Soft stools

[Sulley1001]

I'm feeding my 4 month old bulldog Merrick Grain Free Lamb and Sweet Potato 1 cup 3 times a day. He poops an awful lot and it soft. Not diarrhea. Just soft like sometimes piles. He was tested for parasites and it all came back negative. He is not having a problem gaining weight. He is 30lbs already. Am I missing something? Should I change food? Merrick is high quality food.

 

[Manydogs]

I am not a food expert,but I seem to remember some others having a problem with that brand. You could give him a tbsp of pure pumpkin with his food,and see if that helps. It is canned pure pumpkin-NOT pie mix.

 

[KimDe]

You can try feeding less, more often, and fiber fillers. My boy didn't have firm poop for awhile so I had to experiment with it. Not soft serve but not firm. We have added pure canned pumpkin in the past.

Additionally do you have any allergy symptoms? Red ears, itchy ears, itchy skin, red paws? Could be he doesn't do well with those ingredients.

 

[MFrey2012]

Agreed at that age, with the Merrick I was feeding 2/3 of cup 3X a day, and we added 1TBSP 1X day and that did the trick.

Keep us posted!!

 

[2BullyMama]

agree with the others... might be too much food for him. Here is a good guideline to help out for feeding amounts:

8 weeks	1/2 cup 3 times a day
12 weeks	2/3 to 3/4 cup 3 times a day
4 & 5 months	3/4 cup 3 times a day
6 months to 1 year	1.25 to 1.5 cups twice a day

 

[Reggies Parents]

When he was tested for parasites, was he also tested for bacterial infections? Campylobactor, salmonella etc?

Our Reggie has had soft poo issues since we got him, and campylobactor is confirmed as the culprit.
Its not normally tested for so would have gone undiagnosed if we had not asked for a complete full spectrum fecal test.
He's not having trouble gaining weight either, he weighed in yesterday at 17kgs (24 weeks old). So has put on 2kgs in 2 weeks, despite the soft poop progressing to cannon butt.
No real symptoms apart from general grumpiness at night, until the last week or so when he's been in obvious pain but by that point he'd had campy for 12 weeks probably.
Its worth checking for.

Hope you figure it out & he gets better soon!!

 

[NewEnglandBully]

I am not a food expert,but I seem to remember some others having a problem with that brand. You could give him a tbsp of pure pumpkin with his food,and see if that helps. It is canned pure pumpkin-NOT pie mix.

Pumpkin should help