Dog with bloody stool.

Dr. Marie replied:

I'm sorry to hear that Sage is having these problems.

While changing dog food can cause some diarrhea, it really should be a very temporary thing. The diarrhea associated with food change usually doesn't last longer than 48 hours. A change in food can cause some blood in the stool. I don't get too worried about that....UNLESS...the dog seems to be getting worse and is lethargic.

Sometimes blood in the stool can be a sign of a condition called HGE (hemorrhagic gastroenteritis), and this can be very serious. However, dogs with HGE are usually little dogs and the bloody stool comes on all of a sudden.

It's hard to say why she is limping. There aren't a lot of things that I can think of that can connect limping and diarrhea.

For most cases, when a dog has diarrhea after switching food, what I recommend is a period of 24 hours followed by small meals of boiled chicken and rice. (There's nothing magical about chicken and rice...it's just a very bland meal that's easy for the intestines to heal.)

However, my usual recommendation is to see the vet if any of the following things are happening:

• No improvement in diarrhea after 48 hours


• Decreasing energy in your dog


• Lack of appetite for more than 24 hours


• If your gut just tells you that something serious is going on. (This may seem silly, but I find that most owners just "know" when something is really not right.)

Is it possible for you to get to a vet before Tuesday? They could make sure there is nothing serious going on and see if there is some sort of connection between the leg problem and the diarrhea. They can also prescribe medication to help with the intestinal inflammation so that this clears up sooner. From what you have described I think a visit this weekend really would be best. It's unfortunate to have to pay an emergency fee...but it sounds like Sage would do a lot better with some medicines.

I really hope everything is ok!

Dr. Marie.


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