What causes a senior dog to stop eating, diarrhea, and bloody stools?

Blood in faeces can be due to many disorders. It can be due to inflammation due to eating something off, ranging all the way to more serious issues such as tumours of the gut. Due to the many possibilities it is imperative to have the dog examined by a vet. This is the quickest and most reliable way to get to the bottom of what is going on. Hopefully it will be something fairly straightforward.

Blood in the stool, even if it seems to "go away" and come back later, is never normal. The fact that it's accompanied by diarrhea suggests colitis, or inflammation of the colon, as opposed to some type of bleeding mass in the rectum or colon. Colitis can have a number of causes, including dietary indiscretion (eating something rotten or non-food), parasites, food allergies/food sensitivities, inflammatory bowel disease, or infection. Leah may improve with a diet change, perhaps a more digestible diet specifically for gastrointestinal problems. To assume it's a "tummy issue" could be to ignore causes that are treatable, and at this point she's not only having diarrhea but she also lost her appetite. It's been three days and she's not improving, so I recommend having her seen by her vet for labwork to include parasite testing, blood work, and urinalysis for starters. If all is normal consider a bland diet (as recommended above), and a probiotic supplement. Ultimately, she may need to have biopsies taken to diagnose the exact cause.

Poor Skittles! It sounds like she's quite sick. Bloody diarrhea and not eating are always symptoms that warrant a vet visit, so I would recommend taking her in for an exam as soon as possible. She may have a systemic illness like liver or kidney disease, a serious GI issue like pancreatitis or HGE (hemorrhagic gastroenteritis), or may have ingested something toxic. Your veterinarian can do blood work or other testing if needed to help diagnose the problem and get her started on appropriate treatment.

There are many different causes for chronic diarrhea in older dogs, none of which are usually great news. The best and shortest list I can provide you is the following: lymphoma of the GI tract, inflammatory bowel disease, lymphangiectasia, liver disease, gastrointestinal parasites, and/or nutritional deficiencies like lack of vitamin B12. Since you have mostly ruled out GI parasites, I would recommend beginning to investigate the possibilities of some of the others I have listed. In order to do this, you will need to obtain some blood work with your vet (baseline plus the B12 test), then work out whether or not he/she can do ultrasound / endoscopy to rule in / out the other conditions I have listed. Hope this makes sense. Best of luck.

Lucy could have a mild case of inflammatory bowel disease, a food intolerance, or an intermittent infection. The blood is somewhat concerning. I recommend discussing with your veterinarian if they would like to do any tests on Lucy or any medication. Your veterinarian may do this via a phone consultation or may require an exam first.

I would recommend that you talk to your vet about an abdominal ultrasound. Also, if your vet has not performed a rectal exam, that would also be a good thing to ask about. Since he is 11, my biggest concern would be a potential tumor. It could also be that he has inflammatory bowel disease. You could also use a probiotic for him which may be beneficial. Talk to your vet about a fiber supplement such as Metamucil as well, which could also be helpful. Thanks for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

It seems as Shorty is suffering from a gastrointestinal condition, possibly an infection. it could also be due to ingestion of a foreign body material or a tumor in the intestines. i would recommend taking her to the vet the first chance you get, she will need to be checked first, if the vet thinks it's a simple gastrointestinal infection she will need an antibiotic course and a special food for a few days in order to get better.