I feel like a hypochondriac posting this, but the vet I work for was completely unhelpful... told me to put my pup on Science Diet and it would solve the problems.

I'm wondering if my 15 w/o GSD pup, Rob, has EPI. I'd never heard of it until I went look for why he had these problems:

1) A hint of ribs visable despite eating double the recommended amount of 2.5 - 3 cups (On Blue since 8 wks, but have been switching to Canidae All Life Stages since eary June). I've been giving 5 cups (half Blue, half Canidae) up from 3.75, since last friday with no change in appearance. Voracious appetite.

2) Eating his poop and only his poop . Started this around 9 wks.

3) Eating lots and losts of dirt, grass, moss.

4) Just about the stinkiest poop I've ever smelt, and lots of it. Maybe 4-6 BM per day of large volume. Gas is just as stinky.

5) Strange thumping/popping sounds from abdomin EOD (maybe just hiccups?). Doesn't seem to bother him.

6) Soft pudding yellow stool or diarhea a day, but normal stools as well. This has been going on since I've had him. I've been going really slow changing food. Dont think food change is the problem.

Just wondering if the symptoms sound stong enough like EPI to get the blood test done. Vet said EPI doesn't show up in puppies. Fecal was negative for parasites.

Thanks

Does he have worms?

Well, it can be caused by a genetic mutation, so I'm not sure why you wouldn't start to see the symptoms in puppies. GSD are apparently more prone to this genetic mutation that most other breeds. (I have no firsthand knowledge; just what I've read on the internet)* (I just read another article that said that it can manifest in puppies as well as adults)

If the testing is expensive, maybe first you might want to consider changing his diet to RAW or to a grain-free kibble like EVO or Orijen? Apparently all grains need to be avoided with this disease. I also read that dogs may suffer simultaneously from SIBO (bacterial overgrowth of small intestine). Are you giving your pup any probiotics (plain yogurt, etc)?

I don't think you are being paranoid; maybe others with kibble-fed GSD pups can post regarding how much you are feeding and if that volume seems excessive...

Baby was not a GSD and she was not eating puppy she was eating adult.
But baby was 40 pounds at 4 months and eating 4 cups a day easily.
Just to give you a reference

Fecal was negative for worms/ parasites.

I'd love to feed raw, but its just too expensive while he's a pup. Canidae is the best I can do until he's an adult. I was giving him plain yogurt until I ran out of it mid june, but I do need to get some more.

Rob is 30lbs, 5 cups seems like alot, especially since Canidae is a high quality kibble. It seems like a lot too for him not to be filling out.

If anyone feeding kibble could post their experience, that would be great.

I feed kibble. Your pup is virtually the same age as mine, and right now it seems my pup is doing the "super growth" thing- has a voracious appetite, and went through a phase recently where she had an increased interest in her own poop and other "non-food" items in the yard (grass, dirt clods, bushes, rocks, etc).

We switched her to thrice daily feedings, about 1 & 1/3 cups per feeding. She previously was eating 1 cup in the morning, and 1 cup in the evening.

She had horrid gas and stool on her old food- soft and smelly. Since she switched to her new kibble, her stool has virtually no odor, and her gas (what little there is of it now) has a low odor that smells less "doggy" and more like human flatulance.

It sounds like, to an untrained lay-person, that you've got a combo of a kibble that doesn't agree with your pup, along with a pup that is active and growing and needs more food.

I'm not sure that Canidae is working out for your pup. It tends to be very low protein, and your pup may be telling you he needs a slightly higher protein intake right now.

I'm not sure what you mean when you say it's cheaper to feed an adult Raw, vs a puppy. Shouldn't it be the other way around? Forgive me if I'm wrong on this one- I don't feed raw (my situation with the military means I could have to suddenly deploy and have to leave my dog with someone who cannot/will not feed raw- it's easier to feed kibble with RMB mix-ins).

Alyssa,
What kibble are you feeding?

I wouldn't be worried if Rob just started these things. But the poop and grass/dirt eating started when he was 9 wks.

As far as raw portions, from what I've read, pups get 5-10% of their weight, while adults get 2-3%. So when puppy Rob hits 50lbs, he would be getting 2.5-5 lbs of raw food. Where as adult Rob, who I'm guessing will be 75lbs, will get 1.5-2.25 lbs of raw food.

Yesturday, Vet (who I have absolutely no trust in) found some excess bacteria in fecal sample, so we'll see how the metronidazole works out.

Before I get the test done, I guess I'll also try an all Canidae diet and see how that works.

Eating poop, grass and bugs isn't necessarily a sign of something bad. Some dogs just enjoy doing those things. Not saying there's nothing wrong, but there might not be.

There was a point in time when my pups were eating 4.5 cups of Orijen a day (somewhere between 30 and 45lbs in weight), I don't want a pup to fill out, I just want them to be a healthy-lean. "keep 'em hungry but not starved." Now they are adults and they are down to 3-1/4 cups a day. I was feeding 2-3/4 cups but they were getting too skinny.

Why Canidae?

Michele, make sure to start w/ the beneficials again (plain yogurt) during and after the metronidazole.

Mike, Canidae is quite a bit less expensive than the grain-free kibbles.

 Quote: Michele Hinton

Yesturday, Vet (who I have absolutely no trust in) found some excess bacteria in fecal sample, so we'll see how the metronidazole works out.

What kind of bacteria? It's important the vet knows which bacteria is present so the correct medication(s) can be prescribed. Bacteria could very well be the cause of the diarrhea/soft stool and gas.

Metronidazole is a good medication, commonly prescribed, and may take care of the problem completely. My pup was on it for his intestinal bacteria...but in his case, he also needed an oral antibiotic in addition to it.

Mike makes a good point: Pups eat all manner of gross and incomprehensible things and it isn't necessarily a sign that's something is wrong. My pup devoured the backyard for most of his puppyhood but not, thankfully, his own poop.