. In the past I’ve adjusted the quantities etc. to calm her poos down but she’s still on the same food as she was weaned on with no problems. She can stay on this up to a year old. Last week she had her first trip to a kennels whilst we had a week away. Since bringing her home her poos have been very soft to runny. The kennel said they would feed her an equivalent to the food I feed her and if she didn’t get on with it she would buy her the brand that’s she’s on at home. When we picked her up we were so pleased to see her and her us I forgot to ask what she’d been fed. She seemed happy etc so I wasn’t concerned. Her tummy hasn’t calmed since feeding her her normal food at home so I’m thinking of feeding her chicken and rice to calm things down. I’ve not had to resort to this before so not sure how much to give her. She’s normally on 3 feeds a day. Is it boiled chicken which is then mixed in with cold rice? Obviously if things don’t calm in a day or two I will take her to the vet but at the moment she seems happy in herself, drinking and hasn’t lost her appetite. Thanks for your help.
Make sure she’s getting enough fluids - that’s the most important. Runny poo means she’s losing more fluids than usual. If she’s not drinking enough, you can add tuna flakes or chicken stock to her water, or feed her very sloppy rice and chicken mixture. You actually don’t need any rice; plain cooked chicken is fine. Cooked carrots or pumpkin are good for binding the poo. Some people find sloppy oats is also good for binding. Feed less rather than more to start, and increase the amount if you think she’s too hungry. But definitely phone your vet if it persists.
Could be a few things going on. Has she been kennelled before? Might be the change of food - was the protein the same? Can she eat chicken? My puppy can’t so we avoid it totally and when she goes to the kennels I ensure her food weighed out as at home goes too. The kennel experience can stress them which can result in soft/runny poo. Pro Kolin is great for settling upset tums especially when in all other respects a puppy is playing, drinking, eating as normal. My older Lab who can eat chicken has had small bowls of chicken and rice when she has had an upset tum but generally we have taken her to the vets and they have advised that.
I would never let the kennel feed a different food. I always weigh out bags of usual food and insist they feed that. Most vets sell Hill's Science Plan, and although I don't use the food itself they do cans of what I call "poorly food" (ID, I think) which is basically chicken & rice for lazy people. Our last Lab had it occasionally when his tum was upset. He though it was his birthday!
One bite of a different food gives Moose an upset tummy. I am very rigid when it comes to what he eats because of this; I would suggest if you have to have him kenneled again that you take his food from home and have them feed that. Pups can have Pepto Bismal, check online for how much for his weight. I wouldn't leave this go for long, tho. He may have picked up something while being kenneled.
If it doesn't settle in a couple of days, maybe bring her to the vet and get her checked for Giardia. It's a parasitic infection that is very common amongst dogs (and quite contagious). It's more annoying than anything, but fairly harmless unless it causes severe diarrhea (then it can be dangerous due to dehydration). It should still definitely be treated. Technically it can spread to humans, but human infection is rare in first-world nations. Anyways, it's just a medication the vet will give her to get rid of it. My 2.5 year old dog had this when he was a puppy.
