Why does my energetic dog have chronic diarrhea and lose weight?

This is a horrible situation for you and Joe. Many diseases can cause diarrhoea both in the gut and outside of it from othervorgans such as the liver. It is promising that the ultrasound was unremarkable but some subtle changes may not be noted. I would suggest asking your vet to perform a full blood profile including folate and cobalamun, bile acids and endocrine profile. If nothing shows up on these bloods the next step would be endoscopy and biopsies of the gut. For example he could have an inflammatory bowel disease that will only respond to steroids, or it could be a vit B12 deficiency, so It is important to get to the bottom of this.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be due to many conditions such as chronic pancreatitis, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), an infection, among other possibilities. Other diagnostics that could be considered at this point include an abdominal ultrasound, fecal infection test and GI panel. This should be a good starting point for Jackson. Given the complexity of this case, they could check in with an internal medicine specialist for a possible referral. Best of luck!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Cooper. I am sorry to hear about his problems. Has he had blood work to test his cobalamin and folate levels? These are vitamins used in digestion. He should also be tested for pancreatitis and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. These can be evaluated on the same blood panel. He should have fecal testing and deworming. If these options do provide a diagnosis, then I recommend an abdominal ultrasound. I hope this information helps!

I hate to hear this is happening. Any dogs with chronic diarrhea that does not respond to OTC diets needs to be examined by the veterinarian. She may have a parasite, a bacterial issue or she may need a prescription diet meant for dogs with dietary intolerance or food allergy. Blonca will need some diagnostics. And the doctor will need a good idea of what diets you have tried in the past. I hope this helps.

I am sorry to hear that your dog isn’t feeling well. Many different problems can cause the signs your are seeing. These include Addison’s disease, kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and exocrine pancreatic Insufficiency , and even cancer. EPI is common in shepherds and this could certainly happen in young dogs. Ideally an examination and blood work should be done by a veterinarian for a diagnosis. If that is the problem then adding pancreatic enzymes such as Prozyme and feeding a bland diet such as hills i/d can make a big difference. Best of luck and I hope you get an answer soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

I'm sorry Diesel isn't doing well! If he had pancreatitis, you would see symptoms such as repeated vomiting, vomiting undigested food, a hunched pain, a painful abdomen, a distended abdomen, diarrhea, loss of appetite, dehydration, and lethargy. Diesel would be extremely ill if he had pancreatitis, and from what you are describing, I would be inclined to think he doesn't have it. It is possible that he does have cancer even if your vet didn't feel any masses in his abdomen. There can still be tumors even if they can't be palpated, and cancer would cause him to eat and lose weight. Cancer can also cause diarrhea. Certain cancers also do not show any changes in blood work. I recommend having further testing done on him, such as x-rays or an ultrasound of his abdomen. These would help visualize if he has any tumors in his abdomen, and further testing such as a biopsy of them can be done if any are found. Unfortunately cancer is very common in senior dogs. I recommend having him seen by your vet again to discuss further testing. I hope this helps!

German Shepherd Dogs are predisposed to a disease called Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI) which causes chronic diarrhea and weight loss due to maldigestion. This disease is fairly simple to diagnose and treat. Here is a link with more information on this disease: https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1627