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Best food for 5-month puppy with diarrhea and sensitive stomach?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Male | unneutered | 5 months and 5 days old | 23 lbs

Hi, what is the best puppy food for my 5-month-old puppy? He seems to have a sensitive stomach. Had mild diarrhea almost constantly with Diamond puppy food and then we switched to Taste of the Wild he vomited and horrible diarrhea. We went to chicken and rice, was great with firm poops, now we are transitioning to Wellness puppy chicken, and diarrhea is starting again.

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Ana M, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on April 4th, 2018

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Giacomo. I'm sorry to hear you are having all of these problems with him. About 75% of the time ongoing diarrhea in puppies is related to intestinal parasites or diet. So have your veterinarian ensure he does not have any parasites including giardia. If he is negative and has been properly dewormed, I should start him on a prescription low fat diet that is highly digestible. I use Purina ProPlan Veterinary Diets EN as it is safe for use in growing puppies. If this diet does not resolve the diarrhea, he may require a diet for a food allergy such as a hydrolyzed formula. I hope this information helps!

2Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS
Veterinarian
Published on July 6th, 2017
Congrats on your new puppy, but I'm sorry that he isn't eating and has diarrhea. Chapati isn't a healthy or balanced diet for a puppy, Naughty needs a puppy formulated food. He likely has the diarrhea from the changes in diet from dog food to chapati. I can give you a home remedy to try to see if that helps the diarrhea, but he does need to be on a puppy formulated food. Moving into a new home is stressful, so he may not eat due to this stress. It will take time for him to adjust, but clear up the diarrhea first and then deal with the not eating dog food. Withhold food for 8-12 hours, then feed a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days. Then slowly add back in his normal diet of puppy food. Mix the bland diet in with the puppy food, and over the course of a week, slowly increase the puppy food and decrease the bland diet until he is eating the puppy food only. I hope this helps!
2Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Laura Johnson VMD
Veterinarian
Published on September 21st, 2017
Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Causes of diarrhea are: intestinal parasites, viral or bacterial infections, dietary discretion, food allergies or food sensitivities.

If Fred is up to date on vaccines and has had a fecal sample run recently then I would suggest a probiotic and consider changing his puppy food to a novel protein diet. The most common allergic protein in dog food is chicken. I would suggest changing him to duck, venison or a fish based diet. Eliminate all human table food and all treats that are not made up of the new protein. Diet trials can take 2-3 months to see if they work. I like Purina Fortiflora for a probiotic.

If a fecal has not been run by your Vet, drop one off to have it checked.

I hope this helps and good luck!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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