Is it normal for my dog to have soft stools after small bowel surgery?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Yes, this would be expected as the surgical site is likely oozing a small amount of blood causing the stool to become tarry black. If this does not resolve or worsens, I would recommend having the veterinarian recheck her. I would also recommend checking her gum color and ensuring it is nice and pink. If it is pale, you need to have her seen immediately. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

No worries - it's not a dumb question at all! :) It's very common for canned food to result in softer stool, so this is the most likely cause. Antibiotics such as clindamycin (ClindaCure) can also cause soft stool or even diarrhea in some dogs, so this could be a contributing factor as well. As long as she is happy and acting normal, it shouldn't be any cause for concern.

I'm sorry to hear that Marble is having soft stool. If parasites have been ruled out, then I would suggest a diet change. A low fat and highly digestible formula with a probiotic may improve his stool quality. If that does not help, then he will likely need further blood work or an abdominal ultrasound. I hope this information helps!

Some antibiotics can cause gastrointestinal upset. I would have expected that to resolve once the antibiotics were discontinued. Since he has vomited and continues to have a soft stool, you may need to have a fecal samples checked and obtain abdominal x-rays to rule out a foreign body.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. In dogs infected with parvo virus, there can be long term health effects from the infection such as chronic gastrointestinal disease. I would recommend going on a sensitive stomach formula and adding in a probiotic to see if this helps. As always, check the stool for intestinal parasites to make sure a parasite is not the cause. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

They can and you definitely want to avoid them straining to defecate. It is best to feed very soft foods, bland and easy to digest as well. Also, your vet should have given you a type of laxative to make the stools soft until the surgery has healed. Did they do that? After the surgery has healed there should be no ill effects. Hope this helps. If you have more questions you can always opt for a private consultation where we can chat back and forth. That way you can ask as many questions as you'd like. Best wishes.

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.