Runny soft stools.

Dr. Marie replied:

Hi Barbara...thanks for your question.

There are a number of things that can cause a young pup to have soft stools. The first thing I would consider is giving him a general dewormer. It is very common for puppies to have roundworms and this can cause diarrhea. In most places, dewormer is available without a prescription at a pet store.

However, if the pup starts to be vomiting, not wanting to eat and lethargic then a vet visit will be necessary as pups don't have a lot of reserves to fight against dehydration.

It would be a good idea to have your vet do some lab tests on a fecal sample to look for parasites that are not taken care of by regular dewormers such as coccidia or giardia.

If Rocky is getting sicker and is vomiting we may need to be concerned about parvo virus which can be very serious.

For now, if he is bright and eating well I would not change anything in his diet. I would try the dewormer and see how things go. If he doesn't get better in 48 hours or so (or if he is getting worse) then he may need to see the vet.

Hope he does ok!
Dr. Marie.

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