Having a dog means regular scooping of poop. It is important to pick up your dog poop from in and around your surroundings. It is not just essential for the cleaning purpose, but its color, consistency, and smell also indicates your dog's health. Dog poop provides a lot of information about what is going on in its body. Thus, it is vital to examine it while picking it up.
Understanding your dog's health can help prevent many health issues that might come your pets way. Here is a little chart prepared by the experts to help you understand what your dog's poop is telling you. So without further ado, let's get into the article below –
What is an ideal poop?
Every dog breed has a slight difference in the normal and healthy poop style. However, to get a glimpse of your dog's health, you must look into factors like the shape, texture, color of the dog's poop. Here is a list of factors that gives a better insight of what an ideal poop is –
- Shape – Log shaped and firm
- Consistency – Moist, easy to pick
- Color – Chocolate Brown
- Size – Somewhat equal to the amount of the food they eat
- Content – Does not have any extra mucus, signs of worms or grass
What does the poop color say about it? It is essential to notice the dog poop's color as it tells a lot about your dog's health. The color change can be a sign of health issues in your dog.
- Black and Tarry poop Black and Tarry poop color indicates bleeding in your dog's upper GI tract.
- Orange or Yellow It might be a result of any biliary or liver issue.
- Green Having green poop can either result from excessive grass intake or be concerned to the gall bladder.
- Grey or Greasy A grey or greasy poop could be the result of pancreatic or biliary issues.
- Red Streaks in poop Red streaks in your dog's poop indicate the presence of blood in it.
- White spotting White spots in the stool mostly look like rice grains in it. However, it might be a sign of tapeworms.
Consistency of unhealthy poop –
- Greasy poop If you notice some greasiness in your dog's poop, then you must avoid giving him fatty food. The greasy poop is a sign of mal-digestion in dogs. If you don't alter the dog's diet, it might lead to pancreatitis, a pancreatic inflammation condition.
- Pebble-like Dog poop might sometimes look small and hard, just like pebbles. It is mostly noticed in old age dogs. Make sure to keep a check on your dog's diet, including the chew toys and treats. Pebble like bowels also suggests that your dog is constipated due to dehydration.
- Poop coated with unusual mucus. It is a sign of irritation or inflammation in the intestine. Rewind the day in your head to check what your dog has eaten all day. Has he chewed a lot of grass? Any item is missing which the dog could possibly eat? If not any of it, then the mucus on the poop can result from the presence of parvovirus or parasites in your dog's body. Such conditions demand the intervention of a vet.
- Watery stool The dog's watery stool is a sign of viral infection like parvovirus, which can quickly take up the shape of severe dehydration. Such conditions are commonly noticed in puppies. Thus, it is recommended to monitor your dog's poop closely and connect with a vet, if required.
- Mud pies The condition of excretion of mud pies is mostly because of diarrhea. Soft stool with form (mud pies) is typically excreted when you change the dog food's brand, or your dog has eaten something that it wasn't supposed to. Check for any visible blood or mucus in the poop as it might indicate the presence of giardia, an intestinal parasite.
- Chalky poop If you are giving your dog raw calcium-rich food or bone, it might pass stool - chalky and white. It indicates that your dog is at risk of high constipation or obstipation. It is the condition where the dog is unable to evacuate bowels without any external help. This health issue might lead your dog to feel lethargic, puckish, and loss of hunger. Contact a vet; otherwise, the condition might slip through your hands.
What are the causes of change in poop color and consistency? Sudden change in the quality and consistency of the dog poop can indicate a problem in the dog's health. Here are a few reasons which might become the catalyst of this change –
- Eating from the trash can. You might not even notice, but your dog picks up something or the other from the trash. It forms the most common reason for the change in the dog's stool. Eating fattening food or from the garbage, both can lead to the formation of loose stool. Consuming food that is different from usual can lead to diarrhea, loss of appetite and vomiting, or even pancreatic problems.
- Stress Stress colitis is a condition that is experienced by a stressed dog. It can result from sudden environment change or any other incident that occurred in your pup's life. Diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration, and loss of appetite are the issues that your dog might face if Stress colitis is left untreated.
- Improper digestion If healthy dog food and treats are not included in your dog's diet, then it might lead to multiple health issues in your dog. Make sure to avoid providing poor quality food to your furry friend to avoid the loose or smelly poop.
- Intestinal Parasites The presence of intestinal parasites can create havoc in your pet's GI health. The parasites can either be inherited from the mother's womb, fleas, soil, or playing with other infected dogs. Tapeworms, hookworms, and roundworms are commonly found to affect the intestinal health of your dog. It is essential to provide your dog with assigned medicine to avoid common health issues like diarrhoea, dehydration, weight loss, and anaemia.
What are the basic symptoms of a dog's bad health? Having issues in the dog's poop majorly indicate bad intestinal health. However, certain other symptoms also reflect that your pet is sick. If you notice the following symptoms in your pet, then you must medicate them or take them to the vet -
- Vomiting
- Blood in stool
- Loose stool
- Lethargic
- Weight loss
- Gas
- Diarrhea
- Loss of appetite
- Abdominal pain
- The audible gurgling of the stomach.
Home Remedies to improve the quality of the dog poop – If you notice that your furry friend is sick, you must alter a few things in his diet.
- Yogurt Adding some plain Greek yogurt to his diet might prove helpful for the upset intestine. The live culture of bacteria in the yogurt can promote a healthy gut.
- Rice It proves to be the right carb choice for your furry friend's better health. Boiled rice is a great option to settle your pup's stomach issues. Add rice with a plain protein source to provide a balanced meal to your dog.
- Probiotics Including probiotics in your dog's diet can improve the intestinal tract health. Probiotics, healthy dog food, and treats can make a perfect meal for daily nutrition. The use of probiotics improves the balance of your diet, thus, helps to excrete firm stool.
- Cottage cheese It is one of the best low-fat carb meals, which would help resolve your furry friend's bowel problems. However, it is essential to learn whether your dog is lactose intolerant or not.
- Coconut Oil It is proven to be the most useful ingredient for resolving digestive disorders. Intake of coconut oil in the right amount is best for firm stool excretion.
- Pumpkin Treat both diarrhea and constipation with an intake of pumpkin in the right amount. The fiber in the pumpkin can improve bowel movements and also absorb the extra water from the stool.
If you want to have ready-made healthy food for your pet, then Nibbs Club is there for your rescue. Connect with us to order the finest healthy dog food and treats at your doorstep.
When is the right time to visit a vet? It gets difficult sometimes to know when you can treat your dog at home and when you must visit a vet! We often tend to look for in-house solutions to treat our dog's bowel problems. In case your home remedies worked right for treating your furry friend, then there is no such requirement to consult your vet. However, if the problem has lasted for 24 hours without any improvement, it is recommended to visit your vet ASAP. If you take action quickly, then it will shorten the time of your furry friend's plight and would also prevent any health complications.
Dogs experience minor GI problems throughout their lives. Thus, it is essential to educate yourself about healthy dog food and treat options when the Doggies experience loose stool. Also, understand when to seek professional guidance and when the home remedies are enough to resolve it.