My dog had giardia, why is her poop still soft and inconsistent?

Hi, after treatment feaces should become gradually more solid but it can take some time. THis varies according to each individual but normally within a couple of months, where you can have on and off softer stools, everything settles again.

Hello. I think this is an excellent idea. We are learning more every day about the importance of probiotics & their effects on the gut microbiome. Some dog foods even supply extra probiotics in their formulas, so this is an option. Giardia can be frustrating to deal with. Using a probiotic daily may help in combating any potential flare-ups. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Be patient and try not to panic. It is normal for stool to change during treatment for any parasitic infection. You may have better success using a very digestible prescription diet like Hills I/D for a few weeks while you're dealing with the Panacur treatment, and I would recommend adding canine probiotics to the food as well to help repopulate good gut bacteria. Finish the Panacur as prescribed. Pepper's stool will normalize with time.

Hi, Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I would recommend following up with Copper's veterinarian before his medication runs completely out. They may want to extend his prescription or recheck him. Be sure to feed whatever diet his vet has recommended with no other food or treats. Sometimes a probiotic, such as FortiFlora, can help. I would speak to his vet and follow their suggestions. Diarrhea can be caused by anything from stress to dietery indescretion to food intolerance or infection. I hope Copper is back to normal soon.

Ths can be a tricky disease to get rid of. The diarrhea caused by Giardia can lead to colitis, an inflammation in the bowel wall, which can make the diarrhea worse and/or persist despite the treatment. You will need to make sure you are cleaning up all of Kenai’s feces daily so that he does not become reinfected. It may also be helpful to ask your veterinarian about adding a probiotic to Kenai’s treatment plan. This can help the diarrhea clear up more quickly. And finally, it may be worth retesting Kenai’s feces to make sure nothing else is going on. He may need an additional antibiotic to help clear up the diarrhea. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

It definitely seems like an infection was the initial cause of the diarrhea and was well-controlled with the metronidazole. Anytime we treat for infection, we change the environment of the gut flora and it's not unusual for it to take some time for things to get back to normal after the antibiotics have been discontinued. It's also possible for the infection to return if not treated for long enough, or if the most appropriate antibiotic was not used. An increase in mucous tells me that there are issues within the colon where most fermentation by normal gut bacteria takes place. If the stools are still somewhat normal appearing (besides the excess mucous) and Giardia has been ruled-out as a cause, then I would wait a few days to see if things return to normal. You may consider adding probiotics to their diet if also advised by your veterinarian. I hope this helps and Bella and Pepper get better soon.

That depends on how soft it is and how frequently that is happening. For some dogs, their ‘normal’ is firm in the beginning of the stool and then softer (but still formed) at the end. If every thing else seems to be normal and you don’t see any problems with the whole stool being soft/loose and no liquid/unformed stool at the end, you may do nothing and just monitor for now. It may also be beneficial to take a photo of the questionable stool and post again so that we can see what you are seeing. I assume you have done all the parasite testing (including giardia) and routine deworming to rule out parasites? If I have a patient who is continuing to have a softer stool, I will often treat them with a 5 day course of Panacur just to be certain no parasites remain. I agree that if the metronidazole does not seem to be making a huge difference, I would probably shy away from that. If I suspect a bacteria cause to continued soft stool, I will often treat for 6 weeks with an antibiotic called Tylosin or I will treat for 10 days with a sulfa-type antibiotic. Lastly, a continued soft stool could also be related to food allergy. The diet you are feeding is excellent. It’s meant to break down easily and decrease the work load on the cells. This diet is very good for dogs who can’t handle the richness of most dog foods. It is not however formulated for dogs who have food allergies. That is a different immune process. Don’t be tempted to put him on a grain free diet. Most dogs who do have legitimate food allergies are not allergic to grains. Instead know for sure if it is a food allergy. The diet I recommend is made by Royal Canin and called hydrolyzed protein adult HP. Since Bentley is a boxer puppy, he is still growing. This diet is formulated to meet the requirements of growing puppies so it will both help with food allergy as well as support normal growth of his bones and soft tissue. You would conduct a food trial on him which will last for 12 weeks. The stool is normal at the end of 12 weeks, then you know it’s an allergy. I recommend to discuss any of these options with your veterinarian if the stool is still abnormal or if Bentley continues to get problems with a loose stool in general. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions!