Pumpkin For Soft Stool

[JuneBugs Momma]

I'm curious as to how many of you have used pure pumpkin as a good fiber source to firm up your puppies stools?

JB had another episode of diarrhea and was put on metrodonazole for about 2 weeks. He has since stopped the medicine and am now starting to convert his regular kibble in with the white rice and his stools have gotten better but it's still soft stool. While I am waiting for a call from the vet, I was curious as to if any of you have had success with pure pumpkin as a fiber source to firm up the stool and soak up the excess water content in the intestines. I can honestly say that I have never tried pure pumpkin because of the fact that it has been said to help not only diarrhea but also constipation. This kind of contradicts itself and the last thing I need is for his soft stool to go backwards to diarrhea again.

Any/all comments are appreciated.

[Bluebells]

It does seem odd that the same product can be used for both constipation and diarrhea, doesn’t it? The reason pumpkin can help both is because it’s the increased fiber that improves digestion. Fiber helps constipation by adding bulk to the diet, which (as long as your pup drinks plenty of water and doesn’t get dehydrated) helps the motility of the digestive tract. Fiber helps diarrhea by absorbing excess moisture already in the digestive tract.

If you don’t feel comfortable trying pumpkin, either greek yogurt or cottage cheese can help diarrhea.

[JuneBugs Momma]

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, the diarrhea has come back and now with mucus and some small amount of blood. Vet said his GI tract is imbalanced due to the Metrodonazole and that antibiotic kills not only bad bacteria but also the good. Vet said to go back on the bland diet and give him Greek plain yogurt and he will call me when his supply of probiotics come in on Monday.

I'm really hoping this works.. anyone have success with probiotics for GI upset/diarrhea?

[Britster]

What food is JB on? In my experience, with dealing chronic diarrhea/soft stools/mucusy etc from Jackson for over 2 months, I adore my vet and trust him more than anything but even he reached a point where he was stumped and it was just a guessing game. We ultimately ended up at the internal medicine specialist. But in the mean time, what does his bloodwork look like? We did bloodwork, x-rays, spec CPL (pancreatitis specific test), we sent out extensive fecal tests to Texas A&M and did a GI blood panel, which all helped us at least rule out other issues.

I found I had little success with most of the things I was recommended when we were dealing with diarrhea with Jax. Pumpkin did nothing, metronidazole didn't help, probiotics seemed to make him worse... we had every med under the sun lol. The IMS suggested psyllium husk (Metamucil) and I bought some but probably didn't give it enough of a chance. I was overwhelmed at that point.

Diarrhea is a hard thing sometimes - my vet told me there simply aren't enough diagnostic tools readily available sometimes. Plus every dog is different. Some are fiber responsive, some are not. Jackson tends to need higher fiber IME.

I would join the FB group called Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Canine Chronic Enteropathy) -- there is an admin who is very very helpful. You copy and paste a template with all of your dogs name/age/food/issue etc. Even if it's not IBD they can likely give you some insight.