Why is my dog having bloody diarrhea after heartworm treatment?

Hello, depending on which medications she has, side effects may include GI signs such as the ones you saw this morning. If she continues to have blood her stool contact your veterinarian in the morning. However, if she develops profuse watery and bloody diarrhea with other GI signs such as vomiting and inappetence then she should be seen by an emergency veterinarian. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Diarrhea can be normal after Immiticide injections, especially if he is also currently on steroids (often used concurrently to reduce inflammation and chances of embolisms). You should worry if you see signs of coughing, extreme lethargy, pale gums, not eating, or any random bleeding episodes. Other than that a little loose stool is not very concerning for a severe reaction. You can try a bland diet of boiled plain chicken and rice or cottage cheese tonight to help settle the stomach. If the diarrhea continues past 12-24 hrs then antibiotics +/- probiotics may be prescribed by your vet to help get the intestinal flora back to normal status.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! A small amount of blood can be expected not as a result of the deworming per se but more as an effect of the worms that are likely there. If if it just a small amount of possibly blood in the stools, I would continue to monitor him for now. If no improvement is noted within a few days, have him evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Your veterinarian could check if this is truly blood and see if Willow needs any other supportive therapy such as a medications for possible colitis. Good luck and have a great day!

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach! It can definitely take several days for the medication to start killing off the intestinal parasites. Blood can be expected in small amounts due to the irritation / inflammation that the worms cause in the intestines. Once the worms have been killed, this should resolve. I would consider putting Tucker on a bland diet for 3-5 days to see if this helps resolve the bloody stool. If the blood becomes more pronounced or you are still seeing worms in the stool 7-14 days after giving the treatment I would bring him back to your vet for further treatment. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. In the meantime, you can also initiate a bland diet as outlined below to see if this helps reduce any further irritation in the GI tract. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet.

These signs could be compatible with an inflammation infection of the gastrointestinal system and surrounding organs (like pancreas and liver). Intestinal worms seem to be the cause of it but secondary infections may be present. A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is immediately essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics and possibly further investigations (like abdominal imaging as ultrasound or radiographs) may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

It is likely still an intestinal parasite problem. I would have her stool retested to ensure she doesn't still have parasites. It is not uncommon for pets to require several rounds of medication to rid them of parasites, especially if they had a large load to begin with. Another possibility is that Princess's GI flora is unbalanced. A round of probiotics is recommended if her stool is normal. https://www.chewy.com/purina-pro-plan-veterinary-diets/dp/49853 I hope that Princess's stool resolves soon! Best wishes and take care.

He could have colitis secondary to something he ate. You could feed him a bland diet of chicken breast and white rice for a few days and see if that helps. You could also add a probiotic to his diet, like Fortiflora or Proviable. If the abnormal stools continue then he should be examined by a vet to determine the cause and treat. Your vet can run a fecal test to make sure he doesn't have a parasite.