HELP! Puppy constipation after vet?!

[SilkyPooMama]

I have a 10-week-old Yorkie/Silky/Poodle mix named Benji. He is somewhere between 3 and 4 pounds. I took him to the vet yesterday for an exam w/fecal, and for his first DHPP shot. They said everything seemed normal with him, and they didn't even find any worms in his stool. It was a very fresh stool, so I don't think they just missed them because it was old or anything like that.

They had me give him a heartgard with a dewormer in it ?? even though they found no worms. They said to do that "just in case" they missed worms. It kind of makes me wonder why they did the fecal exam to begin with. I suppose if he happened to have some weird parasite or something it may have required different treatment? Or maybe they just do it for the money.

Anyway- his appointment was at 2:45 and we left the office around 3:45. He seemed to be fine all night- with the exception of like 4 sneezes in a row when I took him outside when we got home from the appointment.

I waited a couple hours, then split his heartgard into 3 pieces like they told me to do- and had him eat that right before his dinner.

This morning at around 7:30 am, he peed, and then when he tried to poop nothing would come out! The poor baby tried like 3-4 different times, and then finally gave up. I took him inside, and then when I took him back out a bit later (10 min. maybe??) he was able to poop. It seemed like a larger poop than normal.

So we went back to bed for a couple hours, since it's Saturday. Then he ate around 10:30 a.m. When I took him out around 2:30- the same thing happened where he couldn't poop. He tried a couple times then gave up. I noticed some of his poop was sticking out of his butt. I took him inside, then outside again, and he still wasn't able to go. So the past few hours I've tried all sorts of things. First- I tried cutting off the poop that was sticking out and any hair that may have been in the way. Took him out again and still no poop. I fed him some canned pumpkin, and then I put him in some warm water- and put on a glove tried pulling out the poop that was sticking out with. I was able to get some of it off, and had to cut some of it off, too. By the time I was done his but looked all nice and clean and nothing was sticking out. But I keep taking him out and still no poop.

I feel a little bit better that he had a tough time this morning but was eventually able to poop. If he hadn't pooped all day I would have taken him to the vet by now. But since he was able to go I feel it's probably a weird reaction to the heartgard or something? It's not like it could be a physical thing blocking it because then he wouldn't have been able to go at all. They also fed him a BUNCH of little tiny treats at the vet yesterday while they were examining him- so that could have not agreed with him.

A little bit ago he let out a pretty smelly fart- but he hasn't tried to poop in a few hours.

I'm not sure if I should feed him his regular dinner at 5:30, or wait until he poops? He had quite a bit of canned pumpkin. Like maybe 4-5 tablespoons? I had no idea how much to give him so I gave him a heaping spoonful, then another heaping spoonful which he didn't finish. I'm not sure what time that was but I'm thinking it was around 3??

I know this is really long and I'm really grateful for everyone who takes the time to read this. I'm just not sure what to do if he doesn't poop by bedtime?!

[SilkyPooMama]

ALSO- he's acting totally normal and doesn't seem to be in pain or anything.

[Rhetts_mama]

A couple of thoughts come to mind.

First, constipation is defined as hard, dry difficult to pass stools. It's not irregularity.

Second, that's an awful lot of pumpkin to feed him. Pumpkin is fiber, so it can help with both constipation (by drawing fluid in to the GI tract) and for diarrhea by creating bulk. As long as he is acting well and interested in food, I would feed him dinner whether or not he has pooped.

Lastly, in reference to the deworming. Even if they don't see a parasite in the fecal exam, they can still have them in there. Worms generally aren't passed until they begin to die off and they are released in to the stool. My vet treats until they have had 2 consecutive negative tests.

[SilkyPooMama]

Originally Posted by Rhetts_mama

A couple of thoughts come to mind.

First, constipation is defined as hard, dry difficult to pass stools. It's not irregularity.

Second, that's an awful lot of pumpkin to feed him. Pumpkin is fiber, so it can help with both constipation (by drawing fluid in to the GI tract) and for diarrhea by creating bulk. As long as he is acting well and interested in food, I would feed him dinner whether or not he has pooped.

Lastly, in reference to the deworming. Even if they don't see a parasite in the fecal exam, they can still have them in there. Worms generally aren't passed until they begin to die off and they are released in to the stool. My vet treats until they have had 2 consecutive negative tests.

Thanks for the info! He just pooped, and it was a normal consistency/amount. I am so happy! Now he gets a bath.

Since I kind of fed him a lot of pumpkin should I still give him his dog food for dinner? Maybe just 1/8 cup or so?

[Rhetts_mama]

I would give him the normal amount. He still needs the nutrients.

[SilkyPooMama]

Originally Posted by SilkyPooMama

Thanks for the info! He just pooped, and it was a normal consistency/amount. I am so happy! Now he gets a bath.

Since I kind of fed him a lot of pumpkin should I still give him his dog food for dinner? Maybe just 1/8 cup or so?

Oh and from what I saw his stools were definitely, "hard, dry difficult to pass". Now he's back to normal it seems like.

[SilkyPooMama]

Originally Posted by Rhetts_mama

I would give him the normal amount. He still needs the nutrients.

ok i will

[Maximo]

I agree that it was likely the Heartgard. Is this the same thing as the monthly heartworm preventative or do they have a different product? The big liver treat always gives my boys bulkier stools. When Max was a pup, anything out of his ordinary diet put his system out of whack.

Glad to hear your boy is back to normal. I agree with Rhetts_mama to continue feeding full, regular diet. Go easy with the pumpkin. 4 - 5 tablespoons is a lot for a little guy.

[SilkyPooMama]

Originally Posted by Maximo

I agree that it was likely the Heartgard. Is this the same thing as the monthly heartworm preventative or do they have a different product? The big liver treat always gives my boys bulkier stools. When Max was a pup, anything out of his ordinary diet put his system out of whack.

Glad to hear your boy is back to normal. I agree with Rhetts_mama to continue feeding full, regular diet. Go easy with the pumpkin. 4 - 5 tablespoons is a lot for a little guy.

I'm actually not 100% sure what they gave me because it didn't come in a package- it was just a single tab. I'm not sure what I was thinking but I didn't keep the little plastic it came in- I'm sure it said what it was! Is there a different heartworm medication he could go on that wouldn't plug him up or will I just have to stay away from those and be careful? I was thinking about putting him on Sentinel but now I'm not so sure!

And next time I won't go so crazy with the pumpkin! Oops!

[Maximo]

Sentinel is a great choice. I think it is in simple pill form and not a big liver block like Heartgard. That is one of the reasons dogs with diet restrictions use Sentinel. I am considering switching my boys for many reasons.

[SilkyPooMama]

Originally Posted by Maximo

Sentinel is a great choice. I think it is in simple pill form and not a big liver block like Heartgard. That is one of the reasons dogs with diet restrictions use Sentinel. I am considering switching my boys for many reasons.

Awesome! Thanks for the info!