4 month old french bulldog diarrhea problem

Niurou

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Good evening, I have a 4 month old french bulldog named Coby. He has soft poop/diarrhea problem since we got him four weeks ago. His poop was soft and thin when we first got him. He was feeding royal canin medium puppy food. A week later his poop got even softer and had mucus in it. We then switch to IAMs puppy food and the problem is still there. A few days after we switch the food, his poop had a little bit blood in it. So we took the poop sample to see the Vet. The Vet check Coby said the temperature is ok, and gave us dewormer and metronidazole. Coby had dewormer and metronidazole after that, and it did not help. A few days later, the facal sample result is out, the vet said is ok. He just gave us some dog vitamin and progut plus. The progut did help a little, but after we stop, the diarrhea came back again. I talked to a lady works at shelter, she recommended feed coby rice for few day and gradually move to raw food. Coby's poop was ok when he eating rice, but couple days ago when we stop the rice, the diarrhea came back.
I don't want to go back to the vet, cause he just keep push me to buy his special royal canin dog food. I talked to one of my coworker who has a french bulldog. He said his dog had the same problem unitl 2 years old. Is this a common problem for french bulldog? Can I do anything to stop it? Any ideas will be welcome.
 

Niurou

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Coby is a little bit skiny because we feed him rice for a while and we cut the food because diarrhea. He slept quite bit, about 16 hours a day. He ate so fast, usually can finish his meal in 15 seconds.
 

2bullymama

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Did the vet check for giardia? thin, mucus and blood in poo is usually a sign of giardia and most vets do not commonly check for it in the regular parasite testing.

also, food -- raw is the best way to go, royal canin, IAMs are crap .. a lot of fillers and no real nutrition. I would feed your pup a bland diet , rice or egg noodles with boiled ground turkey till you get him settled.
 

Mavis

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I agree; I would suspect a parasite because of his age and the fact that he came to you with it. From what I understand, giardia is very common in puppies.If may take several courses of treatment to lick this as giardia can be very stubborn. Get baby Coby on a good food that will give him the nutrients that he needs. Tell the vet "thanks, but no thanks" when he tries to push Royal Canin. If he insists, tell him that you have Coby on a highly rated food and are comfortable with your choice. Good luck and please keep us posted.
 

Cbrugs

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Yes, make the sure vet tested specifically for giardia.

And do not feed RC or Iams, both are really poor quality and may not be helping the situation. Raw would be the best option but if you don't want to go that route, that are some high quality kibbles out there like Fromm, Acana, Orijen, Zignature just to name a few. The Honest Kitchen is a dehydrated raw and all you do is soak it in warm water for a few minutes.

Try a bland diet for a few days of rice and either chicken or turkey or even hamburger meat. You can also try adding in a a bit of pure pumpkin (not the pie filling). Also continue with a probiotic.
 

Niurou

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Thanks for the reply. The thing I don't understand when we feed Coby rice, his poop seems ok. If he has giardia, would he had diarrhea as well?
Really appreciated your guys help, I will collect the poop sample to test the giardia.
 

Niurou

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Also When I feed him raw food, he poop way less than the kibble food(3 times a day compare to 7-8 times a day).
 

Cbrugs

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Thanks for the reply. The thing I don't understand when we feed Coby rice, his poop seems ok. If he has giardia, would he had diarrhea as well?
Really appreciated your guys help, I will collect the poop sample to test the giardia.

Also When I feed him raw food, he poop way less than the kibble food(3 times a day compare to 7-8 times a day).

I would just call the vet and ask them if they tested for giardia. They might have so then you don't have to pay for another test.

And yes, when fed raw they poop less. Jax eats raw and usually only poops once a day, sometimes 2.
 

Carbrohux

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We are actually dealing with Giardia on a new pup right now. All same symptoms. After 6 days on meds he seems to be doing better. We have another fecal check next week. I hope you guys get it sorted out, I know how rough and worrisome it can be.
 

Niurou

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I would just call the vet and ask them if they tested for giardia. They might have so then you don't have to pay for another test.

And yes, when fed raw they poop less. Jax eats raw and usually only poops once a day, sometimes 2.

Just got back from Vet, and he was not happy that I asked so many questions about the poop sample. I specific asked did they test the giardia, he said he was not sure. I picked up some panacur from Vet(in canada you can only buy it from vet) that the breeder recommended, we will see how is that goes. Coby is getting a little bit better in last couple days, I cross my finger.
 

Niurou

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We are actually dealing with Giardia on a new pup right now. All same symptoms. After 6 days on meds he seems to be doing better. We have another fecal check next week. I hope you guys get it sorted out, I know how rough and worrisome it can be.
what kind of treament are you doing? My vet gave me panacur and probiotics, I don't even know if that would help or not. He wouldn't tell me if the giardia test result.
 

Honeys Owners

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what kind of treament are you doing? My vet gave me panacur and probiotics, I don't even know if that would help or not. He wouldn't tell me if the giardia test result.

Quite often they treat giardia with panacur and metronidazole at same time, although panacur is the mainstay. I think it's a good idea to retreat without testing after two weeks, since it's hard to eradicate with one treatment. Quite often testing doesn't show giardia even if dog has it. Also make sure to clean dog and surroundings daily to help prevent recurrence.
 

Cbrugs

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Just got back from Vet, and he was not happy that I asked so many questions about the poop sample. I specific asked did they test the giardia, he said he was not sure. I picked up some panacur from Vet(in canada you can only buy it from vet) that the breeder recommended, we will see how is that goes. Coby is getting a little bit better in last couple days, I cross my finger.

That’s interesting. You should be able to ask all the questions you want. And he should know what parasites were tested as he’s the o e that ordered it. That be a red flag to find a new vet.

Jax has had giardia twice and both times he was treated with Panacur. Be sure to give a probiotic as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Carbrohux

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That's exactly what we are using. Yesterday was his last treatment, symptoms have already improved a lot. Although our vet said it could still take longer for his stool to go back to solid. I find it odd your vet can't give you a straight answer on testing, how incredibly frustrating. And yes keep everything as clean as possible, pick up poo right away and dispose of. Sending best wishes your way for quick healing.
 

Niurou

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That’s interesting. You should be able to ask all the questions you want. And he should know what parasites were tested as he’s the o e that ordered it. That be a red flag to find a new vet.

Jax has had giardia twice and both times he was treated with Panacur. Be sure to give a probiotic as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I guess I should use another vet next time
 

Niurou

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That's exactly what we are using. Yesterday was his last treatment, symptoms have already improved a lot. Although our vet said it could still take longer for his stool to go back to solid. I find it odd your vet can't give you a straight answer on testing, how incredibly frustrating. And yes keep everything as clean as possible, pick up poo right away and dispose of. Sending best wishes your way for quick healing.
Thanks. I will wash his bed and toys tomorrow. I did ask the vet if Giardia was found in his sample. He said that was not the case. But the animal hospital we went to 3 times, we met 3 different doctor. At least the last one didn’t push us buying the special Royal Canin food
 

Niurou

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That's exactly what we are using. Yesterday was his last treatment, symptoms have already improved a lot. Although our vet said it could still take longer for his stool to go back to solid. I find it odd your vet can't give you a straight answer on testing, how incredibly frustrating. And yes keep everything as clean as possible, pick up poo right away and dispose of. Sending best wishes your way for quick healing.

Hi, just wondering how is your puppy doing? My puppy coby was ok when he is on medicine, but the diarrhea came back right away after he finished his medicine. He was feeling much better when on medicine, way more active and sleep way less. We washed his bed, toys, clean the floor with bleach, gave him bath couple times. I feel really frustrated:(
 

Tgirl

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Poor baby. What exactly are you feeding now? I read through everything, forgive me if I missed it.

Is his weight good? Not too thin?
 

Niurou

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Poor baby. What exactly are you feeding now? I read through everything, forgive me if I missed it.

Is his weight good? Not too thin?

He is still a little bit thin, a little bit over than 11 lbs. I am feeding him raw food right now. Just like I said when he is on panacur, he is ok. The poop still a little bit soft, but at least in shape. When we stop the panacur, the diarrhea came back right away. The other thing I noticed is he slept more when he has diarrhea, I think he must have some internal infection cause that.
 

Niurou

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Here is information about the raw food
BC-Beef & Chicken Blend
Our Beef is top quality muscle meat not trim or scraps and not full of blood Ingredients:60% Beef muscle meat, 8.5% Bison liver, 20% chicken, 5% apples, 5% carrots, 0.5% spinach,0.5%bananas, 0.5% pumpkin, dehydrated eggs, molasses, apple cider vinegar, parsley flakes, sunflower oil, MSM, & Glucosamine.
we aslo add some plain yogurt in his meal as well.
 
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