# food, and soft stool



## davepharos (Jan 20, 2008)

hello,

hoping to get a bit of guidance, if anyone has any suggestions.

My golden is almost 10 1/2 months. he's a pretty big guy, about 80 pounds now.

here is what i've tried thus far, pretty much in order. I may have forgotten one in there somewhere though.

got from breeder, was on iams, switched him to canidae right away
canidae als, old formula - good poops, smelly gas, vet wanted me to switch, not really clear why
innova large breed puppy - soft serve poop
orijen puppy large breed - soft serve
pro plan, chicken & rice - great stool, but constant ear problems and itching. slightly fishy smelling breath
back to canidae als, assume new formula - soft serve, smelly gas.

so, there have only been two times where he had good, solid stool. when he was first on canidae, and on pro plan. i switched him back to canidae in hopes of dealing with the ear and itching pro plan was causing. since switching, those problems have cleared up, but i'm back to soft stool now.

i live in a big city, and i'm a bit embarrased leaving smears all over the place, so i would like to get back to some solid stool.

i'm not opposed to trying anything at this point. the expensive premium foods, grain free or not, didn't really seem to change anything. 

how long should i leave him on different food to see if the stool firms up? usually i would go about a month to see if things settled down before switching. when i switched to pro plan it firmed up almost right away.

are there any additives i should consider adding to his food, to try and firm up the stool?

he hasn't seemed to really like the taste of the canidae since switching back. he was always really excited to eat the pro plan, and would scarf it down, but now he walks away from his food after only eating a bit. he does end up going back and finishing it though.

sorry, feel like i'm all over the place in this post. so, to wrap it up:

how long should i leave him on a food before deciding it isn't working for him?
any additives i should try, such as pumpkin, or whatever?
different brand of food to try?

i'm tempted to go back to the pro plan, at least i had firm stool, maybe i could try the lamb & rice or something to see if it makes a difference. though i'm not really interested in the new shredded version that came out.

thanks for any feedback


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## Merlins mom (Jun 20, 2007)

I had been dealing with the same problem...soft serve! LOL!! Merlin has been on Taste of the Wild for about a month now, and he has the best stools I've seen since he was a pup on the original Canidae formula. He likes the food too! 

Canned pumpkin (not the pie kind) may help firm things up if you'd like to stay with the food you're on now.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

I have had very good results on the Eagle Pack Holistic line. I would also start on some probiotics/ enzymes. The very best I've found is the dogzymes Digestive Enhancer. It is very economical, has a long shelf life and does not need refrigeration. I order from natures farmacy and 2 pounds last my 4 about 5 months. The probiotics in this formula is many times what you would get adding yogurt and will provide the good bacteria that the get needs to be healthy. Also, the enzymes help them utilize their food. Everyone I know has good stools on this product. Also, you may find some good articles on nutrition here.... www.greatdanelady.com She is a canine nutritionist and retired prof at Ball State Univ. Hope this helps.

BTW....JUST NOTICED THAT THIS IS YOUR FIRST POST. WELCOME TO THE FORUM. HOPE WE CAN SEE LOTS OF PICS AND HEAR MORE ABOUT YOUR PUP.


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## jwemt81 (Aug 20, 2008)

It seems like you have tried pretty much all of the good foods. As someone else said, you can try the canned pumpkin. It's too bad that you had trouble with ProPlan. Our pup eats that and does exceptionally well on it. We had problems with loose stools when he was on regular Puppy Chow, but the ProPlan corrected that right away.


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

If he did fine on Iams when you got him, you might consider Eukanuba. Its a higher quality food but with a similar formula to Iams.

The only thing that created soft stools and gas for Lucky was Alpo. Just a little spoonful in his reg kibble created total havic.

I hope you find a solution soon!


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

How much are you feeding him? It is possible that you are feeding him too much, especially if he is starting to leave food.


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## davepharos (Jan 20, 2008)

thank you for your replies so far

what exactly are probiotics/enzymes supposed to be good for?
what about the use of pumpkin?

he's currently getting 4 cups a day, which is in line with the recommendations. he used to chow the proplan last week, even though he got almost 6 cups, so i don't think its the amount of food.

I like the price of proplan, and he did well on it at least in the stool dept. He was on large breed puppy chicken and rice, though I don’t think he needs to be on puppy food anymore. I could try the lamb and rice and see how he does, or perhaps the performance. What are you using?

how long do should i give him on any one food before i could expect the stool to be hard? like i said earlier, when i first put him on proplan it firmed up almost immediately.

the first two pics are when i first got him, and the other one was taken last last week hiking in AZ. not sure if its appropriate to put photos in this thread, checked the faq but it didn't really say. anyway...


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

The probiotics and enzymes are for GI health. Probiotics add the good bacteria that the GI system needs to be healthy and the enzymes are vital for utilizing (breaking down) the nutrients in their food. Cooking the food at high temps ( as in kibble) kills the effectiveness of the enzymes so it is very beneficial to add them back.


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## Chelsea's Mom (Nov 8, 2008)

*Soft Stool*

I too have been feeding Caindae, to both of my dogs. One is soft one is not. I am feeding the Lamb formula and was told it might be too rich and to try the chicken and rice. I'll let you know how it goes.


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## skylielover (Sep 27, 2008)

Skylie had problems with loose stools on Blue Buffalo. However, I had to switch her Pro Plan b/c of that, and it has helped her stool. Every now and then it will be softer, but definitely better. SHe also has itching problems now, so I am starting to think it's the Pro Plan......


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## gggirl (May 8, 2008)

I had issues also with loose stools. Since I put her on California Natural Lamb/RIce, her stools are small and very firm. She is doing great on it. Some foods are just too rich with too many ingredients. I like the fact Cal. Nat. is just what it says lamb and rice. I also add probiotics and give her 1000 mg of fish oil and 400 IU Vit. E. Lamb is easily digestible and great protein. ALso good for dogs with sensitive tummies and allergies. Good Luck. You can just google California Natural or www.naturapetfoods.com


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## leonidas7 (Sep 20, 2011)

skylielover said:


> Skylie had problems with loose stools on Blue Buffalo. However, I had to switch her Pro Plan b/c of that, and it has helped her stool. Every now and then it will be softer, but definitely better. SHe also has itching problems now, so I am starting to think it's the Pro Plan......


I know this is a VERY old thread but we currently have Leo on Pro Plan Chicken and Rice large breed puppy and his stool smells really strong:yuck:, also, he's been having loose-ish stools once in a while, ranging from soft to soft/medium (usually will be softer towards the end). 

He also is itching/ scratching sometimes, don't know if thats from the food or bugs..

I'm only 1/4 of the way through with the bag and will be considering switching to something else starting 1/2.. I got a couple of samples from mudbay yesterday so I guess I will start from there. He seems to like the pro plan, he devours it in seconds.. But I don't know if I can stand the stinky poop.. :uhoh: For instance, this morning, I woke up to the smell of his poop:moreek:


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## daisysmam (Sep 5, 2010)

Tahnee GR said:


> How much are you feeding him? It is possible that you are feeding him too much, especially if he is starting to leave food.


 
4 cups is a lot of food. Maybe try cutting back to 3 cups and go from there. If he seems to be losing wieght on 3 cups then bump it up to 3 and a half cups. On a different note, have you been feeding the same protein in all the foods you've tried? He may have an intolerance to a certain ingredient common in all those foods. Sometimes switching to a lamb or fish based food if you've been feeding chicken can help.

oops....just saw this was an old thread


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## jimla (Oct 9, 2008)

Roxy has had soft stools since we adopted her two years ago. I have been feeding both dogs Canidae ALS grain free. I am transitioning to Acana Grasslands and her stools are getting much better.


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## allaboutourdogs (Aug 27, 2010)

If your dog is having diarrhea, I suggest you feed him with zinc supplements or zinc rich foods and ORS (Oral Re hydrating Solution). This is the best treatment for diarrhea.


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## MGMF (May 13, 2009)

Sometimes switching to much will give your dog loose stools. How long are you keeping them on it before you decide to change? If one food gives your dog allergies then switch to a grain free and stay with it for a while. It can take 6-8 weeks to see the difference.


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## Florabora22 (Nov 30, 2008)

I agree that 4 cups is a lot of food. 80lbs for a 10.5 month old dog may be a bit on the larger side. I think the standard weight for a male golden is 70-75lbs. The recommendations on the dog food bags are always more than you should feed your dog. I have a 60lb female golden and she gets two cups of food per day to maintain her weight. 

Have you tried eukanuba? It's too bad PPP didn't work for you. It was the only food I tried that helped my dog's soft stool problem.


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