Hendrix's Diarrhea Problem is back... we were doing so good!
1. Hendrix started on Iams Puppy, then Iams Large breed. While on Iams Large breed he’d get hot spots, constant itching and a red belly. 2. We switched him to Nature’s Recipe Vegetarian. Hendrix’s hot spots, constant itching and red belly went away. He was like a new dog! However, he had bad gas and his stool was lose. He’d have diarrhea in the house about once a month. 3. We switched him then to Nature’s Recipe Venison and Rice. His stool was still liquidy and he would get diarrhea aagain. 4. We went to the vet who drew blood from Hendrix and it showed no abnormalities. 5. We switched his food to Nature’s Choice Rabbit and Potato allergy formula of grain free diet. He had no treats for 1 month. His stool when mixed with the Nature’s Recipe and Venison and the Nature’s Choice Rabbit and Potato was much better. You could pick it up for the first time in months, no mess. This lasted for about 1 week. 6. Hendrix was then on Nature’s Choice Rabbit and Potato only as his mixing period was over. The stool was no longer easy to pick up; it was mushy, but not liquidy as it had been on the Vegetarian. We did not give Hendrix treats (Newman’s Own Vegetarian Dog treats, they are the size of a Hershey kiss) till about 3 weeks into Nature’s Choice Rabbit and Potato only diet. He got about 1 treat every 3 days as we did not want to mess too much with his stomach. 7. I gave Hendrix 1 of the Newman’s Own treats on Tuesday, we came home yesterday to diarrhea in the house. Please note that when I move my dog to a new food I do it over a period of 3 weeks. My questions… 1. Could a small treat trigger the diarrhea? 2. If I had success with the Nature’s Recipe and Venison and the Nature’s Choice Rabbit and Potato being mixed, should I try it again? 3. Is this an allergy? Or a problem breaking down food? 4. Should I see a Holistic vet? I just feel like my vet isn’t even considering the idea that this is a food allergy, all she wants is to run expensive tests or even a colonoscopy! I like my vet and I am in no way more educated then her however everyone else seems to have the idea this can be solved with the medicine or that, etc. From what I gather everyone on the board seems to have gone through this. Where do I go from here? I’ve called the vet to get her input, here’s hoping this all ends soon! |
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| I would suggest you have an blood allergy panel done. It is a bit pricey but will definately tell you whether this is a food allergy or a stomach issue.
Tasker had VERY similar problems, we had a panel done and he's had shots for a little over two years. He hasn't had a hot spot since last fall and hasn't had a loose stool in even longer. We played the "food roulette" game too, currently he is getting Purina One Sensitive Systems and it is a wonder food!!! The main ingredient is Salmon and he loves it. And yes, a small treat can trigger him. I am not a big believer in holistic vets........ I believe it is a useful resource in addtion to regular medicine. |
| I will also suggest to my vet that Blood Allergy Panel seeing as you've had great success. I'm game for anything at this point.
The vet mentioned something about Hendrix's hips being very boney and was worried about it. She said it was a sign his body was in stress from bowel movements. Do you think it could be stress related? This all started 1. When we put him on Vegetarian food (cleared up the constant itching, but started the bad poop) 2. The same time we got our second dog Zappa. Is this all stress related? However, there was that 2 week window of solid poop! |
| Well, diarrhea can be stress realted....... when ever Tasker gets an ear infection he get the runs. The Vet said it was from the physical stress of the ear infection.
I doubt that another dog would do it, Hendrix is young and should adjust to such a change. Hmm, never heard about the "bony Hip" thing unless what she means is that his weight is down because everything runs through him. I would definately go for the allergy panel, suprised the Vet hasn't suggested it. |
| I don't mean to muddy the waters but I came across this on the Purina website about food allergies and food intolerance...
Source: http://purinaone.com/catcare_cond_atoz_ ... leNumber=2 Food allergy or intolerance? There is a distinction that needs to be made between food allergies and food intolerances. Food allergies are true allergies and show the characteristic symptoms of itching and skin problems associated with canine and feline allergies. Food intolerances can result in diarrhea or vomiting and don't create a typical allergic response. Food intolerances in pets would be similar to people that get diarrhea or an upset stomach from eating spicy or fried foods. Fortunately both food intolerances and allergies can be eliminated with a diet free from offending agents. Would a RAST or skin allergy test diagnose a food intolerance? |
| No, but if NO ALLERGIES showed up you could then assume intolerance. |
| I am sorry to hear that Hendrix is back to a sloppy result.
Sometimes if conventional vet advice is not working seeing alternative treatments help. If you are not getting the right results and the problem is seemingly ongoing and they want to start expensive tests etc etc, sometimes changing the approach helps. Personally I would go and see a Hololistic registered vet and tell them Hendrixs history and problems and see what they have to say. 
It's dam frustrating, especially as they run good for a few weeks then go backwards. Hope you can solve the problem HUGS |
OOhh - I'm sorry! Bingley was like this until we switched to a raw food diet. Perhaps ask around for a holistic vet who can explain some alternatives for you. It definitely worked for us. If Bingley has soft stool now it's because I'm giving him too many treats  or he has nerves (traveling). It is wonderful not to clean his backside every day anymore. AND he really enjoys his meals!
Do what is right for your lifestyle as well as Hendrix - good luck! |
I am so sorry to hear that Hendrix is having troubles again.  I know how frustrating this can be, as we struggled with Oscar's digestive issues for two years before we figured out a formula that worked for us. This was after a maldigestion panel, blood work, multiple rounds of antibiotics for giardia, multiple food changes, food elimination, and an endoscopy. And yes, with Oscar, the tiniest bit of something he can't tolerate sends his tummy into a tizzy. Now, his kibble is his treat. He gets nothing else.
After much trial and error, Oscar is on a maintenance dose of metranidizole (flagyl) daily, and he takes a low dose of steroids (10 mg) twice a week. This seems to keep his digestive system on track, but of course we are very concerned about this regimen as long term steroid use can have terrible side effects. My vet has referred us to a holistic vet in Skokie, and we are trying to come up with a way to get Oscar off the prednisone. I see that you are in the Chicago suburbs as well, so if you were looking for a holistic vet (who is also a DVM), I would be happy to recommend Dr. Siwek, at Kindred Spirits. I think you would need a referral from your vet, but it might be worth exploring. We did not do the blood allergy test on Oscar, as my vet doesn't think they are very accurate for food issues, only inhalant allergies. I did the blood test on our first sheepie, for skin issues, and did allergy shots for three years, with no effect whatsoever. It just didn't work for Quincy. Two quick notes.....potato formulas in kibble gave Oscar horrible gas, which my vet says she has run into before. Also, in another thread, we were discussing overfeeding, and how it can lead to loose stools, as it overstimulates the digestive system. Doesn't sound like this is Hendrix's problem, but just thought I'd pass it along. Let me know if you need any info. Belly rubs for Hendrix! Laurie and Oscar |
| Have you tried Canidae? It has no glutens, corn, wheat or soy. I haven't tried it on an OES yet, but it might be a better food for him. I had my OES on Nutro chicken oatmeal and rice, but since the canned was what poisoned him...I won't buy or recommend that food. The dry may be fine...it's on principle that I hesitate. |
| I'm sorry to hear that Hendrix is having loose stool again. Poor fellow (and poor you!).
It does seem like it is a problem with tolerance, to me. When you say the good stool lasted for a week when you were mixing the venison and rabbit formulas, is that because the mixing period was over and he transitioned to the rabbit only at that time? Or were you still mixing, but the good result just ended on its own?  |
| This sounds exactly like what we have been going threw with S'more. She's fine for a week or so and then not.
We haven't had the skin issues, but we do have BM issues. The kids call her princess runny butt now
I have cut back on the amount I was giving her and added cooked brown rice to her dinner at night- it seems to be helping. Holly |
I don't mean to laugh but " Princess runny Butt" Kids can be sooo funny. 
I am sorry I don't have any advice except we went through this for a while too and the Eagle pack dry did the trick . http://www.eaglepack.com/Choose/ChooseDog.html . Now as Harley has gotten older we can feed him any flavor Eagle pack without a problem and Junior has been on it since day 1 and never ever had a poop problem. Thank God! 
Good luck I feel so bad for Hendrex and princess runny - Opps I mean princess S'more..... 
Antoinette |
| I may look into the Eagle food- I think I would try anything to fix her--- she's the most amazing "goofy" dog and I can't imagine that it feels good to constantly have the runs (sorry that sounds bad)
Thanks for the tip-- HOlly |
| If you are going to try the Eagle Pack make sure it is the "Holisitic" Variety, it is a bit more expensive then just there regular variety, the Holisitic one comes in a variety too,chicken, salmon to duck etc. and they have Holisitic Dog Bikkies as well for special treats.
It's a great brand and mine have been on it when I can get supply of it here and it was one of the brands not recalled when the scare was on there too |
| Here are the answers to your questions...
When you say the good stool lasted for a week when you were mixing the venison and rabbit formulas, is that because the mixing period was over and he transitioned to the rabbit only at that time? Yep, the mixing time was over as I thought I'd go with a dog food wit no grain. Or were you still mixing, but the good result just ended on its own? I've just returned from the vet. They took that blood sample from Hendrix and I should have the results by the end of next week. The vet also put him on medicated dog food by Eukanuba that is Fish and Potato based. So far so good, good poop for 3 days now. I won't jum for joy to soon though. |
| Hi,
Can't offer anymore than what's already been said just wanted to send my thoughts to you and Hendrix. Hope the blood test results give you some idea as to what's going on. Marianne and the boys |
| With the holiday weekend we should get the blood test results by the end of this week or early next week. I'll keep you all posted! |
| I'm glad he's responded well to the Fish & Potato formula. I hope it continues to agree with him. Let us know when you hear the test results. |
| derby has the runs again too .. i know how you must feel , i have been going through this for a year good weeks then wiping the butt! hope you find out so i can get some more ideas....... |
Hendrix's Mom wrote: With the holiday weekend we should get the blood test results by the end of this week or early next week. I'll keep you all posted!
How are things? Any results yet? THinking of you! |
| I just got the results last night and hopped online to post!
Hendrix's results were perfectly normal, nothing at all came up on the tests. The vet said he's perfectly normal! Thus, she wants us to keep him on the medicated diet wih absolutly no treats (like we've been doing) and see if the medicated food works out. If it doesn't then she wants to do the colonoscopy with a biopsy. If it comes to that, I will go to another doctor for another opionion. Anyone else's thoughts, suggestions? Seems to me that if 2 blood tests show nothing wrong, what good would a biopsy do? |
| so glad to hear Hendrix's poops are back to normal and that both blood results came back clean!!!
if he continues to have loose stool though, yeah, id do the colonoscopy.....better to be safe than sorry. |
| It's can be frustrating to get a diagnosis but you're one step closer to finding out what's been causing Hendrix's problem. I agree with Darcy... if you stick with this new diet faithfully with absolutely no other foods given and the diarrhea returns, I'd consider the colonoscopy. Even if it were to come back negative it will rule out another possible cause once and for all.
Quote: Seems to me that if 2 blood tests show nothing wrong, what good would a biopsy do?
We did blood tests, several cultures, x-rays three times, ultrasounds twice, then finally exploratory surgery in order to finally find that Panda had a bladder defect that was causing recurrent UTIs. The next step would have been going down to MSU for a biopsy and further tests. So I know how frustrating it can be to get a diagnosis. Sometimes it's a matter of eliminating possibilities to get closer to the cause. The blood tests and biopsy would test for different problems... I imagine the biopsy would take cells from the wall of the intestine to see if there is something abnormal there. Ask your vet to explain why she thinks the biopsy should be considered and to tell you the pros and cons of having the procedure done. I'm hoping that staying on this dog food will be all that's required to keep Hendrix healthy. |
sorry to hear of Hendrixs troubles and hoping that you will find the right food , give him a from dutch and me please  |
| We also had this problem of runny stools...and sorry everybody but I don't accept the stock answer " OES have sensitive stomachs"...I beleive it is the food....
We went to a food that has no wheat, soy or corn. It has worked wonders. Stools have never been better...its been five months of no "sensitive stomach" issues... Yes, treats can trigger loose stool....read the ingredients and look for things like corn, soy, etc. Hendrix may have a food intolerance which is different than food allergy...also vegeterian diets are not recommended for dogs. They need the meat. Their digestive system is not like humans and their teeth are shaped to eat meat and not grind down grains..However, grains are necessary to form stools. But you waht grains of whole, high quality mlike oatmeal, barley, etc. Not saying corn is bad or wheat is bad. But some dogs cannot tolerate it for whatever reason... I am not a lover of Purina products or Eukanuba but several friends have had to put their dogs on the Eukanuba low residue diet and they are having great results. I am feeding a food called Orijen but its dificult to get. Canidae is good, as is Solid Gold. Hope Hendrix is doing better. |
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