My 14-year-old dog is losing weight and has diarrhea. What to do?

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. Based on the history and his age, I would recommend having boo examined by a veterinarian and having his blood tested to see if there are any systemic changes that would explain his symptoms. I would also recommend starting a bland diet as outlined below. The sooner Boo is seen the better. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I am also available via consultation if needed. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet.

If this was caused by a food change I would expect him to be back to normal by now. There may be something else underlying going on here that is the cause of Zebco's diarrhea and weight loss, such as intestinal parasites, pancreatic disease, diabetes, or even thyroid disease. I would recommend taking him to your vet for a through examination and potential tests (bloodwork, fecal exam), to hopefully identify the underlying problem so that he is treated appropriately. In the meantime I would suggest feeding Zebco a bland diet of boiled plain chicken and rice or cottage cheese to help settle his stomach a bit. You can also try adding 1-2 tsp of canned pumpkin (not the pie filling) in his food daily to add fiber and help harden the stools up. Best wishes with Zebco and I hope he feels better soon.

Dogs are very stoic about showing pain, and if Dash has lost so much weight that you are now seeing his bones, he will be painful. He has to see a vet asap. It's very serious he has had diarrhea for four months, you can see his bones, and he acts like he is starving all the time. He could be suffering from diabetes, liver failure, kidney failure, or cancer among other causes. He needs veterinary care now, please take him into a vet right away.

I am concerned that something serious is going on with your dog. I understand there may be no vets nearby but I think in this case ironworks be worth making a trip to a nearby city or town to seek out help. Vomiting and diarrhea together is commonly referred to as gastroenteritis. There can be several causes for gastroenteritis such as metabolic issues, pancreatitis, dietary indiscretion, intestinal parasites and a foreign body/blockage. Because this has been going on for a while and your dog is losing weight I would recommend taking your dog to the vet to be evaluated. Your vet may recommend blood work and X-rays to figure out what exactly is going on. Your dog may need fluid if dehydrated, nausea medication and antibiotics. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Poor Dexter! The vomiting and diarrhea could be due to many conditions including eating something he shouldn’t have, bacterial over growth, parasites or even an intestinal blockage. If the diarrhea has continued beyond 24 hours, I recommend to have him examined by the veterinarian. If he has not eaten well for the past 24 hours, I recommend to have him examined by the veterinarian. With continued diarrhea, there are often bacterial shifts in the gut that will make matters worse regardless of the initial cause. Make sure to bring in a sample of fresh stool. The doctor will check him for parasites and bacterial over growth. Puppies generally have a big appetite so when they aren't eating well, it's concerning for a more serious cause of illness. Some times a bland diet can help and then a slow, gradual introduction to the normal food can be done. A bland diet can consist of 25% boiled white meat chicken and 75% boiled white rice. This should all be plain. Have Dexter examined if needed. I hope he starts feeling better quickly! Please feel free to post any additional questions.

I would definitely recommend some blood work, if this hasn't been done recently. Older dogs are prone to a number of health issues that can cause decreased appetite along with being less active - chronic kidney disease and hypothyroidism are two possibilities that are both very common. In many cases, these issues are treatable (at least to some extent) once a diagnosis is made, so it's well worth checking for them if you can - hopefully, there are some things you can do to make him feel better for as long as possible, even though he's getting older.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Based on your description, it is difficult to say for sure what the primary problem is as there are many causes of these symptoms. I do worry about him becoming dehydrated from the diarrhea. If this is a persistent problem and he is losing weight, I would recommend having him examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I would have his blood tested in addition to the examination to begin with and go from there. I hope this helps and that Woody gets better soon! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.