Danidelion
New member
- Dec 25, 2016
- 2
- 0
- Country
- USA
- Bulldog(s) Names
- Hugo
Hugo, my old english, has had chronic diarrhea off and on since we got him at 4mo old. I think his breeder was feeding him like 6 cups a day of diamond puppy food, at that time. We gradually, (over 2wks??) Switched over to Pure Balance chicken &brown rice formula. That didnt do anything immediately, but after awhile the diarrhea seemed to get better. It is just hit/miss from one day to the next. Probably has really soft stoolsq on average about 1-2/wk. Not profuse quantities- still drinks normally, eats normally, poos normal #times (2-4 times/day for him whether runny or not); We also know that stress gives him diarrhea, so when we moved our camper and drove 1900 miles, and he had diarrhea after we moved, it didn't really surprise me. But fast forward 3 weeks... it is still much more diarrhea than usual even for him. Every day, and probably half and half between runny and soft serv consistency. Tried fasting, rice &chicken seemed to help but only while feeding him about 1c rice and 1/2c chicken, 1tbsp pumpkin, and 1c chicken broth.... did that 2 days then added dog food back in, now back to diarrhea. Tried probiotics, digestive enzymes, adding plain yogurt for probiotics as well, pumpkin; also tried slippery elm and marshmallow root supplements. I know he has environmental allergies, and gets 3 benadryl at least twice a day (as vet said 1mg/lb q8-12hrs and he is about 75lb give or take) for that. It seems to help- he was very reddened in his ears, around his eyes, and mouth; also was red, and occasionally I do some allergy eye drops, because they look red and irritated. I think the eyes are because he goes outside in the dust (el paso tx).
So, to sum up, Hugo has been getting:
2c Pure Balance Chicken & Brown Rice (sometimes chicken & peas, or salmon & sweet potato) twice per day
3 benadryl 2-3x/day
2 capsules slippery elm root and 1 capsule mashmallow root with his meals
2-3 tbsp plain yogurt daily
1 dose digestive enzyme chews from petco
1 packet probiotics.
At the same time as Hugo has had more diarrhea, my American Bulldog mix also started having it, after we moved. She is on the same food. She also has allergies and gets bemadryl. She has been doing really well on her Pure Balance food for the last year or so, doesn't usually have diarrhea, except when stressed out like after we travel. So of course I figures the 1900 miles got to her too. She is mostly back to normal now, though... but still between soft serv and formed, depending on the day. She is also eating, drinking, urinating and pooping at normal frequencies for her.
She gets 1 to 1-1/2 cups twice a day of Pure Balance
1 capsule each of marshmallow root and slippery elm with her food
2 tbsp yogurt daily.
2 benadryl 2-3x/day.
We tried switching to a gold bag of Fromm (bulk style bag from feed store, said it was equivalent of Fromm, their basic line?) But they did about the same as usual on it and it cost twice as much so we went back.
Do you think their issues are all food? Or infectious? I don't want to waste my money on a million tests just to have all normals, especially with how long it's been, it seems like acute illness would have come and gone by now.
What foods have you used that don't break the bank? I used to feed $20/50lb bag ol roy for my previous dog that didn't have allergies, but I know it was bottom-of-the-barrel; current food is about $17 for a 15lb bag. So, more than doubled in cost... can go up, but really can't spend hundreds/month on just dog food.
Also, how much does Hugo really need, quantity wise? His breeder seriously fed him as much as he wanted, so at 4 mo he was doing 6c a day; so now we are backed down to 4 a day, but I don't want to starve or overfeed him. His parents were champion power pullers and dog show dogs.... I think his dad's weight topped out at 120s and his mom was 130s for weight. So I know he should get BIG. He always acts like he is starving and of course would eat the whole bag if I let him... so I know I can't go by that.
I thought about raw food/homemade food but it seems like there are an,awful lot of components to keep track of for nutrition and dry food just seems easier to make sure he gets the right stuff.
So, to sum up, Hugo has been getting:
2c Pure Balance Chicken & Brown Rice (sometimes chicken & peas, or salmon & sweet potato) twice per day
3 benadryl 2-3x/day
2 capsules slippery elm root and 1 capsule mashmallow root with his meals
2-3 tbsp plain yogurt daily
1 dose digestive enzyme chews from petco
1 packet probiotics.
At the same time as Hugo has had more diarrhea, my American Bulldog mix also started having it, after we moved. She is on the same food. She also has allergies and gets bemadryl. She has been doing really well on her Pure Balance food for the last year or so, doesn't usually have diarrhea, except when stressed out like after we travel. So of course I figures the 1900 miles got to her too. She is mostly back to normal now, though... but still between soft serv and formed, depending on the day. She is also eating, drinking, urinating and pooping at normal frequencies for her.
She gets 1 to 1-1/2 cups twice a day of Pure Balance
1 capsule each of marshmallow root and slippery elm with her food
2 tbsp yogurt daily.
2 benadryl 2-3x/day.
We tried switching to a gold bag of Fromm (bulk style bag from feed store, said it was equivalent of Fromm, their basic line?) But they did about the same as usual on it and it cost twice as much so we went back.
Do you think their issues are all food? Or infectious? I don't want to waste my money on a million tests just to have all normals, especially with how long it's been, it seems like acute illness would have come and gone by now.
What foods have you used that don't break the bank? I used to feed $20/50lb bag ol roy for my previous dog that didn't have allergies, but I know it was bottom-of-the-barrel; current food is about $17 for a 15lb bag. So, more than doubled in cost... can go up, but really can't spend hundreds/month on just dog food.
Also, how much does Hugo really need, quantity wise? His breeder seriously fed him as much as he wanted, so at 4 mo he was doing 6c a day; so now we are backed down to 4 a day, but I don't want to starve or overfeed him. His parents were champion power pullers and dog show dogs.... I think his dad's weight topped out at 120s and his mom was 130s for weight. So I know he should get BIG. He always acts like he is starving and of course would eat the whole bag if I let him... so I know I can't go by that.
I thought about raw food/homemade food but it seems like there are an,awful lot of components to keep track of for nutrition and dry food just seems easier to make sure he gets the right stuff.
