Puppy has had diarrhea 5 days.

Dr. Marie replied:

I'm sorry to hear that Oliver has diarrhea! Diarrhea can be very frustrating to deal with. I am glad to hear that he is still eating and otherwise feeling well.

Has he had a stool sample checked by your veterinarian for parasites? Any time that a young dog has diarrhea, parasites are one of the top things that I think of. Sometimes we need multiple stool sample checks in order to find them.

It's also possible that he picked up parasites at day care as well.

If this were my case the first thing I would do is a stool sample check. If nothing turned up there then I would likely prescribe a course of an antibiotic called metronidazole. This medication is really good for helping with intestinal inflammation. It also treats a parasite called Giardia that can sometimes be hard to pick up on a stool sample check.

The serious types of things that cause diarrhea such as parvo virus would cause Oliver to be feeling unwell - not eating, vomiting, lethargic and this doesn't sound like the case at all.

For some dogs I will do a 24 hour fast followed by small meals of chicken and rice. This may be a good idea for Oliver (although it sounds like you have done this already.) If this doesn't work then he likely needs medications prescribed by your vet.

I hope things clear up soon!

Dr. Marie.

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