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My 12-week Lab puppy has diarrhea after food changes. What to do?
Updated on September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Female | unspayed | 2 months and 22 days old | 35 lbs
We have a 12 week old Lab Puppy, we were switching her food gradually from Tuffy’s Puppy Gold to Blue Buffalo Puppy. For 2 1/2 weeks she had diarrhea, still drank normal and her normal energy level. On Sat we put her on chicken and rice after we had eliminated her treats as the source. Her accidents stopped during this time as well. Last night I started adding Hills Science diet to her dinner, maybe 1/8 cup and she had a very soft stool this morning. Not diarrhea though. Any thoughts?? Thanks!
5 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH
Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner
Published on April 11th, 2018
The most common reason that we will see diarrhea in a puppy is some type of intestinal parasite. You didn't mention if your vet has checked a stool sample, but puppies can commonly have intestinal parasites. Some are microscopic, so the only way to know that they have them is for your vet to look under the microscope. And even if a puppy has been dewormed, it is common for them to have other intestinal parasites since there are no many different types of parasites and they each require a specific type of deworming. So, my first recommendation is to have your veterinarian do a fecal check on Baylee, then decide on any other treatment.
You didn't mention if she had normal stool (or any stool) on the chicken and rice diet. Generally, I recommend continuing chicken and rice until they have been passing normal stool for 48 hours, then start a gradual transition back to the normal diet. If Baylee is sensitive to food changes, you may only be able to change 10% of her food each day, so it may take 10 days to completely transition her food to prevent GI upset.
Diarrhea that continues for more than a few days, or is associated with blood in the stool, vomiting, lethargy or a poor appetite is a reason for a visit to your veterinarian. There are anti-diarrheal medications that your veterinarian can prescribe. Sometimes puppies need a probiotic for their intestinal tract depending on their age and diet history, so be sure to talk to your veterinarian about that as well.
I have attached a couple of links below with more information for you.
Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.co/article/most-common-causes-of-diarrhea-in-dogs/
Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.co/article/6-things-you-can-do-at-home-if-your-pet-has-diarrhea/
Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpfulRelated Answers from Veterinarians
Answered By Dr. B. DVM, DACVIM (Oncology)
Veterinarian
Published on March 3rd, 2019
You are correct that a sudden diet change can cause diarrhea. Stress can as well. There are also other things as well that are common in puppies like GI parasites and parvovirus so make sure the rescue/shelter has dewormed him. If he is eating well, his energy level is normal, there is no vomiting, and there is no blood in the stool this is good. Do you have access to the previous diet? If not, you can try a bland diet for a few days (chicken/rice) to see if this helps. If it does not help or the symptoms above show up he should see your vet. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on March 26th, 2018
It is definitely a good sign that he is eating and drinking well. Diarrhea is a common problem with dogs and is usually self-limiting (will go away on its own). It doesn't appear to be serious right now, but it's always possible that it could be the start of something serious. If Chewy has any of the following, then he should see a vet:
1) Blood in diarrhea
2) Very watery diarrhea
3) Starts acting very depressed
4) Stops eating or drinking for longer than 24 hours.
You can help him get through this by feeding bland food (boneless chicken and rice is good). Feed small portions (1/2 cup or less) three times a day. You can also add probiotics to the food (can get this at the pet store), which has demonstrated some efficacy for improving diarrhea. Ensure fresh, clean water is always available.
I hope this helps and Chewy gets better soon.1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Jeffrey Milner
Veterinarian
Published on July 16th, 2017
It is certainly possible that various types of food can cause diarrhea. However, I would definitely make sure there are no gastrointestinal parasites causing the diarrhea. These are extremely common as findings in young puppies. I would either obtain a fecal sample and bring it to your vet for analysis, or get a broad spectrum dewormer such as Drontal to treat with. As for dietary change, if you plan to try a different puppy food make sure to switch over a few days at the very least. A sudden switch might just make matters worse. I would also consider adding in a canine probiotic, such as Fortiflora, to help right the ship in the GI tract. Hope this helps! Hope Sarge is feeling better soon.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Susan England-Foster
Veterinarian
Published on July 19th, 2017
I would make sure that ruger has had a good deworming. I would recommend picking up his feces and throwing it away for at least two weeks. IT is possible that Ruger is having gastric upset related to his food. I would recommend doing boiled chicken and white rice for 48 hours- than slowly mix in a new dry food with the bland diet. If the diarrhea returns I would recommend taking him to a vet incase he needs antibiotics to resolve the diarrhea completely. You can also use an over the counter probiotic to help firm up the stool.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful