My DDP. Dog Diarrhea Protocol.

As a pet owner, most of us at some point in time are faced with dealing with our dogs having the occasional bout of diarrhea. Most of the time it happens upon us by surprise. Well hopefully it doesn’t happen upon you, but it will probably happen in your general vicinity.

So what do you do when one of your dogs presents with diarrhea?

Well, I can only speak for myself so here’s my DDP, Dog Diarrhea Protocol.

1. Find out who did it.

If you have more than one dog and you didn’t see any of them do it. Keep a close eye on all of them. Each of my dogs have the own designated area in the yard where they poop so if I see a pile of diarrhea in the left corner of the yard it’s pretty safe to say that’s it’s Leroy. He’s the only one who poops in the left corner of the yard.

2. What does it look like?

Of course, it looks gross, but how gross? Is it soft like pudding or watery? Is there blood or mucus in it? Is there a foreign body in it, say like rocks or acorns? How much is there of it? Is it a small amount like your dog might be straining or is there a large amount?

Straining, watery diarrhea and blood in the stool is not a good sign and a call to the veterinarian should be given.

3. Take inventory.

What did your dog eat in the last few days? Any new treats? Did you add anything new into their food like leftover pot roast? Did you give him bacon left over from breakfast? 

Before Leroy was diagnosed with IBD he would get diarrhea at anything new given to him. 

4. Know how the dog is feeling.

Are the acting like normal or are they sluggish? Do they have an appetite or are they refusing to eat? Have they vomited? Are they dehydrated?

Are you able to check their vitals such as heart rate and respiratory rate? 

What to feed a dog with diarrhea

For a dog with diarrhea, it’s normally recommended to withhold food for 12- 24 hours and then introduce a bland diet.

Withholding food allows the stomach to settle down. The worst things that an owner can do is throw q whole bunch of new foods at the dog trying to firm up the poop or get the dog to eat.

A bland diet usually consists of boiled chicken and rice, boiled ground meat and rice.

Some people will also recommend feeding white or sweet potatoes instead of rice. 

Many veterinarians will also have a bland commercial diet on hand for those who don’t want to cook. 

If diarrhea persists for more than 2 days or is accompanied by vomiting, a trip to the vet is definitely needed as this can cause a dog to become dehydrated and lead to other medical issues. 

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