Diarrhea is generally caused by irritation of the intestine, which causes food to pass without the nutrients and water it contains being absorbed. Making the stools liquid or watery.
It is totally normal for a dog to get diarrhea from time to time and it is generally not a serious thing that requires veterinary treatment. With a few simple cares we can help our dog to overcome its diarrheal episode. Do you want to know how to do it? We explain it to you.
Index of contents
- 1 Why does diarrhea occur?
- 2 Diarrhea caused by food
- 2.1 How to cure diarrhea caused by food?
- 2.2 Medicines to cure diarrhea caused by food
- 3 Diarrhea caused by intestinal parasites
- 3.1 How to stop diarrhea caused by parasites?
- 4 Other causes of diarrhea
- 5 When to go to the vet?
Why does diarrhea occur?
There are many causes that can cause diarrhea in a dog, although Generally, it is an irritation of the intestine caused by some food intolerance, sudden change in diet, eating something in poor condition or intestinal parasites.
However, some serious diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, malabsorption syndrome, cancer or the known parvovirus among many, they can also cause diarrhea among its symptoms.
Sticking to the most likely causes that are parasites or food, when the intestine becomes irritated it causes a rapid exit of food found in the digestive tract. Without giving the small intestine time to absorb the nutrients or the water it contains.
This causes the appearance of abundant liquid or pasty stools, generally repetitively until the intestine is completely clean. Making our dog have many stools than usual, often uncontrollable.
Diarrhea caused by food
A sudden change in the diet of our dog can cause an irritation in his intestine, causing him to show a diarrheal picture. A food that causes you intolerance or allergy can have the same effect.
We all know what dogs are like, they eat whatever they find. Eating food in poor condition or containing excess fat can also cause diarrhea in our dog.
Even something as simple as changing your feed (kibble) can make your digestive system suffer and end up being irritated, causing all the food you are processing to pass.
How to cure diarrhea caused by food?
The first thing we must do is fasting our dog for at least twenty-four hours. That is, without eating absolutely anything during this period of time for your intestine to recover.
We must leave clean and fresh water at your disposal, since we do not want it to become dehydrated. But we will not give you anything other than water for a whole day.
- Symptoms of dehydration in dogs
After 24 hours of fasting, we must start giving soft food in small quantities, which is known as bland diet. A little boiled rice is an excellent option. We will keep this diet soft for a couple of days, before starting your usual diet.
Medicines to cure diarrhea caused by food
Although humans like antidiarrheals like “Fortasec”, we should never give our dog this type of medication. Since we could further aggravate your digestive problem.
However, if we can use prebiotics and natural probiotics such as “Pro-Enteric” or “Daforte”, which are products that will help you recover before diarrhea by regenerating the microbiota (intestinal flora).
Diarrhea caused by intestinal parasites
All dogs suffer from intestinal parasites, which are acquired simply by smelling the feces of other dogs, eating dirt or grass. Puppies are the most likely to suffer from them, although adult dogs are not exempt.
Intestinal parasites become lodged in the dog’s intestines and irritate him, causing him to suffer frequent episodes of diarrhea. In some cases we can see them in the stools in the form of small worms or small white spots.
How to stop diarrhea caused by parasites?
To end this diarrhea, we must eliminate the main problem, that is, parasites. For it, There are different pills that we can find in any veterinary clinic and that are specific to eliminate the majority of intestinal parasites..
This generally solves the problem. However, there are some parasites known as “Giardias” that are immune to this type of medication and that they need antibiotic-based treatment to be completely eliminated. To detect if it is giardias, it will be necessary to do a stool analysis.
- Giardiasis infection symptoms in dogs
Other causes of diarrhea
Despite the fact that food and parasites are the main cause of diarrhea in dogs, there are other causes that can also cause decomposition in our furry friend.
Anxiety, stress or over-excitation can also cause diarrhea in our dog.. Something as simple as a change of address, a trip, leaving it in a nursery for a few days or getting angry with it, can make your dog suffer from decomposition.
Even the use of antibiotics or other medications to treat a condition can cause irritation to your intestine, elimination of flora, or fecal incontinence.
When to go to the vet?
Although we can treat diarrhea at home as long as it is something caused by parasites or their diet, There are a series of signals that should trigger all our alarms:
- Fever, tremors
- Vomiting
- Blood in diarrhea or vomiting
- Lack of energy, our dog is down
- Diarrhea does not stop in the first 24 hours
- Seizures
- Our dog is a puppy or is sick
- Inflammation of your tummy
If any of these assumptions occurs, we must urgently go to the vet for examination and diagnosis, since it could be something serious that requires immediate veterinary treatment.