Why does my dog's poop have mucus or look like jelly sometimes?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While this could be parasites, this is likely some degree of colitis. You can add a probiotic to her diet such as Fortiflora. You can use it for 1-2 weeks to see if it makes a difference. If it does not, you can consider switching to a sensitive stomach type diet. If no improvement, have her evaluated by your veterinarian so that the stools can be assessed. If she develops diarrhea at any point before then at that point she should definitely be evaluated by her veterinarian. Good luck!

There is always some mucus in stool. It aids in defecation. An increased amount can be due to some inflammation in the intestine. If she had intestinal parasites and was recently treated, this could be the cause. If she is behaving normally, you can monitor her at home. Consider a bland diet in small, frequent amounts until the stool is normal then transition slowly to her regular diet. Symptoms that should be addressed by your veterinarian include lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite or abdominal pain.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Molly. Mucus typically indicates inflammation in the colon. So there is still a problem going on with her. It is generally fine to continue the bland diet, but I recommend that she sees her veterinarian for fecal testing. I hope this information helps!

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You are seeing some mucous on the stool. Mucous usually occurs when there is some inflammation in the colon. In a young dog, it could be parasites, something odd he ate, or it indicates a sensitivity to something like an allergen. If he is feeling well, eating normally, then I would not be too concerned. If he has not had a stool check done, I would definitely have it evaluated by your veterinarian. He may need to have his diet changed, but I would not just start buying different puppy foods. If you continue to see the mucous, please call your vet. Take care.

Hello! It would be helpful to know for sure if the feces contained a piece of string. If so, it's worrisome that Shadow ate string and that there may be additional pieces stuck in her intestinal tract. This would require a vet visit for an x-ray and possible abdominal surgery. However, if it's only mucous, it may be that she has a bout of colitis. This can be caused by diet change, bacteria, or parasites, and usually treated with a bland diet and probiotics or other medications. If you are unsure whether it was a string, it would be safest to have her evaluated by a vet. Even if it is colitis, she could benefit from evaluation and treatment, especially because she is having less energy.

That looks like mucus rather than worms. It is not normal and is caused by irritation in the colon for some reason. I'd recommend feeding each dog a bit of glitter or crayon shards with their normal food (easiest with canned food, or their kibble moistened with water) and note which color you give you which pup, and see who ends up producing the abnormal stool sample, so you can take them to the vet. Hope that helps!

Hi there! Although dogs can get diarrhea from worms, there are other reasons why, including bacterial infections, or even dietary indiscretion (eating something out of the ordinary that they shouldn't), that can cause it. From the description of the mucous, it could very well be colitis - or inflammation of the colon or large bowel. Also, fleas carry tapeworms, so sometimes the over the counter de-wormers don't take care of those. You can try a fast of 12 hours of no food, and very little water. After that period of time, 1/3-1/2 of their normal portion of food in the form of boiled or steamed lean protein such as chicken breast or ground turkey (no sauce or seasoninng) can be introduced. If the diarrhea seems like it's improving, or it stops, every 12 hours you can increase the portion little by little until it's back to the normal portion of food. If the diarrhea is not improving, both dogs should be evaluated by their veterinarian. It is important to make sure that the dogs are not getting too dehydrated from the diarrhea (as even though they may be drinking, they lose way more fluid than they can take in sometimes with diarrhea). The veterinarian can also give them some medications to help with the diarrhea, like, for example, some antibiotics to help re-balance the bacterial populations in the gut. At any time, if vomiting starts in addition to the diarrhea, I always advise to have the pet(s) evaluated immediately, because this can indicate an intestinal blockage, or a severe gastrointestinal infection or diffuse inflammation. All of those issues need to be addressed immediately. If the diarrhea does improve with the bland diet, I always advise to feed it until there is 48-72 hours of normal, solid stools. Then, you can transition the dogs back to their normal diet, gradually, over the course of 5-7 days (as switching too quickly can actually cause diarrhea). You can find a food transition guide here: https://www.hillspet.com/dog-care/nutrition-feeding/how-to-transition-my-dogs-food Best of luck!