# Pup is having some problems



## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

I have a 14 week old Golden Retreiver and right after we got him his 9 week shots he had the runs real bad and wouldnt eat much. I thought maybe it was just a reaction the the vacs but after 3 or 4 days it kept up. we took him to the vet and spent $70 on a parvo test(that came back negative), some medicine and dog food to harden his stool. Well we just finished the medicine 3 days ago and low and behold he's got the runs again. Anybody have a clue why he is having problems? We have him on Eukanuba dog food which is what the owner was feeding but do i need to get him some new food? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!
Thanks
Shawn


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## Maverick (Mar 4, 2002)

That might not be a bad idea to try another food. Do you see a change in energy when he has the runs or does he seem to be the same? Another question is do you let him chew on raw hide bones? I had a similiar problem and found out that he was eating raw hides and that's what was giving him the runs!


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

No, he seems to have the same amount of energy, hyper and ready to go do anything as long as your doing it with him. I don't have any rawhide bones but he does have a bone that is suppose to be for heavy chewers that is synthetic and has like a chicken flavor to it and he has some other chew toys. It could be his training treats that i use for house training and kennel training him but i dont know. He does really good in the house and lets you know when he needs to go out but when he gets the runs he cant hold it really but for like 30 seconds or so maybe longer.


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## Maverick (Mar 4, 2002)

What kind of treats are they? About how many treats do you give him while in the house? That might be the problem, too many might be the culprit!

2 more questions:
1) How long ago did you get him off of puppy food?
2) What kind of Eukanuba food are you feeding him?


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

They are treat nibblets from Atwoods about $4/lb they have rice meal, protein and some other stuff in them that i can't remember. I usually give him one every other time when he goes out and does his business and will give him some when he goes in his kennel by himself and so forth. I dont think i am giving him to many but the treat itself could be the problem like you said. I am using the Eukanuba Puppy food for 1-12 months old for large breed. Do i need to take him off of the puppy food and start him on the regular large breed food?


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## ryanps18 (Jun 23, 2006)

I would change dog food.

Do you think he is gettng enough water?


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Yea I think he does. I mean everytime i walk into the kitchen and see his water bowl getting low i put more in it. I think i am going to switch food for sure anyway and get some different training treats. Any suggestions? I was thinking Science Diet or IAMS for the dog food???? So you think i need to put him on adult food??


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## daveb (Jun 29, 2006)

He probably thought your dog was 14 months old, not 14 weeks. You have a long way to go before switching to adult dog food. You'll hear/read everything from 7 months to 18 months. I have my preference but that doesn't matter. You might want to just ask your vet when the time gets closer.


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Thats what i thought but just figured i'd better ask anyway.

Thanks for all the help guys. Much appreciated.

Shawn


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## Maverick (Mar 4, 2002)

> He probably thought your dog was 14 months old, not 14 weeks


Yep....my bad there!



> So you think i need to put him on adult food??


No not yet... I thought I read 14 months.

Start with the dog food for now, and see how he reacts. I would buy a smaller bag first and go through the small bag and hopefully he will tighten up. Another thing could be nerves? Does he still wimper at night or has he acclimated easy to his new surroundings?


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## jgat (Oct 27, 2006)

I just got a golden pup this spring as well. When she first came home she was about 8 weeks and got really bad diarrhea. My vet did the same fecal test as I am sure your vet did, and it was negative. She told me to put her on a very light diet of 50/50 rice/boiled lean hamburger for a few days until things hardened up. After about 36 hours and a $100 vet bill she was back to solid poo. Do you feed her any scraps of any kind? I gave my pup a little pot roast because she had not eaten anything in 2 days (stupid mistake), and that is what set her off. Good luck!


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Yea he did all that and gave me some expensive 50/50 rice food. He doesn't wine just when he needs to go outside. Maybe ill try that mix your talking about. No not any scraps. Ill do the food and see what he does too. Any particular puppy food you guys fancy?


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## jgat (Oct 27, 2006)

If it were me, I would visit or at least contact the vet before starting the new diet! It doesn't take a pup long to get dehydrated and that is very bad! My vet said to boil the hamburger until it is cooked, and let it sit and cool in the pot. Once it is cooled, the fat all rises to the surface of the water and can be easily scooped off. You want it to be as lean as possible. If you are seeing chunks of rice in the poop, that is a sign that they are not digesting things properly and need to get to the vet asap.

For food, I feed Eagle Pack Power Formula. It has been a great dog food, and the dog loves it. It gives her tons of energy.


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Ok so went to the Vet yesterday and they gave him some more of the same medicine and said this time it will probably fix it. They guess that they didnt have him on the meds long enough to kill the bacteria, now we have a two week supply. Anyway already noticed some improvement in his poo this morning after just a day of the meds. I did pick up a small bag of some purina pro plan and started adding a little bit to his food. He seems to like it alot better he eats most of it at one sitting instead of just picking at it slowly like he did even before he got sick.

Thanks for all the help, ideas, and info guys. It is greatly appreciated.

Shawn


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## Ginger Quill (Jan 25, 2008)

I'd try Purina One. A little less expensive than Purina Pro Plan. I mix one small Shed's Spread cup full of Purina One (that's empty) and add water to the food. My dog gets that same ration twice a day.

The other day we gave her a pig's ear. Wrong. She developed the runs for three days. No more rawhide, ears, snoots, etc. They don't need them.


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## brittanypoint (Feb 15, 2009)

If the food has alot of lamb in it it can cause the same effect on a pup. I had the same problem with Eukanuba with one of my older dogs. My vet said that the lamb content in certain foods can make a dog sick. I switched all the pups over too Purina and have had healthier dogs. Just something to check into


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Yea he is doing great now. He likes his new food pretty well its not completely Purina yet but most of it is. He seems like he has a lot more energy on the Purina. Not that he didn't have plenty before. I didn't even think about the lamb being in it that cuased it. I know i talked to one of my friends and her dog was allergic to egg product and the food she was feeding and egg in it.

Thanks again guys

Shawn


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## bigbrad123 (Dec 22, 2005)

I know this is a little old, but I have a lab and have had really good luck on the Purina Pro Plan. I used Science Diet for a long time, but felt it just wasn't producing good energy results and making my dog a little chunky. Switched to Nutro Natural Choice and my dog had acid reflux with it. Then switched to Pro Plan and haven't had any issues since. Dog lost weight, had good energy. Coat looked good. Less poop, more solid. I switch between large breed in the summer to performance formula a month or two before hunting. No problems with either.


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

Yea we had taken him to the vet last week to get his 16 week shots and the vet said his coat looked awesome and he was healthy as a horse. He had went from 17.5lbs at 11 weeks to 40.3lbs at 16 weeks. I have noticed he doesn't poo as much now that you mention it. I think its good stuff. It might be a bit over priced but its definitly worth it and he loves it.


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## Chaws (Oct 12, 2007)

Rugger09 said:


> Yea we had taken him to the vet last week to get his 16 week shots and the vet said his coat looked awesome and he was healthy as a horse. He had went from 17.5lbs at 11 weeks to 40.3lbs at 16 weeks. I have noticed he doesn't poo as much now that you mention it. I think its good stuff. It might be a bit over priced but its definitly worth it and he loves it.


ProPlan is one of the lesser cost high quality feed out there. Make sure you save the weight circles on the bags and mail them in when you get a bunch, they'll give you free bags of food or other merchandise.


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## bigbrad123 (Dec 22, 2005)

I have no idea where you live, but if you live close to Fargo, Fleet Farm has Pro Plan for a decent price. Its the same price, or a littel less, as Science Diet and Eukanuba. It usually goes on sale about every other month too. Glad the pup is doing better.


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## Billyhcc (Jan 9, 2009)

Tip on getting the dog to drink more water
-My pup still has a urinary infection and the vet said she wasn't getting enough water. They suggested putting ice cubes in the water dish, but the best thing I found out was one morning was I poured her food in her water dish (full of water) on accident. She looked at it weird but then gobbled it all up and licked the water dish clean. It is important to keep a dog hydrated when sick or fighting an illness.

Also buying dog Food in Fargo or anywhere. Wait till it is on sale at Fleet Farm and then go to Pet-co and they will price match. After you buy 10 bags at Pet-co you get one free.


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## Rugger09 (Jan 2, 2009)

> Make sure you save the weight circles on the bags and mail them in when you get a bunch, they'll give you free bags of food or other merchandise.


Really? I didnt know that. Thats awesome. Yea i live in Oklahoma. Got some family that lives close to Fargo though. I do most of my shopping at PetCo and have one of those pet pals cards but I dont think its ever gave me a discount on the pro plan food.[/quote]


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## Billyhcc (Jan 9, 2009)

> "PetCo and have one of those pet pals cards but I dont think its ever gave me a discount on the pro plan food.


"[/quote]

You need to know what the price is at Fleet Farm and tell them it when you checkout.


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