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Why does my dog have diarrhea after switching to high protein adult food?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Male | unneutered | 1 year and 1 month old | 59 lbs

My boy has diarrhea for three weeks now. Took him to the vet they told me to give bland diet and gave him matricidal so did that and he still had diarrhea. So took him back to vet and they did x rays and blood work and checked for fever all came back normal he was a little deyhrated but not bad. The only thing that changed is we took him off puppy food merrick puppy food grain free chicken and gave him merrick grain free adult food chicken. Puppy food only 21% protein adult food 38% .

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on April 23rd, 2018

That is quite a high protein content for food, the recommended percent of protein in an adult dog's diet is 18-25%. It may be the switch in food to this higher protein could be the cause of his diarrhea. Since you have seen the vet and everything has come back normal, you might want to consider putting him on a diet with less protein. Sometimes certain brands of food do not agree with a dog's system, so you can look into a different brand. Brands I recommend include Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Purina ProPlan, and Iams. I personally do not recommend grain free diets unless the dog has a diagnosed grain allergy, which is actually very rare. In dogs who suffer from allergies, only 10% have food allergies, and the majority of those are protein related. Grains really are beneficial to dogs, providing a lasting source of energy and fiber. In addition, recent studies have show that diets who use lentils instead of grains negatively affects the dog's absorption of taurine. This has lead to taurine deficient dilated cardiomyopathy later in life. If you really want to stay with grain free food, maybe try one with a different source of protein because chicken is the most common protein allergy. Best of luck, I hope this helps!
Vote Icon1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

  • Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 28th, 2017

    There is no one answer to your question. This is subjective because just like in people, digestion varies from individual to individual. Blander proteins are thought to be easier to digest so something like chicken or turkey but that is not a proven scientific fact.

    It may not be the protein source causing the issue but it may be the dyes or fillers in the food. You didn't mention what you are feeding at the present time so I can't comment on that.

    My suggestion would be to not change the diet but to start feeding a probiotic and a multivitamin to see if that helps. If it doesn't then you may want to consider changing the diet or have a fecal test done by your vet.

    I recommend this probiotic but you can use any one that is made for dogs. Do not use human probiotics or dairy. I would feed it for at least one month. One packet on their food once a day.

    http://www.allivet.com/p-1130-purina-pro-plan-veterinary-diets-fortiflora-dog-supplement-box-of-30.aspx

    This multivitamin would be my choice but again, you can use any one that is made for dogs.

    https://www.chewy.com/dr-harveys-multi-vitamin-mineral/dp/121676

    Hope this helps. Best wishes.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

  • Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 21st, 2018

    Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

    Most dogs that have good allergies are actually allergic to the meat protein. Chicken being the biggest offender. I would suggest a non-chicken based food and if you prefer grain free you can find those. If you are already using a non chicken diet be sure that this is a strict diet, meaning no table food and all treats are non-chicken. You could also try a prescription hydrolyzed diet like Royal Canin HP, Purina HA or Hill’s z/d. OTC novel protein diets have been found to contain traces of chicken when tested.

    I hope this helps!

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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