Why is my dog's digestion slower and stools worse on new food?

Excess fillers and fiber will increase stool amounts. This is not necessarily "bad" unless the stool is soft or runny. A food that is more nutrient dense will require less to feed and will result in less stool production. Nutro and Blue Buffalo are quality foods and either are acceptable to feed Shadow. The Blue Buffalo may be a "hotter" food (one with a higher percentage of protein, carbs, etc) which is likely partly responsible for Shadow's weight gain. This could be remedied by increasing exercise and activity, limiting treats and table food "snacks" and by decreasing the amount of Blue Buffalo that is fed at each meal. If you are fine with the additional stool production, no change is recommended. If you would like to pick up less stool, consider switching slowly back to Blue Buffalo and following the advice listed above.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! You may need to feed the i/d stew for a few days in a row to appreciate a difference in stool. But Chloe's stool may look the same on both diets. The stool is normal in each picture, so I'm not sure what the goal with her stool is. I hope this helps!

Most of Natural Balance's foods are limited ingredient or high-quality ingredients, so they should be fine to feed. If you've transitioned recently from dry to wet it may be that the higher amount of liquid in the wet diet is increasing the stool volume slightly. As long as it isn't runny, discolored, or distressful to Chloe when she goes potty, this is fine.

If he's eating less fiber/volume or has had a change in diet while healing, it can be normal to see a reduction (or increase) in stool size, volume, or frequency. As long as he seems to be going normally when he does go, and doesn't seem in distress, I would just keep an eye on him. If the stool becomes bloody, is frequently diarrhea, Romeo has a sore or tender abdomen, or he seems to be having other symptoms in addition, a recheck with your vet is best.

That stool looks normal to me. There are a lot of factors that may be causing Chloe to poop more on the new food including the fiber content of the new diet. If she is otherwise acting normally you don't have to switch Chloe's food because defecating more frequently is not an issue as long as the stool is well formed. Because you state that Chloe is not very active you may want to consider a lower calorie food to prevent weight gain. An all canned food diet can also help to prevent weight gain. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Honestly both stools look fine. I would encourage you to proceed with the diet that Choe prefers. If she likes to have 1/2 of each then that would be good too. If at any point she develops diarrhea then it could be indicated to try something else. Good luck and have a great day!

Changing diets can certainly cause changes in stool appearance and size. The Royal Canin hypoallergenic diet is a higher quality diet than Kibbles and Bits, which typically results in less waste due to fewer filler ingredients. Higher quality diets often result in slightly smaller and less frequent stools. If Spock had an obstruction, I would expect profuse vomiting, anorexia and lethargy, so this sounds unlikely. As long as Spock is eating and active with no evidence of vomiting or diarrhea, it doesn't sound like there is cause for concern! :-)