What You Should Do If Your Dog Has Diarrhea

In return for all the love and loyalty our best friend gives us, we want to take care of him in the best way possible. And a big part of taking care of our four-legged friend is to understand and take care of any health problems he may experience.

Just like people, dogs can experience a number of health problems throughout their lifetime. One of the worst afflictions that dogs can have is chronic diarrhea.

Symptoms

The signs that your dog is having diarrhea problems are pretty obvious: runny or soft stools, different colored watery stools, having a hard time defecating, or trying to defecate several times with nothing coming out. You will also be warned that he has diarrhea by the urgency of his barking at the back door to get outside to go potty.

He may also play less and be less active if he's bothered by diarrhea, or he may even be eating grass, which is typically a sign that he could have a stomach ache or other digestive irritations.

What Should You Do?

The first thing you want to do if your pet is suffering from diarrhea is to make sure that his water is clean and fresh at all times. Watery stools will make the dog dehydrated so an ample amount of water is vital to keep him healthy

A home remedy that can be very effective in treating dog diarrhea is to add probiotics to his food. Frequent loose stools or diarrhea and gas are both indications of a bacteria imbalance. Probiotics help build a healthy population of bacteria in your dog's digestive system, improve his digestive processes and firm up his stools.

There are also remedies at pet supply stores and on the internet to alleviate the condition.

To help if he appears to be having stomach-aches, try giving him foods that are high in fiber as that will give more substance to his bowel movements. Feed him boiled chicken and rice for a few days until the diarrhea starts to subside; then you can begin feeding him more solid foods.

One idea that many pet owners don't think of using for their pet's diarrhea is over the counter remedies made for humans. Some people have success using Pepto Bismol, either liquid or chewable pills. Pepto Bismol works to soothe the stomach and the intestinal lining and it can help relieve diarrhea when the problem is caused by something your dog has eaten.

If you go the pills route, you can coat them in peanut butter or some of his soft dog food. Generally, the advised dosage is 0.5-1ml of Pepto Bismol per pound of weight. It should be administered every 6-8 hours. If you're using the tablets, that is equal to 翹 tablet per 20 pounds of weight every 6-8 hours.

The important thing is that if your dog has diarrhea, you need to keep a close eye on it so that it doesn't lead to more serious internal problems. Most of the time, the diarrhea is not much more serious than being somewhat messy and not much fun to deal with; if you take the right steps, it can be resolved quickly and easily.

If the diarrhea is caused by something your dog ate that he shouldn't have - like the food from your cat's bowl - or some strange thing that he finds on your nightly walk - the condition may clear up within a day or two, once whatever he ate that is upsetting him runs through his system.

However, if the condition does not clear up quickly and you fail to treat it, it could definitely get worse. If the condition persists, be sure to take your pet to the veterinarian. The vet may put the dog on stomach medication to help with digestion and processing the foods he eats, or he may suggest changes to his diet. Dog diarrhea can be a life-threatening affliction; if it's not treated it could end your pet's life.