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Dr. Peter
Dr. Peter, Veterinarian
Category: Dog
Satisfied Customers: 32722
Experience:  16 years of internal medicine, surgery, and preventive care.
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My 18 yr old toy poodle has started having loose stools with

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My 18 yr old toy poodle has started having loose stools with fresh blood, he is still eating and not vomiting. He is thin so I gave him some chicken on his butchers tripe to make sure he ate, which he did (3 meals that day) but since seems to be having this problem. This has been going on for a few days now ( he's not had chicken or any added meat since that last time, just butchers tripe in a tin which normally keeps his stools very firm. The day after the 3 meals his stomach was churning and gurgling and he was burping then had the loose motions. He seems settled and sleeping but his tummy is still gurgling a bit but doesn't seem to bother him. But he is still having bloody runs. I'm making sure he's having plenty of water, I syringe it into him regularly. Should I change his food, or starve him for a day??
Dr. Peter
Welcome and thanks for asking your question. My name isXXXXX am a licensed veterinarian. I am happy to answer your question today. First I need to ask you a few questions so that I can be well informed and give you the best advice.

1- Any other symptoms besides the bloody diarrhea?
2- Any pre existing medical conditions?
3- Is he on any medications?

There may be a slight delay between your follow ups and my replies as I type out a thorough reply for you.

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Customer: replied 3 years ago.
No other symptoms, his back legs have become weak but I give him physio every day to keep him mobile, he's not on any medication, he urinates a lot but I give him lots of water, he sleeps quite a bit. His first stool this morning was not as loose and had a couple of firm bits. I gave him his first meal of butchers tinned tripe and after that he did 2 lots of bloody poo. He does sem to be very thin now. Could he of become sensitive to the butchers or could it be gastro due to the added chicken the other day or could it be pancreas?
Jayne, when we see blood and diarrhea it is a sign of inflammation in the lower part of the intestinal tract (colon), he has colitis. Though dietary indiscretion can cause colitis I doubt some pieces of chicken would be the problem. Other common causes are: Infections, intestinal parasites, ingestion of a foreign body or even part of a systemic disease. To determine the exact underlying cause he will need a hands on examination by family veterinarian. In the meantime this is what you can do:

1- Do not give things like Pepto Bismol or imodium.
2- No food or water for 4-6 hours, need to give gastrointestinal tract time to rest. Then, offer small amount of water followed by a diet of rice (75%) and ground beef (25%) until the stool is back to normal then wean back into regular diet.
3- Supplement with a probiotic (fortiflora), these are friendly bacterias that help with regularity and inflammation. You can buy this over the counter in any pet store.

My goal is to provide you with excellent service – if you feel you have gotten anything less, please reply back. I am happy to address follow-up questions. Thank you for your business and I hope to work with you again soon!

Dr. Peter
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Customer: replied 3 years ago.
Thank you for your reply, I had a thought it could be colitis, he's always been sensitive to too much chicken or meat and hasnt had any for ages till the other day which started all this off. He is unlikely to eat rice, he's never liked it so I was thinking of getting some of the wainrights food for senior dogs which is sensitive on their stomachs, he used to have it till I swapped to butchers tripe because it liked it. Would this work the same way to bind him? If it was given in small regular amounts. He was last fed at 9 am this morning so if I don't feed him tonight but at 9 am tomorrow he will of had 24 hrs without food to rest his tract. He's had some water just before I got your reply so I can leave that off to till the morning.
Jayne if has not had any food since 9 am you can give him a small amount of food.

The idea behind the rice is that it will make the stool firmer. If you mix it with some butchers tripe he may eat it.

You're welcome.
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Customer: replied 3 years ago.
I've just looked at the new packet of wainrights and it's got rice in that, shall I give him a small amount of that?
Yes, you can give him wainrights.

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Customer: replied 3 years ago.
He's eating it as I type, tomorrow I shall get the probiotics.
Thank you so much for your help, you've been marvellous.
Kind regards Jayne x
That is really good news.

You're welcome Jayne.

Dr. Peter
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Customer: replied 3 years ago.
Hello,
Thanks for your help the other night but he didn't get any better, In fact he started having seizures, stopped eating and drinking so we had to make the decision to let him go. It was the worst day of my life but I think it was probably systemic now, his liver was probably packing up and his kidneys.

He was 18 1/2 yrs old so i take comfort in the fact that I had nearly two decades with him.

Regards Jayne
Jayne, I am so sorry to learn he passed away. But, you are right to believe that it could have been part of a systemic disease if he started seizing. I really know how difficult this must be for you. I will have you in my thoughts and prayers tonight.

Dr. Peter
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