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My puppy is lethargic, not eating, loose stools. Is it teething?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Leonberger | Female | unspayed | 50 lbs

I have a puppy Leonburger female that is 4 months old. She has tripled n weight over last 2 months. Suddenly, she stopped eating much and is drinking very little. She wants to sleep most of time. Stools are loose. Ran x rays for objects in stomach. Negative. Has had all shots. She is teething quite bad and is growing eveytime I see her. Is this growing pains or could be other cause?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on February 7th, 2017

Poor Belle! I'm not sure if she is up to date her deworming treatments, but if she isn't, that is a common cause of loose stools in puppies. Get a deworming treatment from the vet to get her up to date on them if she isn't. Teething can cause a puppy to be very lethargic and not want to eat much. I recommend getting her some teething chew toys that you can put in the freezer. Have a cold and hard toy will be soothing to her sore gums, and you can get one of these from the pet store. I would try softening her dry food by soaking it in gently warmed low sodium beef or chicken broth, which may tempt her to eat. You can also try feeding her small amounts of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice. Hopefully, these methods will ease her gums and tempt Belle to eat.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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