Is soft puppy stool normal after metronidazole for diarrhea?

Hello. It might take 3-5 days minimum to see if the diet will work. Often, when we suspect a problem is due to a food sensitivity, the food trial is 6-8 weeks. So, it can take time to see if the diarrhea subsides. Just make sure she is drinking plenty of water & not losing weight. Also, make sure you communicate to your vet that the diarrhea did not respond to the metronidazole. She may want to continue testing, switch to another antibiotic or medication. I would also start her on a good probiotic for dogs like Proviable or FortiFlora, both should be available at most pet retailers. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I agree that this poop is quite a bright color yellow! This is not normally caused by metronidazole, so it's hard to say why it might be happening. Poop can sometimes be yellow or orange in color, and it may not mean anything in particular... so I wouldn't necessarily be concerned unless it stays this was for several days in a row, or she's having other symptoms of a problem. If she's still acting normal and this stool is improved vs. yesterday (which I'm assuming it is, since it definitely looks better than bloody diarrhea!) it should be okay to continue on her meds as prescribed by your vet, and monitor for the next few days. If her stool is not back to normal within the next 3-5 days, or if she develops other new symptoms in the meantime, then I would recommend having her rechecked by your veterinarian.

Hi and thanks for your question. If the diarrhea starts again after the metronidazole, it could any number of issues. If she was diagnosed with a parasite, like Giardia, or a bacteria, it could be she still has the parasite or bacterial present in her GI and will need another round of metronidazole. That is not totally uncommon. A viral infection may be another possibility as well as a food allergy or inflammatory bowel disease. I hope this helped!

Hi there. In my experience, it often takes 48 hours or so to see improvement in diarrhea after starting metronidazole. Full resolution of the problem may take another 2-3 days from there. So if Jake's diarrhea seems to be improving and his appetite is better, this is a good sign. I would continue with the current treatment plan prescribed by your veterinarian. If his diarrhea has not resolved in another 2-3 days, then I would recommend taking him back in for a recheck to see if some other type of treatment is needed.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. Yes, metronidazole can cause diarrhea. If you are seeing diarrhea or vomiting while on this antibiotic I would recommend discontinuing the drug and contacting the prescribing veterinarian to discuss this further. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I would add in a probiotics such as Purina fortiflora as well.

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!

This may not be unusual. Pets with diarrhea will often flush out the distal colon and it can take 2-3 days before the stool is present again in the colon. Make sure Figlio is eating well and acting normal. This is generally a good indication that he is recovering as expected. If he does not have a bowel movement after 3 days or if he seems to be feeling ill again, have him re-examined. Daily walks will help the bowels to move as well. Lastly, make sure he is drinking plenty of water. I hope this helps and that he continues to recover well.